40 Years Young...

I can still remember my Dad's 40th birthday bash - my Mom planned a little neighborhood party for him. Strange how young that seems to me now:)

Time is a crazy thing.

Sunday evening we gathered at Bob and Janene's for dinner with Bonnie and Bryant's family in town.

I brought two Marie Callender Pies - Key Lime Pie (my favorite) and Razzleberry.

We sang "Happy Birthday" and I opened a few gifts.

The kids were out of school on my actual birthday for MLK (Monday - January 21) so we played at the sand dunes with extended family before Aaron and I packed up and drove south.  Along the way, we stopped for a yummy dinner at Jaker's and since they offer a birthday special of half off anything, I ordered a full-rack of ribs.  Never had better.

It was quite late by the time we arrived in Salt Lake but Mom was up (of course - a night owl) and even had a cupcake waiting for me.  She drove us to the airport early in the morning so we could catch our flight to Los Angeles.

Aaron had a work-related commitment in Santa Monica the week of my birthday so he coordinated childcare with his angelic mother so I could join him for a few days.  It was seriously the best birthday present ever!  Special thanks to Janene and Kasey for helping on Thursday (Janene's temple day).

I was actually giddy as we climbed into the rental car and took in the expanse of blue skies and warm sunshine.  The first thing we did was drive the coastline and walk along the beautiful shore.

We could have stayed all day.  

Too bad Aaron left his sunglasses behind - and there were no shops in the vicinity to purchase another pair.  After sitting outside and enjoying a tasty late lunch, we made our way to Anaheim and experienced California traffic.  On Wednesday (day of class), Aaron spent 3 1/2 hours in it.  Lovely.

Caramel Turtle Pecan Cheesecake

Our leisurely lifestyle was quite rejuvenating.  Funny how our most difficult decisions revolved around menu selections.  We sampled meals from P.F. Chang's, The Cheesecake Factory and Bubba Gump's.

We found out about an awesome discount and thought we'd ride the coasters at the Knott's Berry Farm amusement park until we woke up to lots of rain.  No matter.  We just went to plan B.  

(It's amazing how flexible we are without the opinions of six other people:)

NO cooking.  NO cleaning. NO carpooling.  NO contention.

Could there be a better birthday present out there?

View of Disneyland employee parking lot outside our studio room.

Because Aaron is a frequent traveler, he gets "special privileges" at the airport.  While chatting with a few gals behind us in line, I had no idea we were talking with Jillian Michaels and her partner until Aaron made a comment about "Biggest Loser".   They are both tiny people - shorter than I expected them to be.  Interestingly, they followed me through security and didn't go in Aaron's special treatment 'short line.'  I secretly wanted to follow them around just to see if they'd stop and eat at McDonald's:)

We had a fabulous few days together.
Thanks Aaron!  You're the best!