It was my 44^th birthday on Monday.  As you know, I love birthdays.  I love birthdays because they are a celebration of the fact that each of us exists on this planet – a “Hooray, you are here!” Day.  Also, I love attention.

Additionally, I love birthdays because society basically gives you carte blanche to do whatever you want.  In fact, if you don’t live it up on your birthday, people are disappointed.  The most frequently asked birthday question is “So, what did you do for your birthday?”  And you can say absolutely anything: “I walked around completely naked with mayonnaise spread all over my body listening to Whitney Houston’s greatest hits and bouncing a tennis ball,” and the response would be, “Great, it’s YOUR day.”

For the last few years, I’ve celebrated my birthday by demanding people do one thing that they would do on their own birthday.  As my birthday continues to afterglow for about a month following my actual day, this means that you, kind reader, have the next 29 days to buy yourself a new outfit, or eat cake, or get a massage, or go to the movies or whatever.  If someone questions why you have mayonnaise spread all over your body, let them know that your friend Amanda made you do it.

Since you didn’t ask, I thought I’d tell you one of the things I did for my birthday this year.

Again, as you know, I have been appearing on North Dakota Today on Monday mornings to share stories of awesome North Dakotans being awesome North Dakotans.  To prepare for my segment, I’ve taken to posting two outfits to social media the night prior and asking people to select which one I should wear on air the following day.

Dressing for television is harder than you might think, especially for people like me who trend towards heart-patterned mumus and dirty Converse sneakers.  On TV, you want to wear a fitted waist, simple or no patterns, as much structure as possible, and clean shoes.  After 25 years in the workforce, I’ve amassed a closetful of clothing pieces that fit those qualifiers – however, the last time I wore any of them, Obama was President.

I can tell you in absolute earnest that I don’t post photos of my outfits because (despite what I said before) I love the attention or I’m trying to become a clothing influencer (I’m pretty sure influencers shower before taking photos).  I do it because I really, really appreciate the help.  Just because something looks good in person doesn’t mean it will fare well on TV, and I have found my social media pals are spot-on when picking the best choice.  On many occasions, my online buddies will offer suggestions as to how to improve the outfit (“Wear it with boots” or “Try a necklace” or “Wipe off the mayo”).  It’s like having a team of personal stylists, which, as the Kardashians can attest, is excellent.

This past Sunday evening, I did as per usual: picked out three outfits with some help from Pinterest, asked Kyle to narrow it down to two, and then posted those online.  The votes were neck-in-neck by the time I went to bed (and one person emailed me a link to a pair of shoes to wear with one of the outfits in the future, which I bought, thank you very much), and so, when I awoke on my birthday, I lay there in the dark for about 30 seconds being glad it was my birthday before turning on my phone to find out what I was wearing for the show: a black dress that didn’t require Spanx.  Great choice.

“Happy birthday, doll,” Kyle whispered, half-asleep, as I crawled out of bed.  “Which dress are you wearing?”

“Thank you, and the black,” I whispered because everyone was whispering.

“That’s the one I voted for, no big deal,” he whispered back.

I was pulling on my pantyhose when my three fellas came into the bathroom carrying a balloon, a present, and a stack of cards.

“Happy birthday, Mom!”  Eight cheered.

“Happy birthday,” Twelve monotoned, annoyed that he had to wake up slightly earlier than usual for this.

Kyle has been writing me a “Roses are red” poem every morning for the past couple of years, and (either by force or choice) the boys decided to also write me poems in my birthday cards.

“Roses are red / violets are blue / no matter what you do / I’ll always be beside you,” Eight wrote in his card.

“Roses are red / violets are blue / hope you have the best birthday ever / and best wishes, too,” Twelve wrote in his card.

“These are very, very good poems,” I said.

“Yeah,” Twelve said, leaving the room.

“I like your dress,” Eight said.  “You are so good at style.  I also wrote that in my card, see?  ‘You are so good at style.’”

“Thank you, baby love,” I said.

Kyle handed me my coffee on my way out the door, and I pulled out of the garage and into a magical pink sunrise.

My phone beeped.  It was a Snapchat message from Twelve.

“Happy birthday,” he texted.  “I love you.”

“I love you, too, buddy,” I texted back.

“You look pretty,” he texted.

“Thank you, love,” I texted back.

“Can I have 15 minutes?”  he texted [note: his phone is time-controlled by my phone]

“Sure,” I texted, as the sun rose golden in the sky. 

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The wonderful people at North Dakota Today surprised me on-air with a birthday celebration, and one of the honorary employees crocheted me the amazing flowers you see in the photo above. Also in the photo above is my TV makeup and the wrinkly sweatshirt I wore for most of my birthday. #Influencer

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This week on North Dakota Today, we talked about the healing journey of Heidi Muus, and an opportunity to help some good pups at The Red Hydrant.  Check it out!  (Valley News Live)

Four Fargo area chefs and two Bismarck chefs are semi-finalists for the 2024 James Beard Awards in the categories of Outstanding Restaurateur, Best Bakery, and Best Chef: Midwest. Winners will be announced in June. (James Beard Foundation)

The students at Mandan Middle School are selling suckers to pay down their classmates’ lunch debts. (KFYR TV)

Northern Roots Boutique is looking for your suits and prom dresses to give to glamorous students in need. (Facebook)

Dickinson’s Rhinestone Rhonda and her husband, Chad, were celebrated with the Stark County Spirit of Excellence Award for their advocacy around literacy. (KFYR TV)

A host of Grand Forks organizations have come together to create an educational park on the north end of town. (Grand Forks Herald)

The Fargo community raised over $110,000 for first responders, smashing their previous record and giving 22 departments the equipment requested. (Fargo Forum)

Also as a reminder, Kyle and his friends, Corey and Kelly, have a podcast called North Dakota After Dark where they talk about youth hockey in North Dakota.  The latest episode is up and is an interview with Viktor Tikhonov, former Coyotes first-rounder and grandson of the legendary Viktor Tikhonov, coach of the Soviet team at the Miracle on Ice.  Check it out. Bonus: you can watch it on YouTube. (North Dakota After Dark)

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