I turned 40 this week. I know some of you are saying "Finally, I thought you would never get here" while others of you are saying "Really, I thought you would have turned 40 years ago".
Whichever way you were thinking, it finally happened. It wasn't too hard on me. I know some people are devastated when they reach an age like 30 or 40. I think it was harder on my mom this year. She used the term "Baby Girl" in everything she said to me that day. I think she was trying to mentally turn back the clock to when I was just a baby girl. I can't say I blame her, I constantly look at my own kids and wonder where the years have gone and why they have gotten so big.
So, my day started out pretty well. The weekend before my birthday, I found this bike at a garage sale.
I was so excited. One that it was my size (I'm a little short) and 2 that it was a girls bike. I find boy bikes everywhere but that just doesn't work.
I have been asking for a bike for my birthday for about 5 years. Every time I ask for one something else comes up that I end up having to get for my birthday like a new dishwasher, new refrigerators and new laptop computers. I know those really aren't birthday presents but lets not go there, mkay!
So when I saw this bike at the garage sale for only 10 bucks, I just knew it was meant to be. I brought it home and I was so proud of it. Hubby just gave me the "I can't believe you brought that piece of junk to my house and expect me to fix it" look. Trust me, I know it well. I finally got him to go out to the garage and take a look and try to get the brakes working. I figure that would be an important part of bike riding. Being able to stop without crashing into a tree is pretty high on my list of priorities. He used a lot of terms like "piece of junk" and "what were you thinking" but we got the front brakes working (for the most part).
We have a very nice park in our area and my fantasy is to ride on the mile long walking/biking trail. I envision myself doing lap after lap after lap.
I decided my birthday was the day. I was taking my new yard sale bike to the park and giving it a go. Keep in mind that I still have no back brakes at this point. Just front brakes, which only partially work if you are on a flat surface and going fairly slow.
I started out pretty good. It was awesome to feel the wind in my hair. It was a beautiful day and I was going to ride my bike until my little heart was content.
I did really well on the flat parts. When I got to the hills is when I realized the importance of working gears. See, my lovely bike is stuck in 5th gear (or even higher, I'm not really sure). This actually makes it very difficult to bike uphill. Who knew? I had to actually get off the bike and push it up the hills. So much for the wind blowing in my hair.
It was on this hill that I realized the importance of really - good - working - brakes.
I was squeezing the brakes so hard coming down this hill that I heard something pop. I saw my life flashing before my eyes. I thought this was it. I was going to crash and burn. Go ahead and call the ambulance because this is it for me.
It's a good thing the park wasn't very busy at this particular time and I was able to coast down to a reasonable speed. Then it was up one more hill, getting off and pushing my way up it, and then finally making it to my car. My legs felt like jell-o and I thought my heart was going to pound out of my chest.
I put the bike in the car and walked the track a lap. I just couldn't go home after only 1 mile, I mean, what would have been the point in that. You have to do at least 2 miles.
I finally get myself home and felt like I was going to die. This must have been what it feels like to be a serious fitness person. I really thought riding the bike at the park would have been a breeze. I thought wrong. It's painful, really painful.
After I finally recovered and got my breathing back to normal, I put on my birthday socks and headed out to meet hubby for lunch.
I just realized this is the 2nd picture I had taken of my feet that day. Is their some kind of message there.
I met up with hubby at his work and we headed to my favorite place for lunch.
Oh, The Flying Biscuit Cafe. I just love that place. I go there mainly for their grits. Which is surprising in and of itself because I'm from Ohio. We don't eat grits in Ohio, I wasn't raised on grits, it's a total southern thing. I also thought this was the restaurant that throws biscuits at their diners, but apparently not because no one threw a biscuit at me. Bummer!
I ordered the pumpkin pancakes, the Creamy Dreamy Grits, and some sausage patties. It was delicious. That big hunk of stuff on my pancake is a mixture of butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and maple. YUM!
We then went to my favorite store to look for some cheap finds that I could revamp and use in our home. I found this coffee mug. You can read all about my snowman infatuation here.
I also found this lamp.
Our next stop was suppose to be GiGi's Cupcakes for dessert but hubby was late getting back to work so he had to go. I would have to head to GiGi's on my own which just happens to be located in the outdoor mall called The Forum which also has such stores like Williams-Sonoma, The Pottery Barn and Swoozies just to name a few.
As sad as it was, I would have to hit all those places alone; oh darn.
So, off I went. I stopped at GiGi's cupcakes first. If you haven't indulged in a GiGi's cupcake, you must.
I ended up getting 4 so I could share with the family. Actually, that's a lie. I didn't want to seem like the biggest pig in the world by getting a dozen, so I only got 4. Sharing with the family wasn't a lie. I will totally share, if they get home fast enough :)
Maybe if I lay off these bad boys I would be able to ride my bike more than a mile. Geesh!
Actually this is only the 2nd time in my life that I've had a GiGi's cupcake. They are gourmet cupcakes and they serve a variety of flavors. Definitely a must try.
After that I did a little shopping at the mall. I ended up with this really fun cup.
All in all, I had a great day. It was fun hooking up with hubby for a little bit.
As for turning 40, I really don't feel any different than when I was 39. It's just a number right!!
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