t w e n t y t h r e e

Birthdays are my absolute favorite. I believe that everyone deserves at least one day out of the year to be spoiled rotten... & that's just what Chad did (although he technically spoils me when it's not my birthday, too ;)

We started the day off by going to breakfast. We originally went to Callie's cafe, but after waiting 10 minutes to place our order, we decided to ditch it and grab Jamba Juice. Who doesn't love a fresh Razmatazz?! mmmmm

Next, I met my mom and Christine at Marley's in the Riverwoods for lunch. Salads and fries... doesn't get much better than that. It's not a girls day without with little retail therapy... so we stopped at Called to Surf, and I couldn't pass up a new shirt. That's what birthdays are for, right? right.  

Last but not least, we went to Provo Beach Resort and treated ourselves to a delightful Blue Bell banana split. 

I decided it would be fun to get number balloons and have a little photoshoot. I told Chad we should do it every birthday to see how we change over the years... he didn't seem too excited about that ;) We'll see if I can convince him to do it when his birthday rolls around next year.

When I went to pick up the balloons at Zurchers, I was shocked that two balloons cost almost $20, but it was too late to back out since they had already been blown up. I was determined to get my moneys worth and get at least one good picture. Here's what we came up with...

{of course, I had to show off my new shirt too...}

I came home to a decorated kitchen... it seriously melted my heart. My day was officially made. 

We enjoyed an Italian dinner at Le Dolce Vita, then we went and bought supplies to make our own bath bombs. We are pretty stoked to use them. 

Can we just take a minute to appreciate the many different facial expressions and chubbiness of Duke?! Take note, these were taken within 10 seconds...

Chad surprised me with a half dozen of my favorite cupcakes (Cravings in PG)... so naturally, we had to take a bite of each one. I could live off their cupcakes. SO GOOD.

I can honestly say that this was by far my favorite birthday. I told Chad I didn't want any presents. I have a healthy (& adorable) baby, and the sweetest, hottest hubby... what more could I seriously need?! It was such a perfect day spending it with my loved ones. No gift could ever give me that much happiness. 

{+ Duke gave me the best present by sleeping all through the night!! What an angel baby. & we ate cupcakes for breakfast. win-win.}