Hey guys!
Last night we had a big family get together for Eric’s birthday. It was fun! :) We went out to celebrate and let the good times roll.
There was nothing vegan on the menu so I just asked the server if the chef could surprise me with a vegan dish and luckily he was more than willing. I was excited to see what he came up with!
This came out…
It was a Thai inspired stir-fry with rice and tofu complete with a Cashew sauce. It was pretty good although I am not a tofu fan, so I picked around it. :)
The rest of the evening was spent with family, kicking-back and catching up. :) It was a great night. My in laws are staying here to house-sit and cat-sit while we are in Chicago. Sketchie is very happy because he LOVES when his grandma and grandpa come to visit! I think he likes them more than us…
Eric and I have a big memory box that we store all of our notes and cards in since we started dating in 2000. I decided to go through it and bring back a few blasts from the past!
I admit, it was a bit hard stifling my giggles this morning when I read through our old notes. Said notes will never see the light of day on this blog. But I can show you a few safe ones… ;)
Our second Christmas together in 2001:
Clearly, he fell in love with my artistic ability.
The outside of a birthday card I gave to Eric for his 20th birthday in 2002:
The card:
The inside of the card…
Pics from 2002:
That was just a month before we left for university together.
A surprise birthday road trip in 2007:
I made us a picnic dinner and took Eric to the beach.
It was a really great night.
25, baby.
Sketchie was still cracking us up with his antics…
This one was last year’s birthday card in 2009.
Happy 28th Birthday to the man who stole my heart and changed how I saw myself and the world around me forever.
Breakfast in bed is always a good start to one’s birthday, don’t you think?
Although shortly after I brought up breakfast, he got paged for work. :(
I used my Healthy Spelt Pancakes For One recipe (and doubled it) and I added his favourite pancake toppings- chocolate chips, coconut, and cherries. :)
I had some as well as my mother-in-law! She told me that she grew up in Ireland eating pancakes without maple syrup! Her mom used to serve them with margarine, sugar, lemon juice, and a sprinkle of icing sugar. Sounds amazing!
Today’s question: Let’s talk BIRTHDAYS! What is your most memorable birthday? Share the nostalgia. :)
The birthday that sticks out the most in my mind was a surprise birthday party Eric threw for me on my 23rd birthday. He flew out my dad and best friend just for the party (I hadn’t seen them in ages!). Needless to say, the tears, drinks, and laughs flowed like wata.
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When I turned 16, my boyfriend at the time threw me surprise party. It was just like you see on TV…I was totally surprised to have all my friends jump out and yell SURPRISE! Because I wasn’t planning to be seen by everyone I knew, I was in frumpy clothes with my hair in a ponytail–not very cute pictures ;)
Love all your homemade cards…so cute :)
I love the recap!
Breakfast in bed IS the best thing you could have on your birthday…especially if that breakfast is cake.
I love the old pics! So adorable. :)
I can’t even think of a memorable birthday. They are ALL memorable when I’m with my family and friends!
Awww this post is sweet! My best birthday was my last one (24). My two best friends at school planned the party and recreated the party Jim and Dwight throw for Kelly on The Office. Complete with a banner that said “IT IS YOUR BIRTHDAY.” It was hilarious and my stomach hurt the next day from laughing so much :)
What a great way to look back at memories! Such a nice post. :)
What does Eric do for work that he is on call?
Awww, yay! Happy Birthday, Eric!
I recently found a few “memory boxes” from two boyfriends I had in high school. So hilarious and sooo embarassing! You’re right – those notes will never see the light of day! But somehow also nice to know how uninhibited you can be when you’re young and in love…ah, to be 18 again!
Such a sweet birthday post!! I love going through old cards and photos– it’s so funny to see how a relationship grows and changes through things like that!
Happy birthday to Eric!!
So sweet! Happy Birthday Eric! I am amazed at people who marry someone they went to high school with. You two rock!
