Category Archives: Birthday

Happy Birthday Dear Daughter!

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daughter
My beautiful daughter at the beach.

Happy birthday to my sweet, funny and witty daughter.

Kat in a dry suit at the beach with big brother Robert.

I love this photo of my daughter because it shows her personality. I used to write about her all the time. But she told me to stop it. She said “I’m not your content.”

We used to spend summers in Laguna Beach to escape the high heat of Palm Springs (most days are over 110 degrees and some days reach 125 degrees!) Those are my favorite memories. My husband would be stuck working at home, except for weekends, while I took the kids to play in the waves and sand during the week. My daughter was a little princess and hated to wear a wet suit as a toddler. She’d strip naked as soon as her suit got wet. I brought a bag full of swim suits to keep her comfortable and clothed.

Now she’s a sufficient adult, working and making ends meet. She’s interested in comedy and has taken classes in writing comedy as well as stand up. She’s courageous enough to have performed live on stage in San Francisco. I can’t say how proud I am of her to do that! Talk about taking a leap and getting out of your comfort zone. But maybe it is in her comfort zone?

There’s a sad side to her birthday for her and many of us. A friend she had in college shared the same birthday. I wrote about Lauren McCluskey HERE. I’m now making an annual donation to the foundation her mother set up in Lauren’s memory ever since I found out Lauren and my daughter shared birthdays. Lauren was shot and murdered while talking to her mother on the phone, walking home from night class. There’s a lot more to the story that is really hard.

I am so grateful to have my daughter in my life. I can’t imagine the pain that Lauren’s mother goes through on her birthday and every day.

Here’s a link to the Lauren McCluskey Foundation if you care to make a donation on her birthday. https://laurenmccluskey.org/

Virtual campaign in honor of Lauren’s Birthday scheduled for February 12th, 2025

Happy birthday to my wonderful daughter! I love her so much.

What are some of your favorite memories of your childhood or when your children were young?

Travel and sickness

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Pretty kitty
Olive hanging out on the guest bed. The bedding was my daughter’s growing up.

Yesterday was my son’s birthday. I was going to repost my son’s birthday story, where he asked to have 50 kids for his second grade birthday party. We had adopted Angus, our yellow lab, from Guide Dogs of the Desert the year before. I wrote about his birthday party in honor of Angus where our son asked for donations to Guide Dogs instead of presents. He raised $1,600. You can read the story HERE.

I remember our family driving to Guide Dogs to meet Angus. I was nervous about the dog and after we had him in the car, I ran back into the office to ask if I could bring him back — if he didn’t work out. The woman looked at me like I was crazy.

Then she said, “Here are his medical records.” I looked at the paperwork and noticed Angus shared the same birthday with my son. I realized that was it. There was no going back.

We loved Angus until after my son went off to college. My daughter was a junior in high school when we had to say good-bye.

When I looked at my posts from last year, I discovered I had COVID this week in 2023. I had traveled to Washington state to spread my mom’s ashes on her birthday and got sick.

Last week, I got sick after my trip to Santa Barbara which I planned for my mom’s birthday. I’m very stuffed up, have a low-grade fever and I’m achy. I can’t stand being sick and this is my second bug since Christmas. Strange that every time I travel, I seem to get sick.

This current bug was because a woman who was on our tour by shuttle bus sneezed and coughed on us. Why she didn’t bow out of activities and stay in the gorgeous hotel was beyond me. I would have.

Actually, I never got sick traveling to Mexico by car. It’s only when I fly somewhere. In Puerto Penasco, our beach get away four hours south, we eat meals outdoors, we stay in a condo and we’re apart from other people. However, I read that last week they found seven bodies outside of town all shot. They were all men, wearing military gear and our government identified them as cartel members. So, no Mexico for me right now.

Do you get sick after traveling? Or is it just me?

What do you think of people who won’t stay home when they’re sick?

Weekend Getaway

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Boat in Santa Barbara
I saw this boat in the parking lot of the Marina in Santa Barbara. It has my name on it!

Friday was my mom’s actual birthday. I posted my memory of spreading her ashes last year — a few days early. Mom was on my mind the past weeks. I was feeling the milestone.

Good thing I thought about how I might be feeling in advance. I had a plan. We scheduled a weekend getaway in one of my favorite places. Santa Barbara. We celebrated Mom’s birthday there. I was with friends, incredible views, a fun hotel, food, food and more food. It was a wonderful way to spend the weekend.

