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I can’t believe you’re five.

To my Kate,

Today is your fifth birthday. Your fifth birthday. How did that happen? In so many ways, it seems impossible that it’s been five years since you were born. In others, it seems impossible that we existed without you.

From the moment you were born, you were an incredible baby. Your dad swears the first time you looked at him, you smiled.

The nurse said to us, “That baby knows what she likes and what she doesn’t.” She was right, and you still do. I absolutely love that about you. I do… even though at times it makes me nuts. Your instinct and self-assurance will serve you well.

When you were born, your dad and I were such rookies. We had no idea what we were doing. (But we do now. Yep. For sure. Ok, still – no idea.) By being the first one, you had our complete focus, our complete attention, for four years. And while neither you nor your brother have very complete baby books, someday you’ll be able to look back on the Excel spreadsheets that contain detailed plans of your introduction into solid foods and lists of your first words. At least you have that going for you.

You have already had to be the one to push through the boundaries your dad and I are afraid to cross, whereas your brother will slide right through them. For example, on your first birthday, you had whole wheat toast with cream cheese. On his first birthday, Sammy had cake.

By the time you turned two, though, I let you have cake.

You really love the icing.

Each year, you grow so much, and every time I look at you I see less of the tiny baby, the little girl you once were. Even last year you still had some of that baby-ness to you.

Now that you’re five, you’ve turned the corner. You’re completely in “big kid” territory now. You’re less soft and more angles. But you’re still the most beautiful girl I have ever seen.

You have a wonderful personality. You’re friendly and smart, you’re funny and kind. You got everything good your dad and I had to offer, kiddo, and you have so many things that are uniquely your own. You absolutely amaze me, Kate. I love you so, so much, and I am incredibly proud of you.

Happy birthday, baby girl.

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Pre-Birthday Freak Out

Tomorrow is Kate’s birthday, and as is tradition here at Mommin’ It Up, I am having a slight panic attack.

We’re redecorating her room for her birthday, and this process has reminded me why all the rooms in our house remain white.

Painting sucks.

Not the actual painting, really, but more the getting ready for it… moving the furniture, cleaning, taking fixtures off the walls, taping.

The painting part can be kind of fun, especially if you have the right help.

So anyway, back to my freak out.

We finished painting the room Sunday night, and tonight when I got home from work, I took off the tape… only to find a thin ring of pink paint around the ceiling. Apparently I did a crackerjack job of taping when I painted the room pink. Oops! So then we had to tape again and I’m going to have to touch up the white on the ceiling tomorrow.

And then there’s the matter of getting the rest of the room ready… we’ve got to put the furniture back where it belongs, for starters, and then we have a whole host of awesome new stuff to decorate with, but it’s going to take some time.

Did I mention her birthday is tomorrow?

And I’ve got to make cupcakes tonight for her preschool party tomorrow (any bright ideas for decorating cupcakes for “Zoo Day” out there? Why can’t her birthday be on a regular Wednesday! And why is it Zoo Day at her preschool when it’s Earth Day for the rest of the world?), and I haven’t ordered (yes, Jenny, ordered) her birthday cake yet for her party on Sunday.

Her party on Sunday is yet another thing that stressing me out. Thank God we’re having it at Chuck E Cheese because I don’t think I could handle the thought of getting our house ready! The thing about the party is that I’ve failed to invite people. Awesome, huh? I don’t know what my deal is – I generally obsess about invitations the way Jenny does about cakes – and this year I’m counting on word-of-mouth to alert our family of the party (I’m sure that’s going to work out beautifully and will result in no hurt feelings) and I sent Facebook messages to Kate’s friends’ moms to tell them about the party. And for those I couldn’t find on Facebook, I drove crappy fill-in-the-blank Camp Rock invitations to their houses last night. In my pajamas.

Oh yes, I am THE awesome.

Soooooo, I am a little stressed. And while blogging about things generally calms me down, it’s having the exact opposite effect tonight.

So yeah. Wish me luck. Sweet dreams.

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My Patronage, the Kiss of Death

Bobby reminded me on Friday (which was April 17th), that it was the tenth anniversary of the day we got engaged. I knew the date, but it hadn’t dawned on me yet until he said something. We just celebrated our ninth wedding anniversary in March (all you mathmeticians will figure out that this means we were engaged for eleven months), and the date of our engagement (which is now also my nephew’s eighth birthday) just snuck up on me.

The day we got engaged was really fun. Bobby told me we were going to go out that night and he took me shopping and bought me a fancy dress. Then, that evening he took me to our favorite restaurant, the Peasant Stock, which was right downtown on the river. After that we went to one of our other favorite downtown spots, Samuel Johnson’s coffee house, at First & Main. After we ordered our coffee and sat down, Bobby got down on one knee and proposed. I proceeded to bawl for about 45 minutes (saying “yes” somewhere in there), and then we went home and told my parents (who already knew it would be happening.)

The following March, we had a wonderful wedding, preceded by a wonderful rehearsal dinner at the Happy Palace – a Chinese restaurant that had long been a favorite of the Rapson family. They had a huge buffet for us and even made steaks for my dad and my brother, who don’t like Chinese. It was the YUM! A really great night.

A couple of weeks after our honeymoon, Bobby and I returned to Samuel Johnson’s coffee house to celebrate the one year anniversary of the day we got engaged. We were a little late getting in the door – it was close to closing, and the guy working let us stay late when we told him why we were there.

It was the last time we ever went there. Shortly thereafter, the coffee house closed.

For our first wedding anniversary, we got all dressed up and went to the Peasant Stock, the restaurant we’d eaten at the night we got engaged, to celebrate. We both noticed that things there seemed a little different.

It was the last time we ever went there. The Peasant Stock, which had been in Dayton for years, closed about a month later.

A couple of years after our wedding, the Happy Palace Chinese restaurant changed ownership, was repainted about a thousand times, and finally, closed down. The building isn’t even there anymore. It was demolished a couple of years ago.

Needless to say, Bobby and I had to find some new favorite places to eat and hang out. For our fifth wedding anniversary, we went for the first time to Dominic’s, an Italian restaurant that had been in Dayton for 30 years. I had been there before, but Bobby never had, and I knew he’d love it. And he did! We also went there for our sixth anniversary, and several times when Bobby’s mom was visiting, and with friends to celebrate their pregnancy. When Sophie was 4 months old, we went there for our seventh wedding anniversary.

That’s the last time we went there. A few months later, Dominic’s, which had been in our fair city for THREE DECADES, closed down.

I’m sure you’re getting the picture.

In order to do as little damage to our city’s economy as possible, Bobby and I try not to have any “favorite places” to frequent anymore. It’s just too dangerous!

For some reason, places of business associated with our marriage don’t seem to do so well. Rapp Jewelers, I’d be a little nervous if I were you!

What can I say? The marriage is good. If a little commerce is all that had to be sacrificed, well then, I think it’s been worth it!

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