I'm not really a numbers freak, but 2025 has always seemed very awesome to me, purely from the numerical standpoint. For reasons that make no sense to anyone, and not really to me, I have adopted five as my favorite number (people always ask you "what's your favorite number" so I have an answer at the ready!). From there, it's a short haul to loving 2025. All those fives, multiplied, added, divided -- it all works!
With a numerically significant family (there are 11 of us), you're going to hit someone whose age is a nice combination of fives and in this year of 2025 (and therefore always on multiples of 5), we get four people in that group: Snowdrop (10), my son-in-law (45), Ed (75) and significantly (because it's today) -- my youngest girl (40).
Ah, birthdays! Most people love them, some pretend to ignore them. I am usually not present on the actual date for four family members (that would include the Chicago bunch, with the exception of little Juniper who has managed to gather her family for hers each year, as well as my Madison son-in-law who probably doesn't need his mother-in-law to blow up balloons for him), and of course there's Ed who doesn't celebrate at all. Polish people are more bound to tradition and of course they have both name days and birthdays, so in my family there would thus be not 11 but 22 annual celebrations were we totally Polish! A bit much? Not at all! Isn't it absolutely the best to have these excuses for gatherings with a celebratory flair to them? Americans make do with Super Bowl parties, where the TV is on and people get roped into tribal battles. Is that better? Well, thank goodness we do have Thanksgiving. What? That has a football component to it as well? We're hopeless!
Let's return to my daughter's birthday (today!). Since it is such a round number, I actually cleared my calendar, delaying trips and such so that I could drive down there today, in case this would fit into their weekend plans, but in the end I decided to postpone my birthday visit. They have a whole lineup of activities planned and rather than making the trip for a fleeting glimpse of the birthday girl, I decided to make a whole 24 hours of it -- but at a later date.
Still, this day is hers. Absolutely positively. Let me dig up a photo from her past, just to remind myself what it was like to love her, play with her, cook for her, teach her, travel with her, sing to her at age...11!
Happy, happy birthday, sweet child of mine! Such an incredible person you are! How can one not be proud and delighted and full of love for all that you bring to each and every day!
Meanwhile, back at the farmette, it is as cold as can be! A high of 4F (-16C) and it will get colder tomorrow and the next day. By Monday/Tuesday, our windchill is expected at -30F (-35C). At those temps, even hardy Wisconsin is likely to close schools, just because so many kids walk to school and the danger at that level is obvious.
(chickens, hiding)
(Sunday is "water the plants day" -- this includes the stunning bloomers I keep in the sheep shed for the winter because they're just to big to fit in the farmhouse)
Ed and I paused and did a reset. I still think it's needed. He still thinks it's just me being silly. Dance the cat is happy to see us both eating breakfast together. At least today!
We don't go for a walk. I do my pacing in the farmhouse: one mile of it! Who wants to be out on a day like this! Ed did invite me to go with him to a memorial service for a friend who died, but since I know neither the person, nor those attending, I tell him perhaps we should aim for a more shared experience. But not today. There's the cold, and, too, I need to stay home and fix dinner for the young family.
Happy kids, happy parents. Is it because tomorrow is a day off from school? From work? Or because the bitter cold wont last beyond Tuesday? Or for no other reason beyond that we're here, we're well (finally), we're sharing a meal... Surely that!
wit so much love...