Here are photos from Santa Barbara:

We arrived at the Santa Barbara Airport on a sunny afternoon.

A view from our friends’ backyard.

Views from our hotel’s rooftop pool. It was breathtaking! What a surprise when we walked out on the rooftop. I had no idea it would be spectacular.

Hotel lobby. I loved how the hotel was decorated in a Spanish Colonial Revival mix with Moroccan flair.

Here we are in the mirror, with a courtyard behind us in one of the hotel’s three buildings.

Morning walk on Stearns Wharf.

Looking back at Santa Barbara from the wharf.

Where is your favorite place to go to treat yourself to a special getaway?

I’m reminded of a song by Lenny Kravitz, “Fly Away.”

A Day of Rest

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A view from our walk.
View of the desert.

I had several plans for my birthday. I signed up for lap swimming at the YMCA. I was planning on going to my favorite cafe. I wanted to go for a hike.

But when I got up, I felt like doing nothing. I decided I’d like to sit around and read for my birthday. I was reading the Wall Street Journal and I ran across two interesting articles about doing nothing. I had no idea that my new birthday plans were trending.

One article was written by Ben Zimmer and was about Hurkle Durkle:

The unpredictable pathways of language usage never cease to amaze. Who could have foreseen that one of the trendiest words of 2024 would be an old Scottish term for lounging around in bed?

That word is the delightfully reduplicative “hurkle-durkle,” which has taken TikTok and other social media outlets by storm. As defined by the Dictionary of the Scots Language, it’s a verb meaning “to lie in bed or lounge about when one should be up and about.” That dictionary cites an older one published in 1825 by John Jamieson, who reported that the word came from the dialect spoken in Fife, a peninsula in eastern Scotland.

https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/to-hurkle-durkle-or-lounge-in-bed-is-a-tiktok-trend-thats-200-years-old-ad9e7c52?mod=lifestyle_lead_pos5

The other was about a new vacation trend doing nothing on vacation called:

The Rise of the Do-Nothing Vacation

More travelers say they want to make relaxation their top priority while on holiday

By Allison Pohle and Rachel Wolfe

The pendulum is swinging away from jam-packed trips and Instagram-worthy adventures and toward vacations with little to write home about beyond a pretty sunset and a cold drink.

More vacationers say they want a true break to rest and recharge during their time off. Their do-nothing vacations have no schedule. These aren’t beach trips that involve surfing or kayaking, or foodie tours requiring hours of research—and decision fatigue.

https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/travel/vacation-trends-resorts-all-inclusive-relax-ce3f9026?mod=lifestyle_trendingnow_article_pos2

The third article I read was about a mommy blogger who was making seven figures by Sara Ashley O’Brien:

She Was a Mommy Blogger. Now She’s Covering Trump and Kennedy on the Trail—and Making a Fortune.

Jessica Reed Kraus built a massive following by sharing celebrity gossip on Instagram. Now she’s on the campaign trail and running a growing media brand.

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif.—For a year during the pandemic, Jessica Reed Kraus and her husband, Mike, rented out the two-room hideaway behind their ranch-style home to help support their family of six.

Then came Depp v. Heard. 

Kraus, a stay-at-home mom who’d built a following as a lifestyle blogger, was part of the frenzy surrounding the 2022 defamation trial of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard. She shared salacious stories from anonymous sources about Heard’s personal life and quotes from a phone call she said she received from Depp. Kraus told her followers she had once believed the actor was abusive, as Heard’s lawyers alleged in court. But now, she was taking his side. 

https://www.wsj.com/style/jessica-reed-kraus-house-inhabit-rfk-jr-trump-kennedy-newsletter-e17077c4?mod=lifestyle_lead_pos1

Wait a minute. I was a mommy blogger. Why didn’t I make seven figures? Maybe because I’d rather do nothing.

Have you ever heard of hurkle durkle?

Why do you think doing nothing is a new trend?

Do you ever feel the need for a day off of activities?

How I’m celebrating

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Lemon Lush
I’m making Lemon Lush for our party.

This weekend, it’s my birthday. I am throwing a party for my husband.

That’s because his birthday was in January and he was sick with an upper respiratory virus. I was sick before Christmas through New Year’s, then it was his turn. I had invited three couples from our neighborhood, plus our Palm Springs friends who now live one mile away. Our Santa Barbara friends were going to surprise hubby. But they came two weeks ago and we had a fun, but exhausting time!

I couldn’t have the party while they were here, because two of the previously invited couples were out of town.

