Surprises Abound

My husband has never been good at giving gifts. He lacks imagination. Or maybe just confidence. It's not so much that he gets me BAD gifts, he just doesn't usually want to take a leap as far as coming up with something, and would rather just buy something I'm already admiring and call it a gift. "You like that dress you're trying on? I'll buy it for your birthday." I'm complaining I need a haircut? He'll pay for it for my birthday...Nice enough, but I need a little surprise in my life :) So I've dogged him for years about his gift giving style.

Guess I can't do that anymore.

Who taught my hubby how to impress me all of a sudden?!?!?

It started with Christmas. I got a "stocking" full of little goodies that showed impressive attention to detail - the exact brand of pens I like (Uniball), the kind of shampoo I use (Pink Herbal Essence), caffeine-free fancy root beer (since I was on the caffeine wagon at that time), all of my favorite candies (Gummy Bears in the GOLD package, Swedish Fish, Sour Patch Kids), the GLEE soundtrack - it was really sweet.

And it continued.

On the Eve of my B-day, he insisted I open my first present. He wrapped them himself, I wish I would have taken pictures. It was something I've wanted for a LONG time:



Yay! He wasn't good at hiding what this one was (he asked me for the garage door manual for "no reason" the week before), but I wanted it so much I didn't bust him until I opened it :) We only got one remote with our garage door opener - in fact, we've only gotten one remote the past 3 places we lived, so when we bought our house I let hubby have the remote this time, assuming I'd go out and get another one right away. Two years later, I still hadn't gotten around to finding the right kind - but the hubby did! We programmed it right away, and the next morning I got to just push a button and hop in my car, without having to go through my normal cycle of: pull out, stop, get out again, dial in the code, shut the garage door, and get back into my car. Such luxury!

But he wasn't done yet...gift #2 was a COMPLETE surprise:



A metallic green ipod nano! Can you believe I've never had an MP3 player of any kind? I'm so excited! I haven't really figured out how to use it yet, but I know the high school kids I coach can teach me. I love the color, which he remembered from a long ago conversation, and even though he thought I should get a Touch, he paid attention during the Amazon shopping spree conversations and went with the Nano that I wanted. Yay hubs!

So I was having a pretty happy birthday, more than content with my gifts, and excited for dinner. That went well, and we headed over to Mr & Mrs. A's house for a "casual gathering of friends to ring in the New Year." We arrived exactly on time, I was feeling cute in my new outfit, if a little full, and all of a sudden what happens next? Everyone shouts "surprise!" and I see my Mom. And Dad. Brother. Friends.



What just happened?!?!?!

Last minute 2009 check off the bucketlist: item #31: Get a surprise party - HOLY COW YOU GUYS!



I was presented with the special pink "Birthday Princess" hat. It was customized for the occasion:



"ages 3+" became "30+". I think I wore it well :)



That's Mother & Father Craftastic, Me, and Little Brother. We had more food, drinks, my first exposure to "Rock Band" (I won't show anyone those photos, but rest assured, I have some! And we all look as silly as you'd imagine :) I'm a little sorry I didn't get any video), in-depth conversations about vampires and resolutions, and a countdown with a champagne toast. Tah dah. Welcome to 2010, Welcome to 30.



I'm only mildly concerned at how good all of my friends and family apparently are at lying to me (they all had back stories...some fairly elaborate even!), but I'm majorly and completely impressed that THE WHOLE THING WAS HUBBY'S IDEA!?!?! Mrs. A said he had emailed her MONTHS ago floating the idea, and actually originally wanted to do it at OUR HOUSE. Mrs. A knew that I would certainly skin him alive if he had a party in my messy house without me knowing about it first (and he couldn't clean without arousing suspicion, since that would have been TOTALLY out of the ordinary), so she graciously stepped up to save the day and host :) I am so appreciative for my wonderful family and friends, you all went so far above and beyond to make this a great B-day, I can't thank you all enough!

You're just giving birth now, you're not Mother Earth now...

I've had this in my head for two weeks now (thanks "book club") so there's no reason why any of you should be immune. It's right up there with the Garmin Holiday Commercials as far as witty lyrics are concerned.



