I am now married to an older man...
My island getaway was lovely, spectacular, warm, relaxing, fun, beautiful...there aren't enough adjectives to describe it. But that's not what I'm blogging about today. I promise I will revisit the subject in a later post. I have a much more important topic tonight.
I am now married to an older man. My husband turned 50 years old today! He's very happy. He's had a wonderful day. 50 looks good on him....
He went for a run, a bike ride, had lunch (and a little nap) on the sunny patio, enjoyed delicious fish tacos prepared by his lovely wife, and his favorite chocolate cake and moosetracks ice cream. Friends stopped by to wish him Happy Birthday. He "got what he wanted"... he asked for new sunglasses for cycling. He also received a very special gift from those we worship with.
I began seriously searching for something special to celebrate his birthday about a month ago. A photo album, emails and letters from old friends, a party, a picture display...there's lots of ideas out there. But since I've been obsessing over my own 50th birthday for 8 months now, I began to reflect what would really be meaningful to him. Me? I'm thinking presents, pretty packages tied up with string. For him? This needs a little explanation. My husband is a Mormon Bishop over a congregation of about 300 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He isn't paid for his service. It's a volunteer position. He still has a regular full time job. Being a Bishop involves many hours of service each week. He loves the people in our ward (congregation). He prays for them, thinks about them, counsels with them, and cheers for them. I realized that the best gift he could receive, is knowing that the ward family is serving one another. Because as you help someone else, you are also helping yourself. I turned to a very talented friend for help, Jana Truman. She is a Graphic Artist. I sat with her for 90 minutes. She listened to the general description of what I wanted, and produced this fantastic card. I just could not have been more pleased. If you are looking for any assistance in Graphic Design, I highly recommend her!
Jana came up with the idea of the bowtie, something my husband wears to church at least 50% of the time. She said it would be a play on both the tie, and the birthday gift. I loved it. She also came up with idea of the pin striped background to make it look like a dress shirt. Very clevah! (say it with a boston accent)
Click here for a link to Jana Truman's website My Art Department. Thank you so much Jana. My husband loved it. He kept saying, "How did you think of this?" "This is very cool!"
Today's Sweet Fringe Benefit is not only celebrating my husband's birthday, but watching him enjoy it. Not stress, not crash and burn, not panic, just enjoy. He's decided that he is going to speak up and give out advice now that he's 50. Says he's going to be a "Guru"... although he had to google it to come up with the name of what he's going to be. He said, "I'm going to be the guy that people hike up the mountain to go ask questions to." I love the confidence that age gives you. Totally an sfb, right? And if you are younger and rolling your eyes...just wait. Your day will come. Mine is coming in just 4 months. I don't think I'm going to be a Guru though. Still thinking about what I'm going to be....
Outfit of the Day: Oh we had a beautiful spring day! I pulled out some ankle jeans from last summer. They are a curvy skinny jean from Loft in a soft terra cotta color. JCrew Factory cream/navy polka blouse, Emaack Designs petrified wood multi-strand, Stuart Weitzman snakeskin kitten heels, cheetah skinny belt. I had a jersey navy blazer to throw on in case it was cool, but 72 degrees felt very comfortable without the jacket.
Thanks again for reading and supporting my blogging venture to 50. I have just loved the process, and the connections I've made as a result. One of the things I've learned about the aging process is to just relax. It's going to happen whether you like it or not. Some physical effects can be tempered with diet or doctors, but that number is still going to go up each year. I'm just trying to find my own wisdom and joy in the process.
Until tomorrow...
Nanette
I am now married to an older man. My husband turned 50 years old today! He's very happy. He's had a wonderful day. 50 looks good on him....
He went for a run, a bike ride, had lunch (and a little nap) on the sunny patio, enjoyed delicious fish tacos prepared by his lovely wife, and his favorite chocolate cake and moosetracks ice cream. Friends stopped by to wish him Happy Birthday. He "got what he wanted"... he asked for new sunglasses for cycling. He also received a very special gift from those we worship with.
I began seriously searching for something special to celebrate his birthday about a month ago. A photo album, emails and letters from old friends, a party, a picture display...there's lots of ideas out there. But since I've been obsessing over my own 50th birthday for 8 months now, I began to reflect what would really be meaningful to him. Me? I'm thinking presents, pretty packages tied up with string. For him? This needs a little explanation. My husband is a Mormon Bishop over a congregation of about 300 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He isn't paid for his service. It's a volunteer position. He still has a regular full time job. Being a Bishop involves many hours of service each week. He loves the people in our ward (congregation). He prays for them, thinks about them, counsels with them, and cheers for them. I realized that the best gift he could receive, is knowing that the ward family is serving one another. Because as you help someone else, you are also helping yourself. I turned to a very talented friend for help, Jana Truman. She is a Graphic Artist. I sat with her for 90 minutes. She listened to the general description of what I wanted, and produced this fantastic card. I just could not have been more pleased. If you are looking for any assistance in Graphic Design, I highly recommend her!
Jana came up with the idea of the bowtie, something my husband wears to church at least 50% of the time. She said it would be a play on both the tie, and the birthday gift. I loved it. She also came up with idea of the pin striped background to make it look like a dress shirt. Very clevah! (say it with a boston accent)
Click here for a link to Jana Truman's website My Art Department. Thank you so much Jana. My husband loved it. He kept saying, "How did you think of this?" "This is very cool!"
Today's Sweet Fringe Benefit is not only celebrating my husband's birthday, but watching him enjoy it. Not stress, not crash and burn, not panic, just enjoy. He's decided that he is going to speak up and give out advice now that he's 50. Says he's going to be a "Guru"... although he had to google it to come up with the name of what he's going to be. He said, "I'm going to be the guy that people hike up the mountain to go ask questions to." I love the confidence that age gives you. Totally an sfb, right? And if you are younger and rolling your eyes...just wait. Your day will come. Mine is coming in just 4 months. I don't think I'm going to be a Guru though. Still thinking about what I'm going to be....
Outfit of the Day: Oh we had a beautiful spring day! I pulled out some ankle jeans from last summer. They are a curvy skinny jean from Loft in a soft terra cotta color. JCrew Factory cream/navy polka blouse, Emaack Designs petrified wood multi-strand, Stuart Weitzman snakeskin kitten heels, cheetah skinny belt. I had a jersey navy blazer to throw on in case it was cool, but 72 degrees felt very comfortable without the jacket.
Thanks again for reading and supporting my blogging venture to 50. I have just loved the process, and the connections I've made as a result. One of the things I've learned about the aging process is to just relax. It's going to happen whether you like it or not. Some physical effects can be tempered with diet or doctors, but that number is still going to go up each year. I'm just trying to find my own wisdom and joy in the process.
Until tomorrow...
Nanette
Oh I love your birthday idea! Happy Birthday to Doug. Please tell him that we will happily climb the mountain to ask him questions! Glad he had a great birthday.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure Cooper could come up with some really great questions for the Guru!
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ReplyDeleteThank you again Jana. It's just fantastic!
ReplyDeleteLove the birthday idea! The cards are fantastic! I wish I had read this yesterday so I could have sent him some warm (or harassing) messages! 50 looks good on you Doug!
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