Perhaps this blog post is for reminiscing about past birthdays or, perhaps, it’s to divulge birthday ideas for others to try.  Regardless, these are my three favorite birthday memories.

CARNIVAL BIRTHDAY PARTY

Growing up, my mom committed to blowing birthday parties out of the box and into a land of unprecedented awesomeness.  Between my brother and I we had all sorts of birthday themes.  We had a Starwars party where my dad dressed up as Darth Vadar, creepily breathed the phrase “Connor, I am your father,” and then worked at calming my sobbing brother even long after my dad took off the helmet. We had a treasure hunt party when we literally scoured our large yard with a treasure map in hand.  I had a Beauty and the Beast party where Bell herself came and visited me at present opening time.  One year we threw a mystery dinner birthday party where an intimate gathering of close friends gathered around our dinner table to coded menu items and blindfolded eating.  Another one of my most memorable parties was a hippie party where all of my guests arrived clad in hippie getup and made leather head bands together.  But, my favorite party was my carnival birthday party.  On this birthday our backyard was transformed into a carnival, complete with clowns, face painters, balloon artists, and a even a miniature pony.  Need I say more?

SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY

A couple of years after Josh and I got married he planned a day of fun on my birthday.  I wish I remembered all the activities… we probably went shopping a little and went on a coffee date but the part I can’t forget is pulling up to a garage full of surprise party guests. We pulled in, Josh got out, the garage door opened, and I was suddenly met with a throng of bright, smiling faces.   I can honestly say I had no idea!  My mom even made the trip down and served as our personal chef for the evening.  We spent our time catching up, eating delicious food still talked about today, and ended the evening with a dance party in the driveway.

BIRTHDAY GETAWAY

Last year Josh planned a surprise getaway at a Hilton in Madison.  He’s the worst at keeping secrets so at one point I found out, but that didn’t dampen the trip at all.  We only spent one night but we vacationed to the max in our short time frame.  For starters, we located the pool and enjoyed some swim time and hot-tubbing.  Then we ordered two large pizzas and two appetizers from the Glass Nickel Pizza Co. and ate until we fell into a heap on the bed.  We watched a movie until we had control of our movements again then went for a stroll in the misty rain.  We came to this lakeside patio and danced to the romantic music in the dark for a few songs.  We walked back to the hotel hand in hand, picked up some ice cream at the front counter, and resumed our lazy movie watching.  The next morning we checked out and walked to breakfast at the Marigold Kitchen.  I seems simple but it was such a treat to have a decent budget to do dine in style while we were in Madison.  It was a treat ordering way too much good food, my favorite pizza to this day, and being completely lazy.  And to top it all off, it is one of those memories where my life was a romantic comedy.  Although, to Josh’s credit, we have a lot of those in our marriage 🙂

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to my intensely loving and giving Mom and husband for always making me feel like the most special woman in the world on my birthday!

What is your favorite birthday memory?