45

Yep, I said it. Not gonna lie about my age. Saturday, November 24th was a big day. Can't say I feel 45, but then again, who says what it should feel like?

On such a momentous occasion, there was only one thing I wanted to do with my girl.

Bowl, baby, bowl.

So that's exactly what we did.

I put on my finest bowling capri jeans and Lauren donned one of her fancy dresses (of course), along with a Happy Birthday bow, and we set off for an afternoon at Bowlmor Lanes.



Lauren handily won (it was those darn bumpers, I tell ya!), but we both did the All Right Now Dollie dance, "Woo" jump included.


Then it was out to the stage area in the outdoor mall, where our sprite made very good use of the ballet slippers she had chosen to complete her ensemble. Clara from the Nutcracker came to life, and it was a joy to behold.










[Photography by Joe. Thank you, thank you, thank you.]

Then it was back to the house, where we continued to celebrate with a cupcake.




Fun with Mojo.



And multiple rounds of Mad Libs (for which her obsession currently runs wide and deep).


I have so much to be grateful for as I turn 45 and enter my 46th year. It's not always easy, but I promise to endeavor to remind myself (and act on those sentiments) every. single. day.

Temecula Bound

In mid-November, I headed to Temecula for a little wine tasting adventure. One of my best friends, Lisa, lives there and I haven't seen her in close to 2 years (yikes!). When Joe offered to take me there for an early birthday celebration, it was icing on the proverbial cake to be able to see Lis.

We indulged in the tasting at Churon Winery and since it was before 5 p.m., we pretty much had the entire tasting room to ourselves. So wonderful to reconnect with my soul sister.


While there was a chill in the air in the valley, the sun was out and it was a perfect time to be amidst the vineyards.



One of our great finds was Wilson Creek winery, where I was introduced to their flavored champagnes. Orange Mimosa, Almond, and Peach champagne are out of this world, especially for someone like me with a sweet tooth. Snapped up a bottle to serve at Thanksgiving, and more recently found them at the local supermarket at a bargain basement price. Yum!

The book I was reading during the weekend, Cold Tangerines, contains the perfect sentiment for not only how I want to remember my time in Temecula, but how I want to live my life.

"I want a life that sizzles and pops and makes me laugh out loud. And I don't want to get to the end, or to tomorrow, even, and realize that my life is a collection of meetings and pop cans and errands and receipts and dirty dishes. I want to eat cold tangerines and sing loud in the car with the windows open and wear pink shoes and stay up all night laughing and paint my walls the exact color of the sky right now. I want to sleep hard on clean white sheets and throw parties and eat ripe tomatoes and read books so good they make me jump up and down, and I want my everyday to make God belly laugh, glad that he gave life to someone who loves the gift."