As someone who grew up feeling very close to her family, I remember my first birthday away from home as a freshman in college. I awoke knowing I wouldn’t walk downstairs and find the dining room table decorated with the Happy Birthday placemats that my mom always took out of storage for every family member’s birthday. There wouldn’t be birthday pancakes. No homemade cake. I didn’t dwell on it too much, but I remember feeling a little sad.
My birthday always fell during finals week in college and I had tests and studying on my mind. When I got a call from Ryan saying he had a birthday surprise for me, I didn’t think too much of it. We started dating less than three months before my birthday and were still in that awkward “Are we officially a couple?” stage, so I wasn’t expecting a gift. I figured he planned a casual dinner for us at our favorite sushi place near campus or something of the sort.
(Throwback pic! College kids!)
When I pulled up to Ryan’s apartment early that evening, he met me at my car and handed me a card. I tucked my finger under the envelope flap and opened the card to find the first clue of a birthday scavenger hunt.
I was shocked.
He had me drive all over town to spots that meant something to us as a new couple, collecting gifts along the way. I was blown away.
When his birthday rolled around that October, I knew I wanted to make him feel as special and adored as he made me feel. I sneaked into his apartment, decorated his room, baked his favorite cake and planned a fun date. I remember wrapping his presents on the floor of my bedroom, hoping he would like everything. Hoping he would feel special and loved.
And then I realized something. This is amazing.
(The night of our engagement)
Before Ryan I felt like I was always the one giving the love. Always pouring my heart out and showing how much I cared. It didn’t really register at the time, but looking back, I realize now that I would anxiously wait for birthdays or holidays because I knew that I’d get a card and that was one of the only times I heard how much I meant to someone.
Ryan showed me what it meant to feel adored. To feel loved. To feel like a priority. I wanted to make sure he felt the same. It was like a love challenge!
Every year when Ryan’s birthday rolls around, I am filled with the same desire to make him feel special.
To Ryan:
I hope you feel special today. I love you very, very much. Happy 29th birthday!
Question of the Morning
- What is something that someone did for you that surprised you and made you feel special?
Please share your stories! I’m in the mood for warm fuzzies today. 
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What a sweet post! Happy birthday to your man.
Happy Birthday Ryan!
I turned 29 two weeks ago. My husband (we’ve been married just about 2 months, yay!) surprised me with tickets to see Idina Menzel. On my bday, he created the silliest JibJab video to say Happy Birthday. Yesterday he pretended that he had to work late but he actually went to the jeweler to pick up my birthday ring I had designed and surprised me at the office.
Small gestures add up to a wonderful relationship!
This is so sweet! The scavenger hunt is a cool idea for a birthday!
being a finals baby sucked!!
i was treated kinda poorly for eight years. i met the current BF at a new year’s party. apparently within a couple weeks, he asked for valnetine’s off b/c he knew he’d want to spend it together. in the AM, he left a trail of rose petals to a drawn bath w/ more petals on the edge and lavendar salts in the tub. he had a candle lit and rolled up a towel for a pillow.
and then…and this was the real winning moment…he left me to enjoy it. so many guys would make that moment into foreplay but he just told me oto enjoy it and holler a little before i got out so he could have an egg white, spinach & feta omlette fresh and ready.
he also gave me a teddy bear to “take care of me when he couldn’t”. we did move in quickly thereafter (we knew fast….helps being a bit older, in our 30s, and more ready) but i squeeze that bear when my body is tough…it even came to surgery w/ me and the amazing nurse made sure it was on my bed when i woke up. he later stood with me for five hours in the recovery room (not usually allowed) b/c they couldn’t find a room (usually only takes 30-45min). we’ve exchanged other gifts, but Teddy Bill wins.
Very cool birthday idea and nice thing to do for you!
Happy Birthday Ryan!
Great post! Hope you all enjoy this special day!
ps. i tried overnite outs this mornin for the first time and LOVED them! thanks so much for the idea and recipe (which is too easy for its own good!! i am not complaining tho lol)
Love this. I could have written it myself! Before my finace, I was ALWAYS the one putting in the effort to make the other person feel special. I look back at some of the things I did, and how little I accepted in return, and I am sad for my younger self. When I met Nick, I was consistently blown away by how often he went out of his way to make me feel special. Our first Valentine’s Day was similar to your birthday: we had only been dating a few months and I was expecting VERY little, but he had my roommates let him into the apartment so he could leave a heart-shaped bowl of green and blue M&Ms (my favorite!) and a Harry Potter valentine on my bed (so dorky, so amazing). He’s so good at doing small things to make me feel loved, even now, six years later. One of the many reasons I’m excited to marry him!
Happy birthday to Ryan!
harry potter valentine = fabulous 🙂
Ohhhh my goodness. I’m pretty sure I just sounded like Janice from Friends while I was reading this…so, so sweet!!!! Happy Birthday Ryan!
This was such a lovely post! Happy Birthday to Ryan! 🙂
Julie, you made me cry with that post! So sweet. Happy Birthday to Ryan. I hope y’all have a fun day celebrating!
This was the cutest thing I’ve ever read, I’m so happy for you too! Happy Birthday Ryan!
