730 days until I hit the big 3-0. Woah.

This birthday was totally different than I'm used to. First off, I'm pregnant. Like... almost 8 months pregnant with a clear, protruding, moving, uncomfortable belly. I'm thankful for that little bean and he's the best present of all, but it's quite different not being able to enjoy a nice salt-rimmed margarita as you drink to another year of glory. December. I just need to keep telling myself that. Perhaps that's why I have purchased not one, not two, but three bottles of tequila while pregnant. Yeah, I'm looking forward to that ice-cold drink. Margaritas are green and that's a Christmas color, right? And honestly, the smell while pregnant is pretty repulsive, but the idea sounds nice. :)

So, it started actually a week prior when I started receiving countless emails from favorite restaurants and ice cream shops. I took advantage, though have no photo proof, of the loot I scored from these emails.

I indulged in a freebie chocolate with peanut butter swirls ice cream at Baskin Robbins... for free. It was so incredibly divine.

I dined on a freebie veggie burger at our favorite burger joint, Fuddruckers... with all the pickles I wanted. :) Maybe a few extra were thrown on this time. I blame it on baby W.

I enjoyed a freebie stir fry at the Bd Mongolian BBQ place in downtown Naperville... and it was tasty. Even if they were out of the baby corns and rice noodles I love.

I shared a freebie ice cream "like it" at Coldstone of sweet cream and Reese's peanut butter cups. Nevermind that they were out of chocolate, strawberry, cake batter,  & anything vanilla. No whining when it's free, right?

Needless to say, I took advantage of some goodies-- but not all on my actual birthday. These freebies were giving all week long! I should take photos next year.

As for my actual birthday, we woke up at a ripe hour of 6 a.m. to complete our insulation project. Weekends are crucial for house projects and my birthday meant celebrating half-day would have to be the way it was. I woke up to a wonderful card by my adoring husband and granola bars as we set out to Home Depot. Insulation down, we headed over to our friends' house to pick up some drywall and garbage to dispose of from one of their house projects (we had a big truck = dumpster visit). Then, home to shower and clean up before heading back to Home Depot to drop off the goods before dinner out in downtown Naperville, followed by ice cream, of course!

My present from my husband (not pictured) was a full length robe. While I own two robes, I don't own a full-length one that is perfect for pregnancy and post pregnancy. It's big, cuddly, and will be needed this winter. :)

Monday, we met my best friend, her husband, and their two kiddos in Downtown Chicago for dinner at Gibson's Steakhouse. I had a planked whitefish while the rest of the crew had steaks. It was a steakhouse after all. They gave me a wonderful Kai candle. I don't have a photo, but I linked it. I LOVE this smell. I mean LOVE. It smells tropical and reminds me of Hermosa Beach where I come from and used to visit this store that sold all kinds of their products. I just love it. It's really the small things that excite me.

They came to stay with us Wednesday through Saturday and that was such a nice time for me. I love having time with friends. It was so nice to spend extended time with Alison since we haven't really had that much time to just hang out in years!

More lovely birthday presents are below, but not all are pictured:

This is from Kay, Steve, & Samantha. It was a lovely indulgence box of goodies, all individually wrapped. It was great fun opening each little package. The main gift was a prenatal massage at a local place here in IL! 

My brother sent me a huge box of my favorite chips from the Orange County area in Cali... Have A' Corn Chips. There's a legend (I doubt it's true) that the Hare Krishna are the makers of these lovely treats. Either way, they're amazing. I was first turned on to them during my college days when people would walk around campus eating these. I thought they were crazy... who likes plain corn chips that much? Well, that was until I tasted them. Oh man. They are seasoned with a light touch of soy sauce and it makes them have this special tang that is unlike any other. You can buy them on Amazon I think, but only in bulk. I have about 22 bags left!!

 This isn't really a birthday present, but it was sent around the same time. Jeanni & Chris, friends from Colorado, sent me my favorite Top Ramen. In the Midwest, they only sell the Maruchan brand. I only like the Top Ramen brand in Oriental. I'm very specific about my {white trash} foods. Haha. I think I'm good for years now. We saw them a few weeks ago and had dinner with them in downtown Chicago... this was a conversation and they didn't forget! Imagine our mail delivery people as they deliver these huge packages of food for us. Ah, so funny. Of course I haven't touched these yet. I don't think my child needs to develop high blood pressure from the daily allowance of sodium that is in one of these packages. But come December, oh, ramen is on.

My parents also sent me a gift card to Borders for me to find something to read after Baby W is born... now to decide what I want!

I'd say it was a great birthday. It helps that I have the best husband ever. I really do feel incredibly blessed to be alive, healthy, married to my best friend, and pregnant with our baby boy.

Now if only I could add a few more days to that countdown of my 30th birthday. I'm not ready for that.