The Best Birthday (Part I)
01-14-2002,

The Best Birthday...

January 14, 2002

Wow, it's been a whirlwind of a weekend, that much is for certain. I can't even begin to write all about it yet, I am still processing much of it in my mind. I wanted to post an entry this morning though, and then my plan is to post another this evening (if I can stay awake, I am exhausted). I guess I should start with Saturday, but I am so excited to write about yesterday, that I think I will save Saturday for tonight's entry. Yesterday was my 31st Birthday, and it was as special as it could be. Waking up and spending the morning with my best friends really set the tone for the whole day. Jen made us an awesome breakfast, and we played Phase 10 until it was time to get ready to leave for Sherry and Chuck's. Before we left however, I got to open my presents from the girls (well the presents surely didn't stop there). They bought me the most beautiful thing, a Winnie the Pooh Christmas Train. It has 6 pieces to it, and it is just so awesome. It is a collecters item (and way more expensive than they should have done), but I was so thrilled with it. It is actually something that I had wanted once upon a time, but never ever thought I would have. It was so hard to hold back the tears, I have such wonderful friends, and they made me feel like a princess (hehe, Cory made me a crown (it was gold for my golden birthday backwards, lol and it looked like a halo, giggle), which was soooooo beautiful, even if they were teasing me about it).

We headed out to Sherry and Chucks pretty much on schedule, which was pretty good considering we were all getting ready at the same time, and pushing each other out of the way, LOL. Stephen and I drove in our car, and the girls followed. It was actually very nice to have those 45 minutes alone with him. He also did soooooo much to make my birthday so very special, but I will write about that later, as much of it happened on Saturday. One of his gifts to me was tickets for the wolves games, and that was why we were heading to Sherry and Chuck's, to meet to go to the game. So, we get there, and I was so glad to see Chrissy and June. June couldn't wait to give me kisses and hugs and say Happy Birthday and to give me my present, LOL. They didn't even wait until everyone else was upstairs. I loved my present from them too, they got me this really nice set of dessert dishes that I had said I liked one time when Sherry and I were shopping. It has ice cream bowls, banana split plates and sundae/float cups. I can't wait for the girls to come over so we can use them, giggle.

We were all able to fit into Jen's van to go to the game (it was a little smooshy, but more fun). Cory said we must have looked like a clown car when we were all getting out. I was so excited, I didn't care what we looked like, lol. We got to the game as they were opening the doors to let people in. I do so love getting there early and watching the players warm up and all that fun stuff... plus getting there early is how I get to see Skates before the games. I wasn't disappointed.

Right away, Tonya asked me to go to the bathroom with her (why is that important enough to write about? Well, it was their plan to get me away while they did some wonderful stuff, which I didn't know about until later on). We stopped and got hot dogs and lemonade too, which was yummy. After we ate really quick (and I do mean quick), we were going to go find Skates, but before we could, Cory came and got us, they found him for us, awwwww. I got my picture taken with him, and then we did a group picture with him (awww again). THEN, he was signing a card (it's a Skates trading card that they carry around and sign to give to the kids, okay, and me, hehe), and he wrote... Happy B-day, Love Skates. I was so thrilled! Cory, Jen and Tonya had told him it was my birthday when we were taking the pictures, and it was just so sweet. I was so excited, and ran off to show it to Stephen.

We had seats that I totally love, but everyone else hates, LOL. The reason they hate them is because they are behind the goalie, and right at glass level. While you can see absolutely everything, you have to really watch for flying pucks. Boy were pucks flying during practice. Stephen ran and caught me one (my first ever) and then Jen decided to nab a second one with her arm. Okay, so it wasn't a decision on her part, it sorta picked her, but two pucks in one game, wow.

The only bad part of the whole weekend. I wanted to tease Jen after she got hit with the puck and tried to get the puck from her (I only wanted it for a minute, but when she wouldn't hand it to me I said... but it's my birthdayyyyy, I can see why everyone thought that I was trying to get the puck to keep, but I only meant, to use for a minute). I wanted to hold them up to her, and tell Cory to take a picture.... because we call Tonya Rock head, and I wanted to say, Look a Rock head and a puck head all in one row, but that joke didn't go over too well. Still, if that was the only bad moment of the whole weekend, I can't complain. They thought that I wanted the puck for myself, and since Stephen had already gotten me one, and this one had hit Jen, well, it just got all turned around. Then, I went back to my seat, and climbed over the seats, but I climbed over on the other side of Sherry, since there was more room to do so. Well as I tried to get past Sherry, she said, sit with me a minute, and pulled me down. Cory asked why I was sitting over there, and I said, because I want to, and she thought I was pouting, and it was just a yucky moment (nobody's fault really, just one of those moments where things are misunderstood, feelings are hurt and you go on), we got thru it... Jen later brought the puck over to me. I told her that I hadn't even wanted the puck, that I already had one, but she was insistant that she wanted me to have it anyway, that she was only using it as an ice bag, I guess I should have just explained that I was trying to make a joke and that I would give it right back, but instead I let myself get hurt because they assumed that I was just trying to take her puck. Maybe it looked that way, but it hurt to think that they thought that I was just that selfish. Okay, okay, I don't know why I am even writing about this part, I would rather just forget it.

The rest of the night was just unbelievable...totally unbelievable. I cannot believe all the special things that Cory, Jen and Tonya had planned. It was so beyond anything I could have ever thought that they were doing....