quarter girl.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

that's right, the big 25 - i'm now squarely in my mid-twenties. a startling reality.

hard to believe that i am officially a quarter of a century old. it's pretty difficult to swallow that i am no longer in the highly marketed 18-24 age group; as if i ever acted my age when i wore that badge. ha! even still, it is a little unsettling on just how fast time passes... it seems with the more years we accrue, the more the aspect of time slips through our fingers. even though i believe it all comes down to relativity based on the span of individual lifetimes, i still wish there was a way to slow down the ticking of the clock hands. i guess all the more reason to live the moment in the fullest!

so to celebrate, i finally used up my "floating holiday" and took a day just for myself - to be still without the pressure of needing to do x, y, z. i'll tell you, it was wonderful! catching up with old friends, feeling facebook love and just hanging out at home with the kitties, surrounded by the comfort of my favorite things...a good guilt-free day.

when stephen got home from work, he made me feel supremely special. surprising me with a fully-bloomed pink peony from ultra violet - my all time favorite flower that is nearly impossible to find this time of year! - his thoughtfulness filled me with glee. and in his other hand, he held a gourmet raspberry cake from the renowned heidelberg pastry shoppe, courtesy of my sweet MIL, elaine. mmmmm.

we had celebrated with our friends a little earlier this week when stephen helped organized a huge surprised bday dinner for our friend evan & myself. what a sneaky duo - stephen & betsy (evan's gf) lured us into thinking we were going to have a quiet double-date dinner after church on sunday, but as we entered in gordon biersch, we were thrilled to find 25-30 of our closest friends from gracedc! stephen and i split the "new york oscar" (steak & crab - yummmm) and then massive slices of chocolate cake were passed around after we blew out our respective candles - pink for evan and blue for me. lol

tonight i was lucky enough to be celebrated yet again at bible study as this tuesday was themed as a holiday party night! we stuffed our faces and decorated ornaments with paint, glitter and glue for the georgetown retirement home we visit monthly. cake and crafts and community - a perfect combo in my book!

all in all, i feel immensely fortunate for where these 25 years have brought me. thanks to all you who sent very celebratory wishes my way... i'm blessed by your love.

ps. happy birthday mom!!!