Wordless Wednesday {celebrate}

p.s. Happy Birthday to my beautiful sister Ashley!

[images via belleoftheball and weheartit]

How I Celebrated My Birthday

wore sparkly pink nail polish and got a free drink for my birthday.

had homemade blueberry pie for lunch. 

{our school custodian's wife makes the best homemade pies!}

did not win the $300 million...would've been nice tho. maybe next year ;)

enjoyed a fabulous dinner and wine with family and friends.

had the most scrumptious triple chocolate cake! :)

it was a fantastic birthday!  my students started the day singing me Happy Birthday *cha cha cha*
I was spoiled with cards and gifts from family and friends, and enjoyed a day all about me! hehe
I had about as much fun as you can with a mid-week birthday in the middle of winter. :)

and thanks for all the birthday wishes yesterday!

26.

at 2:17 AM I officially turned 26.

I never got used to saying I was 25, and now I'm 26...

where did time go?!

25 was a year of great lessons, a year of change, 

and will always be the age I was when my father passed away.

what 25 taught me:

* it taught me what's truly important in life...

family, friends, and faith.

* that every moment spent with those you love should be cherished as you live them.

* it taught me to never ever take life for granted.

*it taught me who my *true* friends are...

the ones who are there for you, any time of the day/night, whenever you need them.

the one who brought me coffee, and sat with me at the hospice house while I waited for the inevitable,

and the one who drove over 9 hours, from two states away to be there for my father's funeral, when they easily could have used the distance as an excuse and just sent a nice card and some flowers.

my friends are family.

* and it taught me I'm stronger than I ever thought I was.  

and with the help of God and some prayer, you really can make it through anything.  

25 may not have been the year I expected it to be, but it was a year to remember {for the good and the bad}.

cheers to another birthday!  and (hopefully) a fabulous year 26!

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Weekend Snapshots

The surprise party on Friday went wonderfully. Not only was my friend extremely surprised, but all us guests were surprised when her boyfriend of almost 8 years proposed to her!! It was such a happy night, and since he choose to have the party at the bowling ally {another place she'd never expect} we got to try on some awesome bowling shoes and give our bowling skills a whirl. I haven't been bowling since high school, and even though we were all so bad it made it even that much more fun!

The baby shower I attended was another spectacular event. My friend's expecting a little girl and I loved the way they decorated using one of my favorite color combinations...pink and green! And then of course for dessert they had my favorite, cupcakes! I couldn't get enough of the pink gerber daisy's on the tops, which just happens to be my favorite flower. :)

I ended the weekend celebrating my aunt's 60th birthday, where she had everyone over for swimming and a cookout. There's nothing like spending quality time with family. I have a large extended family, and it's difficult getting everyone together all the time, so I really savor the moments when it does happen. The kids splashed around in the pool all day into the night, and it wouldn't be a summer celebration without setting off some fireworks.

Over all it was a wonderful weekend! How was all of yours?