Life is Beautiful: Surprises

This last weekend was all about surprises and excitement. Who doesn't like surprises? I guess some people more than others but I love getting and giving surprises, I think it makes this sometimes dull and rushed life more beautiful.

The first one kind of evolved over a few days last week. Ehren and I have talked for a while now about me going to Slovakia this Spring. Even though we had no idea if I would be able to go, we still talked about it and we both thought it was a very high priority this year. I haven't been home for over 3 years and it has started to show. :) I'm very glad my parents were able to come once and mom by herself again last year since I've been there, but it is still not the same as going there and seeing everyone. Not being able to see my 3 brothers and all my nephews and nieces, 3 of them I haven't even met yet, is especially hard. So, this last week we finally got our taxes done which pretty quickly made me look into the airplane tickets. At first I thought for sure they'd be too much and yes, they are very expensive but somehow I threw a number out there, like I told God if I am able to find a plane ticket for this price I'll do it. I didn't think I was going to find one but there it was, one of them was just the right price. I think it was a bit cheaper than all the rest because the plane leaves on Easter Sunday, but we can manage that. To make the long story short, I quickly booked it before it was gone and now it is for real - Anika and I are going to Slovakia for 2 and a half weeks. I still can't believe it's happening and am so excited about it. At the same time I'm nervous about what will happen with Kason and Kade because we have to figure out someone to watch them, mainly Kason every day during the week. It is very sad when I think about not being able to take the boys, especially Kade who would love to come with me, but it's just too expensive. For Kason, he would be very hard to deal with on the air planes and it is such a long trip that I know it would be exhausting for all of us. Plus, I thought he would barely remember anything from Slovakia and Anika is at the age where she loves visiting people and can take away so many memories from there. So, on April 24th we are taking off from Fargo and leaving our 3 boys behind. It was the perfect timing for both of my parents' upcoming birthdays so I wanted to surprise my mom with it. But the rest of my family too because they had no idea I was thinking about coming, so that was fun.

The other surprise came just a day after me booking the plane ticket. Ehren has been telling me he has a "family" thing he wants us to do on Saturday so I shouldn't plan anything. He played it so much about the kids that that is all I thought about. I totally thought it was something fun for our kids but then when Saturday came I was wondering why he wouldn't tell me what the surprise was when it was just for the kids. I still didn't think anything of it, plus woke up with a bit of a cold, so I tried to rest as much as I could that morning. Then the afternoon came and Ehren is telling me he got an e-mail that "they" are not ready for us yet. I'm thinking who they? We must be going to visit someone at their house. When the time finally came, Ehren started the van like we're about to go but there was a knock on the door little bit later and here is my dear friend from church saying "happy birthday" to me. I was a bit confused, thought that maybe we're going somewhere with her family but the surprise was all for me as a late birthday present and she came to pick me up for it. We picked up another girlfriend on the way and we met a third friend in Grand Forks for a nice meal, who was all in on the surprise. It was the best present I could ever wish for. I love getting together with close friends especially when it's just us without all the kids, which so rarely happens. Afterwards all 4 of us went to see a roller skating derby, just for fun to see what it's like. It was crazy different, especially some of the outfits these girl skaters were wearing. I still don't understand how they manage to get up there dressed like that and not only have hundreds of complete strangers watch them, but their own little children. But it was something different and good to see what it is about. We had a great time catching up a little and just talking and talking. We didn't get home until after 11pm and I felt so recharged. It meant a world to me to just get together and talk to these sweet friends and I sure hope we do it again very soon. I almost forgot how much I missed a great girl's night out. They sure made me feel special that night.

Meanwhile to not disappoint our kids who were expecting a surprise for a whole week, Ehren took them to McDonalds where they played for 2 hours and Kason still didn't want to go home after that. I'm sure glad they still can get excited about the smallest things. Unfortunately, it was too cold outside for sledding or something so McD's was the only safe option.

Sunday morning, I couldn't quite get out of bed as I felt a lot worse, just sweating and having muscle aches. But after resting all morning I got better so it wasn't that bad. Having so much fun on Saturday was well worth it.

So in conclusion, I have to admit I love surprises. Especially the surprises that Ehren is part of because he knows exactly what I love and need and that's why I love him. He knows I wouldn't care about a big surprise party with a lot of people, but getting some real quality time with my friends is just what I needed. And he knows how hard it is for me to live so far away from my family so even though it's not easy to spend so much money on plane tickets, he gladly and lovingly sends me off while many of his friends are buying trucks, big screen tvs and other toys. I am so thankful to have Ehren in my life, to lean on him and to create a home with him.