Citrus Punch — The Birthday Toast I Finally Let Myself Have

Turned thirty-four. At the beach. The birthday that doesn't have spaghetti and meatballs (the first time in twenty years). Instead: shrimp scampi at the rental house, cooked by me, eaten by two, with the ocean visible through the window. Dustin brought me — not gas station sunflowers, because there are no gas stations with sunflowers in Destin. He brought me actual sunflowers, from a florist, real and tall and not wilted, and the realness of the sunflowers at the beach felt extravagant in a way that gas station sunflowers never did, and the extravagance made me uncomfortable, and the discomfort made me realize that I need to learn to accept nice things without converting them to their dollar-per-stem cost in my head.

Dustin's card: "Thirty-four. The girl who never saw the ocean is standing in it. The girl who cooked on a washing machine is making shrimp scampi. The girl who dreamed of counter space has a kitchen with a window. Happy birthday, Kaylee. You earned every wave." I read the card on the beach, sitting in the sand, my feet in the water, and I thought about the birthday wishes. Every year, I wish for "next year, better." Last year, I stopped wishing because I had enough. This year, at the beach, at the ocean, I wished for something different: more of this. More of the seeing. More of the new. More of the world beyond the kitchen, beyond the blog, beyond the receipts. The kitchen is home. The ocean is: everything else. And everything else is beautiful and available and I deserve it. Thirty-four years of deserving, finally believed.

Every birthday needs a toast, and thirty-four at the beach — the year I finally believed I deserved it — deserved something bright and a little extravagant. We had shrimp scampi for dinner, but before the butter hit the pan, I made this citrus punch: cold and sharp and sweet all at once, like the feeling of reading Dustin’s card in the sand. We clinked glasses in front of that kitchen window with the ocean behind it, and I let myself enjoy it without doing the math.

Citrus Punch

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes | Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 2 liters ginger ale, chilled
• 2 cups orange juice, chilled
• 1 cup pineapple juice, chilled
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 3 limes)
• 1/2 cup sugar (or to taste)
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 orange, thinly sliced, for garnish
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced, for garnish
• Ice, for serving

Instructions

1. Make the simple syrup. Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar dissolves completely, about 2–3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
2. Combine the juices. In a large punch bowl or pitcher, stir together the orange juice, pineapple juice, lemon juice, and lime juice until combined.
3. Sweeten to taste. Stir in the cooled simple syrup, starting with 1/4 cup and adding more depending on how tart your citrus is.
4. Add the ginger ale. Just before serving, pour in the chilled ginger ale and stir gently to preserve the fizz.
5. Serve. Fill glasses with ice, ladle or pour in the punch, and garnish with orange and lemon slices. Serve immediately.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 110 | Protein: 0g | Fat: 0g | Carbs: 28g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 15mg