well, another birthday has come and gone and the biggest difference is that i am no longer a twentysomething. it’s ok, though. i’m not freaking out. everyone says their 30s were some of the best years of their lives, so i’m actually kind of excited to have entered this period. i’m anticipating things to come, and it feels really good <3

being celebrated also feels really good! which is why i’m still basking in the glow of the weekend on monday morning. so much time and effort was put forth by so many people to ensure i had a wonderful, memorable weekend. i would be remiss if i didn’t mention shirley and the two days she took off work to prep for the big party on saturday. hours and hours of cooking and cleaning and errand-running, all for me. do i have a wonderful mother-in-law or what?

not to mention the other amazing women in my family (my mom, rodi, tai, auntie margie and auntie loretta) who brought all kinds of homemade deliciousness for my guests to enjoy. and antonella, a wonderful friend with a talent for baking, who made 70 of the most adorable cupcakes i’ve ever seen.

and, of course, my parents. not only did they CREATE me (haha), but they also treated us to a very enjoyable birthday dinner on friday night at quinn’s lighthouse, a restaurant of my choice. in addition to all that, my mom took ellie for a walk during my party when i needed a break, and my dad manned the video camera all night. i cannot wait to see the ridiculousness he caught on tape :)

thank you, also, to brianne for wiping my tears and calming my nerves during a moment of extreme stress (and for taking pictures when i realized i hadn’t been taking any – oops!), and to alyssa’s dear husband matt for lighting my candles when ryan was off dealing with ellie <3

and to all the other friends and family who joined in the celebration on saturday, especially josh who made the eight-hour drive from san diego just to be there; flo & brian, who are surely the busiest couple of all with their wedding coming up in less than a WEEK; and all the rest of you amazing people. each one of you made it an event i will always remember, one of the best nights of my life.

and finally, to ryan, the love of my life, the single most selfless person i know, the one who makes everything possible. thank you for my party, thank you for my daughter, thank you for giving me all that i could ever want. i love you so much.

“happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.”
.aristotle.

on sunday i took my mom to one of the greatest places in the world, color me mine, for a few hours of ceramics painting and mother/daughter bonding.

i was really looking forward to it because my mom had no idea where i was taking her, but i knew she was going to love it. at first she seemed a little skeptical when we pulled into the parking lot and i said, “we’re painting pottery, ta-da!” … but once we got inside and she picked the piece she was going to transform into a work of art, she was all about it.

i decided on an oval platter and she picked a small plate she will instead use as a candle holder. we sat together by the window for three hours, painting, talking and listening to the low hum of people talking around us. we had nowhere to be and nothing to think about other than which shade of blue we were going to use next. truly, it was as relaxing as a day at the spa.

my mom and i don’t get to spend much of time together one-on-one, so our therapeutic day of painting was extra special. i’ll edit this post with a picture of the finished products when i pick them up next weekend :) happy, happy belated birthday, mom!

on sunday we had the great pleasure of joining our friends jeff and carolyn at their daughter cerise’s first birthday party. it was hello kitty-themed and the birthday girl was dressed in her sunday best – a purple tutu and a hello kitty shirt, of course!

ellie had a great time running around playing with balloons and all of cerise’s cool toys. she was in such a good mood we even got her to wear a party hat for awhile :) oh, but the coolest part? hello-kitty tattoos for the kids!

cerise’s birthday cake was the pinkest cake i’d ever seen. and ooooh my goodness, was it delicious. i wasn’t going to have any because we were headed to grandpa alex’s birthday dinner after the party, but once i had a bite of ryan’s piece, it was all over. mmm, hello kitty cake!

thank you to the rubensteins for including us in such a special celebration. we had a great time!

brianne’s parents were kind enough to throw her a birthday party in a centerfield suite at the a’s vs. white sox game on friday night, and ryan and i were lucky enough to be invited!

we’d never watched a game from a suite before, so it was pretty cool :) we even got free parking and, more importantly, free food! i stuffed my face with chips, peanuts, a hot dog, half a chicken wrap and the bottom of a cupcake. mmm.

happy 30th, brianne! <3 (…guess who’s next?)

dear ellie,

tomorrow you turn 18 months old, which means you are a mere six months away from being TWO! i shake my head at the thought, because how can time go by so fast? how can you be one-and-a-half already? my sense of time escapes me, because even after knowing you for nearly two years, i still feel like i just saw you smile and heard you laugh for the first time. and something tells me no matter how old you get, i’ll always see you this way.

in the past six months your vocabulary has expanded from a few words i could count on one hand to more than i can list off the top of my head. i sometimes feel as though we’re having extensive conversations, although i know full sentences are still a few months away. you’re already speaking phrases from “it’s ok” and “he’s so nice” to “i love you” and “there it is!” … of course your enunciation could use some polishing, but your daddy and i usually know what you’re trying to say :) you name body parts, point out household appliances, and you can make almost any animal noise in the book.

you love to climb and you’re beginning to run. you march in place and spin around in circles until you fall down. if you could spend all day upside down, you would. you’ve become miss independent at gymboree, not wanting much to do with me unless another kid makes you feel uneasy. you love playing catch, and the force behind your throw is getting stronger and stronger. you ADORE being outdoors. you get tired of being in the car after a very short time, but you love going places. you have two flower girl titles under your belt and you are the bell of every ball <3

you favorite foods include yogurt, watermelon, popsicles, macaroni & cheese, carrots and french fries. you gave up bottles months ago and you drink milk from your sippy cup like a champ. your self-soothing method is not using a pacifier or sucking your thumb, but chewing on the tail of your beloved baby bear.

you transitioned to a one-nap schedule a few months ago, and it’s working well for all of us. you take a nap after lunch and you sleep a good twelve hours each night. we don’t sneak into your room to check on you very often anymore, as just a creak of the floor can stir you from your sleep.

in the six months since your first birthday you have learned to walk, learned to talk, flown in an airplane, been to another state, watched the rain, visited a national park, seen a waterfall, attended weddings, made new friends, been to the beach and gone to the fair. you have discovered balloons, airplanes, flowers and crayons, play-doh, sesame street, bubbles and rocks, mirrors, bugs, sprinklers and smoothies. when music comes on, you dance. every time.

i love everything about you, miss bells. i love that you say “GO!” before running from the couch to the door, and i love the uncontrollable laughter i elicit when i stop you in your tracks. i love walking into your room in the morning to find you standing in your crib, your hair all disheveled and a silly grin on your face. i love every day of my life because i get to spend them with you.

happy half-birthday, my darling girl <3

love,
mommy

a little after four o’clock yesterday afternoon, our good friends eric and alicia welcomed their first baby, a precious little girl they named brylie mckenna blum. she weighed eight pounds, five ounces and measured 21 inches long at birth.

it’s been a long road for mommy alicia, as brylie was estimated to arrive on may 5th, 16 days before her actual birthday. they scheduled an induction for thursday morning and labor lasted more than 30 hours. but in the end, daddy eric received the greatest gift ever when his little girl arrived on his 29th birthday <3

we had a chance to visit them in the hospital tonight and were thrilled to meet little miss brylie at just one day old. she was so teeny-tiny! i almost forgot how little ellie used to be <3

we spent a little more than an hour with the happy family of three before wishing them a good second night together and heading home. in the car we reminisced about our own baby girl at that age, and we both agreed that we’re sooooo glad she’s bigger now :) sleepless nights and all that stress … oh, the fun they’re going to have! but what a ride it’ll be, and we couldn’t be happier for them.

congratulations, eric & alicia! brylie is absolutely beautiful.