Third time singin'

Surprise!!! My family screeched as JD walked into the party my parents so graciously planned. There were balloons. There was a fancy tiramasu birthday cake. And there was food…lots and lots of Italian food. The holiday dinnerware was brought out, including my mother’s these-come-out-twice-a-year toasting glasses, and a table covered in appetizers. Stuffed mushrooms. Bruschetta. Caprese. Prosciutto wrapped cantaloupe. Just looking at all the food made my jeans feel tighter.

JD’s birthday isn’t until tomorrow, but we celebrated on Saturday because they’ll be in Italy by tomorrow.

The chicken parmigiana was passed like a lightning bolt from hungry hands to hungry hands. Sun-dried tomato and basil pesto linguini was scooped in piles onto our plates, only to be accompanied by warm asparagus spears. And just in case we didn’t hit our daily caloric intake in a single sitting, fresh fontina cheese was grated on top. Dr. Atkins would have turned in his grave had he seen all the glorious carbs.

The neighbors might have mistaken us for a group of drunken sailors when we sang “Happy Birthday”. The cacophony of voice was a little disconcerting, but JD sat and smiled politely through our rendition—complete with my little sister inserting a ‘cha-cha-cha’ whenever there was a pause in the song.

I became a little melancholy when he blew out his candles.

Has another year slipped by? Where does the time go? It’s like a vapor and if I could put it in a jar, I would.

When the Neopolitan ice cream made its way out of the freezer, I was feeling better. Ice cream can do that for me.

I washed the dishes and watched JD and my brother play basketball in the backyard from the kitchen window. I laughed and cheered for whomever was losing. JD. JD. My brother. My brother. My brother. It was a close game and I laughed the entire way as I saw each of them pained as each basket counted against each other. JD won the game, but he did only to prove that his new age wasn’t going to get the best of him.

We hugged and kissed my family goodbye, thanked my sister for making such a wonderful lunch, then headed to meet JD’s family at their favorite steak house for dinner. Still being stuffed from lunch, I ordered a salad and nibbled on a baked potato. I wanted a bed more than I wanted food.

I found myself singing “Happy Birthday” for the second time, but with civilized counterparts. Civility is overrated and I missed the ‘cha-cha-cha’ to be honest. JD opened the iPod his parents bought him (per my recommendation, thank you very much) and said goodnight.

We fell asleep during the first ten minutes of the movie we were watching in bed. We were over-fed, over-stimulated, and over-loved. It was an exhausting day, but a wonderful day nonetheless.

I have a tough act to follow tomorrow, after such great birthday celebrations. It’ll be the third time I sing “Happy Birthday” and I promise, I’ll make it my best.