40 Reasons....

I turned 40 on the 11th. A significantly round age, I guess. My family and friends got a whole week of celebrating in, which was just fine by me! I love gooey, chocolatey desserts, free lunches and attention!

It's hard to surprise me, mostly because my dear husband doesn't have a sneaky bone in his body. He doesn't get when he says, "We're going to Maggiano's for dinner and other stuff." that it spoils the surprise element. I mean, I do interpret 'other stuff' as 'something else is going to happen that he's being intentionally vague about'.

This year however, my two best friends got me, and they got me GOOD! Oh, the lies! Oh, the deceit! Oh, the wonder of it all!

They got together, pooled their photos, stole some photos of mine from here on my blog and my Facebook page. And they created a book "40 Reasons Why We Love You." The book didn't arrive until after the surprise party, so we just had to do lunch.

Now, Penny was in charge of wrapping the gift. She was on a mission to confuse and befuddle me, and I must say, she did a great job! She wrapped it in tissue an put it in a wooden "Clue" game box with the little pieces to rattle around. I shook it. I felt it. I hefted it. Try as I might, I could not even imagine what they could possibly be giving me! You could say that even though I had a "Clue", I was completely clueless!

I was completely BLOWN AWAY! The book is beautiful! I cried as I read it. My friends shared memories & moments, thoughts & thanks, faith & fun, times & traditions that we have shared. It was so uplifting and quite encouraging to be shown so tangibly that my life has made an impact on the lives of others.
And to my 'besties', Penny & Heather, WOW! You know that I feel every bit the same about both of you! All 40 Reasons...!