November 15th was Mrs. E’s birthday, and we just had a quiet evening in <—course we didn’t, it was Mrs. E’s 40th birthday so I thought I would do the one thing she would never expect…. a SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY!
It was a covert operation involving sending secret emails, and discrete conversations…. Fortunately, our lovely friends Katie and Paul helped me get everything together for the big day, for which I was very thankful!
When it came to the big day Mrs. E had a lovely time, and she was particularly chuffed to receive Bertha, a 29-er (a mountain bike with 29-inch wheels) from her mother. And, oh boy, does she love Bertha! Mrs. E never really cycled in the UK, it just didn’t happen for various reasons, but she is now a speed demon on her bike! The photos below show Liz cycling in Mt. Aspiring National Park. Can you see the big grin on her face? That’s how much she loves her new bike! Since her birthday, we have had lots of bike rides, and we even did a 50 km return trip from Hawea to Wanaka!
I digress… back to the birthday surprise. We were house-sitting for our friends Jonathan and Nikki in Hawea flat, so I arranged for everyone to meet at our house in Hawea for 6pm. I told Mrs. E we were going out for a Mexican meal with a few friends, but instead of turning left to Wanaka I turned right as I had “forgotten another present that was being delivered for her birthday and we had better go pick it up”. At the house, everyone hid upstairs, and as Liz opened the door to the sitting room where I said her present was. At the moment everyone jumped out from behind the furniture and shouted “SURPRISE!”. We had a great evening, lots of lovely friends turned up to wish Mrs. E all the best, and Katie and another friend made a fabulous Chocolate cake.
If you have a bucket list, add “Surprise Birthday Party for a loved one” to your list, as you will never forget the smile on their face… precious
Two Hoomans And a Spaniel In NZ 