My Super Sweet Sixteen!

We were just finishing dinner and taking a group photo, when I heard a woman behind me make a comment under her breath.

"Oh, this MUST be a Sweet 16 party," she said to her table. It was spoken with all the condescending smugness of someone who was both amused and annoyed. Her friends tried to shush her, but she continued. "No don't get me wrong, I think it's greeeat," she finished.

I was ready to slink off and die of embarrassment, trying to figure out if it was because of the way I dressed or the way I carried myself. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bryn walk right over to the table.

"ACTUALLY, it's a Sweet 24. And thanks, we think she's great too," she snapped.

That situation truly spoke of the amount of love and respect I felt last night for my birthday. I was not simply surrounded by friends and family, I was taken care of, safe and loved and completely humbled by these people who have helped me grow up.



My morning started when Jessica picked me up and took me to the Milan Institute of Cosmetology, where my beautiful friend Ashley is studying to be an aesthetician. Not only did Ash treat me to THE most incredible facial I've ever had, but she also did waxing. To say that that girl supports herself is an understatement, she had to bow out of attending my birthday because she works and goes to school full time. She gave me a beautiful bouquet of balloons and I was completely thrilled that I got to see her on my birthday. I also had the pleasure of spending most of my day with Jessica, who was constantly patient with me despite my repeated meltdowns over scheduling conflicts and other coordinating problems for the night. I love you wifey :)



My big surprise came when my childhood friend Amada dropped by with a photo frame full of pictures of us from the past 15 years. We were in swim team, symphonic band, color guard, leadership, drum corps, AP classes, everything together. I've traveled the country with her and our families have both celebrated and grieved together through births and funerals and graduations. It made my day to have a chance to see her before we all left for San Francisco.



Dinner at Bistro Aix was a bit cumbersome. It is always such a pity when a great restaurant has one bad apple server, and we happened to get that waiter for the night. He easily could have ruined my dinner, but I was surrounded by the people I love and that was what mattered. Any qualms I had about the food service were put to rest by the simple humbling reminder that everyone drove countless miles to be there for me. It also helped that the food and wine were very good.



I should pause for a moment and thank the woman who literally made this all possible, my mom. Truly, she's the one who deserves to be honored on my birthday considering all the stress I've put her through these past 24 years. I love you mama!!



I made the mistake of not actually walking the distance between the restaurant and the bar. Half a mile and several blocks in the frigid San Francisco wind is not doable, but Bryn and Ryan braved the streets along with Brian and Randy to get to the Blue Light bar on Union Street. Curtis and Kat and I hopped in the good ol' Prius to drive down the road and find parking. When we finally all made it in, we celebrated with a round of lemon drop shots - delicious!



Our booth at the bar was more than a little crowded, but I loved getting to play musical chairs to visit with everyone and catch up on how everyone has been. I've not seen Curtis and Kat since last year, so it was such a joy to catch up and get excited about the Mexico cruise we're leaving for in ONE WEEK. I can't believe we're going to be sipping mixed drinks in a different country so soon!



The coolest guest appearances of the night were Pablo and Shannon, two of my closest friends from college. We all lived together in The Villas next to campus at SFSU, so we were our own little family, "The Flock," as we liked to call ourselves because we all had assigned bird names. Here's me and my little Shannon, who's off to New York City this year to dance for an Alvin Ailey program. How effing incredible is she??



It was a perfect night filled with more love than I could ever articulate. I have never felt so happy and satisfied with the people I've chosen to surround myself with, and I could not have asked for a better way to spend what might possibly be my last birthday in California for awhile. Curtis was gracious enough to host us in his beautiful home in Fairfield, along with driving us all home. I owe him big, but he already knows that :) My final thank you is to the person who has made my birthday special for the past 2 years, my love Brian. <3