On January 21st Jim turned the big 4-0 and we planned a party for him at our house but I also tried to celebrate the occasion with a few surprises.
On Friday, January 21st Jim was supposed to work late. All week he kept on telling me to not worry about birthday dinner because he would be working late. Well...I got a call about 3:30 that he was on his way home. What he didn't know is that my friends Jackie and Ed had flown in from Seattle to surprise him at his party on Saturday and I was going to meet them for dinner. But now that Jim was going to be home I had to convince him that going out to dinner near the strip was a good idea. It worked. As we were driving to the Hofbrau house for some yummy German fare we were stopped at a stop light and I honked and waved at the cab next to us. Jim was very confused why I was trying to get the cabbie's attention? It was then that he looked a little harder and realized who was in the cab, Jackie and Ed. That could not have been planned any better! It was great to see them and we had a fun birthday dinner out.
I had also planned to surprise Jim with a visit from Joe and Remy but a week or 2 before the party we were getting ready for bed and Jim says to me..."you know I am a trained investigator right?". I responded yes, why? He says, "when are Joe and Remy coming." I gave in quickly because I was hoping that if I gave in on that surprise he would not question anything else. What he didn't know is that besides Jackie, Ed, Joe, & Remy, our good friends Frank and Manuela were also in town to help us celebrate. Frank and Manuela were supposed to walk into the party and catch Jim off guard but unfortunately, Manuela had to go in for some emergency dental work. Jim overheard my conversation with Frank about Maunela, so I needed to let him in on the surprise...he was worried about Manuela but thrilled that they had made the trip out! The good news is Frank and Manuela did make it to the party... they were just a little bit late and Manuela's teeth were much better.
Besides our friends and family from out of town, we had a great group of friends and co-workers over to help us celebrate. The party must have been a success because Jim called me sneaky. Any other time I might have been offended but on this occasion I took it as a complement.
On the morning after the party, Jim, Abby, Kera, Joe, Remy and I rolled out of bed and headed to the buffet at the Red Rock Casino for brunch. The food was not that good but the company was excellent.
The rest of the weekend was spent cleaning up from the party, another quick visit from Frank and Manuela, and watching the Steelers beat the Ravens! The Steelers are off to another Superbowl...their 7th!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIM! I hope you had a fantastic weekend.
How did that happen SO FAST! My mom came into town to help us celebrate.
On birthday morning we opened some presents...
and then...it was time to get ready for her party! We had a mermaid themed party complete with a water themed craft. Here are some pictures from the party...
Abby got a lot of great gifts from her friends! 
The next day, Monday, my mom was heading back to Seattle but before she left she had time to go to Abby's dance class. Abby was so tired from her birthday that she slept right up until the last moment before her class started...
It was a great visit by my mom but even a BETTER birthday celebration for Abby!
Christmas dinner was delicious...Thanksgiving for Christmas YUM! And of course we had to wear our crowns...
