Do you remember that one time (well, maybe more than once) I said that when you have a blog and write things for everyone to see, crazy things happen to you. Case in point…

Last Thursday was my birthday. Most birthdays just feel like another day, but this year felt very different. I started the day with a nice 7 mile run (cue alone time 🙂 ). The kids were out of school because of winter break (this wasn’t even a thing in the South), so we started the day bowling with a friend and her kids at a local bowling alley. What I imagined to be a disaster bowling with two moms and 6 kids turned out really well. My friend even brought a sweet little mini cake and candle to celebrate my birthday. It was so sweet of her to celebrate my special day. Susie, I am so sorry for being more concerned with getting in trouble over a burning candle than truly appreciating your gift – it’s the rule-follower in me!!

Then, we grabbed some lunch, the little kids had naps, and we had a fun dinner of my choice along with cupcakes for dinner. The kids LOVED celebrating with me and I love that they make birthdays so fun!! Also, Ed did a great job picking out presents this year. A fun movie set AND this book about all the different people groups living in NYC (most of them in Queens!) that I had spied at a friend’s house and liked a lot. I also got a few other sweet gifts from friends and from my parents and Ed’s parents.

Then, this is where it gets interesting. Amy, my friend and teammate, went out with me to celebrate both our birthdays (her’s was a few weeks before) and she picked out this fun place in Queens called “Sugar ‘n Coal”. She noticed online it had good reviews and that the desserts looked really good. After arriving, we enter this restaurant with low lighting, a very eccentric smell, and a DJ playing music in the corner. At first, we and another couple were the only people in there (and the DJ of course who was shooting live videos and carrying on like he had a whole host of people there). When the server came to the table, she started sharing about how they make their own hookah flavors and their desserts and their Indian food they serve. We had no clue it was a hookah bar! I can say that is a first for me. Imagine these two moms of 7 kids between the two of us eating our delicious desserts in a hookah bar. It was still a good experience, but lesson learned, read further than the name and the desserts next time. 🙂

Overall, the day was really fun and I felt very loved and celebrated by family and friends near and far!!

Then, last night, we had our team social in the city and enjoyed ice skating at Bryant Park, including time watching the bumper cars on ice, Krispy Kreme doughnuts, and eating Korean fried chicken at Turntable (which had really fun jazz decor and music!). We had a great time – so, so, so thankful to love our team and enjoy spending time with them!