My husband once roasted a turkey just to make my favorite turkey sandwich. He had the sandwich perfect. From the cheddar cheese and sweet pickles to the toasted sourdough bread. He doesn’t normally cook but he took extra care in preparing this special treat for me.
Wow, this is so sweet, I’m so glad you two found each other! Happy Birthday, Ryan!
Julie, this post came at a great time. I JUST wrote a blog post about pouring my heart into a cake I made for the guy I’m dating (I can’t even call him my boyfriend because he doesn’t want a girlfriend, yet we’ve been dating for over 7 months. I know – I need to run) for his birthday last month. My birthday is on Sunday and, well, he has yet to mention anything about it and is away all weekend in Boston. No mention of doing anything all week (and I know he wasn’t busy every single day this week!). You’re so right about finding the person who will make you feel like a priority, and loved. I know I’ll find my “Ryan” one day – in the meantime I need to stop wasting my time with this assclown I’m dating! Thanks for another reminder!
Happy Birthday Ryan! You are so sweet, Julie. I’m sure anything you do will make Ryan feel like a million bucks today…you have such a wonderful heart! All the best to both of you!
This was such an incredibly sweet post! Happy Birthday Ryan!! I feel so lucky, Josh makes me feel the same way you describe Ryan. This year we promised each other we would scale back for birthdays and Christmas/ Hanukkah because of our wedding next summer but I still want to find a way to make him feel really really special!
This just made me want to cry! I feel just like you do my current boyfriend made me understand that he wants to take care and and love me as much as I love him! Its a wonderful moment when you realize there ARE good people out there 🙂
Thank you for your story it was so sweet!
You all are too cute!
Happy Birthday Ryan!
I had major back surgery a few months prior to my 18th Birthday. My mom and best friends threw a low key surprise party at my house so I would feel loved. It was awesome!
happy birthday to the most skilled box-jumper in all the blogland! 🙂
I hope to have a love like this!
Happy birthday, Ryan!
SO sweet!! Happy Birthday, Ryan!
Oh, how sweet, Julie! It was a melting story 🙂
Happy Birthday to Ryan!
You guys make such a sweet couple. Happy Birthday Ryan! I hope you guys have fun celebrating!
The first couple months of dating someone is really confusing! You don’t want to come off too intense but you also do care, its odd!
Anyways, about 3 months into my relationship with my boyfriend, I went to Europe with family for two weeks. It was incredibly hard to be away from him (yeah, yeah I know haha but he’s my first real boyfriend–9 months tomorrow!). But when we got back he had driven all the way from where we went to college to my house to surprise me when we got off the plane! It was incredibly sweet and I promptly burst into tears of joy.
If that wasn’t enough, when we drove back to school a few days later I walked into my apartment and there was not one but TWO bouquets of flowers waiting for me from him. I guess he hadn’t thought he was going to be able to drive down and meet me at home, so he had prepared something in case.
Such a happy memory 🙂
Happy Birthday to Ryan!
My fiancé and I are actually on our way to South Carolina to check out some wedding venues. A few hours ago while I was driving, I remembered how in the first couple weeks of us dating, I mentioned in passing, that I can never find my favorite gum anymore (Orbit Maui Melon Mint). Well a few days later, I went over to his apartment and he had found and bought me several packs of the my fave gum. I brought it up and told him how small but thoughtful that was. I knew at that moment that I had found someone special. He’s done nothing but WOW me ever since! 🙂
What a GORGEOUS post, Julie! And a perfect illustration of what love and relationships are supposed to be like– Unconditional and always giving!
You two are lucky to have each other 🙂 Maybe UCF is the magic school to go through date-training at, because Will and my relationship blossomed there too! haha
today is my 27th birthday! did you know october 5th is the most common birthday? everyone was busy on new years eve! happy birthday ryan!
I cried reading this post and the engagement post. I LOVE that LOVE feeling and I’m so happy for you that you have it too!
Happy Birthday Ryan! 🙂
My lovely English lover makes me feel special all the time. Not only did he make that amazing birthday video for me, but he planned a fancy dinner and presents for me to open everyday of the weekend up to my actual birthday. And on my birthday he gave me all the notes he collected from everyone so I could read them. He regularly puts notes under my pillow and hides treats around the house. Being loved and adored is something everyone should get to feel. You and Ryan have certainly set the standard for the rest of us 🙂 Happy Birthday Ryan!
Aaaaaand I’m tearing up!!! Happy birthday to Ryan and congratulations to both of you for finding each other! I can only hope to Fud something like you two have one day!
This is a very sweet post. Happy Birthday, Ryan! I feel very fortunate to have a husband who also makes me feel loved. I think that everyone deserves that feeling. 🙂
the other week on a day i was having a rather low/depressing day, my husband surprised me and bought me flowers! 🙂 really sweet and made my day 🙂
Aw this post is adorable, full of love!!! I dated a guy for 5 years before I met my now husband. When we broke up it was hard because he was a great guy and I told him that I still loved him for who he was but I was not in love with him- two different things in my mind. I was tired of always giving and never getting [not to sound needy], similar to what it sounds like you experienced. The Friday after the breakup, Ryan [my husband] asked me out on a date. Hesitant since it was so soon it took me a while to accept… But I’m glad I did because I spent almost every day with him after that date before I had to go back to Boston for school and now we’re married 🙂 I truly believe there is that someone special for everyone!