So cute! :)
By far my best birthday was my 25th, where my friends threw me a big surprise party, rented a limo, and I fell asleep on the bathroom floor of a bar. Epic :)
Ok those card are toooo cute, thanks for sharing! Happy Birthday Eric, hope its a good one!
Angela! That X-mas card is adorable! :) Happy B-Day to your husband. Looks like a lovely time you two had <3
WOWWWW now those are some good lookin pancakes :)
this was such a fun post! love going down memory lane with you. funny cards are the best! i haven’t really had any great b-days.. my birthday falls about 5 days after school gets out every year so i never got to celebrate with my college friends. sad :(
For my 21st birthday I went bungee jumping. It was such a fun (albeit incredibly scary) way to celebrate!
My most memorable birthday was when I climbed my 21st mountain over 14,000 feet (in Colorado, my home state!) for my 21st birthday. I felt so proud of myself once I reached the summit and basked in the glory of the surrounding views of the Rocky Mountain expanse….conquering your dreams and exceeding your expectations for yourself is the best birthday present there is.
My birthday this year was a pretty memorable one. After changing my life DRASTICALLY (quitting my job, starting school, leaving my fiance) I moved in with 3 roommates about a month before my birthday. We decided to throw a huge birthday party and it was a great success! I spent the whole night dancing, laughing, eating, drinking and talking with all my favourite people in the world in a very HOT little dress. I had such a wonderful night and it really reminded me that I was in the right place and doing the right thing.
My parents gave my hubby Kevin that handmans card for his birthday this past May. They thought it was only too fitting after he finished our basement and then my parents.
For my 30th birthday (just this past March) all of my girlfriends and I went to Savannah, GA. I had to complete a series of outrageous tasks to earn charms for a Pandora charm bracelet. Each person had bought me a different charm that reminded them of me in their own way. It was fun, crazy and something I will never forget.
Awh a memory box – I have one of those too! Filled with cards and letters and random junk I can’t throw away :P they’re the best!
I think I’m yet to have a [good] really memorable birthda – I have a BAD memorable one, which sucks!!
Hey Angela! Looking forward to meeting everyone at HLS. I’m local in Chicago so if you need any recommendations I’m happy to share! Those cards are hilarious – it’s so fun to look back at what we used to do in the name of love back in the day!
I like the pic on the beach with 25…very fun!
HA! I am cracking up at his 20th birthday card, you wrote “Wowzers, U R old!” That’s hilarious :p
No joke– I was about to type this exact comment. :-) Love it!
I don’t remember any particular birthday celebrations. :( But hey, I’ve got a lot ahead of me! :D
Wei-Wei
My 19th birthday was my most memorable…
I was at one of my lowest places with my eating disorder and I remember everyone sitting around eating cake and turkey (my b-day falls on Thanksgiving) and I was just sitting there by myself. That was the moment I decided to free myself from my ED!
I want to be vegetarian or vegan if only so I can feel extra special when the chef at a restaurant makes me something not on the menu :D
Lemon juice and sugar . . mmmmm . . that’s how I grew up eating pancakes too. Yum!!!
Thank you for that little bit of birthday inspiration. I think my most memorable was my 18th, where my group of girlfriends and I all went round to the art gallery/coffee shop where my mum was working at the time and the woman in charge of the menu had created this gorgeous birthday cake for me and we had the deck to ourselves, hanging out in the last of the summer sunshine and the start of our senior year. For my husband it would be the surprise 30th I threw for him, complete with friends flying in from out of state for it.
Happy birthday to Eric! Great pix and walk down memory lane. I had to laugh, though, about you picking around the tofu. I would kill for a restaurant to surprise me and come out with a tofu dish! (so fed up with salads as the option!)
I turned 40 in Cancun with two of my best friends. (love that the hubby had no problem with me making 40 a girl’s weekend!)
Woo-hoo! Happy birthday to the most famous Blogger Husband :)
Seriously, your cards couldn’t be anymore cuter. The one with the photos of you + him – priceless. And thanks for throwing in a little Sketchie – always makes my day.
