I Never Saw it Coming.

My wonderful hubby threw me the most amazing surprise party a couple weekends ago. I never saw it coming, because it was after my birthday, and well, I'm pretty oblivious to that kinda stuff anyway. I was so impressed with Dave - still haven't figured out how he pulled it off successfully.

He told me about a week prior that he asked his mom to watch Will so he and I could go on a date night to celebrate my birthday...sounded great to me! I was also impressed when Dave told me he made reservations at one of my favorite restaurants, called M's Pub...not your typical pub scene...it's more of a trendy french restaurant in The Old Market downtown Omaha. As we were leaving the house, Dave grabbed my camera, which surprised me, because I'm usually the one nagging for a photo opp :) It isn't your average pocket-size camera, either - it's my bulky SLR. I asked him if he wanted to take the small one instead, but he insisted on my camera...and I still never suspected anything!

When we arrived at M's Pub, the host showed us to our table, and I spotted a girlfriend of mine, and thought to myself, "fun to see her - how random that we're both here on a Sunday night!" I know...I'm so naive! So as I was talking to her, I purposely tried to block out the other people at her table because I didn't want to be rude and stare. Then as my eyes slowly started wandering, I noticed more and more of my friends - many of whom didn't know one another. As the girls later told me, my face looked very confused...I was ;-) Until they all blurted out, "SURPRISE!" Then it finally hit me and I was pretty overwhelmed...in a good way, of course.

I was so humbled that so many of my wonderful friends made it a point to be there and make me feel so loved. Even my sister-in-law, Kristin drove 5 hours to be there, and then went home the next morning...thanks for being there, Kris - it meant the world to me! After I got my barrings, Dave said, "have a great time with your girlfriends - I'll see you later."

I was equally overwhelmed with all the thought and effort it took for Dave to pull off this feat! He actually took the time to call each one of these girls individually and invite them, and asked them to be prepared to share ways that I may have touched or impacted their lives. Dave also asked one of my girlfriends to take care of getting centerpieces for the restaurant table, and asked yet another to jump start the "sharing conversation." I was so blessed! We had a lot of laughs, and I shed a few tears, too :)

Although not all the girls knew each other, they quickly got acquainted, and so many told me later how much they enjoyed meeting everyone. It made me proud to have the friends that I do. Dave and I are continually thanking the Lord for the friendships He's blessed us with!

So to those of you who came - thank you for making me feel so loved - I so appreciate you! And Dave, thanks for being so creative and making it happen! Your generosity never ceases to amaze me, and we all had a fabulous time...I love you!