36 years young

I turned 36 this week. Why does 36 sound so much older than 35? It was Labor Day weekend, which meant my husband was home! That was a gift in and of itself. Also, my kids started school this week - another gift!

My dear sister, Heather, wrote the following about me on Instagram for my big day:

Happy happy birthday to my beautiful older sister, Jill! What an inspiration you are to me. You are my rock. No one understands me the way you do, and we have shared everything together. Thank you for always being there for me, always making time to listen and to comfort. Thank you for being patient with me and for loving me no matter what. You mean the world to me and I cannot imagine life without you! I hope you get spoiled today - you deserve it more than anyone!! xo

My kids wanted to share birthday fun with me via Legos! On the left is my Le Creuset Dutch Oven made by Calvin, in the middle is a bowl of vanilla ice cream that Keith and I put together, and Iryna made me a chocolate cake! I have the best kids!

Birthday Breakfast: GF Baked French Toast

Tyler took me out to a local Mexican restaurant for lunch. They had the best Horchata. Yum. Tyler was so sweet and told me how extraordinary of a person I am. I must admit, I have been feeling a bit low lately. I was feeling less than spectacular and there is nothing like a sincere compliment to buoy me up. Tyler is good at that. And so is my sister, Hache. 

I had bought a dutch oven that had legs on it - for camping and emergency preparedness - but I found recipes that called for a dutch oven that could be used in the kitchen...you know, on the stove AND in the oven? Well, I figured that it was time to get one and it just happened to coincide with my birthday. Don't you love it when that happens? Well, I have used it once and I cannot wait to use it again. Such high quality! And I got free shipping on Amazon Prime. 

Okay, so the woman on the far right is in my ward. I was needing some more Sunday appropriate music so I ordered this CD for my birthday. I highly recommend it! You can get yours here.

My sweet mother asked me what I wanted for my birthday, so I gave her two choices. Of course she got them both AND in orange, I might add. She knows me well. 

Wow! This is my first GF Chocolate Cake and it was delicious. Here is the link to the recipe.