30 Years Old

Things were pretty hectic this year around Ryan's birthday. The couple weeks before, Monica had a case of strep throat and then Leah had a nose that wouldn't stop running, so I hesitated inviting people over to celebrate Ryan's milestone. Then, when we found out about Essential Oils' On Guard blend, the girls got better. Just in time for our trip to St. George. So, I got the idea to throw Ryan a surprise party after his birthday, since most surprises are before. I couldn't have picked a busier day for the surprise. I thought two weeks after his birthday would be perfect since he wouldn't be thinking about his birthday anymore. Since I invited a ton of people, I was worried our little house wouldn't be able to accommodate all the adults and kids. So I made the invitation an Open House. "Come when you can," sort of thing. I shouldn't have worried.  In the two weeks since I sent the invites, friends were dropping like flies. It was a busy day. For everyone. Luckily, Lesa came up from El Paso and helped me to get the food made and the cake turned out awesome! It was a devil's food cake mix, with Wilton frosting blended with real, freshly crushed peanut butter. We also crumbled up Reese's peanut butter cups and stuffed the middle layer of frosting with crumbles.

I sent Ryan to a movie, and then on a search for limes and Simply Limeade. He came home and it was the moment of truth. Did he suspect what I was planning? No, no he really didn't. In fact, Lesa and I were reminded of when he found out I was pregnant for the first time. These were the only two times he's been truly surprised. And he didn't take it well both times. We had to laugh later, once he'd got over it, that his reaction was more like he found out we'd shot his favorite dog than that we were throwing him a surprise party. He pulled himself together just as Lesa was leaving and the Curnutts and Sam Parry came over. We were able to get in a game of Corn Hole, which is always fun!

So, my attempt to celebrate Ryan's thirty years on this beautiful planet didn't quite go as planned, but it's ok because everyone loved the cake! (By the way, thank you Lesa for baking it!)