August 24th, 2011
Operation Birthday Surprise: COMPLETE
Originally, when I met Kate in Colorado, I had mentioned the idea of checking out Philadelphia and Pittsburgh later in the summer and since she often flew to Jersey for work, she was more than welcome to come with me in my ballpark adventure. She told me the dates I was looking into were close to her 30th birthday and that it may or may not work out, depending on the birthday plans but to keep her posted.
I let the idea die for a while, getting caught up in work and being a bit off put by the cost of airfare to Philly and Pittsburgh. Fast-forward to the message I get from Kate’s boyfriend: Hey Colleen. Planning a surprise 30th birthday party for Kate on August 20th. Your presence is mandatory.
The timing was perfect, with the invite coming after a particular stressful day at work. So I started looking at flights and it was cheaper to fly to Columbus, then onto Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, than just to fly into Philly and Pittsburgh. Go figure. Naturally, I thought this was a sign, especially because we had no events during the time I was looking to leave. I booked it immediately.
The plans went back and forth as to how Kraig and I would surprise Kate and we finally decided I would show up on front steps on Thursday.
I did, and the look on her face alone was totally worth the trip. Thursday night, we stayed up late talking and poor Kraig didn’t stand a chance on getting an word in edge-wise. The best part was that she still had no idea there was a surprise party waiting for her on Saturday.
Friday, I met Kate for lunch, since she had to work and later we met up with her mom for a little shopping. They made their best attempt to keep my from buying things I liked in multiple colors and more “flying squirrel” shirts where the sleeves aren’t really sleeves but rather wings. It was a tough task. I can justify the need for any item I really love and apparently I have an affinity to shirts that make me look like forest creatures.
Friday night found us as a comedy club where we laughed an politically incorrect jokes before meeting up with Kate’s sister, who drove down after work. We had cake and chocolate martinis and opened presents.
Saturday morning was productive…for everyone else. They went for a run/bike ride. I watched SportsCenter and held down the fort. It was a balanced effort, capped off by pancakes, which we were enjoying when the doorbell rang. Kraig had lined up a masseuse to come over, which, incidentally, is who Kate thought I was going to be when I arrived.
The massage was amazing and afterwards we all went to lunch and us girls broke off to do some more shopping. The plan for the evening was to tell Kate we were going to see a movie, but had to wait until Kraig got off work so he could come with us. We would swing by his work (aka where the surprise party would take place) to grab a bite before the movie.
Our shopping trip concluded with naps prior to the party/movie and before we knew it, we were walking in, setting Kate up for her birthday surprise.
It was fantastic. Everyone was there and we had the whole bar area filled with party goers. Kate made the rounds and we enjoyed red velvet cupcakes (yum) and adult beverages galore (it’s the only way to celebrate turning 30, really).
A while into it, Kate and I faced off with Mallory and one of her friends in a free throw contest. To make it interesting, we competed in heels. Awesome.
There was a whole lot of celebrating going on and I was so relieved I made it all this time without blowing the surprise. It was an awesome way to celebrate 30!
