Happy 33rd Dr. Andy!

Today is my darling Andy’s 33rd birthday.

Neither of us can believe he’s really 33.  It seems like just yesterday that we were two punk teenagers making out in the car.

But here we are…a mortgage, a baby and over 8 years of marriage under our belts.  We’re officially grown ups.  Maybe someday we’ll feel like them.

Maybe when we turn 40.  Or when Andy finishes medical school.  Or maybe we’ll always feel like teenagers.

Not that it would be so bad.  Young at heart, with some of the wisdom and confidence that comes with age.  I could handle that.

It’s been a pretty low-key day.  Since we were out of eggs thanks to the triple layer birthday cake that called for half a dozen (seriously!), I couldn’t make Andy a fancy breakfast.

I toasted, buttered and syrup’d two frozen waffles instead.  Glamorous, huh?

We had Grace’s 15 month checkup this morning after breakfast, so I worked a little and then we headed out for the appointment.

I freaking love our pediatrician, Dr. Roi.  She’s seriously the sweetest, most engaging doctor I’ve ever interacted with.  She’s actually a D.O. and went to MSU which is Andy’s top choice.

Dr. Roi asked all the routine questions, did her poking and prodding and confirmed that Grace is every bit as perfect as we think she is.  All 21 pounds and 30 inches of her :)

After breakfast we headed home so I could work a bit more before heading to the office for the afternoon.  Andy decided to run out to grab a can of his favorite soup.  Campbell’s Bean with Bacon.  It used to be a staple around here, but he gave it up back in January when he decided to get in shape.

I loved watching him savor it for lunch today.

Frozen waffles and canned soup: 1 point
Healthy Food: 0 points

Oh well, you just gotta let loose now and then right?

I worked a little late today, but headed home to make the requested birthday feast: potato skins, mozzarella sticks, chicken nuggets and Cherry Coke.  Ha!

Tater skins…mmmmm!

Mozzarella sticks

Nuggets (all white meat, no weird fillers in case you were wondering!)

Creamy Ranch Dressing

Who needs trendy microbrew when you have Cherry Coke!

It was actually nice not to spend a ton of time making a giant meal from scratch.  I just put the finishing touches on the potatoes that I’d baked earlier and I tossed the cheese sticks and nuggets in the oven.

Home made ranch dressing had been chilling since last night and was ready for dipping once the other food was heated up.

We brought it all out to the table and dipped every bit of it into creamy ranch dressing, then washed it down with the icy cold Cherry Coke.

Not exactly a meal fit for a king, but we loved it and it was so Andy.  I love that about him :)

After dinner we gave Grace a bath, lotioned her up, zipped her into some cozy jammies and laid her down for bed.

We settled in for an episode of Mad Men before the football game started at 8:30.  Halfway through the episode we paused to grab slices of the triple layer chocolate cake.  It’s Andy’s mom’s famous cake and it weighs about 10 lbs.  A cup and a half of flour, 6 eggs and a full bottle of Hershey’s chocolate sauce make it one rich, fudgy slice of heaven on a plate.

“The Cake” as the Gould’s refer to it

Coupled with a mug of cold milk, it was a wonderful way to celebrate the birthday boy.

Three layers of fudgy goodness

A sliver is about all you can handle

Now he’s downstairs watching football and I’m here plucking away at the ol’ blog.

I wish I had the words to say how wonderful he is.  I’m forever thankful that he chose me to be his wife.  He’s the most loving, forgiving, generous, affectionate, and noble man that I’ve ever known.

Happy Birthday, love.

I can’t help but feel like this day is commemorating the greatest gift God’s ever given me.