GOLDEN Birthday!!

Well for those of you who don't already know (because I've been talking about it nonstop for the past month) yesterday was my GOLDEN Birthday!! I'm very very excited to be 22 (on the 22nd)! I've been excited for this particular birthday for a very long time, and Grant made it so much better than I ever imagined!!

He came up with the idea of making my birthday pirate-themed (which he surprised me with yesterday morning) since pirates have treasure, and treasure is gold. So I woke up yesterday morning and on my nightstand was a pirate's bandanna, an eye patch, and some skull and cross bones rings. There was also this note:

I then embarked on my treasure hunt (looking like a pirate). It was awesome! The first clue led me to the shower, which led me to my closet, which led me to the... microwave, clock, tandem bike, rain boots, out to Grant's car and.... to my very own treasure chest!!

I then got so excited and insisted upon laying out the clues in order so I could take some pictures. It was the best way to wake up on my birthday :)

 Here was the last clue that led me to my treasure chest:

After taking tons of pictures, I opened up my gifts in the treasure chest! Grant's parents got me the cutest little apothecary-like jar filled with my own gold coins(!!) and a beautiful yellow candle (since it's my GOLDEN birthday, if you didn't already get that). And Grant got me a Kindle!! I'm very excited about this present! I've been talking about wanting one since last Christmas because now that I've graduated, I've been blowing through books and they're heavy to lug everywhere, so this Kindle will be perfect. And he also gave me two tickets to Lagoon, which he said is what he had planned for us for the today! And just when I thought I was done opening presents, we heard a knock on the door and it was a flower delivery from Andrea! She sent me the most beautiful sunflowers (which are my favorite) that go along great with my golden theme. And then I logged onto my computer and I had two E-cards, one from Aunt Debbie and one from Becky! Both cards were so cute and funny, and made me laugh out loud. I'm telling you, I have the greatest people in my life! :)

Next, Grant cooked me a delicious breakfast of french toast with strawberries, bananas, and powdered sugar on top, with orange juice :) I would have taken a picture...except I scarfed it down before I had the chance. After breakfast we got cleaned up and ready for Lagoon! It was a perfect day to go to the park because hardly anyone was there (I guess because it was a Wednesday). We didn't have to wait longer than 5 minutes for any ride, and we honestly were able to go on every ride in the park in just two hours. It was so much fun to be there with Grant and ride all the roller coasters and just hang out. And of course, we made a special effort to keep the pirate themed going so where did we go for lunch? Well what is a pirate's favorite restaurant? ARRRR-BY'S! So that is where we went :) We also rode the pirate ship ride and tried to get a picture of it, but I'm not sure if you can tell that's where we are. Oh well. It was a great way to spend the afternoon of my birthday!

And because we got done at the park so quickly, we were able to leave and not have to rush home to change for dinner. Instead we were able to go to the pool for a little bit! On the way I checked the mail and I got a great card from my Grandma and an amazing package from my mom!! For my birthday she sent me an Anthropologie gift card (so excited to go shopping), the cutest apron that she made, two books, a ring, a recipe book, and so much candy! I definitely enjoyed opening that package :)

After swimming at the pool, we came home and got cleaned up. Then Grant told me to get back into my pirate outfit. We both changed, looking like mighty good pirates, and headed down to the Provo/Orem area to meet up with Justin and Holly. This much I knew, but I didn't know where we were going until I realized Grant was taking me to dinner at the pirate restaurant, Pirate Island! It was so much fun, and the pizza was pretty good. Justin and Holly dressed up with us too, so I had fun getting into the spirit of things. (Check out our hooks!)

Then after dinner Justin and Holly came back up with us to our place for dessert and games. Grant made me the most amazing cake!! You'll be able to see from the picture that it's a treasure chest!! He loaded the inside with chocolate coins and other golden candy. I love him so much, he went to such an effort to make my day perfect, which it was!

We ate the delicious cake and ice-cream, then hung out for a while just talking and playing games. It was really an amazing day and I'm so thankful that I have a wonderful husband who goes to such lengths to make my birthday special. I said to him "I'm so glad you understand my obsession with birthdays" and he quickly corrected me, saying, "No, I don't understand it. But I love you and so I'll do it for you." Not too many people have a husband who's that great :)

Oh, and I've still got my party to look forward to with all our friends!