I didn’t photograph much the day of my birthday, but I do have some images to share. The featured image for this post is a cupcake I got from a good friend whom we met up with later on that day. She also gave me this adorable cookie in the shape of a popsicle, which I nibbled a bit just now:

BUT… on to the adventures!!!

After typing up the Birthday Check-In post, I ordered myself some ADORABLE metallic silver sandals using a $20 birthday coupon. They were also I believe 40% off. After tax, I paid under $2. Hopefully, they fit.

Then, I touched up my hair. Kiddo was still sleeping, and I wanted my roots done for my big day. And I had gotten some beauty products from Target along with all the bits and pieces to fix up the spare room.

(By the way, everyone here was super impressed with how the room turned out. Very proud of that. And kiddo loved it, too).

Once she woke up, we headed to Panera to pick up my free birthday pastry. I got us a bearclaw to split. Then, we drove to Starbucks to get my free birthday drink. I got a Summer Skies, and she got a latte. We splurged and went Venti since mine was free anyway.

Then we dropped off a library book I had just finished reading: a collection of poetry entitled All The Flowers Kneeling by Paul Tran– since we had such a long wait to pick her up from the airport, I was able to get through the rest of it quickly. The poem with the quote “all the flowers kneeling” was SO powerful! When I saw some of the content would relate to trauma etc., I had thought of broken flowers, or flowers bowed with immense burden. But NO! It’s entirely the opposite. That poem’s speaker envisions flowers in a meadow bowing down before them in worship.

Still in the same area as Panera and Starbucks and the library branch location, we stopped at Bath & Body Works for my free $9.95 birthday gift. Coincidentally, their semi-annual sale was running. Here’s what I got there (unpictured, I also got an itty bitty hand sanitizer that matches the fragrance of the foaming hand soap in my kitchen):

The Strawberry Pound Cake shimmer mist was 75% off, and the Pride one was my free item. I also bought kiddo some very fancy hand lotion which she assured me was travel friendly.

Then we went thrifting and picked up some souvenir t-shirts for her boyfriend. We made some good finds! A Bucky Badger Wisconsin long sleeve tee and a black and white Star Wars tee with the Mickey Mouse Disney logo shape filled with things from Star Wars. I think the left ear was the Millennium Falcon, and the right ear was the Death Star, and so on.

From THAT side of town, we met my parents at Olive Garden, where they gave me a card and treated us to lunch. I think what I got was called Ravioli Carbonara with chicken. Olive Garden gives you your choice of a free dessert. We had to get it to go because everyone was so full. I chose the Warm Italian Donuts with the raspberry and chocolate dipping sauces.

Then, after briefly stopping at my parents’ house to pop our leftovers into the fridge (the rest of my salad, some breadsticks, kiddo’s remaining ravioli, and the dessert), we went to the local art gallery displaying my work to see it in action!!!

At the end of the installation, they had hung Pride flags that you passed through. Past that, there was a table where you could make your own mini Pride flag. So we did that, too! Here we are posing with our flags, with my other two art pieces in the show.

Mine are the center two paintings, as you may recall from earlier posts.

Then, we drove to the game store where I used to work to pick up a copy of Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza for my daughter and her boyfriend and their friends/family to enjoy. I had figured the 8-bit graphic version would fit her best, since she’s a digital gamer primarily. So that was the one we bought. She loved that the packaging looked like a Nintendo Gameboy.

We eventually played my copy at home, so she could get a feel for the rules, the better to teach it to everyone else.

Then, kiddo and I adjourned to an All You Can Eat sushi restaurant, where I tried Yellowtail Sashimi for the first time ever. SO DELICIOUS!!!

Following sushi dinner, we picked up my friend (the cupcake gifter) and drove to a picturesque park overlooking the bay. The sun had already set by the time we arrived, but we enjoyed sunset colors spread across the sky and reflecting back upon the rippling water.

My friend was hungry from a long day at the Farmer’s Market, where she had a booth, so we decided to go to Applebee’s for half price apps and my birthday freebie. I did eat my Brew Pub Loaded Waffle Fries, and my friend bought me a birthday mocktail, but we took the brownie bite to go. And kiddo picked at her mozzarella sticks. We took a lot of those home, too, and I ate those I think the next day.

I still have my brownie bite waiting in the fridge. Perhaps later today?

After that, kiddo and I went back home and watched the first half of RRR, a movie set in India during British occupation. We finished it the next night. It’s outstanding. Highly recommend.

I think it surpassed my 18th birthday as my favorite birthday of all time thus far. Maybe even my top favorite day in general. Made so many happy memories!!!

OH… when we picked up my friend to go to the park and later Applebee’s, she gave me a gift bag BRIMMING with stuff! And, coincidentally, it was someone else’s birthday at Applebee’s, and their group ended up seated right by ours.

Here’s what else she gave me. She knows me so well. We met working at a seasonal Halloween store in town, years and years ago.

There’s the card, and a cute little Gemini sticker she enclosed in it. Below the card, you’ll see a Native-inspired makeup bag, and the adorable gift bag everything came in.

Lip gloss and liner, an air freshener that looks all spooky and gothy (love), hand sanitizer in a cute Gummy Bear looking holder, and handmade Door County Cherry scented soap.

A unicorn journal.

An adorable-looking book.

And lastly a coaster which I’m already using at my computer desk. Perfect for me, since I like to paint!

Besides the beauty products and the stuff for the spare room, I also got MYSELF two birthday books:

That’s all the birthday-proper adventuring and gifties… I’ll keep the rest of our birthday visit adventures to separate posts so this doesn’t go on FOREVER! LOL. Be on the lookout.