An amazing birthday dinner at TerraGR topped with a fantastic cake from Nantucket Bakery! Felt super special blowing out candles with friends.
A few weeks ago I turned 30-years-old and if you follow me on Instagram you already know I welcomed the new decade with a weekend full of birthday surprises; I captured the weekend via photos on my feed which was entirely all too fun for me. Here's the recap:
Friday night was spent with girlfriends over a fantastic dinner at TerraGR finished by an amazing birthday cake from Nantucket Bakery (it was giant and so so good) coordinated by my dear friend Amber. From there we headed downtown to catch Broadway Grand Rapids' Dirty Dancing at DeVos Performance Hall and ended our night with drinks on the rooftop deck at Homewood Suites. The rooftop bar is an under promoted gem that provides an excellent venue for a night cap and conversation.
Saturday morning kicked off a day of surprise celebration curated by my very own Jeff Kladder. We started with brunch at the newly opened Anna's House in Kalamazoo with my family. I ordered the Hippee Hash (yet again) because it's frigg'n fantastic. There we handed off the kids to Grandma for the day/night giving us about 24 hours of freedom! From there Jeff instructed me to pack my golf clothes and pool attire because we were headed to Watermark for the next few hours. There I had a private golf lesson with Mick, our pro, which is something we've been discussing since the season began this year. Mick mostly helped me with my grip and stance and after a few rounds I've really felt the difference! Jeff considers this an investment in our future which I find both hilarious and also very sweet. After the lesson we laid by the pool for a couple cocktails and enjoyed the nearly 90 degree heat!
The next stop included a couples massage at Design One which was fantastic! It was the first time Jeff had gotten a professional massage so it was equally as surprising for him as it was for me! Coached, cocktail'ed and relaxed... we headed home to an empty house which felt completely foreign. We took our time getting ready, played loud music and enjoyed a few cocktails on our porch before heading out for dinner at Nonna's Kitchen in Ada. We ordered wine, muscles, salad and lamb... all terrific! It was our first time to Nonna's and it did not disappoint. They've got a wonderful outdoor space that more than doubles their seating in the summertime. Wonderful food, wonderful portion sizes. Date night central!
We capped the night off with drinks in downtown Grand Rapids overlooking the Grand River at Wolfgang Puck's, The Kitchen. It was such a fun day. I told Jeff he could have planned just about anything to celebrate and I likely would have had an equal amount of fun just by the shear feeling of giddiness that came from the element of surprise.
I woke the next morning (Sunday, June 11th - my actual birthday) to an empty house (with the kids still at my parents), made myself coffee and watched the Today Show while Jeff slept in. It was a fitting time to replay the weekend of excitement and reflect on my last 30 years.
Plainly said: it feels entirely appropriate. Married, mortgage, 2 kids, a career and a routine that includes black coffee in the morning and a glass of red wine at night... it fits. My 20s were extremely eventful. It's where I found love and marriage and motherhood and a flow of life that is both happy and healthy. In my 30th year I celebrate gratitude, abundance, health, love and self worth. It feels good and it feels right. Each day, each week... each year gets better and better. All of the good things keep growing and I'm going to ride this train for as long as it'll take me! Looking forward to what the next 30 will bring me.