My Fantastic Big 3-0!!!

What a difference a year makes! Last night, I went back and re-read my 29th birthday post, and it really is so strange to look back to that time and see where I was back then, because today I really do feel like a completely different person. That may seem trite, but for me it's so, so true. My 29th year was a humbling one, with so many hurdles and setbacks and difficulties, even as I was making strides with weight loss. I honestly might say that, for many reasons, it was arguably the most difficult year I've had. Today, I knew it had all been worth it. A long time in coming, yes, but worth it. Things are better than ever on this birthday, the milestone of beginning this new decade is only made more profound because of all the things that come with it. I am thankful for so many things today:

• For Alex's amazing new job
• For 85 pounds of weight loss and only 30 more to go
• For my new life as a Zumba Instructor and all the possibilities and friendships that has given me
• For a sweet, healthy son
• For a marriage that has seen many trials and tribulations but that grows stronger every day
• For incredibly helpful and amazingly supportive parents
• So many other wonderful things, big and small

My family made today really special for me. I wrote Alex a list of things I wanted to do at some point during this "birthday month" and he made sure several of those things happened today. This morning I woke up to Dresden yelling "Happy Birthday, Mama!" and bringing me a sweet card in bed. When I walked out for breakfast, my mom had set a French Cafe table for me and made me a giant birthday banner, serving omelets and croissants and fresh fruit. Tres jolie! 

Mom had all the perfect details. I love the iron Eiffel Tower in the corner, and the plates on the wall.

Cute Paris sign!

Le omelet du ham, gouda and spinach. Magnifique!

Right after we ate, the doorbell rang, and it was a package from Misty containing an heirloom pearl ring from my great, great aunt Lillie Pearl. I love her name!

After breakfast, Alex and I got dressed so he could take me to the Kimball Art Museum to see the Impressionist Painters exhibit. (This was a list item, so I was very excited!) We couldn't take any pictures...sigh...but they were exquisite, as you might imagine. Caillebotte is emerging as one of my new favorites, after seeing several paintings at the Art Institute in Chicago, and those I saw today. Renoir, of course, never disappoints.

My lunch...so, so good.

My examining art face :-P

Yikes! Wouldn't want to get on his bad side...

We ate lunch at The Buffet restaurant there, which was actually really good food! It was the perfect lunch. Afterward we went and stood inside this crazy sculpture outside of the Modern Art Museum across the street. It was so windy, with the kind of skirt I was wearing, I had a full-on Marilyn Monroe moment, which Alex almost caught on camera, had it fired just seconds earlier. Instead you get the after effect moments of me laughing hysterically about how embarrassed I would have been had there been anyone else to see it happen. Thigh exposure occurred. Oh man.

After that little misadventure, we headed over to pick up my cake which I wasn't allowed to see, but had to hold on my lap and die of curiosity the entire ride to drop it off back at home. All I knew was that the theme was Alice In Wonderland because that had been one of the suggestions I gave Alex for a theme I might like for my 30th birthday. I got the best of both worlds today: Paris and Alice, two of my most favorite things.

We dropped the cake off and had to head back out, because my mom was still decorating at home. We ended up just going back to Fort Worth because we were picking dinner up from down there. We went and browsed at a few little shops to kill time, and then we headed over to Oliver's on Throckmorton because Alex said there was a surprise waiting for me there. My sweet Aunt Kristi and Uncle Warner had ordered an amazing bottle of wine as my gift for us to pick up for dinner. 

Dinner was delicious pizza (I'm an easy girl to please, seriously) from our favorite restaurant, Taverna. Alex chose salciccia and peppers, meatball, and pear and gorgonzola for us to sample. It smelled so delicious, it was hard to wait til we got home!

I wasn't allowed to go into the dining room just yet, but when I did, I was met with my very own Wonderland. My mom is so awesome. She worked so hard and it was perfect, and a huge surprise! She took "Alice In Wonderland cake" and RAN with it! I will let the pictures do the talking...

I was soooo surprised!!! This was the coolest thing EVER. Thank you, Mama!

Not even half of all the subtle nuances! 

After we ate, it was time for the unveiling of the cake. The girl who made it told Alex it was her favorite cake that she's created. I was amazed, and think it was so cool that Alex designed it for me. It was lemon with buttercream and real raspberry filling. So good. And the details were just awesome.

I love the 3/0 tag. That and the pocket watch were my favorite parts.

Me and my sweet D.

Our family

The cake designer himself...and that sneaky Cheshire Cat!!!

Mom, Me and Dad :-D 30 years!!! Crazy!!!

It was bittersweet to cut into the beautiful cake, but inevitable. So glad we did. It was yummy!

Today was really the best day. I couldn't have asked for any more. My other gift from Alex is the promise that someday sooner than later we will go to Vegas and see Celine Dion, so there is that, too, which is more than I could dream of! I felt so happy and content; contentment is a feeling never to be underrated by me again. If I could just be content as many days as possible, that would be good enough for me! And it is a feeling I am working on cultivating and maintaining on a conscious, consistent basis, instead of letting it pass me by thinking I always have to be ridiculously overjoyed and thrilled and excited or it's all the doldrums. I will take contentment and peace of mind, hands down. Today was an excellent start. 30 is off to an excellent start...for sure!

Thank you to everyone, too, for all the amazing texts and messages on Facebook. Everything I read and received made me smile.

Love,

Cassie