Birthday To-Do

Nineteen years ago today I met my first daughter. We didn't know we were having a girl. She was a stubborn, private little fetus in the ultrasound pictures, and so was our only surprise. We were in shock that we had a daughter, and she was such a cuddly little chubby thing. That was a really happy day, and Alisa has brought us many, many happy days since that first one. Tonight we (me and my folks) took her to Olive Garden to celebrate her 19th birthday. She is all grown up now, and a finer girl there never was. I'm just a little bit proud of her.

My only regret is that I wasn't able to spend more time with my girl on her birthday. We left home for Logan at 8:00 this morning, got back at 10:30 this evening, and so much happened in between those hours, it feels like we've been gone for a week. Not only was there birthday planning and shopping, we also crammed in a doctor's appointment, a blood draw, a dance lesson, a stop at the bank, a trip to Sam's, a too-long day at work which was filled with more drama than I care to elaborate on here, a trip to Smiths, a pizza pick up, and a sick boy. All of that left only three hours to spend with Alisa, which, come to think of it, is the same amount of time I was in labor with her. That three hours seemed to last much longer than the three hours I spent with her tonight. She has been so worth it though.

P.S. Don't her teeth look beautiful in this picture? That $3000.00 orthodontist bill really paid off.