My 35th birthday surprise!

For my 35th birthday, Kevin planned a surprise birthday party for me.  (Kevin told me on my birthday that he was giving me my present on Easter since he got a joint gift for me with a family member we'd see then).  Gretchen & I went shopping on March 31st  for our birthdays (as we typically do) & Gretchen "had to get home" by 4:00 for a "family get-together with Brian & Terrilyn".  Well, we were running late & I told her they would understand.  Little did I know that I was cutting into my time!  When I walked in the door, Kevin greeted me with an envelope.  Inside it said "This is my birthday present to you. At 5:00pm today, a limo will show up to take you and your friends to several locations throughout the city until midnight (or however long you old people can stay awake). There are 3 envelopes included with this letter. Each letter has a specific time to open it. Do not cheat. :)  Do not worry about Kids Life tomorrow. (I was supposed to teach the kids at church & was going to prepare that evening) I have told Eric that I am doing it, and I will have it under control.  Enjoy!  You better go get ready.  Love, Kevin"

I quickly went and changed my clothes a bit to get ready & girls started arriving at our house.  Kevin said everyone except for 1 person (my future sister-in-law, Heather) was able to come (a miracle!).

In front of our limo!  Left to right: Me, Catina, Jessica, Vicki, Kristy, Anne, Melainie, Marlys & Gretchen.


At 5:00 I opened the envelope that said, "Open at 5:00".  The letter inside said, "Stop #1 - La Bodega.  It wouldn't be a party without Sangria. You have a 5:45 reservation under your name at the La Bodega on Southwest Boulevard. This will NOT be your stop for dinner, so try to refrain for too many tapas. The limo will remain at this location with you.  Love, Kevin"

So off we went to La Bodega - a fun little Mexican restaurant that serves really awesome tapas & equally tasty Sangria!

Marlys, Melainie & Me inside the limo.

Kristy, Anne & Jessica

Vicki, Catina & Gretchen











I didn't get any photos at La Bodega (we were having too much fun!)  Kevin had a tab already started for us & the girls all kept saying how wonderful Kevin was & how they wanted their husbands to do this for them!  (I agreed wholeheartedly).  At 6:30 I opened the next envelope (cause it said to) & read: "Stop #2 - Melting Pot.  Start wrapping up Tapas & Sangria. You have a 7:00 reservation at the Melting Pot and it takes 10 minutes to get there. Love, Kevin".  So we did as he asked!  :)

Here is the group at The Melting Pot.  Kevin also had a tab for us at this restaurant - pretty much we paid for our drinks here.  (And by "we" - I mean everyone except me).

Me & my very yummy pomegranite martini!

The last envelope said to open before dessert.  It read, "Stop #3 - Location Unknown.  Spend dessert figuring out where you are going next.  I was thinking that the Piano Bar in the Power & Light District would be pretty cool.  You have the limo until midnight.  You can go to as many places as you want to.  Don't forget to tell the limo driver where you are going. Enjoy your night on the town! Love, Kevin".

Well went Kevin didn't count on was that KU was in the final four and they were playing that evening. So the P&L district was closed to traffic (per our limo driver) and most of the bars were packed.  We finally called Ryan & he listed off a few places that had outdoor patios for us to go to.  We picked one in Waldo & went there - it was fun - except they had moved TVs out onto the patio so until the game ended, we had to stand for a bit - at least the weather was nice!  It was a really great night & I was so glad that I was able to spend it with all my close friends.  Kevin did VERY well with a great birthday present.