23

Over the years on my birthday, I get nostalgic and think about what I did the year before. When I turned 13 I cried because I was a teenager. When I turned 20 I cried because I wasn't a teenager anymore. And last year I cried because I thought I had no other birthdays to look forward to. Once your 21, it's all the same the next fifteen years. Or so I've heard.

But last night, I fell asleep before midnight and woke up eleven hours later to a new voicemail from my mom, Seth, and Caleb. My mom told me the same story she tells me every birthday--that I was born at 1:20 pm and there was record breaking heat of 108 degrees in Little Rock that day but the hospital was well air conditioned. 

I thought I would be sad I wasn't in the city with my friends today, but the Marriott family knows how to celebrate birthdays. I was dropped off at the beach while Cara went to the gym and the kids were at camp. Typically when I'm at the beach I have to chase kids, build sandcastles, collect seashells, and fly kites. Of course, all that is good and fun, but it makes going to the beach by yourself to relax even more enjoyable. When Claire, Drew, and Hank got home from camp, they immediately said they wanted to go swimming. We all got our swimsuits on and when I came back downstairs, they were holding giant posters they made that said, "Happy Birthday Julie! We love you!" Hank gave me $2 of his own that he got from the tooth fairy, Claire picked out a broad-rimmed sun hat that wasn't floppy, and Drew helped me blow out my birthday candles. I asked them for a hug, and Claire refused of course. The Rosenkranz family came over, along with Jen-I, who gave me cards, chocolate, and new flip-flops. All the kids gave me underwater hugs and sang happy birthday to me underwater. 

All this to say, a birthday party at work in the Hamptons with 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10 year olds is pretty fun. I felt like a kid again at my neighborhood pool parties. 

I have a feeling this is going to be a good year.