Hello 3-0

Last week I celebrated my big 3-0 and boy was it fabulous!  I had no hesitation about turning 30 and was so excited when my hubby told me that he had planned a surprise weekend for me!  This was the first time that I had ever left Aiden and while I was incredibly nervous about being away from him overnight, I knew that eventually it would have to happen!  Being the paranoid Momma that I am, I left about 5 pages of notes for Nana and Pops...I knew he would be in good hands and probably completely spoiled but I was still a nervous wreck!

On Friday the hubs and I packed up the car for destination unknown.  Have you ever tried to pack for a weekend away to a location that is undisclosed?  It was torture.  Throughout the entire trip in the car Leif kept the navigation screen off, his answers to my questions vague, and he would not even tell me how long we would be in the car.  After sitting in traffic for over an hour and listening to the navigation say "continue straight" for what seemed like an eternity we finally reached our destination....NYC!!!!  We checked into the hotel, freshened up, and headed out on the town for our first full night without our boy.  We had a relaxing sushi dinner followed by some drinks at a fun pub near our hotel!

As sad as it is to say, we were in our hotel a little after midnight and SO ready for a full night of sleep with no interruptions and no alarm clock in the form of a 2.5 year old.  As we were getting into bed Leif asked me if I wanted a gift early...YES PLEASE!  So he grabbed his xoom tablet and handed it to me and hit play!  He had put together a 15 minute video of pictures of me from the time I was a baby to now with video clips from some of my best friends wishing me a happy birthday and talking about our friendship!  I was a mess...I cried, laughed, and watched it 3 times in a row!!!  It was AMAZING!!!

Saturday after we woke up...LATE...we got ready and headed out for lunch.  After lunch Leif says that we have a 2pm appointment that we need to make????  So again, destination unknown...after walking a few blocks he stops me and says "Ok, we are here"...

Wicked on Broadway...

We were a little early for the show so he recommended that we hit up the bar next door and have a "Wickedtini"...YES PLEASE!!!

The show was amazing.  I have always loved music, dance, theater, and performing so it was an incredibly mesmerizing experience.  I could have probably watched it over and over again and see something new everytime.  At intermission Leif asked me what I thought..."I want to be up there dancing"...I'm a dork!!!

After the show we headed back to our hotel to get ready for dinner.  Once we were ready Leif said that he had heard about this bar and wanted to go there before dinner to have drinks...again, I just followed along because I knew he wouldn't tell me where we were going.  We took a cab to a fun little Irish pub that "someone" had recommended to him.  As we walked into the pub Leif headed past the bar and toward the back of the restaurant.  As we reached the back I heard "SURPRISE!!!!"  I looked up to find my family and  friends there to surprise me for my birthday!  I was in SHOCK!!!  I was so confused to see all of these familiar faces in this big city during our weekend away!  It took me a while to really register the thought that the people who mean the most to me were standing in front of me at a bar in NYC!  To be honest I was a little overwhelmed!  The "party" was complete with food, drinks, a cake, presents and some beautiful letters from those who love me!  It was amazing...

Our next stop was to hit up the town...we hit up a few bars, danced, sang karaoke, and had AMAZING conversation!  The whole night I just kept hugging everyone and saying "I can't believe you are here"

My Momma

My bestie and her hubby...came from MD

My sister left her 4 month old baby to be there for my day!!!

My Bro....

The karaoke couple!

My girl...

LATE night poses!

After a night and weekend like this, I have spent a lot of time reflecting on just how lucky I am.  I can't help but think about the value of relationships.  I truly value all of my relationships and I really just want the same in return.  As I get "older" and my time for "hanging out" becomes much more rare, I realize how important that time is, not just for me but for my friends as well, and my goal is to maximize that time with valuable relationships!  I am completely overwhelmed by the lengths that were taken to surprise me and to make this night happen!  Hotels and flights were booked, babysitters and doggy sitters were called in, people took off work and sacrificed precious family time for some (awesome) Teresa time!  THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to each of you who went out of your way to make my 30th so memorable!!!  I really really try to always be a giver with out wanting in return...but, selfishly, sometimes it is really nice to be on the other end of the gesture!!!
Finally, I must say that my man went to the ends of the earth and back to make this weekend so amazing!  Somehow between working long hours, studying, and being a great father and husband, he found enough time away from me to plan an amazing birthday!!!  I am not sure how he did it considering he can't access email at work, I am always home with him, and I am completely nosy...but he did it!!!  THANK YOU my love for making my 30th Birthday unforgettable!