hb dear friend

i love celebrating this beautiful lady’s birthday every year. it’s always a perfect time to get together, after the holiday rush and all.

andrea and i talked on christmas day {i called her to tell her about my pregnancy!} and i asked her about her birthday plans. we exchanged a few thoughts and i told her i would coordinate something for her. it’s her birthday and by no means should she have to worry about plans!

i was besides myself…i literally looked at a dozen restaurants to see if they had any reservations available for a party of ten and one restaurant after another was booked! i a few people told me that boarding house was a great restaurant, so i felt good about it.

it was a super rainy, cold night. hc and i had a great start to the city and had gotten there early, which was great because i needed just a few more items for andrea’s gift! we found an amazing parking spot and traipsed inside to the bar area. hc ordered a drink and i asked for a nonalcoholic beverage and truffle fries. i totally needed something to eat! i was so hungry…story of my life right now.

slowly, everyone trickled in. it was fabulous to see everyone! i might only see these peeps every so often but each time always feels like old times. everyone was nabbing drinks when our entire party finally arrived and they led us to our table upstairs.

[pretty boarding house restaurant]

[the ladies]

[beth and patrik…she’s pregnant too!]

it is such a cool looking restaurant. the interior is mysterious, gorgeous, beautiful, and cozy. we were seated up on the third floor in an almost private dining area. there was another table next to us but no one sat there until way into our dinner reservation, so it was lovely having the room to ourselves for a bit. the space overlooked the second floor of the restaurant, so it was a pretty cool view to be in.

we ordered more drinks, ordered apps, and finally ordered our entrees. i really liked our server; he was polite, attentive, and on point. the timing of the food was good and everything was delicious. i really, really enjoyed my entree of scallops. it was beyond tasty. ever since i have been pregnant, i have been ravenous and it’s not a pretty sight. it’s a bit un-classy and a wee bit of a spectacle how i tend to shove food in my mouth like i haven’t eaten in days. hahaha!

the evening was very relaxing and fun. i was able to catch up a bit with andrea and get in on some of life’s happenings. andrea is such a wonderful lady. a true friend who totally has your back. i am blessed to have her in my life. we were reminiscing over our friendship and how long we have known each other. i told her i could barely remember the time frame of how long it’s been since we first met and it’s something insane, like sixteen years. noooooo way! it absolutely does not feel like it has been that long!!! holy cow!

the evening carried on with more laughter, stories, noshing, and imbibing of tasty drinks. andrea opened her gifts, blew out her birthday candle, and the night slowly faded out.

we had such a grand ol’ time celebrating this beautiful friend. happy birthday to a gorgeous lady inside and out! cheers to an even better year!