Shameless Self-Promotion (But For a Good Cause)

From May 1-26th I'll be participating in a Read-a-thon for Open Books, a non-profit social venture that operates a bookstore, provides community programs and promotes literacy in Chicago and beyond!

You can support this wonderful organization (and me) in three ways - donate a flat amount on my fundraising page, pledge to donate an amount based on the # of pages I read in May, or sign up to participate yourself!

To pledge per page, leave your pledge amount in the Comments section. Once the read-a-thon is complete, I'll let you know the # of pages I read and the donation amount owed. For example, if you pledge 10 cents per page and I read 400 pages, you'll owe $40.

Many thanks for your support -- and don't forget to forward this to anyone who you think might want to donate too!

The Next Ace of Cakes? Okay, Probably Not.

As I mentioned earlier, I celebrated my birthday this weekend and I asked John to make me a birthday cake. It could be from a box and it could be any flavor he wanted. The only rule was that he had to buy, bake it and decorate it.

So off he went Saturday morning to the Jewel Osco to get his supplies. John hates going to the grocery store, so I fully expected a frantic call from him 20 minutes later mumbling about the 500 slightly different variations of chocolate cake mix they carry while he lay curled in a ball in the baking supplies isle.

But he was back about an hour later with the cake, frosting, decorative icing and candles. And the man did well, people! He got chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (possibly the best cake-frosting combination ever), green and yellow decorating icing (GO DUCKS!!) and enough novelty candles to burn down a small village. Actually, I'm not sure how I feel about that last one.

And here's the best part.......he bought the Reduced Sugar cake mix AND frosting! And if you don't know why this statement isn't even the slightest bit sarcastic, please refer to #5 here. Does he know me or what?!

It took everything in my being not to jump right into the kitchen with him and "help", but I think I showed incredible restraint. Instead I busied myself with taking pictures...

John was wary of the Kitchenaide at first, but was soon asking me if he could turn it up all the way to watch the batter fly out of the bowl.

Man, we keep a lot of junk on our countertops!

Can't you just smell the chocolate now?!?!?

Thumb print. Oops!

Frosting like a pro.

This is the point where I stopped watching because I wanted the finished product to be a surprise. And guys, look what it says!

372 Months

Yesterday I turned 372 months old. (That's 31, for those of you that aren't Good Will Hunting. Or have a calculator nearby.)

In years past, you would have been hearing about this for weeks.* Regular reminders and countdowns and what-not leading up to what I usually managed to stretch into a full birthday week, if not birthday month. But something weird happened this year. I just couldn't get myself psyched up when John or others mentioned it or asked me what I wanted.

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not one of those people that dreads getting older or lies about their age. I guess I just feel that after the 30th birthday, only the changing of decades really garners much hullabaloo.** You know, 40, 50, 60, etc. I mean, is there really much difference between 36 and 37? No so much. And to add to the lack of enthusiasm, my birthday fell on a Monday this year. Basically the worst day of the week to celebrate anything.

So yesterday was pretty much like any other day. I went to work and forgot my cell phone at home. Then had yoga class, where I managed to tweak my neck. (To which my mom very helpfully pointed out, "Maybe a 31-year old shouldn't be doing headstands." Thanks, Mom!) Then John and I walked the dog, made dinner and watched 24.

For those of you 20-somethings, take a look at your future birthdays. This is it. So party it up now.

That's not to say I didn't do ANYTHING. I still managed to do a little celebrating on Saturday, which I'll share with you now. Because thats the kind of generous person I am.

The Rock Wall
I started the day by tackling another goal on my Life List. I wanted to get certified to climb the rock wall at our gym. I won't go into detail, because I'll post a separate story later. Lets just say there are pictures. And bruises. And wedgies.

Mythos
That night we had dinner at this little Greek BYOB in Lincoln Square with some of my closest Chi-town friends. Large quantities of saganaki, lamb and wine were consumed and a great time was had by all.

John Baked a Cake
When John asked me what I wanted for my birthday this year, I told him I wanted him to make me a birthday cake and decorate it. This wouldn't seem like a large request, except that John has never baked anything in his life. (Not counting a different kind of baking he did in college.) Again, separate post to follow.

Beer
After dinner we headed to a nearby bar and proceeded to try to rid them of their entire premium draft supply. Lucky for everyone, I forgot to get out my camera for this portion of the night.

Presents!!!!!
I'm so lucky to have such generous and thoughtful friends and family. John once again was a gift-giving rockstar and got me an awesome cast iron skillet that I can't wait to use! And I'm so loaded up on beautiful jewelry and spa gift certificates from everyone that I feel like a Kardashian.

And thats about it! Thanks to everyone that has sent me birthday wishes and helped me celebrate my continued existence! I love you all!


*I realize this blog didn't exist in years past. I'm older, not dumb.

**God bless Google for helping me spellcheck the silly words I like to use.

John Didn't Know What He Was Getting Himself Into

John and I dated for two years and were engaged for one before we got married in 2008. So you would think that we knew each other pretty well by the I Do's. And for the most part we did. We lived together, spent most of our free time together and told each other pretty much everything.

That's why I'm kind of proud of the following things I was able to hide from him until he was legally bound to me for the rest of his life:

1. I like country music and CMT. Not exclusively and not all the time, but yes.

2. I am a big fan of teen movies, especially those made for ABC Family.

3. Ditto for tv shows on Lifetime, WeTV and Bravo.

4. I will mercilessly badger him for a collection of animals that we don't have room for; including but not limited to - a turtle, a monkey, a guinea pig, a hedgehog, and a slow loris.

5. I buy low-fat or non-fat everything.

6. I will do almost anything I can to avoid changing the litter box.

7. My car is always on Empty and will require him to fill it up any time he wants to go anywhere.

8. I know just enough words to every old, cheezy or annoying song on the radio to make his head explode as I sing off-key. Loudly.

That poor man. He never stood a chance.