A birthday outing

Yesterday was my birthday. Forty. Oof. I'm not sure how and when that happened, but there it is. Instead of trying to hide from the big 4-0, I planned a whole day of fun with friends and family.

In the morning, my sister, two friends and I all headed to the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. I'd never been there before, but I think we all had a wonderful time (I know I did). I was a little worried about the weather at first; the day started out chilly, windy and overcast, but the clouds drifted away and left us with a brilliant blue fall sky. By the afternoon, we were all shedding jackets and sweaters. Here are just a few pictures:

To celebrate fall, the arboretum had lots of pumpkins, gourds, mums and even specially designed
scarecrows on display.

Picturesque view from the tram ride we took around the arboretum grounds in the morning.

We walked around the bog, and the view was beautiful in every direction.

Looking up through a maple tree. One of my
favorite sights in the fall is brilliant golden
leaves against the clear blue sky.

We took pictures wearing fancy masks in the rose garden.

We couldn't believe how many flowers were still blooming so late in October. This was one of the dahlias in the
trial garden. There were so many different shapes and colors it was hard to believe they were all dahlias.

Japanese garden

Watching the ornamental grasses was
mesmerizing; they undulated like waves
in the breeze.

After we had our fill of sunshine, fresh air and walking, we went out for a delicious pizza dinner and then came back to our house for a little party. I also invited my parents, brother, and a few other family members over, and we all stuffed ourselves with ice cream and cake -- my sister made a three-layer German chocolate cake, and my friend Lisa made a white cake decorated with flowers.

I had a pretty darn great birthday from start to finish. Maybe 40 isn't so bad after all.

Thanks for stopping by!