Lyrics - by Garfunkel and Oates

Pregnant women are smug
Everyone knows it, nobody says it
Because they're pregnant
Effing son of a gun
You think you're so deep now, you give me the creeps
Now that you're pregnant

I can't count all the ways how
You speak in clichés now

Riki: So, do you want a boy or girl?
Kate: Oh, doesn't matter as long as it's healthy
Riki: Really? 'Cause I don't feel that those two things are related. It's not like one or the other.
Kate: Oh, really, as long as it's healthy.

I can't wait to hear someone say
"Don't care if it's brain dead
Don't care if it's limbless
If it has a penis"

Pregnant women are smug
Everyone knows it, nobody says it
Because they're pregnant
This zen world you're enjoying
Makes you really annoying

Riki: So, is it a boy or girl?
Kate: Oh, we know, but we're not telling.
Riki: What you're gonna name it?
Kate: Oh, we know, but we're not telling.
Riki: Who's the father?
Kate: Oh, we know, but we're not telling.

Bitch, I don't really care
I was being polite
Since you have no life now
That you're pregnant

You say you're walking on air
You think that you're glowing
But you've been ho'ing
And now you're pregnant

You're just giving birth now
You're not Mother Earth now

Riki: Oh my gosh, I've got so much going on. I got my novel published, I moved, I got married.
Kate: Gosh, you know, everything seems so trivial now that I'm pregnant.
Riki: Well, I also helped end gang violence in Mexico when...
Kate: You know, I can't even remember what I did before I was pregnant. Everything else seems so meaningless.

Pregnant women are smug
Everyone knows it, nobody says it
Because they're pregnant
Effing son of a gun
You think you're so deep now, you give me the creeps now
Now that you're pregnant

First Bucketlist Accomplishment of 2010!

Saturday, January 2nd seemed like a good time to kick of the 2010 bucketlist pursuit by crossing off item #124: Go to a Roller Derby Bout

CHECK!



What an adventure! It started when I met up with a few friends at O'Gara's (big mistake) intending to grab a drink and a few appetizers, and then take their free shuttle to the Roy. Bad idea. O'Gara's gets two giant thumbs down. Way down. We got there around 5:15 and didn't get our first drink for at least 15 minutes. At that point, the tables weren't even all full. We ordered our apps - and I am not exaggerating here, I actually timed this - it took OVER 50 MINUTES for a couple of quesadillas and two baskets of fried junk. How does that happen!?!?! And throughout, our waitress was surly and unresponsive. I had ordered a cherry coke and ended up walking it up to the bar to get refills when she avoided our table. Beers sat empty, and she missed major sales. When I questioned the time on our apps, she mumbled something about "the kitchen is slammed" and disappeared again. After all of my years as a server I'm almost always a 20% + tipper, but man, I think she got about 5%at best and was lucky we didn't walk out. I was MAD. We ended up racing through out food to catch the last shuttle, and getting there well after we had planned. Not cool. O'Garas = FAIL

We BARELY made the shuttle and ended up squished 3 to a seat, but at least that was warm! (this is me trying to be positive). Finally, we got to "The Legendary Roy Wilkins Auditorium!"



I have to include that a couple of years ago, for about 2 weeks, I seriously considered becoming a Minnesota Rollergirl. I bought skates & pads, acquired a helmet, and started skating for the first time since elementary school. Then I realized I am a monumental wimp, and even the idea of ruffle butt panties and fun fishnets could not make it worthwhile for me to exercise that much. Better to admire from afar :)



These girls are serious athletes, and they will hurt you. And like it. And then drink a Pabst and knit some mittens for charity.



We missed the pre-show music, but made it in time for the explanation of the rules...which we "sorta" grasped. Cheer for the starred helmets to make it through the pack, whilst they get chucked by the rest of the girls. The striped helmets do something about pace.



And then they were off! Garda Belts (green) had a bagpipe introduction, Dagger Dolls (pink) wore tu-tus. But that is where the niceties ended. There was some serious body checking, a few pile ups, and a lot of nail biting.



The place was actually really full! We were in the upper/General admission area in the balcony, and all the "track side" seating was sold out. They were told "Remember, if a rollergirl falls in your lap, you don't get to take her home!"



Above are actually the GUYS, who just started their own league. You know how at NHL games they let peewee kids play hockey in between the periods? I felt like this was similar. The guys kicked it off and helped explain rules. I'd be interesting to see if they are as viscious as the ladies in a bout.



Polka party on the track at intermission with "The Bratwurst Brothers!" Also involved the longest conga line I've ever seen.



