surprise

curtisisthirty@gmail.com  

That is the email address that I created and used to plan Curtis' surprise 30th birthday party without him finding out. All of the hours of planning, trips to the grocery store, lies told, mass emails sent, dollars spent, and decisions made all by myself (quite a feat if you know me!)... completely worth it when he walked unknowingly through the door:

So. So. So. Surprised.
Yay!

 Seth looks pretty proud of himself! He had taken Curtis out for Biscuitville so we could gather the troops for the big reveal. I couldn't have pulled this off without his and Katie's help!

 Such happiness!

Cooper, on the other hand, was slightly overwhelmed. It was a complete shock to him as well (I couldn't let him accidentally give it away!) so it took him awhile to acclimate. But, don't worry... he acclimated just fine. :)

After Curtis' shock and confusion wore off, the mingling and partying began!

 Here are a few random shots that capture some of fun. And by random, I do mean... random.

I get teary just looking at this... our hope and longing as a couple has always been to fill up our home with people that we love. It brings us such joy!

Speaking of joy... I know this is a terribly-executed photo, but I just had to share it. What a portrait of the day!

And then there is this. A different kind of portrait of the day, though somehow just as appropriate. Curtis, in his "Dirty 30" mandated outfit, getting "iced".

You mean you don't know what "iced" means?? Neither did I. For a full write-up, check out this Time article.

It's basically a ridiculous and hilarious frat-style game where guys force other guys to chug a Smirnoff Ice. I have no idea.

Another friends-filled room. Curtis and I were so blessed by how many people were there to celebrate with us.

Friends from Durham, Knoxville, and Greensboro alike... it was such a fun crowd.

Speaking of Greensboro... our new-ish Greensboro friend Charlie basically gave a tutorial on how to take down a Smirnoff Ice.

Full to empty, in 4 seconds (I checked the photos' time stamps). Amazing.

 

Birthday cake- of course!

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you...

Happy Birthday to Curtis (and Cooper?)... Happy Birthday to you!

Birthday hats are awesome.

So are friends. Cooper and his buddy Mac were "all boy" together that day...

and loved every second of it.

 

 

 Oh yeah- Annabelle was at the party too. :) The sweet girl stayed true to her character:  deprived of naps, any semblance of peace/quiet, and even her parents for long periods of time, she just went with it and cuddled in the arms of sweet friends. 

And still, at the end of the day, all smiles! Check out their shirts: Coop's says "My Daddy= Dirty 30" and Annabelle's says "My Daddy is OLD". :)

Last, but not least... the token family shot. I think Curtis was a little bummed that the only picture we've taken of the 4 of us in months has him wearing a cut off jean shirt and Dirty 30 hat. Ha!

The pictures stop here, but the birthday party did not! We ended the day full o' fun with quite an adventure. I don't have a single picture of it, so you're going to have to go to Seth and Katie's blog to get the report. Bottom line- it was awesome. You must grab your camera and your earplugs and GO.

Thanks for sticking with me through this whole post! There was too much excitement to share- I couldn't bear to cut any out. We had an amazing day!