First off, let me just say that having your birthday on a Friday is the BEST feeling in the entire world. It was such a great day that I was curious to see how often this would happen. A logical person would assume it would be every 7 years but after looking into the future, I won’t have another Friday birthday until 2025 when I turn 34!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Umm, excuse me? 34?? No thank you.. 23 is old enough for now. (Side note: I’m still a little upset with myself that I didn’t blare Taylor Swift’s 22 for the whole week before my birthday)
Can you already tell that I’m a birthday-obsessed person? Believe it or not, I actually think my previous sentence is an understatement. My family and friends joke year after year that I have a birthMONTH versus just a birthDAY. What’s the fun in celebrating just one day though? I’ve had so many wonderful birthdays it would take me days to tell you about them. But my 23rd birthday was the birthday to top all birthdays.
We started celebrating Thursday night, July 24th, on a rooftop overlooking Jacksonville Beach. It was a small crowd, just my boyfriend and a few friends, but great company. After drinking a few Flirtinis at happy hour and watching the sunset, we turned in early to prepare for everything that I didn’t know what was about to happen in the upcoming 24 hours.
Enjoying ourselves at Casa Marina. Jacksonville Beach, FL
I was overwhelmed when I woke up to the amount of texts and phone calls from my family and friends, not to mention my (perfect, shh) boyfriend waking me to a “Happy Birthday” song. This gal was already ear to ear with smiles, and it hadn’t even hit 8am. We took his dog, Blu, on a walk to Starbucks to start the birthday morning. I sat outside with Blu and Matt went in to get coffee, he came out with a venti iced coffee…and written on the cup, another birthday wish.
Thanks Starbucks 🙂
We both worked through the morning, then around noon it was time for the festivities to begin. We grabbed lunch with our friend, Anna, at one of my favorite spots, TacoLu, then packed the car and headed for St.Augustine! Recently joining the band wagon as a John Legend groupie, my boyfriend Matt was delighted to hear he was scheduled to perform ON the night of my birthday at our favorite venue in Jacksonville, the St. Augustine Amphitheater. He seemed to be relieved not to have to go through the male struggle of picking out gifts for a new-er girlfriend, to say the least. Once I found out he had gotten me tickets to the concert, I was absolutely on cloud 9. Maybe even cloud 10. The excitement built up more and more each day leading up to the event. I booked us a Bed and Breakfast to stay in for the night in downtown historic St. Augustine. Neither of us had ever stayed in a B&B before and we weren’t sure what to expect. As we pulled up to 44 Spanish Street, my first reaction was how cute the place was!
44 Spanish Street, St. Augustine, FL.
Linda, the innkeeper, greeted us with a warm welcome and showed us to our room. We stayed in Palm South, a corner room overlooking the shared balcony and two beautiful palm trees in the front. We opened the door and to my surprise she had a red velvet cake and candles waiting for me – I didn’t even remember mentioning it was my birthday! That’s Southern Hospitality at its finest. We took a short tour around the other rooms and where breakfast would be served the next morning, but soon we were concert-bound! Matt had revealed that with the concert tickets he also bought pre-show food and beverage passes, so we had to arrive early.
Our lovely Bed and Breakfast
Palm South Room
A birthday wish from the innkeeper that made me feel right at home!
Now, prepare yourselves, I swear the rest of the story is all TRUE even though it may seem like a complete fairy tale. We arrived at the venue right on time and as we were checking-in to the VIP area, the employee said “Now, make sure you have a good camera or cell phone camera for when you get to meet John Legend.” WAIT………………..WHAT! Absolutely in shock, I turn to Matt. He shrugged his shoulders and said so calmly, “Surprise!” I didn’t know what to say for the next 15 minutes. Honestly, I couldn’t tell you if I even spoke – I was so overwhelmed with happiness and emotion that I was about to meet THE John Legend.
I can’t believe it!
After downing a few drinks to calm my nerves/excitedness, we were escorted back to the VIP Meet and Greet area. We were in the back of the line, so we were the last of about 20 people to meet him. He was absolutely adorable in person, however very shy and reserved which I wasn’t expecting. Matt told him it was my birthday and he wished me a Happy Birthday as we exchanged conversation. We took a photo with him and then Matt insisted on taking a selfie as he told John it was “all the craze.”
Matt, John Legend and I!
It doesn’t end there. My mom was in on the surprise the whole time. Right after the meet and greet, she was waiting for us outside the VIP area. She had the biggest smile on her face because she knew my life had just been made. I love you momma! It was now close to the time for the concert to begin, so we grabbed another drink and headed to our seats. Matt guided me down to the pit area and the security guard escorted us to our seats. Again, I was speechless when I saw two white leather chairs empty in the front row. Yup, you guessed it… those were ours. FRONT ROW. FRONT FREAKING ROW. I had to be dreaming.
Mom and I excited for the concert to begin!
Really feeling the love from these guys!
There are no words to describe the next two hours. Amazing.. Unbelievable…I can’t find words to do it justice. But, the pictures below pretty much sum it up.
John signing and playing the piano. What an awesome performance!
It was hands down the best birthday night I’ve ever had. John put on an amazing performance and watching it from the front row was one of the coolest experiences of my life. We stayed in St. Augustine that night which was so much more convenient than driving 45 minutes home. The Bed and Breakfast was quiet and comfortable – we slept straight through the night. Breakfast was served at 9am and what Linda made was incredible. It was ham, mixed veggies and a cracked egg on top, baked in a muffin pan – it was so delicious Matt had to steal the recipe from her.
Innkeeper and chef Linda
The rest of the weekend was pretty low-key, at least from my usual jam packed birthday weekends in the past. My grandparents came over from Valdosta, GA on Sunday to celebrate, as well as the rest of my family from Jacksonville. We visited for a few hours and then sat down to a yummy dinner – Seafood Diablo – my favorite!
Matt and I enjoying some Sunday bloody marys.
Three generations of women in my family!
A very Happy Birthday celebration indeed!
23 is a birthday that I’ll never forget. I can’t wait to see what this year has in store for me!
XOXO, A
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