Happy Birthday Mommy!!

Yesterday was my mom's 50th birthday. My sister and I have been planning her surprise party for about a month and a half. She was, to say the least, surprised.

The day started off with taking her to the Green Valley Ranch Spa. We are very good friends with the spa manager, Ashley. She helped us plan the whole spa day, thank goodness, because I am not good at the girly stuff. HA! We told my mom the night before that we had something planned and be ready at 9:00a, so they could come and pick me up. For some reason, she was really concerned that we were taking her to a strip club. I'm not sure why, weirdo. Maybe she secretly wanted to go! Who knows. I'm afraid to really ask more.

We arrived at GVR at 10a, and immediately changed into our bathing suits, and spent an hour in the jacuzzi and in the steam room. After my mom was whisked away to her 55 minute Swedish Massage, my sister and I hung out in the comfy lounge area and munched on the snacks provided. MMMMM. My little Italian, 4'9", manicurist came and got me. It was really awkward, how short this woman was compared to me. After a while, my sister joined us. We were happy to get the express mani/pedi. It was awesome. My nails are painted!! They haven't been painted since I was about 10. Super excited. My little Italian mama took great care of me. She is the BEST! My mom joined us for her pedicure towards the end and thoroughly enjoyed it.

After showers and primping, we took her out to Cheesecake Factory. Her choice. I was sad that my personal waitress, Amanda, wasn't working, but I managed to muster giving another girl a chance. Just not the same, but she was nice.

After all of that, I went home and napped for 1 hour. Then up! And got us all ready for the surprise party at

My mom arrived, and was very surprised to see 60-65 of her closest friends and family there to celebrate her and her age. Everything went off without a hitch! The food was great, the ambiance was great, everything was fabulous, and I think everyone had a great time.

Mom opened her presents, and I think her favorite may have been the picture frame that my sister made for her. She printed up a bunch of pictures, old ones and recent ones of my mom and her family throughout her life. It made her cry. I think my quilt was a close runner up though, HA! I can't compete with crying, HA! But I did get a round of applause from everyone there. That was fun........

Then, the cake. It was GORGEOUS!! I was really happy with the cake, except that I thought I had asked them to put a big, pink 50 on top of it, but, alas, no 50. Totally fine, cause my sister brought giant candles and that worked out perfectly. The cake was just fabulous. No better word. It tasted fabulous and looked fabulous. Thank you Retro Bakery, you exceeded my expectations.

All in all, it was wonderful. Everything was just perfect. I was really happy that we were able to make this day special for my mom. She definitely deserved it and I know it meant a lot to her. We put a lot of time into it, and it was all well worth it. She is worth it.

Love you mommy!!

I would like to give a special shout out to our photographer, Scott Roeben. He was kind enough to come and take pictures of the event as a favor to my husband and I. He's the man who took our family pictures too. He is amazing. I think Scott is my photographer hero. I'm such a huge fan of his. Not only does he takes fabulous photo's, he uses his amazing talent for a ton of community service. He can see the art and beauty in things, that no one else may notice, and then he captures it beautifully. He's very talented, and a great friend. I really appreciate him helping us with this event. We love you Scotty!! Check out his website at: http://www.scottroebenphotography.com/ 

Here are some other random pictures from the party, like table art and other pictures I loved.

Thanks to everyone who was able to attend the party . We love you all. You made the night.