Carin was really excited about "The Ricola Horn!" We sang along and downed our Pabst Tall Boys. How hip am I?



All-in-all it was a pretty fun ride, I sorta understood the rules by the end, though I'm still lost on penalties. I got to try out my "paparazzi" lens for the first time - everything is a little blurry because I was working with low light & action, sort of a difficult combination for a newbie, but I think I got some fun shots. And now I really want to go skating again :)

All in the cards

30 is a good birthday for greeting cards, and boy did I get some GREAT ones :) And no duplicates! What can I say, I'm surrounded by creative people. This first one cracked me up pretty hardcore, especially since it's from my husband's best friend & his new wife:



Inside there's a list of things to do on your 30th b-day. Of course there are some that nobody should ever have to see me do - skinny dip, streak, moon somebody; some things that I would love to be able to do - take a hot air balloon ride, shop till you drop, quit your job; but check out the suggestions I've indicated with arrows (click to enlarge):



Is it a bad sign when your husband's friends want you to date? Online, speed dating, and party lines? :) ha ha. Oops :)

But I'll definitely consider quitting my job while hopped up on cookie dough, crying over lost youth, and doing the birthday dance. Do you think "My lawyer friend told me to" will hold up in court when they question my sanity?

Thanks J & B - Lots of laughs :)

Back to life, back to reality...

Monday Morning
sub-zero temperatures
back to work
after a long weekend
and a late night =

OUCH.

I got a bit of a reality check trying to pry myself out of bed this morning, between the bitter cold and the lack of energy, I'm a little surprised I'm actually here. And mostly on time. Wow.

A few updates I realize I have glossed over, what with the distraction of a big surprise party and all:



1. I made another resolution: I gave up giving up caffeine. I decided that this post was total bunk. Well, not total, but not enough reason to keep denying myself my true passion. Plus I was substituting with root beer and cherry 7-up, so half of the reasons for giving it up in the first place were just a wash. I'm a better person with my Cherry Coke. And Dr. Pepper. and Cherry Dr. Pepper...mmmm, true bliss.




2. My phone works! This post was apparently bull$%^& too! After all the turmoil with T-Mobile refusing to sell me a phone I tried to go pick one up at Target but THERE WAS NOT ONE PARKING SPOT IN THE WHOLE LOT. That clearly seemed enough reason to avoid the whole place. When I got home, I rounded up all the phone accessories and when I went for the charger I discovered the phone wasn't dead, my brain apparently was. The charger wasn't plugged in. Oops. So for the past however many days I'd been "charging" my phone all night with a cord that had no power. D'oh. Guess being a terrorist isn't all that bad, it saved me $20! Thanks, terrible T-Mobile customer service!



3. Unfortunately, last night our TV also died, and I have a feeling that is going to cost a lot more than $20. This is our THIRD ONE to croak in under a year! I don't know what is going on. This was our huge splurge last year and it's just been a disaster ever since. We started with a Magnavox, and twice we had to return it within a month when dead lines & spots started appearing across the screen. After the 2nd time, we traded up to a Phillips. That went well for a few more months. then a couple weeks back it wouldn't turn on. We pulled all the plugs and connections and re-attached, and it eventually came back on. Yesterday it went out again, and has yet to recover. I just don't understand what is going on, am I radioactive or something? The rest of the accessories plugged in to that outlet seem fine, nothing has been hit or tipped...who knows. Repair (wo)man en route. MAJOR bummer.

4. So far I've failed on the "bring my lunch to work" resolution. I didn't even make the first day. Oops. Luckily I'm still not that hungry since the Meat Madness meal.

NYE Part I: Fogo de Chao-ing Down

WARNING: MAJOR FOOD PORN AHEAD. You have been warned. If you are a carnivore, you may drool. HeatherEve is not responsible for any damage to your keyboard or reputation.

NYE/my 30th birthday was a pretty great night, from top to bottom. I got off work early (Thanks, boss!), found a great outfit on sale (shirt $15 @ dress barn, shrug, hair flower, and ring from DOTS)



used my new Garmin to find the restaurant quickly and easily



We had early (6pm) reservations and it was great, we walked right in. Within the hour everything filled up, but service was still really great. We ordered drinks and got the explanation on how everything worked. First stop, the salad & sides bar:



I found this a little confusing, since I'm not really a fine diner I had a hard time identifying what everything was. And since I'm a picky eater, that made me hesitant to take anything. So did my loathing of vegetables, but I didn't want to come back completely empty handed, so I decided to be brave and try a few things - fresh mozzarella, a few green beans, a tiny Cesar salad, prosciutto (I think), and I figured bread & butter is always safe. Hubby was slightly more outgoing in his choices, but we both made a conscious effort to take it easy, knowing what was to come...



