Ever since I have known Michael, he has been making my birthday special. My first married birthday was no exception!

We returned to the location of our wedding, L’auberge, in Sedona, AZ. Fortunately for the boys, L’auberge is dog-friendly. My birthday gift to myself was taking them to the doggie salon to get them bathed so I could get myself ready for our weekend away. They looked so daper with their bandanas!

We don’t have a special place for them to sit in the car, but this time we brought their carriers that we use when traveling by plane. Just in case we needed a place to keep them while at the hotel. We didn’t end up using them in the hotel, but one came in handy on the ride.

Michael put the doggie carrier on the console. It might be hard to tell by the photo, by Griswold is inside the bag, and Shenanigans is on top. It was like they had bunk beds. It was hilarious.

When we arrived at L’auberge our room wasn’t quite ready, so we spent a little bit of time on the rocks by the creek. It was a beautiful, cool, slightly overcast day. I think this is the same rock we took pictures on on our wedding day!

We stayed in one of the creek-side cabins, cabin number 3. It had a beachy-cabiny feel. It was perfect!

When we arrived, Michael had already arranged for a fruit & cheese plate to be waiting for us in the room. It was delicious!

Michael chose this style of cabin because of the wood-burning fireplace. It was a chilly January weekend in Sedona. Perfect weather for relaxing by the fire.

Shenanigans posing for the camera. As always.

One of the unique characteristics of L’auberge is their spa-like bathrooms and outdoor showers.

Even if it’s too cold for an outside shower, the cedar out there smells amazing!

Shenanigans relaxing by the fire.

Since we bought Michael’s ortho practices in December, our lives got about three times as busy as they were before. Being on a constant quest for a more streamlined life, I brought one of my old favorites by Julie Morgenstern: When Organizing Isn’t Enough: Shed Your Stuff, Change Your Life. I read a good amount of the book during the day before and the day of my birthday, and continued to read the week after we got back. A lot of the underlining and circling is from my previous read of this book several years ago, but I couldn’t help myself but to add in some more this time around. It’s a good one!

Treat time for Gans (& Griz was on the floor – he got one too!)

Our cabin directly faced the site of our wedding ceremony. On my birthday, we stayed in the cabin most of the day, and saw that they were starting to set up chairs for a wedding. It started raining shortly after that, and we figured the wedding got rained out. The next day, we learned they were setting up for wedding venue tours. It was still romantic to think there might have been a wedding!

The rain actually turned into snow in the afternoon! Although it didn’t stick, we got to enjoy our creek-side cabin with the fireplace going and snow falling outside on my birthday. It was magical!

Michael insisted that as one of my birthday presents I go to the spa and get a massage. I had to agree! I got a hot stone massage and it was heavenly!

We had dinner at L’auberge’s newly remodeled restaurant. It was beyond fancy, and everything was yummy!

We ordered a bottle of wine from our favorite local winery, Page Springs Cellars. If you are ever in the area, this is the one to visit!

To top it all off, I got a just-right sized birthday cake. It was elegant and yummy.

The next day, it was time to head back home. Before we left, we stopped to enjoy the beautiful red rock views of Sedona one more time. I had seen pictures of the red rocks with snow before, but hadn’t yet experienced the beauty in person.

We had a great birthday weekend getaway in Sedona. We are constantly saying how much we love where we live, because within a few hours we can get away to one of the most peaceful and beautiful places in the world. We are always happy to return to our home after being away, too.