24

First thing this morning Natalie ran down the hall to deliver my birthday present and was the first person to audibly wish me a happy birthday. I was so excited to find these cupcakes inside the metal tin. They're FBC colors and just scream party.

Along with her note she gave me this peacock bracelet that she finished just last night. Nothing like a friendship bracelet on your birthday.

Saba made me this comic book birthday card that made me laugh and, "think about all the great times we've had together."

I have class on Wednesday nights and have to eat dinner obnoxiously early but Ellyn gathered some camp friends for our birthday linner. Lunch + dinner = linner. Thank you girls for sneaking out of show choir and going late to lacrosse. It was a rebel kind of day. I might have not done my homework or readings for class because it was my birthday and I just didn't have anything to say about rhetoric.

I love these girls and am so thankful that they're a part of my life in Indy.

My sister called to wish me a happy birthday and said that she hoped I had a great day and that I had pizza at least once. Surprisingly I didn't have any pizza but I got to have both funfetti cupcakes and funfetti cake.

There are some basic things that people who know me well just know- I love pizza, Diet Coke, Camp Tecumseh, the FBC, making crafts, and Young Life. I don't like animals.

Let me preface this by saying I'm not mad about it but I found it kind of hilarious that today I got not one, but two birthday cards with cats on them.

I was e-mailing Sar giving her the play-by-play of the day including the cats when she got a brilliant idea.

Let's print out 24 cat pictures and hide them EVERYWHERE in the apartment!

When I got home tonight I was a bit more then creeped out to see this cat staring at me over and over again.

My friends loved me well today. Thank you. My friend Mags asked me what I want to remember about this 24th birthday and it seems logical to make a list:

Annie, Moll, and Coll texting the night before that it was almost my birthday and maybe being more excited then me

finding a 24 birthday card on the mirror from Sar when I woke up

reading text messages and facebook posts at 6 AM

Natalie running down the hall before first period to give me cupcakes, a note, and a bracelet

Saba's comic book card

2nd period kids graffiting my board with dry-erase markers after they figured out at the end of the period it was my birthday and Rachel yelling, "Why didn't you tell us?!"

reading Mag's blog about me

marker, highlighter, and pencil cards from students

Mikaela's note and pillow she made me in FACS

getting texts from friends all day long

cards and voicemails from friends and family

dinner at Chipotle with Ellyn, Coll, Keefer, Kendall, and Molls

getting a bag of new craft supplies from Coll

my friend saving me a seat in class (low of the day: spending three hours talking about rhetoric)

talking to Taylor, Michelle, and Kaitlin on the phone

all of the freaky cats

birthday funfetti cake from Jenna, decorated apartment, and hanging out with Sar, Ashlee, Scott, and Kyle

hearing stories from Sar's day

more facebook posts

the "Happy Birthday Sarah" song Annie found

I have the very best friends-- from campers I had when I first started out to the members of TEAM CILT, from Young Life in Holland to Young Life in Carmel, the girls of SIB nation and the mentor girls in Delphi, mat snatchers, teachers, co-counselors, students, and family. Thank you for all being so kind today.

I think 24 is going to be a really great year.