Happy Naniday!

Perfect black forest birthday cake, huh?

Original photo and recipe at Ahaar Pleasure and Sustenance

Happy Naniday, everyone! I am officially 45 today. My Twitter message said that I was 45, even to a newspaper reporter. Yes, that’s directed at that guy who shares the same last name and address as me. For the last 48 days we’ve been calling ourselves the same age, but he has insisted I was 44. I think when I’m 48 days away from 45, I‘m much more 45 than 44, My always cheery honey, reminds me that if I dropped the day before my birthday, the obituary would call me 44, not 45. Okay, so I made it to 45. Told him so! :P

Last weekend David and I kicked off Nanifest XLV with baseball in the Motherland, specifically in Lansing. I hadn’t been to a Lugnuts game in a few years and when I lived in Michigan I went to a couple Nuts games every year, so I really missed seeing them. I’d been to a couple Lugnuts games on my birthday or during the Festival. We kinda copied the first Saturday off Nanifest XL, stopping in Hell on the way to Lansing. The ice cream in Hell is great! This year, also just like when I turned 40, David bought me a Hell T-shirt! The new one is a Screams Ice Cream shirt! It’s cool! The lettering is in glow-in-the-dark green on dark purple! The shirt is a “goal shirt” right now. It is a size smaller than I usually wear and just a bit snug. By Halloween, it’ll fit great!

After ice cream at Screams, I had chocolate fudge wrapped around cherry in a waffle cone, black forest cone, baby, we went to the Lugnuts game. Finally the streak of losing home teams is over! The Lugnuts won 3-1!! I’m feeling better about upcoming games at home in Toledo and in Cincinnati to see my Reds! The Lugnuts celebrated my festival with fireworks after the game. I love birthday fireworks!

On Sunday, we took our buy one get one coupon to Baskin Robbins with us after dinner. I had two scoops of Baseball Nut in a waffle cone. I like waffle cones because they hold the ice cream all in the cone instead of on it, better for avoiding dropped ice cream! I’m using the Weight Watchers Points Plus system to help with my diet goals and the coolest part of the program is how real it is. There are weekly extra points that allow for an occasional treat on plan. With the extra points I was able to have ice cream twice. Okay, that uses almost all the points, but hey, it still working, slowly and safely! Best news is the weekly points reset on Thursdays, just in time for the Festival weekends!


Last night, David took me out to Mancy’s Bluewater Grille. I had the Pretzel Crusted Flounder, a dish with Nani written all over it! We shared a flourless chocolate cake for dessert, truly decadent! Tonight the Mud Hens are having fireworks to celebrate the actual day again, just like last year and we’ll be there. I know the Reds really wanted me to come to Cincinnati tonight, they’re doing fireworks set to music from the 60s, the decade in which I was born, but my Dad is doing a barbecue for me tomorrow in the Motherland and Tori and Rina will be there too. So, my Reds game will be later in August. I still love the Reds for hosting a Naniday party!

After dinner at Pop’s tomorrow, which will be chicken kebabs and teriyaki pork with grilled veggies, oh my mouth is watering already, Pop is the king of the grill, Tori and Rina are coming home with us. They’re having lunch with me and Sheri Sunday at our favorite Toledo restaurant, Ya Halla. Sheri likes Middle Eastern food and this will be her first time at Ya Halla. Then we plan to visit Cold Stone to use my birthday coupon for dessert. Sunday evening, the girls and I will meet Dave and Laura for dinner and they’ll take the girls home. Both of the girls have their drivers licenses now, so I’m thinking I can get by with only having to drive home from dinner this weekend!

I’m trying to set up some travel to the Motherland for next week. Maybe the Farmers Market with Scotty and then lunch with Heather H and Tracy. Still working on that plan.

I’ve had some interest in doing the Photo Walk in Frankenmuth in October, so maybe I’ll gather a modest group, maybe I’ll even sign up for it being an official Photo Walk. Edna, when I posted about Photo Walk, I SO had you in mind too! Anyone reading can either form an informal or solo Photo Walk or check that website out to see if there’s an organized one in your area. It’s definitely something to which I’m looking forward!!

My birthday wish is that I hope everyone has a great Naniday, do something that makes you happy and eat ice cream!