This is 34

Well another year has come and gone, and I have been blessed with another year around the sun. #thisis34

I spent my birthday the way that I now deem the ONLY way to spend one's birthday. Pampering myself with a treat yo'self day. I started the day by picking up a big fat fatty salted caramel mocha frappuccino on my way to the nail salon. Calories don't count on birthdays.

(By the the way, the word frappuccinno makes me smile because it reminds me of this hilarious youtube video of "how to pronounce frappuccino". If you ever want a silly laugh, go through the Pronunciation Manual videos and listen to the many videos of how NOT to pronounce things.

So, frappe in my unmanicured hand, I headed to the salon and got myself a lovely little French mani. Over the many years that I have been going to get manicures, I have learned something about myself. I somehow always end up in way too personal conversations with my manicurist. I don't know how it happens, but they always seem to open up to me. This year we bonded over the fact that my manicurist was expecting his first child in October, but his wife was still in Vietnam and wouldn't be moving to the US until next year. In previous emotional mani experiences, I've sympathized with my salon technician over her worries that her child was falling behind in her math class. And probably the most heart-wrenching experience I've had while sitting in that manicure chair was the time I was at the nail salon with a bridal party for my friend Lesslye's wedding and somehow ended up hearing the story of my sweet manicurist recently losing her beloved dog. We literally both had tears rolling down our faces, and Lesslye happened to glance over at me and say with a look of bewilderment on her face, "Emily, are you ok?!"

Yes, I'm just sitting here bonding with another human soul while I get my French manicure. Because apparently, that's what I do.

So back to my day of pampering. After my manicure, I drove over to Z salon to get my hair highlighted and trimmed. During the drive, I cranked up my 90's Jams playlist on full blast and enjoyed belting out Everybody along with the Backstreet Boys. Complete with the wonderful awful dance moves that go along with that gem of a song. Stares and giggles from onlooking car passengers don't matter on birthdays. You do you.

I had been planning on maybe cutting my hair to my shoulders, but as per my usual, I chickened out and just got a trim. But I was happy with how it turned out and I left Z salon feeling a bit like a diva. But in a good way. Two hand massages in one day can really make a girl feel like Cleopatra.

Sometimes on my birthday treat yo'self days I like to go shopping, but this year I chose instead to head home and take a nap with Amelia. Because afternoon naps are just as leisurely and lovely as an afternoon of shopping in my opinion.

So there you have it, my birthday in a nutshell. My 33rd year of life brought many changes and blessings. I changed jobs and became a homeowner. I became the mother of a 3 year old who speaks like a British pig and is 42% potty trained. It was a great year and I look forward to what my year 34 brings!