I’m HOW old???

Remember when we were kids and we thought 40 was old? And 50 was ancient? Forget about 60 and beyond. That’s just close to death’s door, right? Um, NO, not anymore!

Last week I turned f-f-fifty. Ugh, I can’t even say it. But although it SOUNDS old, it somehow doesn’t LOOK old. At least not on me or anyone I know around my age. Maybe I’m just kidding myself, but I swear 50 used to look older.

So even though I HATE the thought of being half a century old, I feel great, I look pretty darn good (according to my hubby) and I have a whole lot to be thankful for at this point in my life. What more could I want?

So take back that stinkin’ AARP card…I’m not ready for you yet!

Karen

…SAID THE YOUNG TO THE OLD!!!

I was in the locker room the other day, talking to a friend of mine, when something came up that led to the fact that I am old enough to be her mother. A teenage mother, yes, but her mother nonetheless!

And then she said something to me that I’ve heard several times before. She said, “Oh Karen, you don’t look 49, you look great!” It was at that moment that I realized that that statement really isn’t the compliment I always thought it was. That’s what young people say to old people when they want them to feel better about being old!

No, really! Think about it. What else are they going to say? “WOW! You’re 49? Really? You ARE old enough to be my mother! Holy Cow!!! Here, sit down, you must be exhausted from that walk in from the parking lot. Can I get you anything?”

Of course they aren’t going to say that! They’re going to say how great I look…for my age. That’s like saying that dress looks great…on me. (It would look hideous on anybody else, but you can pull it off, Karen!) A left-handed compliment at best if you think about it!

Ha ha! Okay, I’ll cut those youngsters some slack and let them “compliment” me if it’ll make them feel better. But I don’t promise anything once I turn 50!!!

Karen

WHERE DID THE YEARS GO?

Somebody pinch me. Can it really be 9 years already? My babies are turning 9 today? How did this happen? I know it sounds so cliché, but I swear it only seems like yesterday that I was as big as a house (or two), yelling at my OB, “You said that if I made it to 37 weeks you would schedule the C-Section. It’s 36 weeks, so CALL THE HOSPITAL NOW AND SCHEDULE IT. NOW. WHILE I’M HERE AND LISTENING. NOW!!!” Maybe I shouldn’t have pushed that issue so hard. Hmmm, no, I’m pretty sure they would have come out by now!

So let’s look back to that fateful fabulous day. 9 years ago today when it was finally time to give birth (or in my world, get ripped open) to two beautiful baby boys. In the movies, the husband is holding the woman’s hand and stroking her hair and whispering to her what a great job she’s doing. (Yes, even when she’s having a C-Section, she’s still doing a great job.) Now, let’s compare that to MY reality that day. Yes, DH was holding my hand, but that’s pretty much all I got. Unless you call the play-by-play announcing a good substitute for whispering sweeties in my ear which, by the way, I do not. Here’s what I heard: “Okay, they are slicing open your uterus now. This is SO COOL!”

ARE YOU KIDDING ME????

SHUT. UP.

Pretty much, after that, he kept his comments to himself, but he was still standing up and looking over the little drape which (thank you) kept me from seeing everything. The only other things I heard were “Here’s baby number 1” and “Here’s baby number 2” and “They’re perfect” and that’s all I needed to hear!

So 9 years later, they’re still my babies. And although they may not always be perfect, they’re perfectly wonderful to me!

Karen