And Then I Was 32

My sister knows me well and loves me so much, that she drove downtown in the morning of my birthday to buy me not one, but two kouign amanns.  Or Kouing Amans.  Which you pronouce like Queen-Ah-mahn.  Which who cares a whole lot WHAT they are called because they are REALLY good.  Buttery and sugary and flakey and crunchy on the outside all caramelized-like and melt-in-your-mouth layers of goodness on the inside.  Sigh…love.

 And speaking of love…two of the best people on the planet:

 And speaking of best people on the planet, Todd took the day off work and took me out for breakfast. Such a wonderful little date.  AND THEN he bought me a bike!  Okay, so it actually came in a box two days early, but it was a total surprise!  I had picked it out months earlier and was hoping to get it eventually but they were out of stock.  I didn't know he had ordered it!  He spent the afternoon putting it together.

 And yes, here I am riding my bike.  I have to laugh at the thought.  If you know me well, here is when you FAINT.  Because I haven't had a bike or ridden a bike in 22 years.  TWENTY TWO years.  Yes, that's right.  I've always said it just wasn't something I did.  I decided I wanted to change that.  It is both exhilarating and terrifying.  And slightly embarrassing too.  But I'm excited.  For me, it's a pretty big deal.

I also had lots of delicious pizza at Brick Oven for dinner (yes, it's all about the food!) and then went home to celebrate with my six layer lemon strawberry cake.

 I had a hilarious time making it.  It turned out all wonky Dr. Seuss looking and tasted AMAZING if I do say so myself.  I'm sure you aren't surprised to find out that I TOTALLY planned it to look wonky.  And I totally planned the lemon curd filling to not thicken so it would soak in all the layers making it perfect.  Ahem.  Sometimes kitchen disasters turn into kitchen perfection.  Ha!  I'm not even going to mention how we somehow didn't have candles.  Matches work great in a pinch!

 It really was a perfect day.  I wish I could have seen everyone I love, but I sure felt loved.  And grateful.  And happy.

That's kinda how I feel when I look at my new painting too.  Climbing Mother by Brian Kershisnik.  I really love it.  Thanks Mom and Dad.