My most memorable birthday was actually this past year. My dad’s birthday is three days after mine, so we usually combine the celebration. My brother just got married last year, and unfortunately due to his work, he and his wife have now lived in a couple different places. Anyway, so my mom took me shopping and said we were going to meet my dad for lunch somewhere. Well, when we got to the restaurant, my brother and his wife were standing there waiting for us. They drove 6 hours to spend the birthday weekend with us. I was bawling!
I think I would have to go with my 21st B-day. What kid can’t wait to turn 21?! I definitely had a fun night with many of my friends.
I love that you have all those memories to look back on. My BF is actually the first boy I dated 14 years ago when I was just starting high school. Since getting back together this year I have had a lot of “remember the time when….” moments with him. I also read him some of my old diaries from the days when I had a huge crush on him but didn’t want anyone to know!!
Love all the memory items. Those are always so special to look back on.
You are too cute!! Love those cards and the photos are great! I’ve had a lot of really fun birthdays, but I think my 20th was my favourite – some of my best friends hosted a party for me and we went out after. There are lots of stories but to cut it short, it was an amazing night! My 22nd is this Sunday so I’m hoping it will be a memorable one too! :)
That’s so sweet that you and Eric keep your birthday cards and mementos! What a great way to keep your memories alive.
My birthday always falls in or around Thanksgiving so my birthday is always mingled in with that which to me, makes for the best memories, and I clearly have the best of both worlds: Holiday dinner, and presents! Not to mention all the wonderful friends and family gathered around to help me celebrate :)
I think the most memorable birthday though, was for my 20th, and my Mom ended up having about 20 people over for Thanksgiving dinner and she had so much going on that I had to make my own Birthday Cake! I found this really amusing, but made a delicious carrot cake that everyone still raves about to this day. The secret was about 3 cups of oil, no joke!
That stirfry looks huge!!! How cool of the chef to whip something up for you!
Happy birthday to Eric! :)
It’s nice how you keep all your cards and photos so you can look back on them.
I was in treatment for my alcoholism on my 33rd birthday. I count it as the best birthday yet. Finally getting my life back on track.
Well, first of all, I love it when chefs work at making something vegan. One time at our favorite inn they made me a lentil/wild rice/veggie/chestnut dish stuffed into a baby pumpkin and baked. So there’s my most memorable meal!
I’m not sure which birthday is most wonderful or most memorable. There are a few. About five years ago, just a few months after my mother passed away, I was a mess and couldn’t figure out what to do. The husband made dinner reservations with the few people who happened to be around mid August and then blew up balloons enough to match my age so they’d be there when I woke up in the morning. He had also gotten a magnum of Dom Perignon on a job he worked on and we all went back to the apartment and had that with dessert.
This year (it will be my birthday next tuesday!) I got a stove delivered! We’ve been cooking on an explosion hazard from 1935 when we’re upstate. It’s only got one temperature: ON, and it takes a half hour to boil water. Not great for a cooking enthusiast. So now I have a GE CAFE! The hood is so powerful I think it may suck up the cat.
AND, last year I really wanted to celebrate in a way that reflected my lifestyle and beliefs, so my meat eating husband actually took me to Pure Food & Wine in NYC. And I got a Vitamix! And my yoga friends took me out to a vegan restaurant for brunch after yoga…followed by decidedly unvegan cupcakes. But that’s ok, I flex. I just try to be healthy. But sometimes a little butter and sugar on a birthday just happen.
This coming Tuesday is a big birthday, and it seems as if the day itself might be a little ordinary, but I think the whole month might be memorable!
This post is SO adorable!!! I will be sure to save all my gushy, corny stuff for a laugh 10 years from now. Love it!!! Also, could those pancakes be anymore perfect looking?!
Happy Birthday Eric!!
Thanks for sharing those cute notes!! hehe
I have been super lucky, as in high school I spent most of my birthdays in Mexico surrounded by all my friends!! But there isn’t one that sticks out to me!!
Happy Birthday Eric! I’m not really a huge birthday person and never do much for mine, so I don’t really know what my best memory would be. :-(