Happiest Birthday to me!

Sunday was my TWENTY SIXTH birthday and it quite possibly was my favorite birthday ever! Saturday for the first time in literally months, I did not have to work. Starting off a birthday weekend knowing that I would have some time for myself was reason enough for me to celebrate!! I was thrilled at the thought of three days to do whatever I wanted!

Saturday morning my sweet friend Brittney arranged for several of our friends to get together for a girls breakfast to "kick off" the birthday fun. We were planning on going to Shashy's but sadly realized it was closed due to the holiday weekend and moved the group to Durks. It is was so much fun to visit with friends and eat greasy "dirty grits". We ate, went to a little shop and truly enjoyed the morning.

After breakfast I practically had made plans not to have plans, but as most of you know if I have time off I enjoy working on things at home. I kidnapped my friend Annie and took her to the paint store to choose a color to paint my dining room ceiling. We spent the better part of the afternoon painting the ceiling and working on a few little projects at home. John asked Friday night if we could go on a date Saturday night to celebrate my birthday a little early because he is working the night shift right now. As Annie and I ran to Lowe's for a last minute errand John told me I should come home and started getting ready for dinner so that we could eat and visit for a while before he had to head to work. Casually he said lets go eat around six.

I got back from Lowe's and of course I didn't want to get ready. Annie told me I should listen to John. I didn't think anything about it. I got ready and we went to Kabuki. John walked a little ahead of me and when we got to the dining room where we usually turn right....we turned left in to the "party" room and were greeted by some of my very favorite friends saying SURPRISE!!! It was so much fun! I do not think that I am a very easy one to surprise and John did it with flying colors! I was thrilled, surprised and honored to share dinner with such great friends who took time out of their weekend to celebrate with me. Alex and Susan were already at the lake and came back home just to celebrate with us. Jur and Nick JUST had babies and still made the effort to come...not to mention what an incredible and thoughtful husband I have to arrange the whole thing for me!


Sunday was my actual birthday and it was just as perfect as the day before. I woke up...John was still sleeping (again working nights) picked my favorite coffee mug, put a little extra creamer in my already LOTS of creamer coffee and enjoyed a bagel with strawberry cream cheese. Then I went to Home Depot (not every birthday girl's first stop but high on the list for me!) I came home painted the second coat on the ceiling and worked a little while on my china cabinet in progress...GREAT DAY!

That afternoon my Mom, Dad and Rachael came to help celebrate my birthday with me! I love having them at my house and they do not get to come nearly as often as I would like. We ordered Mellow Mushroom and enjoyed a relaxing night at home. It truly was a perfect birthday for me!

Sometimes Quitters DO Win

I have always had a subconscious "quitters never win and winners never quit" mentality...but that all changed when I finally found the courage to quit my job.

It has been a while since I last posted, but so much has happened. After months and months of prayer and continuous internal conflict, I made my decision to leave Weddings by Jill. I loved so much about that job, but I knew with out a shadow of a doubt it was time for a change. I hate to disappoint. I hate for people to feel that they can not count on me. I hate to leave tasks incomplete. I did all of these things when I told Jill it was time for me to go. Leaving that job was like breaking up with the terrible boyfriend I never had. I knew it was "over" and NEEDED to be over, but for some reason I kept hanging on. It was honestly the hardest thing I have ever had to do...99.9% of other big life changes could be credited to life events that were out of my control. I had to quit my high school job to go to college. College job to move back to Birmingham. Leave my roommate because I was getting married and moving. This was the first time I ever said...I have made this decision for myself...if for no other reason but knowing it is what I need to do.

As soon as I "talked to Jill" the weight of the world was off my shoulders. I left the office after our conversation to run a quick errand and get myself together. Before I could even call John to tell him about the morning my phone rang. It was the owner of Marquirette's here in Montgomery. I met with him weeks prior about a possible position and we had been emailing and playing phone tag ever since. He said he really would like to nail down the position as soon as possible and was curious if I was still interested...WHAT?! little did he know that I literally JUST gave my two weeks notice not exactly knowing what was in store for me.

Two weeks came and went. Seemed so dramatic and important during the time, but it is funny how perspective changes with just a little bit of time. I tied up as many loose ends as I could, turned in my credit card and phone, tidied up my desk and left my office one last time. It didn't really sink that I was done. My last day at Jill's was a Thursday. Like a dummy I told Marquirette's I would start Friday. Mother's Day was Sunday and since I would be working the Saturday before I thought it would be helpful to try to meet people and figure things out a little bit so I would at least have a name to yell when I was lost in the craziness that Saturday. I jumped right in...so far I haven't sunk yet!

I have really enjoyed my new job. My feet not so much. I must say this is a difficult transition for someone who feels much better about herself in shoes at least 3" tall. ...AND I have to wear skirts and dresses...which if you know me and have noticed...this is something that I do not typically do. But hey, it was time for a change right?!? I just didn't know that change would mean that my faithful pairs of black pants would no longer be a part of my daily life...and I have yet to accept the fact that the heels really aren't either.

I was ready to escape the stress and drama. Ready for something that didn't require me to have all the answers. Ready not to have to memorize random things about people and the way they like bows tied or what seafood their future father in law may be allergic to. Stress level is way down. Still around a bit of drama, but right now I am a happy outsider to the drama. I know every job has an element of drama, this one is no different, I am just thrilled not to be a part. My job is not nearly as mindless as I anticipated and so far I am enjoying it much more than I expected. After all days fly by when I am surrounded by diamonds and china!!