Life Begins...

It is said that life begins at 40.

Who decided this?  I would like to know because it turns out that my husband turned 40 this past Thursday and I have just over 2 years to go.  His life has finally begun and I am stuck in some limbo waiting to catch up?  Why can't life begin at 37 and 11/12ths?

Todd's 40th Birthday...It really should have been a big deal.  I really would have liked to make it a big deal.  But, between the moving and building and keeping up with the kids, I just didn't have time to plan anything big and spectacular.  Todd wanted a party.  But, we couldn't find a time to throw him one that didn't interfere with something the kids had going on.  So at the zero hour I asked friends to meet us downtown for a drink.  The kids and I had planned to take Todd out for dinner at Hell's Kitchen in downtown Minneapolis (with his parents and my mom joining us).  It turned out about 20 of our friends from various groups in our past were able to meet up with us after dinner for a drink (or three).

Todd was surprised, sort of.  He had suspected I was up to something.  He thought I had spent months planning a party with his friends.  I guess this whole throwing things together at the last minute is starting to work for me!  But, it didn't really matter how much planning went into it; because, he got to spend the evening with friends and that is all he wanted for his 40th.  Because after 10 years of kids and 12 years of marriage, an evening with friends is a treat.

And maybe that is what the saying means...because our 20s were about establishing ourselves as in a career and as a married couple.  Our 30s were about surviving 3 little ones and trying like hell to get more than 4 hours of sleep in a row.  So the 40s are where we get to claim back our lives and start to live a little again.  Now I just have to wait 2 more years for that to happen...I hope Todd enjoys the head start.