Happy Birthday Kirk

Some days just don't go the way you plan, and today is one of them. I had planned on writing a Happy Birthday message to our son, Kirk, earlier this morning. But the cybergenies had other ideas. To make a long story short, I was hit by the Personal Security virus/spyware. And now my desktop is at the computer hospital receiving tender, loving care. I wasn't able to connect to the internet with my laptop for some reason, but when I talked with my birthday boy son tonight, he asked if I'd turned off the modem. Sure enough, that's what I'd done.

We went out for dinner and flipped the modem back on when we got home, and I'm connected to the world once again. When my computer is down, I feel isolated, frustrated and a little bit furious.

Our son turned 42 today, and for me it was a day of reflection. The years rolled away as I thought back to the day of his birth. We were living near Chicago at the time, and February 5th was unseasonably warm. Good thing as I was so big I couldn't button my winter coat! I'd made stuffed peppers for dinner, a favorite of mine, but no sooner had I taken the first bite than I was hit by a strong contraction. I knew you shouldn't eat once labor had begun, so I put down my fork and looked longingly at the food on my plate. Nothing happened in the next few minutes, so I took another bite, savoring the mellow flavor of green pepper, ground meat, rice and tomato sauce. No sooner had I done so than another contraction hit. I put the peppers in the fridge and started to time contractions.

By 8:30 we were on the way to the hospital and before 10:30, Kirk had arrived. Our joy knew no  bounds. Only a year earlier, our first baby had passed away at 7 weeks of age. Birth defects she had were too severe to allow her survival. And so, when our healthy baby boy was born, our hearts were filled with love and happiness.

He has given us much joy in all these 42 years with his sense of humor, kind heart, and positive attitude. He's been a son to be proud of, has brought us a wonderful daughter-in-law and two beautiful granddaughters.

Happy Birthday Kirk!