Happy Birthday, Marin!

I love a good surprise- both receiving one, and planning one. The past few weeks, a few friends and I have been planning a birthday surprise for our friend, Marin's, 30th birthday. We knew it had to be something good. So, we planned a special get away this weekend with her, and we pulled it off without a glitch, and had a really fun time together. Friday afternoon (after I got out of school for the year!!!), I went up to my brother's vacation home by the Homestead in Midway (literally, right next to the Homestead) and decorated their house birthday-ish with 30 presents that Lisa had bought and wrapped (beautifully) and other cheesy birthday decor. Lisa, Deb, and Melissa went to Marin's to pick her up to "take her to dinner" and told Marin that she had five minutes to get an overnight bag ready. So, without telling her where they were headed, they came up and met me in Midway. That's when the fun began. First, we went over to the Homestead for dinner (yum!), where Monica met us, then went back to the house for a night of rest and relaxation (and lots of craziness). Oh, might I add... the place we ate was situated beautifully. We sat outside, next to a small pond, equipped with fish, ducks, geese, etc. The landscaping was perfect, and the scenery was absolutely charming.

The only strange thing that happened at dinner was when we felt like we were eating dinner with royalty because several people came up to Monica and Melissa, because they were twins, and asked for their autographs... weird :) After dinner, we went back to the house, and before Monica and Melissa broke out their pedicure kits (they are serious about their pedicures), Marin opened all 30 gifts (which ranged from fake, ugly teeth, to a coconut shell bra, to a poker kit-- all things that she will never need, or use!) Her real gift was a card with money in it for a shopping spree in Park City, scheduled for Saturday (today). Here are a few pictures of her opening her gifts:

 

Then, the pedicure extravaganza began. First, we had to take a "before" picture

  

Then, we sat around the bathtub and let our feet soak. Then, the pedicure madness began. My favorite part was watching Marin squirm, as she has unusually ticklish feet. All our little tootsies looked absolutely fabulous when the Dixons were finished with us (until Lisa screwed up her big toe... way to go, Lisa). But, don't worry, Monica saved the day, and fixed it. Here is the "after" picture.

After pedicures and birthday brownies, we indulged in facial masks. Deb partied too hard, and zonked out on the couch. We made her wake up to take a picture of us, which explains our odd placement for posing. This picture is a result of me saying, "Everybody give a pirate eye!" Arrrrrrrgh!

To conclude the night's festivities, we watched the movie Hairspray. I didn't quite get through it before giving in to the call of the bed... which was extremely comfortable. This morning, we got up and made breakfast (which I would have taken pictures of, but Marin strongly objected to me getting out the camera first thing in the morning (well, ok- it was close to 11, but still... too early for picture-taking)). Then, we spent the day shopping in Park City. It was a lot of fun, but I spent a lot more money than I was planning to... that's ok... as I always say, "When in Park City... do as the Park Cityans." We concluded our day with dinner from Bajio's and a quick trip to the World Market (which, if you have never been there, I would HIGHLY recommend going... especially if you're in the mood for European chocolate). We had such a fun time, and I hope that Marin has a fabulous birthday (which isn't really until June 3rd). We missed you Christina, but thanks for your contributions!