27

Today I turn 27 years old.

27 isn’t really a monumental age—It’s kinda this weird middle ground age where you are officially in your late 20’s... It’s like you’re basically 30… which can be a scary thought!

I find my birthday can sometimes get lost between the hectic completion of the holiday season and the onset of easing back into routines. I can recall the year as a teenager when everyone forgot my birthday (with my parents as the exception). I can also recall the year my husband planned an amazing surprise birthday party for me. It used to be all or nothing but, as I grow older, it tends to have found a lovely middle ground I like to call ‘low key’. 

Low key is nice. I’m a weird mix of an introvert and an extrovert. I can be outgoing in a social situation where I’m one-on-one with someone new or with close friends, but I can also be 110% content portraying the fly on a wall during an eventful evening, standing in the midst of buzzing conversations from those chattering around me. This is why a low-key birthday is pretty great. It’s chill, easy, and all the attention of a large amount of people isn’t focused on me—which tends to weird me out pretty fast.

Be that as it may, it’s nice to be celebrated! This is the fun part of having a birthday! Taking the time to celebrate individuals just for being born—just for being themselves! If we truly saw ourselves the way God does, we would think every day is our birthday! With that thought in mind, taking some time one day a year seems like a great idea.

Celebrating someone on his or her special day can be an amazing thing. I think the most important part of celebrating someone is to honour them in a way they find special. Lavishing someone with gifts when they are against consumerism may not be the best idea! In the same light, a simple happy birthday text, when you know an individual is 100% gifts or quality time as a love language, also perhaps isn’t the best way. If you know someone well enough, you can do something small that will show them you believe they are worthy of celebration. That small act can leave a significant mark in making them feel special on their day.

Growing up in my family, birthdays were always celebrated. As a kid I can recall my mother making me an epic birthday cake with a marshmallow bunny on it, or a cake shaped as a teddy bear (enter; where I get my creativity in the kitchen from!). She created a poster that could be used year after year with the simple switch of a number (crafty and economical), and would go with the staple balloons and streamers. One simple gift was all that was given and, looking back, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Birthday parties with a few friends would be thrown and, without fail, almost every year an epic snow storm would happen around my birthday to really attempt to throw a wrench into any already made plains. Reflecting on birthdays past is fun and makes you realize what really makes you feel special—and how you would like to be celebrated in the future.

This year for my birthday, a couple of my close friends took me to an old-fashioned tea house. We drank tea out of fancy china and indulged in freshly baked scones with homemade jam. It was lovely. It was very 'me' and it was nice to be celebrated. The attendees both gave me cat cards that meowed happy birthday-- which are sitting on display as I write, smiling at me from across the room. It's like they are begging to meow to me... which actually just freaks out our real life cat.

     

For myself, looking back at the birthday’s of years past, it’s knowing someone took the time to think of me which makes me feel noteworthy on the day of my birth. Kind words written in a card, a text message with more than the letters ‘HBD’, a small gift chosen specifically because the giver thought of me when they saw it, or a friend who isn’t a baker baking birthday cookies. As I always tend to say, it’s the little things that make the biggest difference.

When the birthday of a close friend or family member comes up this year, I encourage you to really take a moment and think about how you can show the person in your life how much you appreciate them, how special you truly believe they are, and how you are thankful that there is one day a year made specifically to celebrate their unique awesomeness given to them by God. A birthday happens just once a year, take the time to make people feel as precious as they really are.

Would You Like Some Birthday Cake?

What is more appropriate for a birthday than cake?

Classic yet inspired, designed yet delicious, trendy yet rustic—Oh how I enjoy cake and the many varieties I can find!

I’ve decided my little slice of the blogging world should really begin documenting the baking adventures I embark on.  This conclusion was reached after I considered my current pursuit of a career as a pastry chef and the world-changing dreams that come along with the new title.  Like I tend to frequently say, it’s best to use your passions to change the world and that is what I intend to do!

The journey to accomplishing every dream starts with a step. My first step was to acquire employment in a bakery. Being an individual whose only experience baking were moments in the welcoming kitchens of friends and family, I was a little hesitant on my ‘hire-ability’ in this new field. To amp up my resume I planned to hand in to prospects in our new city of Hamilton I decided to add in a portfolio.  What better way to show ‘hey, I might not have professionally learned anything, but I enjoy doing this a lot and sometimes things look nice and sometimes other people really enjoy eating the creations!’ With the decision of a portfolio underway I dug up a Pin on Pinterest regarding a potential baked goods photo shoot idea the lovely and incredible talented Lani Elias and I said we would do together. She was in and we were both excited.

During a weekend cabin getaway with my wonderful husband, Lani and her husband, and another couple inspiration in the form of wine, Baileys, Pinterest and our own personal tastes combined to a rough sketch on how we wanted the shoot to look! The only thing we needed, aside from the goodies to be shot, was a table scape worthy of Pinterest itself! Enter the marvelous Meg from Bloom. Such a lovely gem to work with who believed in the vision for the shoot and brought her own amazing creative flair—ripping full, lush heads of perfect peonies off just so we could scatter the petals! Heartbreaking for anyone who appreciates the rich look of the incredible flowers.

Since the date of this shoot my fellow collaborators and myself have been truly blessed to see where this shoot has gone. First off, the portfolio came together in free time over the summer spent in Dominican Republic and landed me a position as a pastry chef in the bakery I had my eyes (and heart) set on. Next came an instant moment of joy when the shoot was featured on Best Friends For Frosting! It was surreal to see something I was personally invested in be featured on a site where so many people visit and appreciate the time and heart that go into creating such a spread. Even Pottery Barn pinned a picture from the shoot!!!!

It’s truly amazing to see how one basic idea turned from a simple spark to a dazzling firework. And while to some this accomplishment may seem small, I believe the simplest accomplishments are worth celebrating and every moment to count a blessing is a step towards living life the way we are intended to—thankful, gracious, spreading love and extending our blessings with all those along our path. So today, on my 26^th Birthday, instead of a “life so far” post, I figured it’s best to look forward and share with you some dreams over cake.

Images by Lani Elias Fine Art Photography

Florals by Bloom Petals and Gifts

Edibles by myself