I confess

Here's my confession: I DO need money to celebrate my most special love's birthday. Some people are so creative and they can make really cool stuff out of trash and can come up with amazing ideas. I usually take their ideas and do something similar. But here was my dilemma. I had absolutely no money at all. Not even a few dollars to put on my bus card so we could GO somewhere where there was a free event. So I was limited to within walking distance of our house.

Babe, the neighbor! 

 We did our usual Saturday routine but we tried to change it up a bit. We walked our dog AND took along the neighbor dog, Babe. We are looking after our neighbor's dog and cat while they are out of town. Our neighbor is a bit elderly and she doesn't really walk the dog so we thought it couldn't hurt to get the dog out for some exercise. The change in routine was good for both of us and Babe.

 Cheeto wasn't too keen on the idea, but he's spoiled; it was good for him, too.

Cheeto played nice for the most part.

I confess I had a melt down when I checked the mail and found no paycheck. I couldn't even take my baby out for a birthday dinner, or buy any groceries, for that matter. The thing is, this man has been amazing the last seven months. He has been my cornerstone, my source of strength and stability through it all: the shitty job, my sister getting sick, my grandmother passing. All I wanted to do was take him to his favorite taco joint. *Sigh* Now get this, on his birthday, the one day of the year it should be all about him, he calms me down and tells me we should be thankful for what we do have. Clearly, I am lacking in the gratitude and patience departments. We counted our blessings for the roof over our head, the jobs we both have, and for our health. You see, we have many family members who are fighting for their lives. I often take for granted that I am healthy. We live down the street from a church where there is a shelter and every morning I walk past the men who sleep there. They tell me "good morning" on my way to work. How easy it is to forget that I have it WAY better than they do. I could keep going. You get my point.

Later on, I took a look in our fridge and found a frozen pizza for dinner and one beer. I also found an old bottle of a liqueur I bought many months ago and a half carton of fresh raspberries. Hubby had the beer and I mixed up a little daiquiri of sorts for myself. We watched the rerun of SNL and said good night. Oh, and we had birthday sex. What else was I going to give him????

Below is my recipe for the daiquiri. Enjoy!

2 ounces St. Germain liqueur
1 1/2 ounces simple syrup*
4 large ice cubes
a handful of fresh raspberries

I put the ice cubes in the blender by themselves and pulse to start breaking up the ice. Then add the liquids and the raspberries on top. Blend until smooth. Enjoy!




*Simple syrup is easy to make and great to have on hand for all kinds of drinks such as iced coffees, smoothies and last minute daiquiris. Simply bring a cup of water to a boil then add 2 cups of sugar. Stir, remove from heat and continue stirring until all the sugar is melted. After it is cooled store it in a bottle of your choice in the refrigerator.