I got my first "happy birthday" at 2:40 a.m., from Jörn, since we were both awake anyway with Elisabeth unhappily working very hard at getting her first tooth. (It finally started poking through around 5:30 this afternoon, but it sure was bothering her this evening--I hope it's settled down for the night, now!)

Once my eyes were properly open (6:20-ish), I opened my present from my mother: wonderfully warm and comfortable hand-knit socks. Breakfasted, showered, put my socks on (and rest of my clothes, including hole-less jeans in honor of the day), hung up laundry, started laundry, started bread, enjoyed a phone call from Margaret in Germany, cleared off piano, enjoyed a visit from Jane and Matthew from Nikosia, enjoyed the oatmeal cookies that Marie made, put the bread in the oven, had lunch, opened presents from the family, played with my duck-in-a-waterball (gift from Helen) with the children, did more laundry, read to Katie and Lukas, phone calls from Barbie, Mom, Vern, and Heike (Vern and Heike on my cell phone while on the house phone with mom--didn't talk with Vern until later and didn't get Heike at all), read more to the children, did more laundry, backed up everything from my computer onto my external harddrive (gift from Jörn), picked up Jacob from drama class, read 40-something e-mail/Facebook birthday greetings, welcomed Sue and Richard and got my very first birthday card and opened MY chocolate (I might, maybe, perhaps, share some of it, but NOT the caramel), dinner, children to bed, phone call from Erin, game of Thurn and Taxis with Richard and Sue, chatting, and now going to bed.

Tired!! Photos may follow tomorrow, no guarantees.

And, just to be exact, although this time-zone thinks I have 21 minutes left of today, the first day of my fifth decade, in reality I have one hour and 26 minutes left of my fourth decade, according to California time and the time I was born! I think I thought being 40 would make me feel grown-up, but it hasn't happened yet.