24... because I love birthdays more than I love overtime

I mentioned a little known, but vitally important, fact in my recap of May. I absolutely LOVE LOVE overtime in sports and if a sport doesn't have a chance of overtime, then it's not really a sport worth watching. 

As much as I love overtime, I love birthdays even more. So the fact that I watched a game with double overtime and had my birthday all in the month of May basically meant that it was the best.month.ever. 

This year's birthday was bound to be awesome. You see, two years ago on my 22nd birthday, I was in an all day class helping me prepare to take my nursing licensing exam. My friends brought a cupcake and lit a candle (that almost set off the fire alarm), and I sang Taylor Swift all day but it still wasn't the ideal way to spend the day. 

Then last year, I worked the night of my birthday (from the 27th to the 28th). My best friend called me at work right at midnight and wished me happy birthday which was the highlight of the day. But I got off at 7:30 in the morning, slept four hours, woke up exhausted and grumpy and landed up pitifully weeping at the end of the day #realmature. 

With the past two years of a not-so-great birthday, this year was set up for success because I didn't have to work, didn't have to go to any sort of class, and basically got to spend the day how I wanted.

Alex had to be at the hospital by 7:30 in the morning, but that didn't stop him from doing my favorite birthday tradition ever. He woke me up with a plate of fruit with a candle in it, as he sang the traditional Hispanic birthday song, Las Mananitas. It is traditional to sing this song on one's birthday, and back in the day my parents didn't think ahead to buy a cupcake for my birthday so they stuck a candle in a banana instead. The lack of preparation has now become a tradition as we do candles in bananas accompanied by Las Mananitas for every birthday. There was nothing better than waking up to my English-speaking husband singing a song that is completely in Spanish  (the effort he puts in is the best thing ever!)

{my fruit plate that started the day}

After having a leisurely morning, I went to my hair cut appointment. I LOVE getting my hair cut, and decided that it was a perfect way to spend the morning while Alex was at the hospital.

{I NEVER take car selfies, but when I do it's after I get my hair cut... because no one 

knows if this good of hair will make it home.}

After feeling fabulous at the salon, I set up the present from my family... a new Fitbit which I had been wanting since last year. If you have a fitbit and want to be friends, let me know in the comments and we can connect! I love love love knowing my heart rate at all points of the day #nerdalert. 

Alex got off early and we went to one of my favorite places to eat for lunch- Panda Express. When I say I love Chinese food, I really mean that I just love Panda Express and orange chicken. 

{This picture makes me drool... anyone else?}

The weather was looking a little iffy at this point so we went shopping. And by shopping I mean we walked around Costco and Ikea and bought nothing. 

We got home and took a nap two naps (I had just worked three days in a row, cut me some slack!). We took a leisurely walk and finally decided to get dinner at Noodles & Company and go see the movie Aloha. Dinner was great, the movie was not. 

{Leisurely walk selfie}

It was 24 hours of feeling loved by phone calls, texts, and birthday wishes. I was slightly panicked at the thought that I am now "mid twenties" and not "early twenties", but if my birthday is reflective of the year ahead, 24 is going to be a great one! If I could have a birthday more than once a year, I would totally jump on that train. But then again, maybe I wouldn't because it wouldn't be as special when it did come around. Here's to birthdays, feeling loved, and a great year ahead! 

Project 12: May

{I worked Memorial Day so Alex came and had lunch with me at the hospital}

Our month of May was super busy, and from the sounds of it, everyone else's was too! May is my favorite month of the year, and even though the near-daily rain was not my favorite, I must say May 2015 was still a success.

DATES

1. The Old Spaghetti Factory. This is probably one of our all time favorite restaurants and we have a hard time trying new places because this place always wins out. They have an old train caboose inside the restaurant and for the first time ever we got to sit in it! We also chose to tip our waiter more than the price of our meal as part of our goal for the year. I definitely don't say this to toot my own horn but rather to encourage you guys to do this next time you go out. It's probably one of my favorite things to do- I kind of feel like I spy when I do it, and it is so fun to secretly bless. Do it next time you go out, you'll be glad you did :)

{It was basically pouring as we took this = bad picture quality}

2. Thunder Valley National (Motocross Race). My hubby loves motocross, and since I've met him I've made an effort to get into it as well. Thunder Valley is a yearly dirtbike race that's part of a national series, and the track happens to be a half an hour away from our house. We were lucky enough to get FREE tickets this year, and I went for my first time ever (Alex had been before). It was really cool to see the races so close up and it was a lovely day to spend outside in the sunshine.

