Skating on the Edge: Reaching Out Toward 50 & Beyond?

Recently, I went roller skating with friends at Chrissy Field in San Francisco to celebrate one of my best friend's birthdays. Four wild and crazy gals donned pink and white roller skates, zany purple paint splashed spandex tights and pink baseball shirts to do some victory laps with our birthday pal.

We looked as if we stepped out of a bad 80's movie. It was fun to surprise our up for anything friend. She had a great time careening around the water front proving that you never have to act your age, ever.

It made us all appreciate the happy go lucky, privileged lives that we all lead. There is stress, distress, problems, set backs, disappointments and strange surprises everywhere. Sometimes it is easy to let a cloud linger just over your head and feel isolated and alone. Sometimes it is hard to see the blessing when it is fogged in by regret or should have dones.

Now that 50 is clearly, un mistakenly and undeniably ahead, I hope we put on our pink skates and blast straight ahead. Always.

The Lost November

My husband said something very interesting tonight, he said that we've lost all of November. Yes, now where did November go? Every year, we hit November and have what we basically can call the birthday month.

Deb 11/2

Francesca 11/3

John 11/4

Beth 11/6

Michelle 11/11

Rick 11/13

Birk 11/20

Lynda 11/23

It is the birthday onslaught. When two people in your family and some of your very best friends all have birthdays in this kind of succession, it is one big birthday month. One big birthday extravaganza. Non-stop, all of the time fun and frolic full of gift wrap, champagne, and party hats.

Once we hit the end of November, we are ready to slow down and take a breather, but oh, whoa, it's now December! December and the Christmas countdown has started ticking as soon as we finish the turkey leftovers.

Funny enough, we just had a week off with the kids. We slept late, stayed in our pajamas and had no routine, which was our ruin. You basically get nothing done when you aren't forced to get up and get on the move. We were slugs, but we were birthday celebrating slugs.

On a cheerier note, we learned that 6 bottles of champagne for 8 people in a limo is not enough to help us finish off the end of the birthday extravaganza month. Oh birthdays, birthdays, birthdays. Older AND wiser, what a treat.

Kicking Coffee To The Curb...Again

At one point during the holidays, I realized that I was on my 5th cup of coffee for the day. To be truthful, I don't even like the taste of coffee, but I sure was liking the added energy it was giving me. My caffeine driven state perked me up enough to get all of the items on the holiday check list checked off.

Many people look forward to the quietude of the New Year, but January is never boring and dull for our household. There is the De-Christmas factor, The Back to School Routine Factor, The Brother and Sister In Law's Birthday Factor, and most of all, The Husband's Birthday Factor.

I am well into 2011 and I was still sucking back the coffee like there's no tomorrow. Sometimes, it was the only thing propping me up and propelling me to the next activity.

On Saturday, I made a conscious decision. I put the coffee machine away. Well, I actually moved it out to the ark. I moved three modes of coffee making out to the ark. I left myself with a kettle and my Raspberry Earl Grey Tea.

I'll let you know how that works out for me, my family, and a thousand little volunteer things that I'm responsible for. I'm optimistic...but I also know it's only a matter of time.

The Best Birthday Gift Ever

It's not diamonds, or money, or unlimited massage. Nope. The best birthday gift took 41 years to arrive--it was my dear friend, Nicole, taking my 7 year old daughter home from school and de-lousing her.

Leave it to best friends to give you the best gifts! This gift of de-lousing came wrapped with a pretty bow that included stripping the bed and starting a load of lice-killing laundry.

Where was I? My other dear friends, Paula and Pam, suggested months ago that we all go into the city and have a spa day on my birthday. I arrived out of massage bliss to a very disturbing voicemail. However, up until that point, I was having a fabulous day. I obviously have great friends all around.

Nicole, didn't want to ruin my spa day, so she kindly took Birk to the "special salon."

After a few days of personal lice battle, I've realized that lice are going to be right up there with the cock roaches in the new order of the post nuclear bomb world. Yep, 20 minutes in the dryer will melt a $200 sleeping bag, but it won't kill lice. Hmmmmm.

Well, folks that's where I've been this week. Last week I had a sick dog. The week before that I had a boy with a fractured arm. Where would any of us be without our friends???