Once you're done with round I, you flip your coaster from red to green, and it's GO TIME! They start by bringing you MORE sides - mashed potatoes, polenta, caramelized bananas, and cheddar rolls. I could already sense a little bit of overload...



The potatoes were good, the rest didn't do a lot for me. I was more interested in the main event: MEAT! As soon as our cards were flipped to green, the gauchos started strolling over with their giant spears of meat an sharp knives. There were 13 different cuts, and I tried everything that came by - first was lamb chops, which aren't usually in my repertoire, but I boldly accepted. Then I think came the most luscious filet in history:



Mmmmmm!Sometimes it got a little overwhelming, and you had to flip your card back to red just to catch up. This was hubby's plate when his eyes started roll back in his head and the meat coma set in. You could of course refuse any of the cuts, but it was so exciting to try them all! We also liked the various cuts of sirloin, garlic steak, and picanha. Hubby gave the sausage and beef ribs high marks. A surprise winner was the parmesan pork - I never usually like pork, but this was FANTASTIC! Moist and flavorful, YUM! Surprisingly, I didn't like either of the bacon-wrapped offerings (steak & chicken), despite counting bacon amongst my most favorite foods (I am a heart attack waiting to happen, I know). The bacon texture was too rubbery for me, and the other cuts were just much better.





That's about the time I caught the meat coma too. It's definitely hard to say "UNCLE" with all that glorious meat floating around, but somehow we did it. But the night wasn't over! Jay, our amazing waiter, saw my giant camera and offered to snap a photo.



Hubby hates photos, but I told him he had to cooperate since it was my birthday, and that was apparently the magic words - Jay brought over the dessert menu and told us to pick something on the house! I LOVE THAT! I really wish more places let you actually pick what you wanted, rather than bringing something random for your birthday treat. We didn't exactly know what to go with, but Jay suggested the papaya cream. It is their signature dessert, and papaya has an enzyme that helps you break down protein, so in addition to being light, it actually helps you feel better after over indulgence. He had us pegged.



So pretty! I had never tried a cream before, it was sort of a non-frozen ice cream, or a thin pudding, and it was FABULOUS. Halfway through Jay added some sort of berry liqueur that made it even MORE luscious! Be still my beating heart, it was almost too much to bear!



All in all, Fogo de Chao (actually pronounced Fogo de SHUN, but that doesn't lend itself to fun puns as well), gets a HUGE thumbs UP from both me & the hubs. I sense a new birthday tradition coming on. It was a little spendy at $46.50 per person, and my normally cheap Peach7's (peach schnapps and 7 up - mmm, like grown up kool-aid)were $6, but for the meal we got it was well worth the price, especially on New Year's Eve. Next time we'll try to pace ourselves even better, despite our careful planning we still rolled out feeling a little like that blueberry kid in Willy Wonka.

Coming soon: NYE Part II, where I drag my meat-logged self into what I think is a casual gathering...

Ringing in the New Year...

I have a lot to write up right now - so much, in fact, that I don't even know where to start. I promise in the next few days I'll find the words (and photos) to share the fantastic birthday dinner at Fogo de Chao, and the amazing surprise 30th birthday my hubby and best friends threw for me last night - yup, squeezing in bucket list item #31 in the very last hours of 2009 was pretty darn exciting! I'm so lucky to have such great people in my life. Thanks to everyone who was involved.

But today, today I'm taking it easy, possibly a bit too easy for someone with as much laundry, dishes, and cleaning as I have to do, but I'm hoping after tonight I can just hire someone to take care of all that for me:


I managed to get 1 Minnesota Millionaire raffle ticket early in the season, before they sold out. I was hoping to snare another but never got around to it, so I have one bright shining hope - luck, be a lady tonight! I'm aiming to win one of the million dollar prizes, but I'd be cool with the $100,000 or $25,000 consolation prizes as well. Heck, even the $500 would be quite a nice way to kick off my 30th year of life :)