Birthday Boy (MAN)

 Nathan turned 31 this past Valentine's Day and the kids and I set up a treasure hunt for him to find clues throughout the house.  He didn't get home until after their bed time, but I held them off so that we could celebrate a little. 

 The search was rather lame to begin with, but was made a little more entertaining by seeing the kids tell daddy exactly where to look for the next clue.  They didn't make him suffer at all!!

 Among his gifts this year were a few new pairs of shorts (the orange ones he bought a few years ago are starting to look ragged from all the wear and tear and NEED to be replaced!)

 His new shorts look really good. However,  he looks even better in the dress pants he occasionally gets to wear to work but then immediately takes off once he comes home (replacing them with guess what?  The shorts, of course!).

 The kids had a great time playing dress up with the new clothes.

 I spent about 3 hours making these half-moon cookies for his birthday dessert.  I hate making them (mostly because I don't really like the way they taste) but enjoyed doing it, knowing that it would make my man happy.  I even liked the way they tasted this year and probably made way too many (there were at least 40 cookies, and they were BIG!).

Half-moons come from a bakery that used to be in Ilion (where Nate grew up), but the bakery is no longer there.  His family talks about them a lot and although I have never had the originals, Nate said these tasted just like them (I found their recipe online).  I love having the internet and being able to find recipes and solutions to things right at our fingertips.  It truly is a miracle, and something I often take for granted.  Nate and I can't believe how quickly time is flying by and how old we are getting already!  It seems like yesterday we were bringing Kaylie home from the hospital, and now we have 5 kids and are almost finished with residency!  We sure haven't wasted our years, but it is humbling to think how much there is still to do in our remaining years.  I sure hope that Nate enjoyed his birthday.   He is the most important person in my life and I love him more now than ever before.  It seems that our relationship has matured and developed into something so much more than infatuation or physical compatability.  We keep growing together and loving eachother in spite of our faults and idiosyncracies.  He continues to teach me things on a regular basis just by being such a good example.  I hope to have many more years to serve him and have him for my Valentine.