it's my birthday.
like most december birthdays, i was pretty adamant as a child about the importance of my birthday. (going so far as to tell random people discussing christmas in department stores, "FIRST my birthday, THEN christmas") well, at the ripe age of 27 that has changed a little, but i couldn't resist finding a bunch of lovely birthday images on pinterest & sharing 27 things i love with you (& links to a ton of related posts!):
1. a perfect latte in a coffee shop with lots of character.
2. yoga after a lloonngg day.
3. movies with the husband. in a theater, on our couch, i love escaping with him & getting to talk about it after.
4. haribo gummy bears & cherry twizzlers
5. visiting friends. walking their streets. eating in their restaurants. having 6 or so meals and three or so coffees to REALLY catch up.
6. road trips, no matter the distance.
7. what ryan calls "mary places" -- patachou in naptown, o'suzannah in c'ville, boot in norfolk, duh in pensacola, church key in dc, i could go on. i love finding new ones, visiting tried and true ones, getting lost.
8. my brother. he's hilarious. more on that soon - a special johno santa edition.
9. the 11 or so girls who i go through life with. they live in atlanta, c'ville, new orleans, chapel hill, boston, boise, dc, dallas, denver, san fran, athens and we email/play phone tag/bbm/text/visit/send smoke signals/send mail/remember the important days/make time when it doesn't exist/go out of our way and in the end, we're doing this together and it is so, so good.
10. really good worship. being a part of a church that exists for broken people and has a heart for the community it lives in.
11. pancakes.
12. having people in our home. for dinner. for the weekend. as a respite. to celebrate. i love, love, love opening our door and having a really broad definition of family. i'm blessed that ryan feels the same way.
13. places that are so grounding: culver, indiana & charlottesville, virginia most of all.
14. seeing my friends loved well. one joy i didn't anticipate about this time in life is what a deep joy it is to see your friend loved well. i am so, so emotional at weddings. i have such an appreciation for what a young marriage takes & just how heartbreaking it can be when you enter that covenant with the wrong person. i love how my friend's husbands become dear friends & watching them navigate life side by side.
15. service members & their families. .
16. chicago & san fran -- my two favorite cities ever.
17. this blog. going on a year & it has been such a great space for creativity, to meet wonderful people like you, and to tell a story.
18. j. crew. i can't help it. i just love their clothes.
19. christmas: lights. music. cooking. family. giving. meaning. the whole thing.
20. my family -- i am so blessed.
21. that kinda laughter -- the kind where you can't talk and can barely take a breath.
22. those kind of conversations -- the ones you can't forget.
23. a really good book.
24. really worthy causes: education reform, wounded veterans finding their sense of purpose here at home, finding a cure for parkinson's disease.
25. creative, beautiful design: in homes, for a celebration.
26. generosity.
27. being ryan's wife and going through life with him. there aren't words.
big ideas Tue, December 7, 2010 at 9:00 AM
Reader Comments (20)
Those are 27 fantastic things that sum up a fantastic human being pretty well. Happy birthday! Love you so much. ps. There's some mail coming your way, but I sent it Sat. so it might be a little late.
Happy Birthday Mary!! I remember when you were 7 :)
Happy birthday, Mary. I'm celebrating my 27th on Thursday...and I totally was the same way as a kid!
happy birthday! :) we love your blog too!
happy birthday! (mine was saturday -- hooray for sagittarius'!)
Happy Birthday Mary! I'll be 27 soon(ish) too - hope your day is simply lovely.
Happy birthday! :)
happy birthday miss mary! thinking of you today...
HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
what a wonderful list. sending birthday wishes your way!
Happy, happy birthday Mary! Love your list, and thanks for all your advice about the copper pots. :) Hope your day is wonderful!
I love 10, 11, & 23 . . . and many more on the list. Happy Birthday!!
Happy Birthday! Great list. Your blog is one of my favorite things also.
Happy Birthday and many more!
Happy Birthday! Also, I am a big fan of lists and yours was great. :)
enjoy the delights that come your way...happy birthday! x
What an interesting collection of reflections - so true! 27 (not that far in the past) was, for me, the perfect age - the age where I realise in retrospect, that I finally stopped wishing to be older and more mature/sophisticated/something else I wasn't. It's not at all that it doesn't get even better afterwards, but it feels like a time of coming into your own... Happy Birthday! Hope it was a great one :)
Happy Birthday Mary! I truly hope you had a day filled with love and those happy moments. Love your list. The military has definitely broadened my definition of family (I feel like Tommy's close friends are like my brothers) & I'm learning to like the movies (home or out) since Tommy loves them so much.
Happy Belated Birthday!! great list of things to love : )
Happy belated Birthday wishes to you! I love all the linky goodness you gave us :)