Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Twenty Four Oceans*


Twenty Four.

I already like this age better.

I sat in the dark this morning and prayed. I wanted to start out my twenty fourth year right. It was so peaceful. Sitting in the living room at the sun began to peak out, silently taking inventory of all of my many blessings.

I started my morning out with a apricot croissant for breakfast and arrived at work to find a gigantic cookie and some vanilla bean truffles on my desk. I think I'll splurge on a salted caramel hot chocolate later today and round out my sugar coma nicely. :)

During our staff meeting this morning, I mentioned that I wouldn't really be seeing Mike at all today - he works all day and then has class until 9 - my boss said, "Welcome to being an adult."

Low key is actually how I like it - no big crazy parties or extravagant, expensive presents. No "birthday girl" hat and huge balloons on my cubicle. Nope. I like to think I'm mature enough to handle my birthday just being a day. (We'll see how that goes....)

Instead of just wishing me a happy birthday - mind telling me your favorite way to relax? What do you like to do to unwind and recharge yourself? I'm curious.

*Reference to a wonderful Switchfoot song. My birthday present can be you watching it, okay? :)

39 comments:

  1. a bubble bath with insanely expensive bubble stuff, candles, a big cup of warm tea and a good book.

    happy birthday!

    xoxo

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  2. Happy Birthday!

    I like to take hot showers, wrap myself in a big comfy blanket and take a long nap. My favorite. I wish I could be doing that as we speak.

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  3. What a refreshing perspective!

    Oh, and happy birthday. :)

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  4. Happy Birthday Love!!

    My absolute method that always relaxes me is to sit in a really hot shower and just talk to my Creator. It never fails to restore the good and balance me!

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  5. Aww happy happy birthday. And I love switchfoot!!

    My way to relax is to be outside. Anywhere with a view, or where I can see the sky, or where I am high up, or where I am in fresh air, or where I am in a wide open space. Total peace.

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  6. Happy birthday! I relax by sitting on the couch with a cup of coffee in my sunny living room in the morning. Or by walking through my neighborhood to the lake-side beach. I'm car-free for the first time after a move to a new city, and walking turns out to be so much more relaxing than driving everywhere.

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  7. Happy Birthday!!!

    My favorite way to relax is with a glass of wine and a hot bath. Just thinking about it makes me more relaxed. :)

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  8. Aw, what a great way to spend your birthday. I'm all about low key and pampering myself. I love curling up on the couch with a glass of wine and a bunch of magazines. I could totally use that about now!

    Happy birthday, beautiful. Enjoy 24!

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  9. A hot bath. And meditation. Spending 10 minutes before I start my day just sitting in silence and breathing. Someone told me once...why don't we spend the same amount of time preparing our mind for the day that we do our body. It really makes you think!

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

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  10. happy birthday!!!! my favorite way to relax is to open up a bottle of wine, get cozy on the couch, and watch some good tv foenjoy 24r a few hours like gilmore girls (dvd version- sans commercials).
    i hope you enjoy 24!!! i dont care what anyone says- i think getting older gets better and better- every year i think, wow, that was the best year ever.

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  11. Happy Birthday Friend!!!
    Thank you for letting me listen to this song as your birthday present. It is one of my favorites (and my hubby's too). "You're raising the dead in me..." Beautiful.

    To relax, I like to curl up with a good book and a blanket, and drift off to sleep with all the thoughts swirling around in my head. And the catch is, that I don't have to get up until I want to. :)

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  12. Happy Birthday! (sorry I couldn't not say it). Okay let's see here-my favorite way to relax is to meditate then have a cup of tea and wrap myself up in a blanket and watch tv or read a good book.

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  13. Those are wonderful treats!!! I love anything vanilla...and chocolate...okay so anything sweet ;) Happy Birthday again. Hah, funny they have a song called "24", Jimmy Eat World has a song called "23".

    I have a favorite blanket I like to snuggle up in on the couch, with perhaps the bf or a cat ;) haha.

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  14. Happy 24th! I love to do the low-key birthday thing too. Enjoy your sugar coma and let us know how the salted caramel hot chocolate is! I've been dying to try it :)

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  15. hi there! Thanks for the comment... I was so delighted to get it, because I just clicked over to your blog yesterday from my cousin Steph's and spent some time reading your posts. You seem like a lovely girl, and I knew I'd be back again. :)

    Happy Birthday today! it sounds relaxing. My favorite way to relax after a busy day is a cup of tea and a blanket on the couch, watching one of our favorite TV shows with my hubby. Happy sigh.

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  16. First of all -

    Happy Birthday! May it bring you as much happiness as you give those who know you!

