Happy Birthday to ME!

FINALLY Blogger is back up! I've been wanting to post this since yesterday, ugh!

Friday was my 24th birthday, and it was one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had! I got great gifts, had a wonderful time at dinner with my good friends, and a blast dancing at Saddle Up later in the evening! And I have to be honest, I felt absolutely fabulous all evening – my dress, shoes, hair, jewelry, everything was perfect!



I worked just 9-3 on Friday, and my bosses took me out for a birthday lunch and brought me cupcakes. I had a delicious flatbread pizza with diced ham, pineapple, onion, and a sweet sauce drizzled on it…it was amazing!

I had planned on wearing a pair of black heels I already had with my dress, but of course the day of my birthday wanted to swing by Payless to get some special shoes for the occasion. I found these adorable (and SUPER comfy) heels:



Also bought them in white since BOGO was going on…and may have to go back for the brown ones this weekend : )

Then I went home to spend some time with the fam. My brother got me a cute necklace and a Chelsea Handler book (way behind on these, I know!). He also gave me an awesome birthday card that had a weiner dog on it, LOL!



My parents got me some kickass workout gifts! I got 3 pairs of workout shorts & a sports bra (was desperately needing more of these!), weightlifting gloves, good Nike socks, and a waterproof sports watch so that I can start timing my running, biking, and swimming during triathlon training.




Not too long after that, my wonderful boyfriend Nels called and told me to come outside. I went out the front door and he was riding my new bike down the street haha! Nels always does his research when making serious purchases (when buying his TV, he went to Best Buy about 12 times before making a decision) and he’d been researching bikes for me for a week or so. He got me a Trek bicycle and it’s the nicest bike I’ve ever had. I was all set to grab a bike from Wal-Mart for the triathlon, but now I see/feel the difference in quality!




I had dinner with a group of about 15 at Cabana Charley’s in Woodridge. The restaurant did such a great job – they had balloons and “Happy Birthday Desiree” signs on the table:




Then they gave our whole party a free shot on this crazy bamboo shooter thing where you all drink it at the same time! My dad even did it haha and I don’t think I’ve seen either of my parents drink any alcohol my whole life. The shot was called “Scooby Snacks” and it was a yummy one! They let me keep the shot glass too.




Next I opened my gifts. My friends Burcu & Sean gave me a $25 gift card to Bed, Bath & Beyond. I think I’m going to use it to get one of those scales that measures body fat & water weight too. Gonna go to the store and check things out : )
Jacklyn got me 2 adorable shirts from Wet Seal:






I gotta be honest, while I loved them immediately, I was also so nervous to try them on…they were both mediums, would they fit?! I never buy anything from Wet Seal because I feel like their stuff runs small. Well, Jacklyn did a GREAT job because they fit, which made me love them even more haha! I was so surprised and happy that they did!

Lisa gave me a very sweet gift - a coffee thermos that she decorated herself! She cut out all the pictures and arranged them:
I cried when I opened it! She also gave me a candle holder that matches my newly decorated room and an adorable white basket with green fabric that matches my room also.



Family pic at Cabana and group photo:





After Cabana, about half the group headed to Saddle Up and my friends Phil, Shanti, Marla, Jeff, and Brent met us there. Marla got me one of those decorated wine glasses – I’ve been wanting one for so long! She got me a bikini one, perfect for my summer birthday : )




I had a blast dancing at Saddle Up. These pictures are courtesy Lisa’s hubby Joey. I wish I had some pictures of Marla and I dancing like crazy later in the night, but Nels doesn’t think of these things and I wasn’t going to stop dancing to tell him to take pictures LOL!








So overall…24th birthday was AWESOME. Thank you to everyone who made it so special!