Happy Birthday to Me

Happy birthday to me. Happy birthday to me. Happy birthday to old man meee. Happy birthday to me.

Yep, I had a birthday too. On May 19th to be exact. And unlike Emma I kept my clothes on! I woke up to wonderful cards from the kids and Megan. After coffee came the really groovy gifts. Meg bought me a cycling jersey from a local shop in Lucca. Sam bought me soccer jersey for the Roma team Lazzio. Sarah Jane got me decals from all the countries we have visited and a Leaning Tower of Pisa that changes color with the temperature (It’s kind of like a mood ring - that’s another give-away as to how old I am). And Emma gave me a Rolex; that’s right I now have a Rolex. OK, it’s probably a faux-lex; it gained three days, eleven and a half hours one afternoon, but it looks like the real thing.

Our friend Jessica invited us over for crepes with toppings of fresh strawberries, bananas, and Nutella. Mr. Belly was very happy. We relaxed most of the afternoon and invited Jessica over to dinner with Stephanie and the rest of us. Teriyaki chicken and my internationally famous chocolate chip cookies topped off the evening. Jessica and Stephanie have been quite observant regarding my affection for coffee and gave my a few bags of good Italian roast and a Dosacafé to scoop the perfect amount of espresso. Meg and I put the incredibly tired kids down (see video) and spent the rest of the night packing. It was a great day with a bittersweet ending in light of the fact that we had to leave our home and friends the next day.

2 comments:

Ontario Emperor said...

Back in 2000, we took our then 8 year old daughter to Switzerland, where she was eating Nutella. I came home a week before my wife and daughter, and bought some Nutella at a Pavilions (upscale Safeway) for my daughter's enjoyment. But by the time she returned a week later, she had tired of Nutella...

Happy belated birthday.

Linnie said...

Happy Birthday Marty! You're older than me now! (You know how I wait for this day for 6 months!!) What a beautiful place to spend your birthday. Some of your landscapes look like old Corot paintings and your Italian facades like those dutch romantic masters....just beautiful. I was naturally enthralled!