    And to relax,

    I like to make a cup of coffee in the morning, sit at the dining room table, open up the windows, and watch the birds and squirrels living in harmony at our bird feeder and bird bath. And for that moment in time, life really is sweet, simple and carefree!

    As cheesy and corny as that sounds, it really helps me forget about all of my stresses.

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  17. Happy Birthday love! I hope you have a great day!

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  18. happy birthday! =)

    a long walk or run with my ipod pumping good tunes, followed by a hot shower, and curling up on the couch with many blankets, to watch my favorite tv show, or read a good book.

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  19. Happy birthday girlie! Oooh that giant cookie is so cute! I like your idea for a sugar-filled day. Yummmers. And your quiet morning sounds just lovely. I think 24 suits you well! Hope it's an awesome year for you.

    My fav way to relax?
    A bubble bath while listening to relaxing music like Air or maybe some jazz .... or reading a good book or trashy magazine about the stars while bundled up in bed ... or watching some TV & eating ice cream ... or taking a nice walk.

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  20. happy birthday ...sounds harmonious!

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  21. Enjoy your day!
    Relaxing for me always starts with a good book, my beach chair, or my couch and a blankie if it's chilly.

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  22. Happy Birthday! Low key sounds really nice and not stressful!
    I like doing yoga to relax with some nice soothing music. I'll start off all agitated, and it really brings me back to myself and peacefulness.
    I'll be 30 on Saturday; I think I'll try to start my day by watching sunrise as well, that sounds great! =)

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  23. my ultimate way to relax is getting a nice massage...

    But I also like going to the beach with Brian and enjoying the ocean waves...

    Or just to sit on the couch with my computer and relax in the quiet...

    Happy Birthday!!!!

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  24. Happy Birthday!! My favorite way to relax is by getting a nice massage or by having my hair done! I hope you have a great day!!

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  25. Happy Birthday hunnn!!

    Favorite way to relax would have to be taking a nice hot bubble bath with no lights, a couple of candles and a glass of wine.

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  26. Happy Birthday again!!!

    I love taking walks or hot baths...they are the most relaxing things for me.

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  27. Happy Birthday! Hope you had a great day to a new year for you!

    My favorite way to relax is to go for a walk. The next best thing is taking a hot shower, sipping a hot cup of coffee and sitting in bed reading a book!

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  28. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
    My favorite way to relax would be a bubble bath, followed by crawling into bed with either a good book, magazine, or DVR :)

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  29. Okay, so I just left the longest comment in the history of comments and blogger was being messed up and deleted it. GAH.

    Let's try this again:

    1. I adore that Switchfoot song; one of my favorites. Sometimes it makes me want to cry. The lyrics are perfect...

    2. LOVE the photo! Perfect coloring, and we all know how much I adore rounded corners.

    3. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! It sounds like you began the year just perfectly: calm, hopefull, thankful and in prayer. I think twenty-four suits you just fine. :)

    4. My best relaxation comes on the evenings when I'm home by myself (there are a couple nights a week when Jay isn't home until late). I do some crafting, light a couple candles, turn on my favorite light (it makes the room glow, somehow) and turn on some music or a movie. It's perfect "me" time!

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  30. I'll be 24 on my next birthday and hope my day is just like this (truffles and all!)

    I'm not good at relaxing (at ALL), so I should clearly read through these suggestions as my answer would have something to do with wine and sleep aids.

    Happy Birthday!

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  31. Happy Birthday! And um, about that salted caramel hot chocolate? where do you get that? because it sounds delish!

    to relax, i like to through on some sweats, get all cozy in my bed and read books/magazines, make lists of things I want, things i need, and things i want to cook, and watch movies. baths, napping, and low-key dinners with friends are also fab ways to unwind.

    hope you have a fabulous birthday!

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  32. Happy birthday lovely! I hope you have an awesome day. I don't mind low-key one night, celebrating with family, but I still like to cut it up another night with friends.

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  33. My favorite way to relax is either to go on a looong walk (especially now that its fall), or pop in a nice movie and fall asleep to it. :)

    Oh, and happy birthday!

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  34. I hope you had a lovely day! Isn't 24 nice?

    One of my favorite ways to relax is to sit on my balcony and read a book, drinking a cup of coffee along with it. Those are the best days.

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  35. Watching a good movie or show on TV really relaxes me. I
    m trying to get into yoga as a form of relaxation also, but can't seem to get my mind to calm down when I do it! Haha...Happy belated birthday!

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  36. Happy belated birthday! I'm so sorry I missed it!!

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  37. A fellow October baby! Belatedly, a happy b-day, and hope you have a great year. That's my mom's b-day, too!

    The other day I did something to relax that I haven't done in years: sat on the sofa and sketched with a pencil. So easy to lose myself in that.

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