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A Low-Key Bday
My 46th birthday was yesterday, and I had a really nice, low-key celebration. I’ve never been big on birthday celebrations; all I wanted was to treat myself and chill. And that’s exactly what I did.
I started my birthday off with an early morning Pilates class—my first one in months! I have a Club Pilates membership but had to take time off. In March, I got stitches in my back from a mole removal and skin excision at the dermatologist (fortunately, it wasn’t cancerous, and I’m fine). There were internal stitches that took two to three months to dissolve, so I had to temporarily limit my activity. This is now a PSA to get your annual skin screening and have your moles checked!
Anyway, I was happy to restart Pilates class on my birthday!
After Pilates, I drove home and popped on over to my local Starbucks to get my free birthday drink. I got a white chocolate macadamia cream cold brew, my current favorite chilled coffee there.
Before showering, I slathered Fresh Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask [affiliate link] on my face. I bought the mask on sale at Sephora awhile back but hadn’t opened it yet. My birthday was the perfect occasion to open this luxury mask, which felt super refreshing:
I washed the mask off in the shower, and it left my skin looking so radiant. That mask is expensive ($96 full price but I got it for $67.20) but so good!
I needed to make a Trader Joe’s run, so I stopped in there for a few things. Wine was on my list, and when the the checkout guy saw my ID, he wished me happy birthday. Then he asked what my favorite thing was from the past year. I was like “wow, that’s a really good question!” There were actually a lot of good things that happened in my 45th year, but my answer was our vacation in the French Alps. I was happy that he asked me that question, because it gave me a chance to reflect and appreciate the many good things in my life!
When I came home, I opened presents from my parents—and opened presents from John when he came home from the office in the afternoon. A birthday gift post is forthcoming!
I spent much of the day responding to birthday wishes and chatting with my parents on the phone. In the afternoon I set aside a chunk of time to work on Murdle Volume 1, which I started on our recent vacation (vacation post coming soon!). This book of logic puzzles is super fun! Sometimes I’m not in the right headspace to do it, but when I get in the zone I can usually correctly solve a bunch of puzzles in a row.
After knocking out some Murdle puzzles, it was time to get ready for my birthday dinner. I had made a reservation at a brand new Northern Italian restaurant in Navy Yard named Ama, and when we were ready we strolled on down there. We honeymooned in Northern Italy, so of course I was interested in trying the restaurant when I heard about it. Ama is only in its second week, so we didn’t know what to expect in terms of service and food quality. We ended up having a really nice time! The cocktail list is pretty extensive, but I picked out what I wanted right away. I started with a cocktail called Old Tyrolean:
For dinner, I ordered the Pansotti con Sugo di Noci, described as “Very Traditional Ligurian Ravioli filled with ‘Preboggion’ (Wild Foraged Greens) & Ricotta in a Walnut Sauce.” The dish was pretty and tasted great; the pasta was delicate, and the nutty sauce flavor really came through. The sauce was almost like a walnut butter kind of texture. Yum!
We want to go back to Ama sometime! The space is beautiful and I also love their menu design.
After dinner, we tried to go to Smoke & Mirrors, a roof bar at the AC Hotel at the end of the block where Ama is located. However, there was a private event with Senators up there, so instead we went to the rooftop bar at the Thompson Hotel. From the deck, we had a nice view of the mild watercolor sunset. We enjoyed just hanging out and chatting up there.
Birthday selfie with my favorite person!
All in all, I had a wonderfully low-key birthday. I’m very grateful for feeling happy and healthy. I’ve FINALLY developed a regular workout habit, and I think it helps so much—both mentally and physically. Cheers to more adventures over the next year!
As I mentioned, stay tuned for a post about my birthday gifts and a post recapping our recent vacation. 🙂
