On September 25th, I followed the path of many of my high school classmates and turned the big 6-0! It was a fairly low-key affair as I really didn’t take the time to plan any huge celebration. For not having anything planned, it turned out to be a great family birthday and one that I will always cherish.
Many of you know that I celebrate the whole month of September as my birthday month. Jokingly, I tell people that Labor Day is celebrated in honor of my birthday month!! A few days before my birthday, David had a stunning bouquet of flowers sent to me. The flowers were so fresh, that I was able to enjoy them for a couple of weeks. 
The night before my birthday, I spent at my dad’s home. When I got up on my special day, he gave me a very sentimental card and a gift of money. The card says:
How do you tell a wonderful daughter just how much she means to you when there are no words to describe the gift of precious memories she’s given you since the moment she came into your life….. How can you tell her all the ways she’s made a difference in your world when nothing can truly measure the happiness and pride you’ve felt watching her face life’s challenges and shape her fondest dreams… How can you tell a wonderful daughter all the feelings your heart holds for her and her alone – except to simply say…. Daughter, you are so very loved and wished a world of happiness always Happy Birthday Love, Dad
After reading the card, I couldn’t say a word except to kiss Dad and whisper a thank you, I was so choked with emotions. Dad added to the card by saying that it he doesn’t say it enough and that he meant every word of the card! It is all so very, very special to me and I will always cherish the card and the memory! Then, I was out to door to have a “birthday breakfast” with my brother Perry who gave me an fabulous pearl bracelet for a gift. After breakfast, I was on the highway heading north to spend a couple of days with my mom at her cottage at Moosehead Lake. I made a stop in Newport, Maine to put gas in the car. It is a truck stop, albeit a small one. Fortunately, that is when David made his daily call to me from South Africa and I was able to open the birthday gift from him. David had arranged for Perry to give me his gift but I didn’t open it as I wanted to open it when I was talking with David. 
Opening his gift while talking with him at the truck stop will always be a fond memory!!! His gift was a gorgeous and thoughtful necklace. There are three rings of sterling silver on the chain and inscribed in them are: “I will love you today,” “I will love you tomorrow,” “I will love you forever.” I am not much of a jewelry person but I love this necklace and what it represents. So, thank you to my sweetie, for being so thoughtful, loving, generous and a wonderful life-partner. From the town of Newport up to the Moosehead Lake area, the route is along scenic, secondary roads. The further north I went the more colorful the trees were. It was close to peak when I was at Moosehead. Mother nature was very busy with her paint brush!
Kingsbury Stream in Abbot, Maine
I arrived to big birthday hugs from my mom….I am so grateful to be 60 years old and have both my mother and father on this earth to celebrate with me. I know what a true blessing it is and say my thanks daily.
Mt Kineo from the Birches dining room.
Mom gave me a gift of money and a very thoughtful card telling me how “awesome” I am . With all the attention I received on my birthday, I felt very awesome and amazing! Mom also treated me to a delectable dinner at the Birches Resort, located on Moosehead Lake. The dining room is in a rustic lodge and has a view that overlooks Mt Kineo, where the trees were dressed in colors of red, yellow and golds. Our meals were delicious and for dessert, mom had arranged for a piece of carrot cake to be brought to the table with a sparkler in it. That little touch reminded me of birthdays from long ago when my cakes were decorated with sparklers instead of the traditional candles. What fun…how I wish I had thought to bring my camera with me! 
After dinner, mom and I drove to Lakeshore Road for another view of Mount Kineo and we were treated to seeing seven deer. As we were returning to the camp, we saw another deer running right in the middle of the bridge that crosses over Moose River. Fortunately, we were the only car around and gave him plenty of space so he could safely return to the woods. The next day was spent walking around and taking pictures of the glorious fall foliage and just enjoying quiet time. 
There are a flock of ducks that live on Moose River. They cross over the road every morning for their snack of bird seeds that drop from the bird feeders that mom has out to feed the birds. Some mornings there were as many as 8 of them.
I was fortunate to spy the pileated woodpecker that had been hanging around mom’s camp. I have always wanted to see one and this was the first one that I did see. A birthday gift from the universe!! I wasn’t able to get a clear photo as he was very busy pecking away at the tree. The one clear photo I did get, you can’t see his head!
Birthday celebrations continued into the weekend. I returned to Augusta on Saturday, the 27th and spent the night with dad. Sunday, September 28th was Dad’s 85th birthday. It was a warm, sunny day and to help dad celebrate my brother, Mike and his family, joined Dad and me for lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse. As is the case with most busy families these days, it is difficult to get everyone together. It was a nice family time. Certainly wished David had been able to join us. As my birthday approached, I was chastising myself for not having some kind of huge 60th-birthday event planned. As you can see from what I shared, my 60th birthday was shared with my family and I am grateful that. Moments with family far outweighs any trip and thanks to the memories that were created on my birthday, I will always smile when I reminisce about turning 60!!!
Birthday celebrations continued into the weekend. I returned to Augusta on Saturday, the 27th and spent the night with dad. Sunday, September 28th was Dad’s 85th birthday. It was a warm, sunny day and to help dad celebrate my brother, Mike and his family, joined Dad and me for lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse. As is the case with most busy families these days, it is difficult to get everyone together. It was a nice family time. Certainly wished David had been able to join us. As my birthday approached, I was chastising myself for not having some kind of huge 60th-birthday event planned. As you can see from what I shared, my 60th birthday was shared with my family and I am grateful that. Moments with family far outweighs any trip and thanks to the memories that were created on my birthday, I will always smile when I reminisce about turning 60!!!