Days with the Dorans

I woke up with the house decorated and amazing and then went off for a run with my dad which is the perfect way to start my birthday! With Danny 'sick' we had a REALLY low-key day. Nana and Papa came over as they usually do and we just had fun and made cookies. My "cookies" aren't really cookies at all but assembled goodies but they looked cute and were yummy! The kids did decorate sugar cookies as is their tradition and... well... it was pretty gross. They went pretty overboard with the frosting and the sprinkles but then I suppose that has become kind of a tradition as well! The best part of my birthday of course was just the laughter and the fun and being with my favorite people. How lucky am I? Very! Jeff made my favorite yummy donuts and everyone sang happy birthday and Sto Lat and it was just perfect! After that the reindeer dust was made the the Fab Four went out to toss it out all over the yard for the reindeer to eat! Joe again opted to NOT join his sibs ...

What a perfect way to kick off my 45th trip around the sun! A 5 mile run with my dad, a HILARIOUS gift from my brother, Jeff making my favorite soup (dill pickle) and birthday donuts (I don't eat them together), original art from Al that made me cry (my birds on a wire~ she added Jeff and I and our two that flew away too soon), church in our family room with my parents, (my family can sing!), traditional fun with the Fab Four, many calls, texts, & messages of birthday love from friends, family, and even students and... and... and... The cool thing about holiday birthdays is old friends who don't get reminded on social media remember it's your birthday and it's such fun catching up! I feel so blessed! Here's to a great year and a brighter 2021!  

 This is 44 and my first birthday without my Nan. Thought about that a lot and about all my birthdays that we so special in Hamtramck with Auntie Irene, Uncle Joe, the Jonasens and all the rest. Aunt Barb sent me the above card which of course immediately made me think of Auntie and our rolled dollar bills the number of our age! My favorite restaurant closed so we went to the one that took its place and to be honest... not great. I guess we have some time to figure out where to go next year. The cocktails were good and the company even better. This was a year when the Drapals got to join us.  After dinner we headed to church. I loved seeing Pastor Paul and giving him a big hug! He remembered my birthday which was so sweet. I miss my St. Matt's family and it was great to see them. The orchestra and choirs were great and as always- tears streaming down my face. I thought of all my loves NOT here and found myself touching my Grandpa's signature on my arm a lot. I miss ...

 My birthday was so nice. I started with a run and Jodie came over with a card and a nice gift (though I missed her because I was in the shower). Danny brought over TZ and Maddy with some money to go toward my next running shoes and we made some reindeer dust! Later we went to Johnny Carrino's (which is my birthday tradition) so I could get my usual birthday dinner. Michelle doesn't work there anymore so it isn't quite as nice but the company was wonderful. Joey was being weird texting with Ella but he finally put his phone away (rolling his eyes of course). After dinner we headed to a candlelight service. Haven't been back to St. Matt's in a long time but it was good to be there. Other than Pastor Paul, we didn't see anyone we knew which was fine. I love singing carols. It's almost as if I can hear my Grandpa Jonasen's voice when we're singing. Sean really wanted to hold a candle for Silent Night but fell asleep during the sermon and w...

I had such an amazing birthday! It started with being showered with gifts and then I went on my morning run. I've been sick and it hurts my ovaries (I know that sounds odd) when I cough but at the same time running feels good. As I was finishing up my 5 miles, I saw Dave pull into our driveway with tons of balloons! What great timing and how lucky am I to have such thoughtful friends! Kurt and Eric came over yesterday with a gift too! Ali made yummy cookies and Sean and I made these yummy treats that were were right up my alley (because they were EASY!!)! We topped pretzels with a Rolo and a peanut M&M. They are so good! At 3:15 we met all the Drapals at Johnny Carrino's. Michele doesn't work there anymore so it wasn't QUITE as nice. But we had a good time. We didn't have cake there because we had to head to church and the roads were nasty but it sure was beautiful outside! We haven't been going to St. Matt's for a while and are trying to ...