ailbhe | The birthday began

My desk is still clean and tidy. This is bizarre.

My birthday was great. It couldn't have been better. I was woken by jubilant screaming from the street outside at about 5:45 am, and if I'm woken I can't get back to sleep, so I read for a while. Then I heard the letterbox flap, and got up and found a card from Mormor Greta - it actually arrived on the right day! And at about 8, I woke Rob, and he made me tea and was very smily and happy. Then the doorbell rang, and it was an Amazon delivery, and it contained Anne of Green Gables, and I settled into bed to read it, and then Rob brought me breakfast in bed - toast and honey, and a clementine - and then he gave me presents!

So at half past eight on my birthday, I was sitting up in bed reading Anne of Green Gables and listening to Divine Comedy's Fin de Siecle. I'm not sure what this says about me, but I was blissfully happy.

Because we had stayed up late the night before doing all the food prep, there was very little left to do, so we pottered about a tiny bit and I got dressed, and then Janice phoned to see if I wanted to go to the Farmer's Market, so I hurried Rob out of the shower and we all three went to market, where Janice bought me my birthday present - a woman makes the most gorgeous pottery and I already had a milk jug and a sugar bowl, so I got three teensy weensy little jugs with no practical use to me at all, but they match the other stuff and they are gorgeous beyond measure.

I also bought a bottle of apple and rhubarb juice, which is delicious. The rhubarb just leaves a little aftertaste; the main flavour when it's in my mouth is apple.

We stopped at Janice's for tea, and then Janice came home with us to use our bandwidth. Rob and I pottered about doing party-prep until his parents arrived. I called my mother to wish her happy birthday then, too.

Rob's parents arrived at around noonish. They were carrying the most enormous black plastic sack I've ever seen, decorated with little ribbons, and a cooler bag which I knew for sure contained real Swedish birthday cake - sponge, basically, but the fillings are wonderful.

The black sack contained a beanbag, which I have wanted for ages, but which is particularly marvellous in my current "delicate condition". Gravity is not my friend and I can only assume it will get worse, so a malleable sitting surface is exactly what I need. Inger had also picked out a lovely red maternity top, and some cute writing paper with a cat on it that looks just like Dust, our middle cat.

Rob and his parents went out for a while, and came back at different times. I started cooking. Alan and Inger brought flowers from Mormor back with them, and then Alan made cheese on toast for everyone, which was much appreciated, since no-one had remembered lunch. There was a little rush when I realised that we'd forgotten wine, but Rob and Janice went to find some.

Jen called to say that she and Gideon would be late, and Ellie and Andy were slightly late too, so dinner started later than planned - luckily it was all ok to be delayed and I had enough space to keep things warm without overcooking them. Dinner was good, though.