Thursday, March 2, 2017

Birthdays and Taxes!

Ice Cream Cake


Today, we celebrated my daughter's 24th birthday.  Last year, she was in Berkeley for her birthday and I forgot to wish her when I called her in the morning, until she reminded me!  This year, she's here in person and I remembered to wish her!  :D 

I had suggested going out for Italian or Japanese food for a birthday lunch.  She chose the Italian food, but she asked if we could pick it up and bring it home to eat, instead.  So, that's what we did.  She was amused to realize that she made a better tasting Zuppa Toscana than what she ordered from the restaurant! 

Later in the afternoon, we went to the tax preparer's office to get her taxes done.  I took along my papers, too, and dropped them off.  I will go later, to have my taxes done.

On the way home, we stopped at our favorite ice cream shop and I bought her an ice cream cake, since I didn't bake a birthday cake for her, this year.  I put only one candle on it though, but sang Happy Birthday to her; she made her wish, blew out the candle, and we shared a slice of ice cream cake.  Daughter was happy because she likes ice cream cake.

We reminisced about some of her previous birthday celebrations and, of course, there was the annual re-telling of how I drove myself to the hospital to have her!  LOL. I had gone, with my mother, for a regular check-up at the clinic and they urged me to go to the hospital right away, so, since my mother didn't drive, I drove myself!  My mother was probably praying the whole time, but I was laughing as I had predicted I'd end up driving myself to the hospital!  (My mother had been compiling a list of people who could possibly drive me to the hospital and I had told her not to worry, when the time came, I'd drive myself!)

My daughter was not due till mid-April, so the doctors at the hospital gave me medicines to delay the birth.  After several days at the hospital, they decided it would be OK for me to go home at noon on a Monday.  Just before I was discharged, they decided to do one last ultrasound and I was immediately taken to the delivery section!  My daughter was delivered by an emergency Cesarean operation on Tuesday morning.  She was early, but she was healthy.  She has been the biggest blessing in my life.   

Today, I am grateful for:
- My daughter!
- Being alive to celebrate this birthday with her!
- Memories and a tale to tell!
- My mother being with me through it all at the time.
- A lovely day spent with my daughter.

How was your day?  How do you celebrate birthdays in your family?

32 comments:

  1. I hope you and your daughter have a wonderful day together. My daughter will be 24 in April, but will be travelling in New Zealand so birthday wishes will be via facetime

    Enjoy your day
    Siobhan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Siobhan. Sending early birthday wishes to your daughter! I hope she enjoys her visit to New Zealand.

      Delete
  2. Happy Belated Birthday to your daughter. It's always fun to tell the family stories and you have a good one about driving yourself to the hospital. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Live and Learn. I've conveyed your wishes to her. :)

      Delete
  3. A very Happy Birthday to your lovely daughter. I love the ice cream cake. X

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Jules. Ice cream cake is a special treat. :)

      Delete
  4. Happy, happy Birthday to Daughter.

    What a lovely cake and ice cream cakes are so good.. I think your daughters celebration was just perfect.. We do about the same thing.. When The kids[oops /adults] get to come home on their birthday... I cook there favorite meal[each kid has a favorite. I either make a cake or buy an ice cream cake]. We share the memories of their young birthdays and the silly things that happen along the way.. Love when they can come home..
    Have a blessed day and enjoy time with daughter.[24 .. I wondered how old she was? My kids are 44 and 40.. grandkids are 18/18/16/12/12-- So no babies at my house. ha]

    I had to laugh at your labor day memories.. I could just see your mom.. Sitting in that seat, scared to death.. Too funny.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Judy. She just wanted to relax at home and spend time with me on her birthday. Later this weekend, she'll get together with some of her friends to celebrate. Then, she'll go back on Monday and we haven't planned her next visit.

      My poor mother! I put her through quite a lot!

      Delete
  5. I sounds like a nice day out with your daughter! Happy birthday to her and enjoy your time together!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Nathalie. It's a joy to have her home, again and spend time with her. :)

      Delete
  6. Happy birthday to your daughter. We never forget their births, even if we forget their birthdays! I have memories of waking up in the early hours of the morning with the waters broken, DH driving me to hospital on a beautiful, starry winter night, and being told that since I wasn't in labour I might have to go home (it was 3 weeks to the due date). What? How can I? Well, it will seal up and ....! But I started contractions and the following evening around 10 pm, DS was born. What a performance! No, I could never forget that time.