I haven’t felt like entertaining, but time is passing by and I did invite them. I said we were postponing while hubby was sick. I didn’t want to flake out on them so, his birthday party happens to coincide with my actual one.

For my birthday I also made swimming reservations for us at our local YMCA. We had such a cold winter, I never once made it to swim laps. I’m warm weather swimmer, also known as a wimp. I thought what better day than my birthday to restart lap swimming.

I did go to lunch with my two graphic designer friends who moved from Palm Springs to nearby more than 10 years ago. We have made it a monthly get together and we rotate who gets to choose the restaurant. It was my turn and I picked a sushi restaurant that none of us had been to. I had sushi and my friends ordered the Bento Box — which was only $12! That’s a deal in this town.

Hamachi Nigiri and the Garlic Roll that had tempura shrimp, tuna and roasted garlic on top.

My friends $12 Bento Box Lunch Special.

What do you like to do to celebrate your birthday?

Are you a sushi fan? Or, do you like food like in the Bento Box better?

Being in the moment

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This cardinal paid a visit to my Birdbuddy yesterday. He was fascinated by the camera.

I have struggled this week. Maybe it’s because it was a three-day weekend, we had guests and I got really, really tired. I think our eight-mile hike had something to do with that. Plus, my guests are always on the go and don’t stop to relax. Personally, I need some downtime and quiet.

I had hardly anything scheduled this week. Only a meeting about my HOA newsletter and a zoom call. You’d think I could relax and enjoy my days and evenings. Instead, I felt anxiety. I tend to be a worry wort.

Next week, I have a ton of things to do, appointments, lunches, and I’m throwing a belated birthday party for my husband. I spent this week worrying about all I have to do next week.

Walks and birdwatching help me to relax. But I was thinking if I was being present in the moment, I wouldn’t be anxious about next week.

How do you focus on being in the moment?

Watch as the cardinal pecks at the camera. After the cardinal leaves you can turn off the video 😊

The party’s over

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I woke up to a foggy morning in Maricopa County. We’ve been here three years, two weeks and it’s my first time to see fog.

My husband caught the nasty bug I had from before Christmas until New Year’s. Now it’s his turn. The problem? Today we’re supposed to have surprise guests from Santa Barbara, friends of more than 30 years, arriving for the weekend to celebrate his birthday.

Then, because our friends are coming, I planned a small birthday party to share cake that our friend is baking. She’s owned several bakeries in the past and her cakes are amazing. I thought it was a perfect time to invite some neighbors and friends over.

But yesterday, although my husband was out of bed for awhile, I thought about how I’d feel. Would I like guests for an entire weekend while I was getting better? Would I want a houseful of people over to celebrate, when I didn’t feel 100%?

Enough with the surprise. I asked him. He was relieved I let him know and said to cancel everything. He was in no mood to be around people and wanted to rest through the weekend. I’m pretty sure he was touched with the surprises I had planned, but no thank you!

Not only will we rest up and feel better, we won’t be spreading our nasty germs.

NCAA Football Champs:

If you didn’t know, I’m a college football fan. I don’t watch NFL (except for the Eagles because of Britain Covey. He played for the Utah Utes. He’s 26 years old, only 5’8″ tall, but quick. He’s a punt returner and had a record 54-yard return against the Giants on Christmas. His grandfather is Stephen Covey of “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” fame and Franklin Day Timers.

Anyway, through my daughter’s college years as a student athlete at Utah, I became a huge fan of their football and gymnastics teams (and swim team, of course.) I have a ton of red and black gear that my daughter gave me, because every meet for four years they loaded her down with sweats, jackets, t-shirts, etc. I also bought my fair share. I wear my Utah gear on football game days.

I think what I enjoy most about football is the people. It’s not the game, because I honestly don’t know that much about it. It’s knowing people who play the game. Or liking their life stories.

Now, we’re down to the season’s final game. My alma mater University of Washington Huskies is in the national championships against Michigan. I’ve returned to my roots and ordered a t-shirt several weeks ago. GO DAWGS!

I’m also a fan of Husky QB Michael Penix, Jr. He should have won the Heisman because he’s the best quarterback people have seen in years. Plus, the lining of his suit coat for the Heisman awards night had every teammate and coaches name on it. The guy who won the Heisman over Penix had a suit coat lining of photos of himself in the Heisman pose.

Are you a college or NFL fan? What other sports do you enjoy — or any?

What teams do you cheer for?

How would you feel about having guests when you didn’t feel 100%?