Birthdays are meant to be celebrated

Here are my thoughts as another year goes by...

My birthday was last Monday and since then, we've done a few things to celebrate! Here are some of my favorite highlights! The weekend before my bday, we visited Columbus! Our First stop: North Market in Columbus, OH! We went there to grab some lunch and sweet treats. Mmmm...

 

I always get pasta from the Pastaria, when we visit. Me and Ellie shared the Shrimp and Scallop Carbonara. My hubby Mark got Vietnamese Pho and my cousin, Lucy got some Mediterranean cucumber dill! Nom nom nom! We also grabbed some koala cookies for the little one.

 

Smile! You are at North Market!

And for dessert....chocolate! We couldn't leave without my favorite gourmet chocolate from the Pure Imagination Chocolatier (of course, second and third to my other faves, Aglamesis and Godiva)! 

Second stop: The Urban Scrawl located in the Franklinton Arts District! This event displayed mural paintings on large panels, urban art, crafts, food vendors, break-dancing, a kids craft area and more! A  shout-out goes to Thea, an alumni friend of mine, who informed us about this fun scrawl! Thanks girl!

Mark, got an official Urban Scrawl screen-printed t-shirt for a souvenir! While we waited for it to get printed, Ellie was "being patient" in the heat... Her thoughts must've been, "Seriously, mom!? More pictures? Right now!?" hehe! She was SO ready to check out the things happening inside the warehouse (which was thankfully fanned)! Here's what the shirt looked like. And Ellie's facial expression!

Finally, we got inside the warehouse and watched some break-dancing! Ellie LOVED it. She even started dancing away.  Mark used to break-dance, so he was interested to watch some skillzzz! 

 

There was a kids play area where several volunteers from the Boys and Girls Club, came to play with the kiddies! They set up a soccer goal and a face painting booth! Ellie was surprisingly very still, waiting for her arm to be painted ;-) It was soooo cute watching her get it done.  

 

 

Here are some more graffiti paintings that were displayed inside the warehouse. I LOVED all the bright colors!

 

Below are some last minute shots of the panels before leaving. It was fun watching the artists' progress throughout the day. Their panels looked like so much fun to paint...it made me want to start one of my own, right then and there!

After leaving the scrawl, we went to High Street. Third Stop: Pochi Tea Station for some bubble tea!! We're sipping ours in the car cause the parking lot was under construction. Also, they ran out of all our favorite flavors :( (Coconut and Taro). So we had to resort to new ones. Me and my cousin Lucy got Thai Iced Tea with boba and Mark got a Japanese Yogurt flavor. Ellie was KNOCKED out. :) Then we made a quick run to Grandview to pick up our favorite coffee from Stauf's!! I know it sounds cheesy, but Love Potion #9 is our favorite blend.

And after ALL that, our Columbus trip was at an end. But the celebration didn't stop :) On the actual day of my birthday, this pumpkin muffin was awaiting me at my desk! It was a surprise treat from my co-worker, Kelly. How sweet!! It was yummmy. She even put a candle in it. I just HAD to Instagram it ;) Then my boss took all of us out to lunch! We tried Tom + Chee for the first time! It was delicious! Their specialty...tomato soup and different versions of grilled cheese...hence, "tom" and "chee"! I got the Grilled Deli, which consisted of spicy dill chips, roast beef, lettuce, tomato, sauteed onions, cheddar cheese on wheat! Well worth it! Going back for sure.

 

After work, we went out to our favorite park for some fresh air. The weather couldn't have been more perfect!!

The actual day of my birthday, I enjoyed a wonderful lunch with my co-workers and a quiet evening with my family. Time well spent. Thanks to everyone involved for making my birthday a WONDERFUL one!!  You are the best! I'm so blessed to have such marvelous people in my life.

Next post to come... the awesome gifts I got! Yay for fab finds!!