    Spring is showing some reluctance to arrive where we are, as yesterday all the snow that had thawed over the last week, suddenly reappeared in a massive dump overnight, wind blowing it all over as well. Then last night it was -24°C before we got up, but only —12°C when I went out for breakfast with my friend.

    Bushlady

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are right, Bushlady, we will never forget the experience! Brr...those sound like very cold temperatures, to me! In contrast, it was 82F here, today!

      Delete
  7. Happy Birthday to your daughter! Her birth story cracked me up as I had visions of driving yourself while in labor and your mother praying like crazy that you got there and did not have that baby int he car. LOL!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Debbie. I'm just glad that they did that final ultrasound! If they had sent me home, I might have delivered in the car! :)

      Delete
  8. Perfect birthday celebration with your daughter. Wise to bring the Zuppa Toscana home and ice cream cake looks delicious. Her arrival was really very traumatic, early but healthy. My children (1 girl, 2 boys) and grandchildren (5 boys) are the joy of my life.

    Enjoy your time together. Hope you are feeling well.

    Sandy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Sandy. Yes, her arrival was rather fraught as there were other stuff going on at the same time: it had been a high risk pregnancy, I had been hemorrhaging, my marriage was all but over, etc. But, it was all worth it, I think.

      Sounds like you have a lovely family, Sandy. I hope you see them and get to spend time with them on a regular basis.

      Delete
  9. Happy Birthday to your daughter! It sounds like her birth was quite exciting on a number of levels. :)

    If we are around family members, we do try to have a casual party (just dinner, cake and ice cream or sometimes just cake and ice cream). For just the two of us it depends on how we are feeling. I've made whole cakes but then we split a whole cake which seems a bit decadent. So now we mostly either go out for dessert or I buy a small pastry or cake to serve.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Laura. I used to always take the leftover cake to the office! :)

      Delete
  10. Now, why does it not surprise me one bit that you drove yourself? Haha!

    Great memories! Wishing your sweet daughter a very happy birthday. Seems as if just yesterday you were rushing after work to get her to after school activities, doesnt it? Time flies by so quickly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL, Carolyn, you know me too well! I had been having contractions for weeks and was going for monitoring 3 times a week at the time. It was at one of those monitoring sessions that they told me to go to the hospital. But you are right; time does fly quickly.

      Delete
  11. How nice that you and your daughter could spend her birthday together!I loved your story of her birth. Thank goodness you had that ultrasound!
    HUgs
    Jane

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Jane. Yes, it all turned out well, in the end! :)

      Delete
  12. Happy Birthday to your daughter. So glad you could spend the day together. It's funny but my daughter is only a few months younger than yours! She'll be 24 on her next birthday.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Sharon. This is an exciting time in their young lives, isn't it?

      Delete
  13. Happy Happy Birthday to your daughter! Nothing is better than birthdays and cake. I can't say the same about taxes though. ( Necessary evil)
    I had a Dr's appointment the day Son3 was born. I woke early and thought I had peed all over myself. TheHub was the one who thought my water had broken and actually stayed home that morning and went to the Dr. with me or I would have driven myself also. Turns out it had and we stayed at the hospital, but did I think to take anything with me__no because I thought I had just peed in my pants.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Anne, for the birthday wishes. Oh, my! Good thing your husband decided to accompany you! I didn't take anything with me, either! :D

      Delete
  14. Oh I'm late to the party, literally lol. But we all send belated birthday wishes and love to your daughter. The ice-cream cake looks delicious.

    Births never really go according to plan do they no matter how much preparation you put in :) Children are blessings indeed although sometimes we may have to remind ourselves of that fact! xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Suzanne, I conveyed your wishes to my daughter and she says thank you. There's more ice cream cake left, if you'd like a piece! :)

      Delete
  15. The cake looks great! I have never tried ice cream cake, but our family, too, has endless birthday stories which get aired every year!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Lady Ella. It's basically two layers of cake with ice cream in the middle, but, my daughter loves it!

      Delete
  16. PS. I have just checked the date and realised that it is your daughter's birthday again, now, today! So happy birthday to her :o)
    (I'm officially exactly 4 years behind on your blog!!)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Lady Ella. I will convey your wishes to her. :) I've a ways to go to catch up on your blog!

      Delete

Thank you for visiting my blog and commenting. Your comments are much appreciated. Please comment in English. Thank you.