27

 I have been 27 for two full days and so far it's been a pretty good age!

Josh didn't have school on my yesterday because of MLK day, so he was home all day to help with the girls and make my birthday fabulous. He let me sleep in and then take off for nearly two hours on a walk/run/hike. It was so nice to take my time and go further than I normally do - without feeling bad about leaving Josh with the girls for so long. Thanks Josh!

I walked/ran up around Dartmouth campus and then headed to the Mink Brook trail. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to hike the trail with snow, but luckily the snow on the trail was pretty packed down - and covered in deer prints - so I had no trouble making it to the Connecticut River and back. 

I think my face was too frozen to smile at this point :)

The Mink Brook trail is one of my favorite spots in our neighborhood during the warmer months, but it's actually really pretty and serene in the winter. 

 Josh was in our old Huntington Beach neighborhood last week and picked up some of my favorite Trader Joe's treats for my birthday. Yum. This was possibly the best present of the day.

 Josh surprised me by arranging a babysitter in the evening (thanks Steph!) and making a dinner reservation at the Simon Pearce Restaurant in Quechee, Vermont. It's a really beautiful, fancy restaurant that we had heard a lot about. 

 The restaurant is housed in the same restored mill as the beautiful Simon Pearce showroom and glass studio. Before dinner we spent a little while watching the glass blowers in the basement and it was really fascinating. We watched this worker make a wine glass from start to finish in under ten minutes, all by hand. 

 The restaurant is situated right on the bank of a waterfall that was beautifully lit up at night. Such a beautiful and quintessential "Vermont" location. Most of the food on the menu was sourced from local New England farms so that was kind of cool. I ordered the "Horseradish crusted blue cod with crispy leeks, herb mashed potatoes, and balsamic shallot reduction" and it was some of the best restaurant food I've ever had. Josh had the roasted pheasant and caramelized onion and goat cheese tart and it was really, really good. We also shared a bowl of their famous Vermont cheddar soup and we're still talking about it. Basically, the food was incredible.

 Perfectly content! We rarely/never go out to nice restaurants so this was a treat!

Josh got even more bonus points for renting "Jane Eyre" ahead of time and agreeing to watch it after dinner. 

It was a perfect day! Thanks for all the sweet texts and messages. I have such an amazing family and friends and I really felt the love yesterday! Xoxo