Jude was thrilled that today was my birthday because what’s mine is his (and, well, what’s his is his). We stuck as closely as we could to Jude’s birthday plans for me. We went to Sam’s Club where Jude picked out my birthday cake. Unfortunately, Spiderman was sold out, so I got 30 equally delicious, but not as cool, sea creature cupcakes. After Sam’s Club, we went to a nearby retailer so the boys could pick me out the presents I wanted so badly — a new choo choo and a super hero toy. Levi picked me out a new choo choo that (surprise, surprise) he just loves. Jude struggled so much over what super hero toy to get me (meaning him) that finally I talked him into a motorized engine that I knew Levi would also love. After that we went to the splash pad for over 5 hours. It was an awesome park with way more than just water to splash in and is tied , in my opinion, with several other parks as best park ever. Our Ukrainian friends joined us there for awhile.  Jude told me later that while he was at the park he was hiding a secret — that he was missing his hair. He told me that his Angry Birds hat wasn’t covering up all his missing hair (and some naughty boy kept stealing his hat) and that some kids asked what that white thing (large bald spot that now is looking more like the state of Louisiana than Texas) was. He told them it was “from a brain tumor.” He said that they then “just froze” and that they “were moving, but not talking.” So, I take that to mean that he shut them up and that they didn’t give him a hard time about it. I’m so thankful to be living at a place now where Jude can run around without a hat on and not feel self-conscious at all. Most of the kids here have brain tumors so he is not alone.