Hippo birdie day!

Today was the 5th anniversary of my 29th birthday. And it turned out better than expected. I arrived to work to find a tray of fresh baked chocolate-caramel brownies and a card and gift bag holding beautiful boxed cards with lined envelopes. My comrades at work are super cool and so nice to have remembered by bday.

I made time to book an appointment for a massage at the local massage school, Clary Sage, but decided to make it for Wednesday so that J could come with me and enjoy a couple's massage with me. I checked my email and Facebook and had over 6o happy birthday messages from friends near and far...what a wonderful surprise!

I worked through lunch so that I could dash home and see J between shifts. When I got home he was eating his dinner (a baked potato with grilled chicken, onions and cheese) and getting ready for his second job. We had about an hour together and I was happy that we at least got to spend some time together today.

He left for work and I decided to run some errands...hit up Petsmart for some kitty food and dog treats and the grocery store for dryer sheets and sundries. No sooner had I parked the car at the pet store did my phone ring. I thought it might be my brother or mother calling to wish me a happy bday. I saw the name flash on the caller ID and it was J. I slightly panicked. It hadn't even been 10 minutes since he left the house for work! Was there a problem? (it's amazing what can flash through my mind in a split second). I fumbled to press the talk button and stammered, "are you okay?". He said, "I got cut." What? Was he bleeding? What happened? How? Oh-no! "I got cut tonight, they're not busy so they're sending me home. YAY!" OMG...he was calling to say he had the night off from work.

So I completed my errands at the pet store and dashed home to find J already in his comfy house clothes (I call them him dressy sweatpants)! I told him that I cancelled my plans for the evening (tongue firmly planted in my cheek) and asked him if he wanted to get sushi since that's what's I had wanted to do. So he changed into jeans and sweater ("goin' out clothes") and we headed to In The Raw in Brookside. We have eaten at their other location, but this was a first for us. We liked this place much better. It's smaller, cozier, and closer to home. We sat at the sushi bar and ordered our favorites. It was all fresh and tasty. Best of all, I was with my best friend and sweetheart on my birthday instead of home alone with the furbabies.

After Sushi we decided to finish my errands and stopped at the nearby grocery store. Then J suggested dessert, so we went to the Local Table and had their three mini dessert sampler for which we chose the chocolate ice cream sandwich, chocolate lava cake and creme brule, of course! All we tasty and the perfect end to a lovely birthday.