quarter of a century

I celebrated my birthday on Saturday and turned the big 2-5!  My hubby spoiled me with these beautiful  flowers...

 followed by an oh so loving card, making fun of my name...

 thanks hunny, I 'preciate it.  Oh how he makes me laugh.  We laugh a lot about how people get my name wrong.  HELLO...isn't Marie one of THE most common middle names?!  But no, when it's used as a first name people get all uncomfortable and question how to pronounce it.  Murray is a loving nickname some like to call me....just to get me agitated.  Tyler made up for a not so romantic card by writing his own little sompin' sompin' on the side [sorry you don't get to see that part!]  :)

 Oh and he made up for it with this note as well!  [on the "name thing" at my massage they pronounced my name as Maurine] I just laughed and didn't correct them.  So for the whole massage, I was Maurine! ha!

Then after my massage I drove home quickly to showered and get all "beautified" for my hot date with the hubster.  I got ready in record time and was all excited, trying to tell myself that I wasn't getting sick.  I had looked forward to this night for a couple weeks now, and I wasn't going to be the one to ruin it.  I forced myself to finish getting dressed and got my coat on, all ready to go.......and I.felt.miserable.  I had chills so I knew I had to have a fever (later found out it was 102.6, yikes!)  So we called our awesome friends who had offered to babysit and told them we weren't going :( and I spent the remainder of the night curled up on the couch trying to warm up, I still had chills....no me gusta.  I feeling lots better today, thankfully!

So...onto a more serious note....

I was asked multiple times how I was feeling about turning 25 and if it makes me feel "old."  I honestly had to think about it for awhile because I hadn't given it much thought.  I just saw it as another birthday, no big deal.  So i thought about it for awhile and came up with the same conclusion.....no big deal.  Instead of being down about getting older, personally I'm celebrating it with a huge smile on my face.  Instead of complaining about being a quarter of a century old, I'm THANKFUL to be able to turn a another year older.  Thankful to God for sparing my life almost 2 years ago after giving birth to my beautiful boy (yes I just said my boy is beautiful). 

As I sit here typing this I am bundled up on the couch, looking like a train wreck.  I am reminded again just how fragile our health is (all I have is the flu, but still).  I am so bad at taking each day for granted but want to try even harder to welcome each day with thanks.  It is only by the grace of God that we are given each day.  It really puts things in perspective for me.  I get so easily wrapped up in things of everyday life that in the whole realm of it, things aren't so important.  I need to give attention to those things that are attention worthy and not worry so much about the trivial things.  I want an eternal perspective, all the time.  Not just every once in awhile but daily.  I struggle with this.  I struggle with wanting things. They are just that, things.  I recently read this post over at Building the Blocks

"Because the truth is, no matter who you are and how much money you have in your savings account or what plans you have put into place for your future- one thing you will never have control over in this life- is death.

You and I, we will die one day and there is nothing we can do to change or control that. Whether it be tomorrow in a car accident, 5 years from now from cancer or 15 years from now serving the Lord in a 3rd world country- when God says our time is over- it's over.

And one thing I can promise you is- I would WAY rather stand before the Lord broke, broken and exhausted from fighting the good fight- than stand before Him with my bank statement clutched tightly in the palm of my beautifully manicured hand."

Wow.  That one hit me hard.  As I type this with my overgrown manicured nails (I indulge and get this done once or twice a year and I try to let them grow for as long as I can so I can enjoy them as long as possible).  I don't think it's wrong to get things like that done, it just can NOT become my focus. 

"...when God says our time is over - it's over."  Obviously my time could've easily been over in that hospital room but God is not finished with me here on this earth. 

I continue to strive to live each day for Him.