My Passport Arrived!

As part of Birthapalooza 2011, the U.S. Government decided it was a good idea to allow me to travel abroad and approved my passport application on June 15th. My actual passport arrived on Saturday. Best. Birthday. Present. Ever.

I dream of kissing the man I love at the top of the Eiffel Tower and visiting the Louvre in Paris, but I also dream of Rome (where I could tour the Sistine Chapel and attend mass at the Vatican) and Florence and London and Madrid, seeing The Egyptian Pyramids, Stonehenge, and the Great Wall of China, and attending the Festival of San Fermin in Pamplona for the running of the bulls, just like The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway (my favorite book ever).

The question is . . .Where do you think I should go and why?

Birthapaolooza Finale: The Birthday Hat

About a year ago, Tony brought Michael into our group of friends and Michael has not only given Tony immense happiness and love, but he also immediately fit right into our gang of neerdowells and we often ask ourselves where he's been our entire lives. In short, we love Michael.

One of the great things Michael has brought to us is the Birthday Hat. Michael is one of the most creative people I've ever known. If his gig as a social worker and counselor don't work out, he could make a killing as a hat designer. Those hats and fascinators at Kate Middleton's wedding are boring and understated in comparison to Michael's designs.

So far, we've celebrated 3 birthdays: Tony's, Christopher's and mine. Each of us received our own one-of-a-kind Birthday Hat that we wore with pride all evening long. Chris and I joined the 40 and Fabulous club this year and, as you'll see, we celebrated in style.

Let's take a look at the evolution of the hats:

Tony received the first hat in November. This expression is priceless. Somewhere there's a picture of me wearing Tony's hat with great amounts of Hat Envy.

Chris joined the 40 and Fabulous Club in April. Think his Birthday Hat is something? You should see the hat box. That was a work of art as well!

Me wearing Chris's Hat counting down the days til I'd have my own Birthday Hat.

Finally, I joined the 40 and Fabulous Club this week and was presented with my Birthday Hat on Saturday night. Unfortunately, you can't see the the black boa necklace that keeps it securely on my head because I'm also wearing a black shirt. I'm holding the Birthday Barbie that Wini gave me. Believe it or not, it's my first Barbie. Ever. Oh, and yes, my hat really is about 2 feet tall.

Birthapalooza is now in the history books and was truly memorable. I've got the greatest friends in the world and am blessed to have them in my life. Between the pre-celebration work event at the Mayne Stage on Wednesday with Bobcat Goldthwait, Thursday night's dinner and chocolate cake at the beach (my actual birthday), Ravinia on Friday, and my "surprise" birthday party last night, I'm exhausted. This old broad needs a nap. Someone wake me on Thursday.

Day 1 of Birthapalooza was FABULOUS!

I should be exhausted. It's almost midnight and I'm completely wide awake after a spectacular birthday. Well, after Day 1 of Birthapalooza. There's still 2 more days to go.

To be sure, it started out a little iffy with a bad migraine and LOTS of nausea. Don't get any funny ideas, it was just my body telling me that it really is going to fall apart any second.

But then it got better in a huge hurry. Birthday text messages, tweets, Facebook messages, emails, cards, at least 5 serenades of "Happy Birthday" and gifts. Plus, cupcakes, lunch, and a fabulous dinner followed by chocolate cake at the beach!

Plus, the Stargazer Lilies in my garden bloomed today!
If I'm ever feeling down about myself, all I need to do is go back to all those generous messages and feel all the love all over again. My cup completely runneth over. My birthday was better than anything I could have imagined and only Day 1 is over. In fact, as we stood at the beach tonight, I searched for that first star of the evening (you know, to make a wish - doesn't everyone do that?), but when I found it, I realized there was nothing to wish for. I have everything I ever wanted that truly matters. So I just stood there feeling grateful because I am truly blessed.