27/06/2011

I'm officially 30. Does it mean that the countdown for 'the rest of my life' has begun? Somehow I didn't discover any magical transformations (butterfly wings, maybe?) on the morning of my birthday, when I got up at 11:30 a.m. (thanks to Mark staying home, taking care of kids and letting me sleep in). Just like Mark said in his post earlier (which was a huge surprise :), I'm simply one day older and I still don't feel all that *grown-up*. Just taking it one day at a time, finding my place, working on my goals, struggling, learning and enjoying this little life I have.

I had a beautiful day with my friends and family. Mark was home all day and only worked while Ivy was taking a nap. Then, in my typical spontaneous fashion, I decided to have some friends over for ice-cream. I'm all for other people planning ahead, making invitations and having well-organized parties. But when it comes to our own, low-key is my mantra. No gifts, no birthday cakes, just people we love and enjoy spending time with. And that's exactly how we spent our evening, chatting away, with babies crawling around, kids running and playing games, slapping mosquitoes and meeting new friends, long after the sun went down.

(huge thanks to Katrina, who picked up my abandoned camera and took most of the photos. I was too busy enjoying everyone's company :)

(this was taken when it was pretty dark outside, my poor old Nikon did the best it could at ISO 500)

Annie the Warrior (with running injury no less), being her usual gorgeous self, crutches and all. And her little boy with a pair of matching mini-crutches nearly made me fall over when I saw them walking into our backyard.

looks like Anya was showing off her new mosquito bites here...

yes, there's always a child or two swarming around my lap, looking for a sweet spot to land on. If that's not love, then I don't know what it is.