Birthday!!

I love my birthdays!  I love the attention (who doesn't?) and I love getting presents (again, do I really have to say this?)!  So I was really excited about my birthday last week.

Dave was really good at getting me all hyped up for my birthday this year.  For the 2 weeks before my birthday, basically every day he would say something like "It's your birthday in ___ days!" or "I bought your present today" or "I am not going to do this, or this, or this for your birthday."  Apparently he was more excited about it than I was before he started making all of these comments.

(To preface the story that follows, I have to say this: Dave loves to trick me/surprise me.  He does it all the time.  It ranges from jumping out to scare me when I get home to convincing me that he got kicked out of one of his classes this semester.  He is absolutely happy if he can pull a good joke on me.)

For my birthday, we decided that Dave would make me coconut soup (so yummy!) and then we would go bowling.  It was going to be a later day for both of us than normal, because I was doing some extra tutoring that day and Dave had to go to a practice for his trial advocacy competition (maybe Dave will write and tell the family about that).  So both of us were getting home after 6pm.  I got home first, and just relaxed while I waited for Dave to get home.  I was supposed to get out the chicken and thaw it for the soup, and start the rice, but I had forgotten that.  And I wasn't in a big rush.  It's not like bowling alleys close early on Friday nights.

Dave got home around 6:30, and we got started working on the coconut soup.  We talked about our days.  But Dave seemed a little distracted.  He was really hurrying to get stuff done on the soup, and so he wasn't interacting with me as much.  In our house we call this behavior "being business-like."  I am usually the one that is business-like, when we need to get up in the morning, when we need to clean up our house or we're in a hurry.  Dave can't stand it, and he is rarely business-like.  He loves to chat while we do stuff, and usually even if we are in a hurry he is still very talkative and funny.  I asked him if he was stressed about something, or if there was a hurry to get bowling.  I knew something was up, but I didn't think it was anything important.

Dave immediately knew that he was being business-like and apologized.  I don't remember the excuse he made up.  Maybe he said something about thinking about the practice he'd had that evening.  Anyway, we continued making the dinner, but Dave was much more talkative.  While I was doing something with the chicken, Dave went upstairs and made a phone call, although I didn't notice him leave.  And when he came downstairs, he brought Anita and Dean with him!!

Anita is Dave's sister, and one of my favorite people in the world.  Dean is her husband, and they got married about 6 months before Dave and I did.  So we've all been newly weds together, and just have a lot of fun getting together and playing games.  They brought two of their favorite games for us to play, although they did give me the option of choosing to go bowling still, if I wanted to.

It was a good birthday surprise!  Dave got to feel oh-so-sly in keeping it a secret from me, and I got to hang out with some of my favorite people!  It was a great birthday celebration.