Happy Birthday Karen

Happy, Happy Birthday to the most loyal, hilarious, compassionate, caring, crazy, and wonderful friend a gal could ask for.

Happy 33rd Karen!

Here are 33 facts about my dear friend...

1-I met her when she was only three years old.

2-She had and probably still has her baby blanket that she so lovingly referred to as "wubbie".

3-She is an amazing ballet dancer. 16 years or so of dancing will do that.

4-She makes the funniest monkey face I've ever seen. And I saw it a lot as a child!

5-Karen is BY FAR, the most hilarious individual I know. It's all in the way she speaks.

6-She once referred to her chest as "Shock and Awe" and I almost drove off the side of the road from laughing so hard. (see what I mean, funny! her word choice skills are stellar!)

7-She is allergic to apples.

8-We threw a small party for the neighborhood kids when I was about 11, and we served skittles and gave wheelbarrow rides to our guests. We also encouraged everyone to "Mingle"! :)

(Karen and me camping in 1982, Being wacky circa 1987, typical day w/Karen-198?)

9-She has the tiniest little toe nails on her pinky toes! You practically need a magnifying glass to see them!


10-We once had a contest to see who could walk barefoot on the hot asphalt street the longest. It was a scorching Summer day! Look what boredom can lead kids to do.


11-We also tried to make a swimming pool out of a large cardboard box lined with plastic. Key word there is "tried".


12-We killed a cricket that we named Jimminey, buried him, and made a song up about him... we both still know the lyrics.


13-We loved to choreograph dances in her basement to the rocking tunes from Abba. (most of the dances started out with a fancy cart wheel as we entered the room!) We were totally rad.


14-We used to drive around the Kirkland waterfront while listening to Depeche Mode- hoping to see some cute guys.


15-She was the best Maid of Honor- EVER!

(Karen & Brad's engagement photo-1997 Karen's Senior photo-1993)

(Karen being the best Maid of Honor ever - Jan. 1993)

16-Her mom had a garage sale one time and we thought it would be a fantastic idea to make and sell egg rolls. What?? What kid sells egg rolls? Why not cookies? Weird kids from Renton that's who!

17-Karen has a phobia of driving off bridges into water.


18-I can't eat a egg salad sandwich without thinking about her. (Her mom would always make them whenever we went to Lake Wa. for an afternoon of swimming)


19-She is by far one of the most loving mothers I have ever known. She was born to be a mom.


20-She is a fabulous teacher!


21-She was always afraid to spend the whole night in our backyard camp outs. We always ended up going back inside to the safety of the house. :)



22-She makes the best salads I've ever had. And her homemade croutons are to die for.


23-When we used to play "house" as kids, she always pretended that her husband's name was Tom.


24-She wrote a poem about scotch tape that was published in our high school year book.

(Look at the little Freshman- 1989)

25-We went camping together at least once a year and each time holds a funny memory. (New inventions, vomit, boys... I won't go into the details.)

26-Christmas at her house was like someone winning the lottery. She had mountains of gifts to show me each year.


27-She loved "life", and by that I mean the boardgame Life. I actually had to hide the game because I was so sick of playing it with her. I told her I had "lost" it somewhere. Nice, huh?


28-There is a booth in a DQ in Renton that we claimed as "ours" because we would always sit there every time we rode our bikes for a "full meal deal".


29-She has amazing taste in clothing and always looks put together & absolutely beautiful.


30-One of her in-laws thinks she is Puerto Rican... And Karen has no intention of telling her the truth. (She's part Canadian and part Portuguese and has the best skin tone around!)



31-That girl is FLEXIBLE! I think she can still do the splits and I KNOW she can reach far beyond her toes- I'm extremely jealous, as is my hubby.



32-She's got amazing decorating taste- her home is lovely and welcoming.


33-She is a friend that anyone would be grateful to have... and I count my lucky stars that she was introduced into my life when I was only seven years old and that I get the pleasure of calling her my friend until my dying day.

I hope you spend this day doing something you enjoy. Maybe listening to a little Abba? Perhaps a lunch that includes egg rolls? Whatever you end up doing, have a happy day and remember that you are loved more than you know!