She's getting older

Accidental Poet has been my sister-in-law for so long, it feels like she's really my sister. I was sixteen when she married my brother. And you know I just celebrated my 40th birthday, so you do the math. My dad was a wise man - he used to say he had seven (now it's eight) children rather than four. He considered those who'd married into the family to be his children just like those who were born into it. So I often feel like I have three sisters and three brothers. Lucky me.

Today is AP's birthday, and I wish I could show up at her doorstep and whisk her away for an evening out - maybe a movie, maybe a piece of cheese cake and a latté, maybe just a walk in the park. We'd have a good laugh, we'd talk about our kids, and we'd tell each other stories about what's going on in our lives. I wish I could, but I can't. She lives too many miles away from me.

But she DOES read this blog, so this will have to be her virtual "night out". AP, put up your feet, grab a cup of coffee (and cheese cake if there's any in the house), and read a few of the many things I like and admire about you...
- you make me laugh almost as much as my husband does, and that's a HUGE compliment
- you like my laundry room ESPECIALLY when it's messy, because it shows our shared weakness
- you know that if I show up at your house for holidays, I'll get just as giddy as you over the possibility of staying up all night sewing costumes for our kids
- you understand why it's important to not only sew circle skirts but to add bandanas and matching circles on t-shirts
- you know the beauty of words well placed
- you ALWAYS welcome us into your home, even when it's messy
- you let me come to your writing group when I visit
- you let me go to a movie with Technobrother when I visit, and you hang out with my kids
- you can read a book faster than anyone I know and you REMEMBER THE DETAILS!
- we can talk about writing together and you understand why I write
- you cheer me on when I get something published
- you have the greatest way of engaging people in conversation and making them feel like they are the most important people on earth
- you have a heart full of compassion and you remember important things about people
- you let me be lazy at your house
- you have a sharp wit and quick mind and it makes me realize why my blog is called "fumbling for words" and yours is not
- you are humble and honest and real

Oh, and there's one other thing. My brother could have brought home a beautiful girl, but instead he brought home one I LIKED! (And for anyone who thinks I've just insulted her, you'd have to be there. She forgave me the first time and I'm sure she will this time - 25 years later.)