I don't care much for the commercialism of the day, which seems to have grown geometrically since I was a child. But I do like the day. Why? Simple: it's my birthday. It's always been kind of special to be a Valentine myself. My husband always separates my birthday presents from my Valentine's presents, which is neat. And the gifts are always well thought out and carefully chosen.

This year, for Valentine's, I got two white stuffed bears. One of them holds a box of chocolates, and is from my little grandson, who picked it out himself, with a little help from "grampy." The other holds a red heart reading, "Bear Hugs" from my husband, whose nickname is "Bear." I also got some dvd's. Red Skelton, and Titanic for Valentine's day. I got two cards, one of which is "signed" by Dylan. It made me cry, of course. That one, needless to say, will be kept forever. I'm sentimental that way.

For my Birthday: I got two cards, one of which was again signed by Dylan. I got a heart pendant, and a treasure box engraved with "The love between a grandmother and grandchild is a priceless treasure." with two pictures of my Dylan inside. More tears. Another set of dvd's. Red Skelton and "The Notebook." It's been a wonderful day.

OK. some of this is repeating the above, but here goes:

I have to say, I never knew a birthday could be so much fun. My husband knows how to make a birthday special. When I got up yesterday morning, he greeted me with some wrapped presents and two birthday cards. One of each was from him; the others were from my grandson, Dylan.

He had picked Dylan up last week (without my knowing) and took him shopping at the mall. They went to a Hallmark store, and Jay put Dylan on the floor next to a display of Teddy Bears. Then, he put three teddy bears on the floor a short distance from Dylan...who then crawled over to the bear he liked most, four times! That's how he chose my Valentine's present! The clerks in the store were tickled at the "decision maker." They chuckled at the whole thing. Jay gave Dylan a pen, and he "signed" both my birthday and Valentine cards. Needless to say, both of those cards will be kept forever. It was so touching, it made me cry...but the tears were not sad. The only sad part was missing my grandmother, whose 91st birthday would have been on the 11th of February. I got my Valentine's presents on Sunday, while Dylan was here to help Jay give them to me; normally, I get my Valentine's presents in the morning, and birthday presents in the evening. Never do I get them "combined". Jay says they should always be separate.

Jay also showed Dylan a samll silver treasure chest on a stand. Dylan's comment: "Ahhdah". Approval to purchase. This treasure chest is engraved with the words, "the love between a grandmother and grandchild is a priceless treasure." Inside, there is a small frame. Jay took Dylan's very first baby picture, and had it reduced in size to fit into the frame. He took another photo from our album of Dylan's photos and reduced it to fit into the bottom of the chest. On the underside of the chest is a chain to hold charms; the charm is a baby's footprint in silver.

From Jay, I got a silver and gold heart pendant on a delicate gold link chain from the same jeweler we bought our wedding rings from. Every good piece of jewelry I own comes from that store.

From both Dylan and Jay, I got a collection of Red Skelton DVDs, "Titanic" on DVD, and "The Notebook", also on DVD. "The Notebook" is a gem of a film. Jay sent me an e card while he was out during the morning, and I have it for my wallpaper.

So, I'm thinking: "not bad for a birthday." Jay: "But the day's not over yet." Midafternoon: "I have to go run an errand. I'll be back." Meanwhile, I'm working. Jay is gone....and gone....and gone. Finally, he is home again. He's making noise in the kitchen, but since he usually cooks dinner when I'm working, I thought nothing of it.

Just as I got off work, my dad called to say "happy birthday." It's interesting. My mother (the one person in the entire world who should, logically, remember) rarely remembers my birthday; my father has never forgotten. It's kind of a tradition for him to call on my birthday now. I don't know if he calls my brothers or not, but it makes me feel like "daddy's little girl", which is kinda neat. After we chatted for a while, I checked my email, to find several greetings from friends. Then dinner. Jay made "real" mashed potatoes (not instant), and he used a hand masher, not the mixer...because he didn't want to make any noise that would give anything away. He added corn and barbecued boneless beef ribs tender enough to cut with a fork. Dessert made me LAUGH. He had bought an individual size white birthday cake, (the reason he was gone so long in the afternoon was that he had to wait for the cake to be baked and decorated) with white icing and a small pink rose on it. He put five candles (all that would safely fit) on the cake, and lit them. When he brought the cake to the table, he sang "happy birthday", and took a picture as I blew out the candles. I was pleased that I blew them all out with one breath, and I got ready to cut the cake....and the candles re-lit!! Again, I blew them out....and they re-lit. By this time, I'm laughing so hard, I can't blow them out if I had to, plus I'm about to hyperventilate. Jay finally had to put them into a glass of water to extinguish them. Jay says he still owes me a dinner "out", but I don't really mind if we don't go out to eat. Jay says his family is sending "a package" of some sort; it may be here today or tomorrow.

We watched "The Notebook" together. It was a grand day! It is so wonderful to be so loved. My ex NEVER put that kind of thought into my birthday. I used to dread my birthday. Now, I look forward to it; I think Jay has as much fun planning as I do esperiencing the surprises. He says he usually starts thinking about my birthday in mid-December, which is a good trick, given that some of our Christmas preparations are happening at about that time.