What a fabulous weekend!!
I’ve been dying to tell you all about it, but yesterday I was completely wrapped up in this little project…
(you know…in addition to working)…
Who knew that it would be so difficult to retro-fit cabinets and counter tops into a kitchen that already has appliances?! It’s turning into more math and spatial planning than I originally anticipated, but I’m really excited for the finished product. Although technically nothing has even been ordered yet, I’m hoping that the whole project will be done before the end of July–praying for minimal downtime in the kitchen.
But…I’m willing to sacrifice having a kitchen for a while, because when it’s all said and done I’ll have a fun little kitchen that I love! Small, yet functional. That’s all I need!
So.
For the past 2 months, it’s killed me that I had to keep a secret from you. I couldn’t tell you, but I was planning a surprise party for My Gazelle, which went down last Saturday. After 2 years of hard work and complete devotion, as well as 6 months of being on his Black Belt Cycle (read: no sex, no sugar, no fried food, no sex, no red meat, no sex), he passed his black belt test!
The black belt test was on July 10th, which just happened to be the day before The Boilermaker, which meant that your girl was out of town and could not be in Maryland to celebrate this momentous occasion with her man. I was very sad that I missed his testing and demonstration, but the knowledge that I was about to surprise him with a super fun surprise summer crab feast was enough to keep my guilt at bay.
I told him 2 months ago that I wanted him to keep Saturday, July 17th free for us to do something fun together with his niece and nephew. Along the way, I “suggested” that we take the kids to our favorite park (a.k.a. the park where I rented a pavilion), and have a little picnic with them. I rallied his family together to help me (he has the most amazing women in his family, and they eagerly jumped in and prepared all of the food), and for the past 2 months, have been dying on the inside because I couldn’t really tell anyone about this grand scheme!
The morning of the party, I left the house early to go to the gym, got in a quick workout, and then went over to drop some ice off at the pavilion for the drinks which hadn’t yet arrived. After that, I went back to the house and helped get the kids ready for our “picnic”! By the time we left, it was a little after 12PM, and I received word that everyone was running late. My Gazelle’s Grandma and uncle hooked us up with 2 bushel of crabs fresh from the wharf on the morning of the party, and they were behind schedule due to that trip out to DC.
On the way to the park, I had to waste some time, so we stopped at a local farm stand and bought some fruit and corn, and showed the kids the farm’s turkey’s. La la la la la la…wasting time…la la la la la…
Eventually, we got to the park, and Grandma still hadn’t yet arrived with the food, but I couldn’t stall any longer. I parked on the opposite end of the park from where the pavilion was, in the hopes that while we took 15 minutes to walk over, Grandma, the food, and the rest of the family would arrive. She didn’t arrive until 30 minutes after us, but it was OK.
He had NO CLUE.
We walked right up on the pavilion, and some of the family was outside with their backs turned.
NO CLUE.
His step mom popped her head outside of the door of the pavilion and yelled “SURPRISE!!”, and THEN it clicked.
He cracked up and said “OK, you really got me…”
The bottom line…he was happy.
Very, very happy.
The day was very hot and sweaty, but it didn’t stop everyone from having fun. Some sang and danced.
Some relaxed and/or tried out their MMA moves on unsuspecting children.
Some taught the little ones where their feet are supposed go when they throw a ball.
Others just hung around.
Me?
I basically just sat and gazed at the lake.
You know…that same lake that I recreated a horror film in did the Celebration Sprint Tri in just a few short weeks ago?
Yeah.
…and I nonchalantly appreciated all of the hard work that this one has put into his body over the past 2 years…
There was a lot of appreciation.
Because what’s not to appreciate?
In all seriousness though…
The party was so fun. I’m really really glad that he didn’t find out in advance, and that I was able to keep my big mouth shut (not my forte). We had a ton of food, and it made me realize (again) what an awesome family I’m joining.
So proud of My Gazelle!
