Return - My Birthday

I have been feeling in a rut lately when it comes to my blog. Of course, I enjoy posting photos of LB and telling funny stories about him but I also appreciate the creative outlet that writing brings. When we were in the adoption process, I had so much to write about and discover and I loved using this blog as a way to sort through the experience. I am missing that these days. I tend to get wrapped up in the day to day mom stuff of teething misery, singing goofy songs, going to the park, getting puzzle pieces thrown at me, etc. I think it would do me some good to step away from that a few times a week and just write about something else.

My friend, Tracy, has unknowingly motivated me to join in on the September daily blogging theme. I don't think I can commit to blogging daily but I do want to be inspired to think about things outside of my routine as a mom. Don't worry, if you mostly stop by here for cute photos of LB I won't disappoint you and will still post some occasionally.

Here is the September theme:

September's theme for daily blogging: RETURN. Returning -- or turning again -- is about reflection, about going backwards, about revisiting a spot or memory. Sometimes people think that it can be a negative thing to live too much in the past, drowning in nostalgia. But a lot can be learned by mentally returning to a moment, replaying what happened in your mind, especially if lessons are learned in the process.

Today is my birthday. My dad jokes that it was the only time in my life that I saved them any money. I guess my mom was due on August 30th but their insurance switched over to a better plan on September 1st. So by waiting a few days to enter the world I saved them money. My dad always tells the story with a smile on his face though, as he does with most things. For some reason, my mind drifted today to the birthdays I spent at Earlham College. Perhaps this is because D and I are planning on going there in a few weeks for his 10 year reunion weekend. On September 1st, 1995 I had just returned from a month long canoeing trip in Northern Ontario with a group of other first year Earlham students. It was a great way to make fast friends at a place where I didn't know anybody and as it turned out I met my very best friend on that trip. My mom had come to campus to help me get my dorm room settled before classes officially started. I don't think my mom or I will ever forget that first shower I took at the Holiday Inn in Richmond after returning from the adventure. I will spare you the gory details but it was like I was shedding layers of skin except the layers were actually dirt. Although, I do take some pride in how well I handled being so dirty. I remember so clearly walking across the center of campus, called "The Heart" at Earlham, and some of my friends from the trip shouted out a dorm window, "Happy Birthday!" I think it was then that I knew I made the right choice in going to Earlham and that everything was going to be okay. I felt like I belonged. My sophomore year birthday was spent in Japan and sadly I don't really remember it. I am sure if I went back and looked at some photos it might jog my memory but at the moment my mind is blank. My host family probably had a cake that was put together delicately and was so pretty you didn't want to eat it. Oh, I miss Japan. On my birthday my junior year the boyfriend I had at the time broke up with me. I remember feeling like it came out of the blue and I have to say at the time it was truly heartbreaking. We went on a long walk around campus and I was so eager to just get back to my room and have a good cry. Not a good birthday. For my senior year my friends outdid themselves and put together quite a bash for my 21st birthday. I was the last of my friends to turn 21 so they didn't cut corners. Some of the things we did I would rather not share on the internet as it would attract a not so desirable blog following. However, it is a memory that still makes me laugh out loud.

I get to see one of those party organizers tomorrow, the same best friend I met on that canoeing trip, and then on Saturday my mom comes to town. I couldn't ask for a better birthday gift.

Happy Birthday to me!