Best Birthday Ever

Tomorrow's my 41st birthday.  I love birthdays - mine and anyone elses' - our own little mini-holidays!  And a reminder that we're still here, even if we are getting older, MUCH better than the alternative....

Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I've had some amazing birthdays in the past.  One I'll always remember is the hot air balloon ride my husband surprised me with when we still lived in Missouri.  It stormed on my birthday, so we had a quiet day and he took me to a nice dinner and after he told me the surprise we rescheduled for about a week later.  If you've never been up in a hot air balloon, I have to say it was one of the most magical experiences of my life.  We got to help lay out the basket and balloon, then watch as the balloon inflated, scramble over the sides of the basket and suddenly we were rising up into the air so fast!  And then we floated over our town, right over our own neighborhood, which looked like a forest from the air, with all of the old trees.  And except for the occasional wooshing gusts from the burner, it was silent and we were so low you could see everything and wave at neighbors and strangers and passerby as they noticed us, some rushing out of their houses to wave.  Then, landing in a field on the edge of a neighborhood, literally dozens of people - first kids then their parents came rushing out to see the balloon as we climbed out and I felt like I was suddenly in some sort of adventure movie.  Then a bottle of champagne appeared for a toast.  It couldn't have been more magical!

One of the funniest birthdays ever was one I hosted for my husband right before our move to Seattle.  While I hadn't started actively packing, I'd spent a fair bit of time cleaning and organizing and finding all sorts of items that either needed to be returned to friends, or simply seemed like they should belong to friends.  We had a big going away/birthday party combo and told everyone not to bring anything, but when they arrived guests found a long table piled with wrapped gifts.  More than a few of our guests looked very worried and I actually had to stop at least one from running out to 'get something' for the birthday boy.  Finally, I announced it was time to unwrap presents and when everyone assembled, we began handing them out.  We actually managed to have a 'gift' for every single person in attendance (and since my gregarious husband had lived in that town for over 15 years it was a large party).  It was so fun and it was delightful watching everyone's expressions as they got into the spirit!

So, what am I going to do this year?  My dear husband and I are going to play hooky from work for starters.  Likely head down to El Diablo's, our favorite coffee shop at some point during the morning.  And we're going to hang out at the beach at Golden Gardens tomorrow afternoon, followed by a little bonfire and hotdog roast with s'mores along with some of our closest friends.  

And if you leave a comment on this post before the week's end sharing a tidbit from your best birthday ever, I might just send you a gift, too.

Ta ta for now!  Time to go make some deviled eggs....