{Notice the rude dirtbiker photobombing us in the background}

3. Water World. This is our local water park and we decided it would be worth it to get season tickets this year. It's a really fun way to spend time with family, spend time in the sun, and the tickets pay themselves off after four times. Our first day this season was May 31st and, though it was a bit chilly, it was relaxing and great to officially kick off our summer! 

{If that pasty white skin doesn't indicate beginning of summer in Colorado, I don't know what does}

DISCOVERIES

1. Those places where you paint and drink are super fun! A good friend from work invited me to go to a place called Canvas and Cocktails. I was intimidated by the thought of royally messing up my painting at some point throughout the night, but I'm actually impressed with how it turned out! We had a great time chatting, and I would totally recommend this for a girls night or date night if you haven't tried it already! 

{We're both named Sarah, and we're the dynamic duo at work. Along with the

 seven million other Sarahs that work on our floor.}

{The painting that we did that night. I love the brightness of it and it's perfect for summer!}

2. Shopping at Babies R Us is fun and gives me baby fever.... for about 3.7 seconds and then I panic as I realize that I don't know what half the stuff is, and then I basically can't get out of there fast enough. 

BOOKS & MOVIES

You guys, I didn't finish a single book in June. I'm slowly working my way through one that is awesome, and I'm only a chapter away from finishing it but I'll talk about it in next month's recap since this post is already long enough. 

-Movies-

This month, I went to more movies than I usually attend in a six month period. It's not normal and please don't judge me. 

Aloha. We watched this on my birthday. It has a lot of famous people and a story line that could have been well done... but it was a big flop. It was a super slow movie, hard to follow, and soooo not worth the money. Alex fell asleep during it. Don't waste your time. 

San Andreas. This movie shaved two years off of my life because I was so stressed for two hours, and my heart was beating a mile a minute the entire time. It was a great movie that kept me on the edge of my seat, but if you're looking for something mellow, this isn't it. 

Pitch Perfect 2. This one was super fun and Alex and I both enjoyed it. Alex liked the first one better and I thought they were about the same. I think the story line in the first movie is better but the singing in the second one definitely wins out. 

NOTABLE EVENTS

1. My youngest brother made it to the regional playoffs for college lacrosse. My parents came up for the weekend and we had an absolute blast. His team won in the first round in double overtime. I don't think I've mentioned it before on my blog, but I love overtime. If a sport doesn't have overtime, it's not a sport worth watching. I am always in the mood for overtime, and  I may or may not have lost my voice I was yelling so loud.

{I swear I told everyone to do a funny face in this picture}

2. My other brother came home after being gone for almost six months. His travels had most recently taken him to Nepal (which you can read about here), and I am so thankful to have him home. 

Three days after he got back on US soil, he graduated college and I couldn't have been prouder. 

{The fam bam}

3. I got to surprise one of my best friends at her bridal shower, and watch one of my childhood friends get married all in the same day. 

{This girl is gettin hitched soon!}

4. It was my 24th birthday and it rocked. I wrote a separate post that is coming up later this week because I love birthdays as much as I love overtime. Stay tuned. 

BY THE NUMBERS

Miles run: 9. Basically I shouldn't keep including this statistic anymore because if I don't have a race to train for, I'm not a consistent runner. My June tally is currently 0 miles in case you're wondering. 

New recipes tried: 1. One is lame, I know, but this quinoa enchilada casserole was easy and totally delish. Try it. 

Number of proud sister moments: 1,345,765. Regional playoffs as a freshman for one brother, and college graduation as a freshman (just kidding) for the other brother, I mean c'mon, how could I not be proud? 

What was your favorite part of May? Have you ever tried those painting and wine places?