Joy

I had a lovely birthday. Lots of nice phone calls and electronic warm wishes from friends near and far. In Ukraine, the birthday person is supposed to bring sweets in for colleagues, and I decided to bake a big batch of muffins Wednesday night to take to the office on Thursday. We had fresh wild blueberries and sour cherries that we’d brought back from Korosten, so I whipped up a couple batches. With only one muffin tin that bakes 6 muffins at a time, it quickly became clear to me that it was not going to be a quick endeavor. 3 hours later, I’d had enough of the hot kitchen and called it quits. Dad sneaked a couple muffins, but most of them made it to the office on Thursday. They were quite a hit, and once word spread throughout the office, it was a great incentive for folks to come visit us up on the third floor.

I was sporting the absolutely beautiful bracelet that Igor gave me – citrons and blue topaz, to go with the presents of the last 2 birthdays, a blue topaz necklace and blue topaz earrings. The set is complete! Dad bought me the cell phone I’ve been coveting for ages. My colleague Anna gave me a really cool cookbook, with Ukrainian recipes in both Russian and English, and the most beautiful, appetizing photos!

I told Igor I didn’t want to do anything fancy this year, no evening out, nobody over, just me and my guys at home. The sweeties that they are, Igor and Dad had a cake with candles waiting for me when I got home and they sang “Happy Birthday.” Igor cooked a fabulous meal (as always). I had requested zucchini pancakes (like potato pancakes, only made with the zucchini). Being the creative overachiever that he is, he made up an entirely new recipe and combined all kinds of vegetables for the pancakes – beets, carrots, zucchini, etc. They were both pretty and delicious!

After dinner, Igor did the most beautiful thing. He told Dad that in the Far East they have a tradition that a husband who is happy with his wife gives gold to his father-in-law. Igor said “I am very happy with Ann, and I want to thank you.” He gave Dad a gold ring, which fit perfectly on Dad’s little finger. Dad got a bit misty-eyed, and finally said “I don’t know what to say.”

I can hardly believe sometimes that this amazing and wonderful man is my husband, that I get to live with him the rest of my life. What pure joy!