Happy Birthday to Ryan!! such a sweet posts you two are so cute!!!
Happy Birthday Ryan! How sweet 🙂
I moved to Philly after college, but my boyfriend still lived in the town we were from (about an hour and a half away). The first time it REALLY snowed that winter, my apartment complex plowed my car in. I didn’t have a shovel and all the stores in walking distance were sold out. Two hours after I talked to my boyfriend, he texted me a picture of my car. He had driven all the way down just to shovel me out (and then spend my snow day off from work with me, of course). <3
I had an ex-boyfriend who was so thoughtless that he wouldn’t bother getting me birthday/Valentine’s gifts. When his mom found out he didn’t get me anything, she would go buy me something and tell him to give it to me and say it was from him. (Found this out later on.) So, I wasn’t used to gifts or anything special.
The first Valentine’s Day when Fabian and I weren’t even really dating yet, he walked in my apartment with a gigantic teddy bear, flowers, and balloons. He STILL talks about the look on my face when he walked in the door. He said I looked like a little kid getting a gigantic surprise. I never got anything like that from anyone before! I was so excited. Not the best thing he’s ever done for me, but the first of many better things to come. 🙂
Sweet story, Julie! <3
Happy Birthday to Ryan! My brithday is tomorrow, and the boy and I are celebrating tonight with a late dinner reservation downtown. I can’t wait because honestly, one of my favorite things about him is his love for food. We kill it at a tapas restaurant, for real.
The sweetest thing my boyfriend ever did for me was book a 4 day vacation to the Outter Banks this summer. I had just started a new job and didn’t have many days off, and I didn’t have plans for any sort of summer vacation because of money and time. He booked the quick trip for us, and being a Florida girl, feeling the sand between my toes during a stressful summer was one of the greatest gifts he could have given me.
that sounds perfectly relaxing and romantic!
Thank you for this little story. It helps me put my own relationship into perspective, which is just what I needed today. 🙂
Happy Birthday to Ryan! I hope he has a great day!
I hope that someday I find someone who makes me as happy as you two make each other!
I am definitely the one who does the special presents…scavenger hunts, surprise concerts, etc… for my past relationships!
However, my best friend one year sent me clues every day in the mail and I had to guess my gift was going to see Chicago on Broadway in NY. It was a very tricky gift!
This is a great post, Julie! I needed to read this (and all the amazing comments people left you about the things their loved ones have done for them) today. I am in the sort of relationship where I feel like I am constantly giving and giving and trying to show my love. My bf used to do stuff like that for me in the beginning but it’s basically stopped. Instead of thinking it’s something I’ve done I’ve got to start thinking that I deserve more… Sorry to leave a downer comment on such an uplifting post but I want and deserve to feel that kind of love in return. You and Ryan are lucky to have each other. 🙂
You deserve that too, Molly! This sounds exactly like a situation my best friend is in. It’s heartbreaking because she tries so hard. I would suggest talking to your BF and telling him how disappointed you are. If he care for you and loves you, he should listen!
this is not a downer of a comment at all, molly. i am just so glad you know you deserve to feel incredibly loved because you DO. thinking of you… i know relationship issues can be incredibly upsetting and stressful. hugs your way!
Aw! This is too sweet. Happy Birthday, Ryan! My boyfriend is not romantic in the least. So last year for our anniversary I thought he was getting me a lululemon jacket. He told me to sit down so “he could put this gift on me.” I started turning toward him and he plopped this big box on my lap. It was a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer! Although this is a very domestic gift, my BF knows how much love to cook and bake. I thought this gift was so thoughtful 🙂
What a cute post! Very refreshing to hear 🙂
Yay! Happy birthday Ryan 😀
Before we were married my husband Nic and I lived in a shoebox apartment in manhattan with a bit of a mouse problem. One time a little mouse ran into my messy closet and I just couldn’t take it anymore, I burst into tears. Nic just went into my closet and organized and cleaned it out until the mouse was forced out. He made many valiant efforts to catch the little guy that didn’t work out but he got that sucker out of my shoes… My husband has done a million thoughtful and nice things for me but In that moment I thought it was the nicest thing anyone could do for me. I hate mice!!!!
Happy Birthday to Ryan!
This was such a sweet post, Julie 🙂 I really enjoyed reading it. Thanks for sharing. And happy birthday to Ryan! I hope you guys have a great weekend celebrating.
Ryan – Happy, Happy Birthday….you and Julie are very special people that were made for each other. Julie what an amazing post. It brought tears to my eyes… My husband’s birthday is 10/25 and mine is 11/2 and our wedding anniversary is 11/27. We usually celebrate our birthdays together. My husband is always doing nice and thoughtful things for me. Too many to list… He still calls me his bride and princess.. going on 36 years (anniversary) in November . He is a keeper….
Your post brought tears to my eyes. You and Ryan have a very special and beautiful relationship.
Happy Birthday Ryan!