Happy Birthday To Me . . . I Mean, Us!

I think that my birthday this year was officially one of the best. No, there were no monkey cupcakes this year. But Shauna did make some yummy cupcakes . . . they just didn't look like monkeys. But they were delicious!! (There are some wonderful benefits in having a domestic goddess as a sister!)

My sisters and my mom also took me out for lunch on Wednesday after my class. We went to The Cheesecake Factory. I HIGHLY recommend it!! Of course, I love cheesecake, so anyplace that is named after my favorite dessert would earn a good review from me! To top it all off, the waitress had my cheesecake delivered on a "Food Network" decorated plate . . . with my name spelled right and everything! Three cheers for people who know how to spell my name right!!

I have a theory about decorations on a plate. They are put there for aesthetic purposes, of course, but they should also be enjoyed. I mean, seriously. Who would waste a perfectly good dollop of chocolate syrup and sprinkles . . . even if it does look pretty? So here's my childish confession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I licked the plate. In front of my mother. Happy 26th birthday to me!

On Wednesday night, I went to go see the show at Hale Center Theater. My brother was in the cast and graciously offered me a free ticket. (One thing about Seth is that he is always really good about that .. . I think the only shows he's been in that I haven't seen were the ones he did while I was on my mission. I really appreciate that he gets me tickets!) It was really fun . . . especially to see how much two of my nephews enjoyed it. And of course, my sisters and I had a very enjoyable time laughing at my dorky brother!! He is such a ham, and that makes any show enjoyable!

After the show, Patti and Shauna took me to Sconecutter. You can never go wrong with an order of spicy fries and a shake! As we were leaving, a big group of guys (who looked about high school age) walked in and asked if someone could take a picture for them. Patti was kind enough to oblige, and I went to toss our garbage on my way out. As I was walking past, I overheard one of the guys say "dawg." I thought it was very humorous, because really, who says that? So, kind of muttering under my breath, I said, "Yo Dawg! What's up, Dawg?" in a semi-mocking tone. As luck would have it, one of the guys on the end closest to me overheard my sarcasm (Just for Shauna . . . "Sarcasm! Wow! That's original!!") and kind of smirked at me. I felt like I was back in the Wendy's parking lot singing Veggietales at the top of my lungs! Despite the slight embarrassment of being overheard, it was a very entertaining event . . . at least Sarah thought so!

After Sconecutter, I "kidnapped" Sarah to come and break in my new Wii system. Although it was late, she was going to stay the night at Grandma's house, so we figured we could play for a while. Well, 1 a.m. rolled around and I figured I should go to sleep. And yet, I felt like I should stay up a little longer. So, when 2 a.m. rolled around and the phone rang, I was totally awake. (mock all you want, dear sisters of mine. I just figure I was supposed to be awake for the phone call to expedite my arrival so Shauna could go back to bed!) Rachael had gone into labor, and after 26 years, I was being de-throned as the Queen of July with the birth of a new niece early Thursday morning. At least she's cute. If she was an ugly baby, I would have been bitter about sharing my birthday month! So here's to #16: Sabrina Mei, born July 31, 2008. (I still applaud her timing . . . we got to go have cheesecake before she was born!)

I love how she's sticking her tongue out in the one on the bottom! She's got a cute tongue! (Did Dad used to tell you that you had a cute tongue, Rachael?) That's why I pirated it off Rachael's blog! Isn't she freaking adorable?

In other news, I have officially decided to go to New York next summer. I plan to see a couple of shows, do a temple session in Manhattan and Palmyra, and several other things. Patti is going with me because for as much as I think I need to grow up and do some things while I"m still single, going to New York alone was a little too much to handle! (I'm a total chicken when it comes to things like that!) I'm excited to go because it's something I've always wanted to do. The only thing that would make it better was if all three of my sisters were coming with me. I totally understand that two of them aren't really in a position to go with me right now, but it would have been a total blast to experience that all together. Maybe when we're old and wrinkled like our folks, we can travel together as sisters!