On Turning Sixteen and Twenty

Time for a shocking admission...I don't really remember my sixteenth birthday. No, I wasn't drunk or anything , but apparently my parents treated it as another birthday and I didn't do anything too out of the ordinary. I didn't go get my license right away (that came a couple of months later...I was in no hurry) and I couldn't say I was Sweet Sixteen and never been kissed (well, I HAD been dating for a few months before I turned 16). I know Jeff remembers his sixteenth birthday because...drumroll, please...he got his license and drove to MY house for dinner that night! I'm still suprised his parents let him take the car out on the first day he got his license. I don't think I'd let my child do that.

Hannah turns 16 tomorrow. Part of me thinks "Well, yes, it's about time," and part of me is just flabbergasted to think my child could possibly be that old! I'm not a maudlin type person so I won't sit around bemoaning the loss of my baby (well, maybe I will if I think it's annoying enough to her, lol). But where did that little red-haired, curly topped sweetie go? And the truth is, she's still here in the presence of my gorgeous, well-rounded, smart, Christian daughter of whom I am oh so proud. She's all I could have hoped for, even with the sarcastic mouth (gee, where DID she get that?) and the "I can argue with a fencepost" attitude. She works hard in school and she's a decent person. I could not ask for more, and so if we make a slightly big deal over her birthday with a new TV/DVD player and half a new wardrobe, well, she's worth it. (No car yet though...we're still discussing that). We'll go out to eat and we won't let the waiters sing to her because she hates that. It'll be great.

And part two of this is the fact that it will also be our twentieth anniversary. Yes, our little bundle of joy came on our fourth anniversary, thus negating the anniversary aspect for many years. But this is a big deal, too; though we've been together almost (gasp!) 27 years, being married to Jeff is one of the best parts of my life. I cannot imagine what I'd be like without him because he balances me; he makes me laugh; he supports me; he's my best friend. I'd much rather spend time with him rewatching Seinfeld or Scrubs than do anything else with anyone else. When people say they don't enjoy being with their spouses, I feel so badly for them because I cannot imagine not being with Jeff. We grew up together and I expect that, with the grace of God, we'll grow old together, or at least grow more ornery together.

So Happy Birthday, Hannah, you special child, and Happy Anniversary to my best friend. I'm a blessed woman.

~taminator40