A Quick Post Before Dinner

Sunday, January 3, 2010

I didn't plan on blogging today aside from the quick post I did this morning. But I've been mulling over some thoughts. Reflective mumbo jumbo, nothing dire mind you...

Long before I was "Momma", even long before I was "Mrs. Cox" I had two nicknames. "EP" {maiden initials} and "Erinstar"... Erinstar began at my first job. I was one of the only hostesses {or Twinkies as the servers called us} at my job that seemed to have any common sense. A server and old friend of mine dubbed me Erinstar because... well ... I rocked at my job.

It's still a habit for me to write my name with a little starburst of some sort at the end, even after all these years. Even after no one has called me Erinstar for quite a while. I still have my nametags from Red Robin, engraved Erinstar. I still have my personal email address with "erinstar" in it. It seems like forever ago...

I'll get to the point {I do have one, really} though. Today, Mat took Charlie out to "do some things", leaving me with an empty apartment. I listened to music and took my time getting ready for wherever we were going. When he got back, he instructed me to not look when he came up from getting something out of the car. I like surprises, so I obeyed with a smirk.

Moments later, he asked me to close my eyes and led me across the room and told me I could open them. On our table was a cake. And not just any cake... a beautiful cake. Made for me. Not Momma. Not Mrs. Cox. But Erinstar. I immediately started tearing up and hugged him tight. He had no idea the impact such a small detail would make. But it was just what I needed.

Seeing the fondant E and star shape on that cake made me so grateful and humbled. It's so easy to get lost in the different roles we play each day. I need to take more time for myself, I think. Even if it's just a few minutes a day or a few hours on the weekend -- Just for Erinstar.

Edited to add :: Cake cred to Kelli's Creations in Kirkland, WA - Amazing work {and no, I wasn't asked or paid to say that}