surprise! (weekend snapshots)

A mix of iPhone (thanks, A, for capturing the moment!) and digital SLR photos from the weekend, in which my sweet B surprised me with an (early) birthday party and I cried like a baby while shaking and saying things like "this makes my spirit feel so big!!"....(which it did. so, so big).

cousin meggie at the rescue dog kissing booth during our stroll through the North Beach festival :)

mmmm grilled corn on the cob...it's officially summer!

coolest hippie dude dancing to the live music (he was a GREAT dancer!)

naturally I had to partake.

peace, love, happiness and dance, ya'll

yoda puppies

meggie with her parents (my aunt and uncle) and boyfriend who were in on the trick!

unbelievably bright, bold and beautiful blood orange sunflower

surprise! tricked by meg at the start of my party.

crying happy/touched/humbled tears.

"hey trish, what's that up there?"....

my adorable boyfriend, who arranged the party and flew 3,000 miles to surprise me!

now I'm *really* trying not to sob.

hugs with kim, who made it out even after just having knee surgery!

he cooked some of my favorite foods, starting with breakfast burritos.

lucy hoping for a slip...

still a teary eyed old fool.

thoughtful gift from kim, who knows I LOVE new "products", especially from girly joints like Benefit.

the chefs! b&d were so gracious to host us in their lovely home.

"c'mon auntie kim don't make me work for that!"

kim and court :)

dessert: my favorite froyo and toppings! (served by a hunky man, obviously).

he even remembered the cap'n crunch! (it's so good on ice cream).

friends hugging...what's not to love?

love lucy's sleepy/happy/meditating about treats face :)

never giving up the cause for table scraps.

walk down to Fisherman's Wharf on a sunny day

so B can eat his first authentic SF clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl :)

Needless to say, I am incredibly grateful for all of my west coast friends helping B pull off this thoughtful little trick. I was so sad to think we weren't going to spend any birthday time together (I may have even been giving him a bit of a guilt trip, lately...) and this was just above and beyond anything I could have hoped for. Sometimes I'm not the best at "receiving" (I even said that to some of the gals on Saturday; I'm trying so hard just to receive right now) but I did my best to simply soak in all of the love and birthday wishes that were generously being poured on me. Frankly, when I moved here 4 years ago, I never imagined building a community...a family...like the one I have in this city by the Bay. This colorful mix of folks full of life and adventure has come to mean more to me than I can possibly explain and I am so thankful to have been given such a blessed send off into my 29th lap around the sun.

"Until we can receive with an open heart, we are never really giving with an open heart."
-Brene Brown

Cheers to the exchange; to giving and receiving, and to the open-heart friends who make it all possible.

In Gratitude,

Trish