I was pissed at me too. I woke up the morning of my birthday disappointed for being so inconsiderate to my BFF, and couldn't help but wonder if that dream was foreshadowing any part of what this next year of life will be like for me. Because I've got high hopes for life in Texas, and the last thing I need is Oprah telling the Universe that she's pissed at me (the Universe hates me enough as it is).
But so far, I'm a good 8 days into my 37th year on this planet and things are going pretty well! We haven't started any part of the PCS process since we are still waiting on official orders, but we are deep into house-browsing and getting acquainted with the area of El Paso that we want to live in, and we've decided on the school that we are enrolling Isabelle into. Also, I've gotten the ball rolling with getting my dental hygiene license for Texas! Well.... maybe not "rolling," quite yet, but I've got a firm grip on the ball and am ready to let it loose just as soon as we have a Texas address.
So yeah! So far, so good with this whole being 37 thing in a Universe that we all know loves Oprah more than anyone!
Besides disappointing Oprah, my birthday was... perfect! The older you get the more that birthday's feel like any other day, but Eric and Isabelle went out of their way to make me feel extra special. My man made me shrimp & crab stir fry for supper, and I made a lemon cake with strawberry frosting for desert (it ended up being too lemony so I only had a couple of bites out of the entire thing, and now I wish I would've just stuck with my favorite, yellow cake with chocolate frosting. Ugh.). But the best parts of my day were when Eric surprised me by bringing home Ben & Jerry's 'The Tonight Dough' ice cream! I am a BIG fan of Jimmy Fallon and The Tonight Show! {Like, giant. I love him.} I have been dying to try his ice cream for a while now, but couldn't get my mitts on it in Germany and haven't seen it at any of the stores we frequent here in Virginia. Eric searched the internet far and wide and found 'The Tonight Dough' at one of the stores we never go to! You guys, that is love. It was the sweetest and most thoughtful gesture; a gesture so simple and unexpected. I love my husband more than Oprah and Jimmy Fallon... combined! And then when I opened my gift from Isabelle... I started to cry because she got me the perfume that my beloved Grandma Sue used to wear! She said that she wanted me to have something that would remind me of GG every day so that I wouldn't miss her so much.
And now I'm crying again.... oh that girl!
My version of a "naked cake" since I don't like a lot of frosting.
"Birthday" in German
**squeal!!**
Isabelle got a million kisses for this one!
My new lip gloss organizer!
LipSense is taking over my life.... and now my life is complete.
Now that we know that we've only got 10 weeks left on this side of the United States, we are committed to seeing as much as we can while we are here. I'm not sure how much that is going to end up being exactly, but in our hearts we are totally committed! So Eric suggested that we go to Colonial Williamsburg for my birthday since that was one of the things you can't leave Virginia without seeing.
Colonial Williamsburg is an entire city (small city, very small, maybe more like a neighborhood, but still more giant than I was expecting) reenacted as the original Williamsburg from the 18th century. Everything and everyone were as it would have been in the 1700's! The people who worked there (or otherwise known as "historical interpreters") talked like they did in the 1700's, served food as they would have eaten for that time period, played colonial type games, sold colonial style knick knacks, the whole works! It was probably the most authentic time travel experience I could ever actually experience!
And you don't need a DeLorean to get to Colonial Williamsburg!!
I mean, c'mon! How cool is this?!?
The weather was gorgeous... but fuh-reezing cold. It reminded me of my wedding day. The weather on my wedding day was exactly the same, so in my wedding pictures we all look like we're warm and having a ball in our dresses when in reality we were purple, our teeth were chattering, and we had to hold our breaths so that you couldn't see them in the pictures.
There is no cost to walk around Colonial Williamsburg, it's an open area just like any other neighborhood, and is apart of the real Williamsburg where people live their regular modern lives. Some of the streets are blocked off to traffic, and there were costumed interpreters everywhere which were the signs that you were in the colonial part of Williamsburg, but otherwise it was an open area to freely walk around in. But if you wanted to go into some of the buildings and take a tour, you had to buy a ticket. For us, the tickets were pricey, and we aren't quick to spend our money on tours if there are other ways to enjoy and experience a place we're visiting. But Virginia is an amazing State to visit, there is so much to see and they take really good care of their Soldiers, so all three of us got tickets for Colonial Williamsburg for FREE!
So we gladly toured as many parts of Colonial Williamsburg as we wanted! It was great being able to get out of the cold, but we know now that we would've missed out on the best parts of the town if we had decided not to get tickets. Because they had everything from a fully functioning 1700's kitchen with chefs cooking actual meals, as well as a fully functioning garden, to a tavern and a blacksmith, all with people working just as they would have for that time. The blacksmith was one of our favorites parts!
And you needed to have purchased tickets to experience all that....
Starting the tour of the Governor's Palace.
The Governor's cook cooking in her kitchen.... the food smelled amazing!
The garden! There was a gardener working in here too, I just didn't get a picture of him.
The Wetherburn Tavern
Just reading the newspaper dated June 24, 1765 while enjoying my coffee.
This guy was so great! He answered ALL of the kids' questions and demonstrated all sorts of things in his shop. This was one of our favorite parts of the whole day!
We ended the day by shopping at the Williamsburg Outlet Mall where Eric bought me a pair of white Converse that I have been wanting for a long while now (spoiled, much? Yes, yes I am), and then we ate dinner at Captain George's seafood buffet restaurant, where we ate ourselves into oblivion. I've been on a seafood kick lately, wanting as much shrimp & crab in my belly as I can get, so I was in food Heaven for about 32.6 minutes before I got insanely full and wondered how a mountain of crab legs was ever a good idea. When we got home that evening Eric and I drank wine and vegged on the couch while Isabelle watched movies with her friends. Our house has turned into social central lately, which I personally love because her friends are so great and then I know that they are all tucked safely in our house under a super watchful eye (*cough,* Eric, *cough.* Okay well me too, because I am psychotic about my daughter.).
I could not have imagined a better way to celebrate my birthday!
8 days in and judging by this past week, I'd say my 37th year on this planet will be a good one! I probably say that every year.... but I truly believe it will be.
What kind of BFF doesn't let you in when you're late! So rude, Oprah! That is such a funny dream. I love your east coast trips-they remind me of all the great places within driving distance that I've never been and need to see!
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