birthday goodness

premièrement, i want to thank each of you for the happy birthday wishes!! after the way the holidays (and much of my holiday break) went, i certainly wasn't getting my hopes up about anything. in lots of different ways so many of you remembered me on my 'special day' and it really mattered. so thanks a lot, merci beaucoup or as my dad likes to say - mercy bucket. ☺

my 24th birthday was great. started the day off on saturday by sleeping in a little bit. then i made some coffee, threw my coat on and ran down the street for an almond croissant but GASP! they had none. so, to console myself, i bought a pépito AAAND a lil' tarte au chocolat (add that to the pastry list) which was on sale. after that, i came home and opened my presents. please see photo. hey! i barely got christmas presents, let me be excited about something!!

featured in this photograph are fabulous gifts from my roommate, a teacher, my wonderful aunt and godfather, my fairy godmother AND belated (not his fault) christmas presents from my boyfriend!! other gifts received after the photo op but deserve mentioning: AN AWESOME 2010 mr. winkle calendar from my parents, a box full o' goodies from ohno!nmp and a generous donation to the Horvats Against A Broke Ass Lauryn fund. so many happy surprises! little did i know there were more in store! OH BOY!

next, my roommate megan and i went to the gym for a little workout. while she went home to shower, i stopped at the laundromat to wash my comforter which had a really weird smell to it all of a sudden, kind of like formaldehyde...i've washed the duvet cover before and i swear i wash my sheets on a regular basis! anyway, got that taken care of. so i came home and showered, had some nummies and then megan and i ventured out into rouen's commercial center to take advantage of LES SOLDES. twice annually france has a nationwide sale and one of them happens to take place in january. how fortuitous for us! so megan, kinzie and i fought through the crowds and were able to scoop up some good deals, the best for me being a pair of black flats with an ankle strap for €11.97 marked down from €39.97. YOU KNOW I LOVE TO $AV€!!!!!!!! apparently the deals keep getting better and better each week for 4 or 5 weeks but of course the selection isn't as good. but who cares!!

after shopping for a bit, we came home and started to get ready to go out. megan shared some wine and logan and lisa joined us for a viewing of my personal favorite, 3 Candles and a Christening. there was a lot of laughing, so i think they liked it!! for those who don't know about this chef-d'oeuvre, it's a home video of the joint parties of my 3rd birthday, my brother's baptism and a chicago bear's game shot and narrated by my fantastic fairy godmother. oscar material, i'm tellin' ya!

then kinzie, megan and i went out for indian food and topped it off by sharing a bottle of muscador on the way to boite à bieres - yes, dear readers, the very bar where the BlindTest took place a few months ago! we started off with a tequila shot and as more friends showed up a shot of calvados and some wine and beers in giraffes ----> were thrown in there, too. one of my younger (british) teachers also came. we shut down the bar and all and all it was a goodnight.

BUT if you think that sounds great, nothing really compares to what the 7th grade girls at english club did for me. yesterday, about 20 girls who come regularly to the club showed up with wrapped presents, cards, CHOCOLATE CAKE that one of them baked herself, orange soda, plates, cups, etc. it was INCREDIBLE. i mean, i can't believe these girls actually took the time to plan and to do all that!! and that they were willing to spend their money on me?! i had an idea that they might be planning something when they asked what i wanted for my birthday but i told them they should save their money and all i wanted was smiles on their faces in my class. i didn't expect that at all! i was really moved by how much they cared based on what they wrote in their cards and how they tried to explain to me why they bought the gifts they did. they were so sweet, although i have to admit, some of their gifts were pretty funny. for instance, the I ♥ ME earrings as well as the hard-boiled egg holder in the form of a donkey. haha! oh...

thanks again, everyone, for thinking of me. really.

LOVE!

ℒ