Yesterday I celebrated my 40th birthday! Yahooo! Another decade complete. One of my daughters said, “Mommy, you don’t look like you’re 40 – you look like you’re 20!” (Not that she knows what a 20 year old or a 40 year old normally looks like. 🙂 My response, “I’m sure glad I’m not 20!” Don’t want to go back and have to relearn all the things I’ve learned over the past 20 years.

Birthday celebrations are a great time to look back over the year and remember all that God has allowed. I’m always most hopeful that He has allowed me to become more like Him and less like myself. Celebrating a new decade is a time to look back over 10 years and reflect. A lot has changed – I have 4 more kids than I did when I turned 30. I live in a different country and know (in different degrees) two new languages. I have a whole new set of friends. I think differently. I live differently. I really am a very different person – in a good way. I’m very thankful for all God’s workings.

The kids sent me across the street to get my hair washed and cut. My family celebrated my birthday with a soft taco dinner. Isaiah made the tortillas and frosting. Becca made and decorated the cake. Josh made guacamole and chips. The kids put on a hilarious play of Josh and Amy writing letters before we were dating and when Josh was visiting Cambodia. Anna bought and put on a wonderful fireworks show to end the evening. It was a nice way to celebrate.