A Christmas Blessing

I've been bragging on Facebook recently how fabulous my husband is to have planned a special date night. Last night I edited my statement to say that he has some pretty fabulous co-workers too! Well, last night was THE NIGHT! Now that it's come and gone, I finally got to hear the whole story (I think).

See the gal in the top right of the picture with the beautiful smile? She's the Administrative Assistant for the data team of which Aaron's a member. Well, Crystal knows about my health struggles, and that we don't know many people in the area yet. Apparently she approached Aaron with the idea of surprising me. I was told that Crystal was gonna babysit the kids so we could have a date. Cool!

But - here's how it actually went down. A little after 5:30 the doorbell rang, and a whole slew of smiling ladies were standing there (not just the Crystal I was expecting). Apparently they're all part of the same Journey Group (small group) at one of the local churches! Aaron and I left to run a quick errand, and when we got back to the house, they had cooked a scrumptious dinner and set the table so we could have a romantic dinner in (without me having to do any of the work)! There was delicious spaghetti, crisp salad, and even bread and a yummy olive oil dip!

There was a basket filled with my favorite candy (miniature Peanut Butter cups), a yummy oreo dessert, and even a bowl with decorated sugar cookies (we later found a stash in the kitchen of probably 100 more!). Not only did these ladies scheme and plot and plan such a wonderful surprise, apparently one of the cookie decorators decorated them while she was in the beginning stages of LABOR!!! (When she should have been packing her bags and practicing her breathing techniques she was decorating cookies for ME - and she's never even met me!) Can I say wow? WOW!

There were little decorations all over (that are for us to keep!) You've already seen the poinsettia garland on the table, the basket holding the candy, placemats, red goblets, taper candles. There were also votives on the windowsill (with LED lights so the boys wouldn't get burnt or start a fire), and a jingle thing for the door! There was a Christmas card with a gift card to a local salon (how did she know that my eyebrows need some serious attention?). They even brought goodies for the boys!

So, once we returned from our errand to this beautiful table and wonderful surprises - something even better happened!! (Right here you're wondering if that's even possible!) They whisked our boys away for an evening of fun at Chuck E Cheese - every kid's dream! After they left, Aaron and I had a leisurely dinner (and were under strict orders not to clean up) and then headed out for the rest of my evening's surprise. (More about that in the next post!)

When we returned home, the dishes were done and the table cleared. Leftovers were even put in the fridge! Harrison was sound asleep, and Alex was soaking in all the attention from the girls as he was lying in bed. (Even at the ripe old age of 4, he LOVES female attention!) He was way too tired to tell us about all the fun he had, but made sure we saw the prizes he won before he fell asleep (a magnifying glass and two washcloths that expand from their little size when they're put in water). He fell asleep with a HUGE smile on his face - like he had just seen Santa himself!

The whole evening was the best possible Christmas blessing I could have dreamed of! Thank you ladies! (And thank you to the one who missed out on the fun so I wouldn't get her cold.)