The Birthday Round-Up

Well, I survived the dreaded 30th birthday without tears or a major breakdown ... which is a good thing. All in all, the birthday was actually quite enjoyable. I got to sleep in, go shopping, eat great food, and hang out with the family. Who could complain about that?

Yesterday, after sleeping in a bit, The Boy and I headed to the old neighborhood to check things out. You know, it's always good to see how things change and stay the same, right? Well, aside from a super-mega-Walmart and some additional student housing, Cortland is pretty much the same as I left it five years ago.  After checking out the old neighborhood, we headed down to Ithaca for some shopping and lunch.

We stopped at Mansour's Jewelers to drop off a ring for sizing (my aunt gave me a beautiful estate ring for my 30th. I'll post pics when it actually fits my finger!), some charms for adding to me charm bracelet, and a gift from The Boy for my big day. Once they have all been finished, I'll post some pics. Since we were already on The Commons, we stopped at Simeon's for lunch. Mmmmmmmmmm .... so tasty!! My Blueberry Mojito was absolutely fabulous, and my portobello panini was pretty great as well. After lunch, we headed to my all time favorite place ... WEGMAN'S ... for some shopping. Once my shopping thirst had been sated, it was time for Ithaca Beer. A case of Partly Sunny, and we were ready to go home. We didn't hit Ithaca Coffee Company or CTB, but we'll get there sometime before we leave.

Once home, I helped Pop clean the pool and then The Boy and I got in for about an hour. The weather was gorgeous. Beautiful blue sky. Big puffy clouds. Hot with a gentle breeze. Perfect for the pool. We lounged for a bit, took a nap, then hung out with Mom and Pop until my sister came over with her kids. We played a few rounds of bocce, and I worked on teaching my nieces to measure the distances between the pollino and the bocce balls. It was pretty fun. The sky was beautiful in the evening, and there was even a rainbow!! Especially for my birthday!

After it got dark enough, my sister set off some pretty wicked fireworks that Mom and Pop bought in PA. They were very cool. Not those little "floor show" fireworks that people usually get but really high aerials. I watched with my beautiful niece Kyra on my lap, and it was pretty wonderful.

All in all, it was a pretty fantastic birthday. Low key, relaxing, and with people I love. The way birthdays should be!