Happy Birthday, Mom!

It was a fun night!  On October 23, family and friends came together to surprise my mother and celebrate her 50th birthday!

I am not good at surprises.  I don't like them and am definitely not good at keeping them.  However, Julie Anne and I, along with my mom's friend Dawn, pulled this one off!  It went great!

Mom's birthday was actually on October 11, but due to schedules and the possibility of her expecting it, we waited until the 23rd to celebrate.  Invitations went out and the strategy began.

Much planning to do.  I wanted it to be a true surprise so with the help of my mom's friend, Dawn, and her husband, it was a surprise indeed.  Russ and I arrived in Martin on Thursday night - my sister came in from Nashville on Friday afternoon, and my mother had no clue!  It was fun, but sneaky.  We quickly realized that lying is NOT easy!!! 

My poor sister told my mother a long story about going to a haunted house in Nashville with her friends as we traveled to Jackson to eat dinner on Friday night.  And I explained the many things we were doing in Evansville to prepare for our last week there as I swept off her back patio.  She seemed to believe everything, however her questions seemed a little more pointed than normal.  We decided it was our guilty conscience.  Lying wasn't easy. 

Saturday morning she and Dawn headed to Jackson to shop and the fun began!  The party was planned to be at my mom's house, and fortunately, my mother is a good housekeeper so there was little work to be done with regard to housework.  We did, however, have lots of setting up to do.  The party was to start at 5:30 with my mom arriving around 5:45. 

Julie Anne gathered several clothing options with the matching accessories and took them to Dawn's house where she would "freshen up" before being taken to the party.  She was simply told that she needed to get ready for an event and was to ask no questions.  They did a great job with her.  They blindfolded her as they drove in a mysterious route to the party. 

In the mean time, many of her family and friends were gathered together awaiting her arrival!  We had 37 in attendance and we are very thankful that they joined us.  It was a windy, but pleasant night.  Our plans for candles on the table, and a warm fall fire in the fire-pit were scratched with the burn-ban.  The fire-pit was on the patio and I had decided it would be fine, but since the mayor was in attendance, I decided to follow the rules. ;)  It was nice, nonetheless. 

-Everyone is waiting for her to arrive-

-Lawson waiting with Aunt Julie-

-Emmitt waiting with Brittany-

SURPRISE!!!!!

Following the surprise, many hugs were shared. 

The traditional color for the 50th birthday is black, but how boring and sad is that?!  I found some party plates with black, purple, and turquoise, and they were a go!  We used all three colors.

Below is the food table.  For dinner we had BBQ sandwiches, potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, and potato chips.  It was very good and enjoyed by all.  Above the table, pictures of my mom from the past 50 years were hung for her guests to see.  Thanks to my grandmother and granddaddy for digging those sweet pictures out! :) 

And then the cake... my favorite part of a birthday party... I love birthday cake!  It was another Jerry Joyner cake... Mr. Richard drove me and the boys to Paris on Friday afternoon to pick it up.  The trip from Martin to Paris is much shorter than the one from Evansville, but our little Emmitt is a terrible traveler so to ensure the normal travel time, he drove, and I rode... in the back. :)  Gotta love that baby!

Anyway, I picked it up and he had written me a note on top.  It said, "TRANSPORT THIS CAKE AS IF IT WERE A BOMB!"  I wasn't so sure it would make it as the party was 27 hours away.  Mr. Richard did a great job driving us home, and the cake was just perfect for the party!

Isn't it pretty?!  

And it was scrumptious just as expected!

The following pictures are various shots from the evening. 

A few gifts were given...

Julie, Mom, and Me

Me, Daddy Denton, Mama B, and Emmitt

Daddy Denton and Emmitt

{He loves this baby, I tell ya!}

All of us...

Lawson trying to keep Sophie from jumping into the drink tub

Me and Emmitt with Mrs. Sandy and baby Cadence

Me with Grandmother and Granddaddy

There was a birthday party going on, but tuning in to that TN/Bama game was a must!

Sleepy Emmitt and Ella with Julie Anne

-Baby Cadence-

Debbie with Emmitt, Dawn, and Gary in the background

Granddaddy, Julie Anne, and Emmitt

And a happy birthday night it was!  Thank you, Dawn and Julie Anne, for your help!

Mom...  I am happy that you enjoyed it; we love you!