More birthday celebrating

We celebrated Mark's birthday again on Sunday with "the kids" as Mark calls them.

I knew full well that chocolate cake would be on the menu.  I asked Mark what he wanted for dinner.

He said, "I don't know..."

I started listing things I know he likes.

He said, "Well...what I want...well, I don't know...maybe...I don't know..."

"What?" I asked, thinking he was going to make some impossible request.

He said, "Well, I want spinach egg casserole.  Do you think you could bake bread to go with it?  Is that too much?  Is it too hard?"

Sweet sweet Mark.  He misses me making bread but he is the first to put his arms around me and tell me that I'm doing important work and "those kids need you!"when I lament that I'm not the homemaker I used to be.

I said, "I'll make bread."  After all, Mark is a little bit of the king every day, not just on his birthday.

Baking bread isn't hard at all, it just takes a block of time.  I told Mark that it actually felt empowering to bake bread because maybe I am not as sad sack tired all the time as I thought.  (It is getting better.)

I baked bread.  And I did take a nap.  Still.

Sunday I pulled out the special birthday plate and when it was time to blow out the candles, I told everyone to stand by Mark so I could take a picture.  Emma said, "Let's all stare awkwardly at Mark."  I'm not sure why she thought that would make a good picture, but I kind of liked the result.

It looks a little like they're all staring adoringly at him.  Awkward and adoring.  That's my kids.