hard to shop for

My birthday is this week. I feel really bad for my husband and my family because I am hard to shop for. Not because I'm picky (although this is a factor) but because I'm too busy right now to have hobbies or other interest so the options are limited. I don't want clothes (yet!) because I'm not back to the size I want to be after giving birth to Natsuki two months ago. I would like books and magazines but I want to pick them out myself (I guess the pickiness is a bigger factor than I thought). My poor husband is basically at a loss on what to get for me.

I have other things to be thankful for, though. For example, my two month old slept last night from 10:30 to 7:00 for the first time. If she really starts keeping to this schedule that would be an awesome birthday present from her. Emi & Misaki know all about birthdays and special birthday girls so they have pledged to be sweeter than normal and they also sing "Happy Birthday" for me everytime I turn around. Another thing to be thankful for is that a new mall was built recently near us and it has a Mexican Restaurant. I think since we moved to Japan I've seen two Mexican Restaurants so having one only 10 minutes away is a small miracle. We'll go there on Tuesday for my birthday lunch. Another plus, my husband has Tuesday off so he'll be home to be nice to me all day long. Lucky him!

The truth is that with a family of four children under the age of 5 my time is so full that there is little time left over for me. I do have projects I would like to do for which I have all the supplies but not the time. But I have embraced this reality and feel comfort in the fact that my children will eventually grow up and not need every moment of my day and then I can get to those projects. And probably on that day I will be sad and miss the old days when my girls needed my every waking moment. Life is odd that way so I will enjoy these moments now and enjoy my hobbies and projects later and hope that my husband doesn't give up on trying to find a present for me in the meantime!