Happy (Surprise!) Birthday

Your ability to read this means 2 things: I'm officially successful at creating a timed & dated post (booya!), AND that we're officially in the throws of a really fun birthday party! Setting this as mom's homepage makes it impossible to post without her knowing-- so I had to be sneaky & smart by writing the day before...and posting precisely in the middle of her party! Here's the thing-- I'm terrible at secrets. I'm not sure why, because I love a good surprise...but I always walk the line of being a no-good-fun-spoiler. We've been planning this party for a long time, and I'm so glad that the clock is officially up because these lips are dying to spill the beans! I haven't posted because I wasn't sure what to say...so I avoided writing because I knew I couldn't say a thing without saying everything!

I could tell you that my mom deserves all of the world's joys because of the joy she supplies for others, or that she is the epitome of strength & courage and could fill endless pages with life lessons and stories of seeing the good in perfectly terrible days-- but you already know all of that, because knowing my mother means you know that her incredible character precedes her. And even on the days when her voice tells me she's struggling to push through-- I can assure you, she is absolutely thankful for the life. THIS life. that she has been given. To tell you that my mother is sacred to me is an understatement-- and without getting weepy (because talking about her ALWAYS makes me weepy!), she is by far the biggest blessing in my life, and it is my greatest joy to be called her daughter.

So today, we're doing it big for her-- because she makes this world a better & more meaningful place...and that's reason enough to be celebrated.


The world loves you, Mom...Happiest Birthday.