So raise a glass to turnings of the season!

Today really was a lovely day.

I've spent one other birthday away from home that I can remember. It was my eighth, I think, and I was attending Morgan Creek Christian Academy (which is since then extinct). Actually it may have been my ninth, because I don't think I was actually still GOING to school there - I think we just went there to pick up Kate that day. I remember because I wasn't wearing my uniform, which I would have been if I was still a student there - I was wearing some shirt with a pair of velvet pants. That's right. Velvet pants. I remember that because I was playing on the jungle-gym above the sandbox, and I was very concerned about sand getting on the velvet. Odd, the things you remember. Anyway, somehow Kate and I spent that night at Ami and Papa's in Ontario - not sure how we got there, and I'm not sure why we spent the night THERE. My parents must have been gone someplace. I do remember, however, that I wanted to cry all night. I've always loved my grandparents and I always loved being at their house - but it was my birthday, and I wanted to be home. I think I may have convinced Kate to let me sleep in her bed with her, so that I wouldn't feel so alone.

Now, I've grown up quite a bit since then - and even now that I'm directly across the world (as opposed to just two hours away) from my family, I've been nowhere near that depressed and homesick on my birthday today. But I'd be a liar if I said that I didn't miss them today, especially.

My birthday really started last night at 11 o'clock - I skyped Dad (who had to leave after a few minutes to prepare a sermon) and Mom and Kate, so that they'd be "with" me when my real birthday rolled around. We talked for an hour, and at midnight Mom and Kate sang Happy Birthday to me and Mom (in accordance with tradition) told me about the day that I was born. I then opened the package that I received from home a few days ago - oh, my family knows me. They somehow crammed walnuts, almonds, sour straws, and big bar of chocolate into a little box, along with a card from Dad and Mom and a BIRTHDAY BANNER. We have a tradition in our house - if it's somebody's birthday, the rest of us get together and make them a special birthday sign to greet them downstairs on the morning of their birthday. These have evolved to extremes throughout the years and we've turned out some masterpieces. But this one was definitely one of the most creative. Since a regular sign wouldn't fit in the box, they cut up 5'x7" pieces of paper and glued photos of each person to one, and strung them together with yarn (so that it can fit nicely in a little stack of paper, when it's folded). Each family member posed for the camera with a message written for me on their hands. It is now hanging across my window, strung up on the curtain rod. I didn't think about it last night when I hung it there, but now the neon pieces of paper in my window are the first thing you see when you turn onto their driveway from the road. :)

When I went out into the kitchen this morning, I was half expecting a ton of "Happy Birthday!"'s to greet me, like it would have in my house. I'd already received quite a few birthday greetings on Facebook, so I guess I felt like everybody should be aware. But it seemed like the family had kind of forgotten - and I didn't feel like reminding them, because that's kind of weird. So I ate breakfast while Carole packed lunches for our approaching day-trip; but after a few minutes of feeling a little lonesome and forgotten, Aaron came up to me and handed me a folded piece of paper. "This is for you." He then retreated, as if embarrassed. They'd made me a card! It was made on the computer, with a border of tiny birthday cakes surrounding a four-leaf clover and the words "Happy Birthday" on the cover. On the inside it said "Dear Laura, Happy 19th Birthday!" and they'd all signed their names. That made me feel pretty special.

So we headed out at around 10, and 2 hours later we were in Northern Ireland, on the top of a very gray, wet and rainy hill by the sea. I wish I could remember some of the funny things the boys said along the way - we had a few rather interesting conversations... but I can't remember right now. I do remember that at one point, Mark started getting bored and a bit whiny, so I started a game of I-Spy (which I loathe, but they seem to love), and that kept us all busy for far too long. I have to say, I feel a little magic when I do something right with those boys - I think it's the I've-always-wanted-to-be-a-big-sister-but-never-was syndrome. Unfortunately the weather at the Giant's Causeway was a bit reminiscent of my Cliffs of Moher experience, but that was alright. It was GORGEOUS out there regardless. And it wasn't that cold, once we got down from the hilltop. You park at the top, and then follow a long trail down the hill and along the coast for a bit. You turn around another big hill, and then you see it - all those huge basalt columns rising up in clusters along the seafront. I had no idea what it would be like there, really - I've seen close-up pictures of the hexagonal rocks, but never seen them in their context. It was amazing! I wish my pictures had done it justice, but my camera doesn't like fog. And it was a bit misty... not to mention wet. My hair got drenched again. Also, mascara everywhere. But who cares? I was so happy to be there; it really is an incredible place.

After our initial exploration of the causeway stones themselves, we wandered around and went up some trails along the hills and the beach. The boys and I had a grand old time exploring, but after an hour or two we were all drenched and cold, so we hopped back in the car and drove back - after stopping at McDonalds for some coffee.

The thing that really got me happened after dinner. The fact that today is my birthday really wasn't a big deal all day, aside from getting a card from the family at breakfast, and I'd kind of put it in the back of my mind. Actually I was thinking about college during dinner - OH, hey! Wheaton accepted me too! I just found that out last night. So now I have to choose - ugh. Decisions. Anyway, that's what I was thinking about while everyone was finishing dinner. I was staring out the window, and Carole got up to get a glass of water. All the sudden they all started singing Happy Birthday, and Carole came around the corner with a big old cake - a tea-candle sitting, proudly and precariously, on top. Thinking back on it, I probably looked really stupid, because it took me by such surprise that I think I forgot to smile for awhile... but it really did make me so happy. I just always feel awkward when people are so thoughtful - things like that make me so happy that I don't know what to do with it, and I always end up feeling like I didn't respond correctly. Anyway, it was a fabulous cake - coffee-flavored sponge cake, with coffee-flavored icing and walnuts on top. They know me. :) We all played Clue for about an hour, and after the boys went to bed, Ray and Carole and I watched some golf and CSI for awhile. And then I came into my room to respond to birthday notes.

My parents wrote me a note last night that made me laugh and cry alternatively the whole time I read it. It was a collection of memories - Mom kept a journal of funny or sweet things that happened while we were all little, and I guess that yesterday the family was going through them and reading about baby-me. It was pretty great; and I'm pretty proud to be a Mueller.

OH! Also, I got a note from my mime team. Whenever it's somebody's birthday, we all sign a card for them - and apparently at Monday's meeting, they all signed one for me. Emily scanned it and sent it to me. That was another one of those things that I didn't know what to do with, other than grin at it for a long while and feel incredibly humbled and loved.

I'm getting to be quite familiar with those feelings... but I still don't really know how to handle them. Ah well. All part of growing up, I guess. Maybe the whole point of being humbled and loved is to recognize that Life is so much bigger than you are.

So here we are, 19. I'm game if you are.