I was in the kitchen barefoot but I'm not pregnant yet, Mama

Today and tomorrow are two of my favorite days every year. Today two of my good friends were born, Kemper and Kierstin, and tomorrow my husband was born!

To celebrate the best-man-in-the-world's birthday I cooked the birthday cake of his choice - carrot cake, my aunt Pat's fabulous recipe. I am known to be a lazy cook but in actuality I love to cook cakes, brownies, and other baked goodies. Tonight as I stirred the cake batter and inhaled aromas of brown sugar, cinnamon, and other ingredients it felt right. Right in that cooking is part of God's design for a wife. Sure, Johnny is a grrreat cook and I admit he is the one that grills meat on our George Foreman which is what we eat most of the time. However, I do believe cooking his birthday cake or parmesan cous cous to accompany grilled chicken is a mere part, but an important part, of serving my husband. The other observation I made this week was discovered while cleaning our bathroom and floors. I got off my lazy butt and cleaned our home better in general. To my surprise I felt a significant peace afterwards as I sat down to check my e-mail. I think this is because caring for our home is right and good. Do I think I will experience peace every time I clean house? Hell, no! I'm just thankful to catch a glimpse of peace this week to cherish mentally and recall when I begin to grumble next time. One of my favorite authors, Kathleen Norris, wrote a damn good little book entitled The Quotidian Mysteries: Laundry, Liturgy, and "Women's Work" which I need to re-read. I flipped through it last night and read a passage where she likened laundry and such to liturgy - activities we perform daily, weekly, monthly, annually, on and on - tasks we need in order to live a truly blessed life. I have to tell you, I've been more right in the head this week while cleaning than I have in the recent-past weeks sitting on my butt. There is a time to rest but there is also a time to work and care for our home, our family, one another. I am thankful tonight that my favorite other, the best man in the world, my husband Johnny, was born on July 28th some years ago. I often say to him, "I love you most of all." That is the truth, folks. I love my Sweets.