Who has the greatest sister on Earth?

That would be me. Without an ounce of doubt, my little sis is the best! She’s a dear friend and confidante, and a sweet, loving auntie to my babies. Add in that she knows me better than I know myself and we’re golden.

For my birthday on Tuesday, it was a rather uneventful day if you look at it on paper, and yet, it was my favorite one so far. We had a little ice cream party at the office, complete with uncomfortable singing and a card that showcased dancing desserts with googley eyes on the front.

As I was driving home, my sister called to wish me a good day and said that she was on her way home, too. Then my mom called, and we visited until I pulled into my garage. I saw that DW’s dad’s truck was there, and I made a snotty comment about how if he’d just popped in without calling first, I hope he was a little embarrassed by the state of chaos in my house. I knew that I had a laundry load of skimpy underclothes folded in different piles all around the living room because I was too tired to put them away the night before.

When I stepped out of the car, I could smell cleaning products. I unbuckled the girls’ car seats and walked into the house to find a clean, sparkling, clutter-free home! The tears started rolling. When my sister said she was on her way home, I’d assumed she had just left work at the clinic. In fact, she’d been at my house cleaning from 10-5. The house hadn’t been that clean since just before I had the babies. She’d bought and put up a shoe rack in our front entrance, and left a vase full of fresh, vibrant flowers, as well as a couple of cute little baby onesies. Can we say best present ever on the face of the planet? She even cleaned the downstairs bathroom, which I haven’t set foot in since sometime in April!

DW’s dad was in the living room when I got upstairs, and DW was walking out of the bathroom looking dapper as ever. He explained that his dad was there to babysit so that we could go on a date. A real date. With nice clothes and a wine list. DW even wore cologne to make me swoon. It worked!

Oh my, could it get any better? Once we fed the girls and settled them in with grandpa, DW and I went to Littlefields. He had an elk steak and I had a fabulous stuffed pork tenderloin. And my first glass of wine in a year. It was wonderful. Truly wonderful. For those who have trouble turning 30, they obviously don’t have my loved ones in their lives.

After we returned home and DW’s dad left, I called my sister to thank her. I said she must have had to work hard and fast all day to get everything done. She simply said, “Yup, I sure did.” I told her that my first instinct was to be a little embarrassed, but then she pointed out that it wasn’t that my house was necessarily dirty and gross, just really disorganized. I think she got a good taste just how hectic it is to have two babies at home in the evenings by myself and then leave on the weekends. The 8 loads of clean laundry in varying degrees of folding that were piled in the living room, on the bed, in the dryer and on the dresser might have been a good tipoff.

The running joke between DW and me during the last couple of weeks had been that he’d come out of the shower and walk bare into the living room to get a pair of boxers from a laundry basket because his undies drawer had been empty for weeks. I guess as long as we both can laugh about it, who cares, right? We don’t have to worry about that again for a while, though, thanks to my incredible sister. I am so very blessed.