Honey's 60th Birhday

I know you think that is a typo.

Most people never believe me when I say my mom is 60.

She is drop dead gorgeous, in better shape than most anyone I know, full of life and so much fun. She is really the person I talk to most and my best friend. She is so selfless and loving and my kids absolute favorite person on the planet and she is SO easy to celebrate!

We had dinner on the Saturday before her birthday in a private room at one of her favorite restaurants, Silver Fox.

I went a little early in the day and did a little decorating.

I hung some HONEY balloons, had some black and white pictures printed of her throughout her life with family and friends and put them on poster boards shaped like a 6-0.

I had some printables framed and put on the table with fresh flowers and set up her HONEY themed presents.

I didn't really expect the puffy patterened wall covering when making these decorations but, a nice bartender gave me a glass of bubbly and found me a white table cloth and some black duct tape and we went to town.

Not exactly the vision I had in mind for a cute private birthday party room but, it worked.

We themed the whole dinner after HONEY. Each gift was modeled after an attribute starting with these letters. Each of us presented and described a different letter/gift.

H - Health - She is so healthy. She loves to work out and will jump on any healthy-kick bandwagon we jump on. She also thinks about all of our health all the time. She might possibly be described as a hypochondriac but it's merely out of her intense love for us and desire for everyone to be healthy. She also eats really healthy too, most of the time. That being said, if there is a spicy cheeto in sight, she is eating it.  This just keeps her so relatable and I love it so much.  Bart and Olivia described all this and more and gave her the 'H' gift of the tried and true Howe gift - Lululemon workout clothes.

O - Only one for Me - Dad presented this and gave her a new simple wedding band-type ring and a not so simple, beautiful diamond bracelet. Mom mentioned she wanted a ring she would wear in Africa when they go that wasn't her big diamond ring and so dad got her a band she could wear and went above and beyond. His gift words were so sweet. Their love and marriage is such an example and testimony to us all.

N - Neighbor - As in "Love your Neighbor as yourself" (Mark 12:31) - Mom is the best FRIEND ever. She loves her friends fiercely. Her friendships are priceless and make her who she is today. Her literal best friends are her actual neighbors as well, Kathy, Jo, Judy, Dee, Jan....She also has multiple sets of friends from lots of different times in her life. Friends since elementary, middle school, high school, college, Ft Worth UMC (where we went most of our lives), and now her Grapevine UMC friends. Basically, if my mom is your friend, you have a friend for LIFE. But mom is not just a friend to these...but to ALL. She is the best sister, daughter, wife, mother, aunt, mother in law, ever. She also loves complete strangers and serves them locally, domestically and even throughout the world (i.e. Africa) For this gift, we gave her a wooden sign that says "Pray Big" that she can hang prayer requests for her friends on and put some bible verses about friendship on it.

E - Effortless/Elegant/Extrodinary Style - Mom is so stylish. She doesn't even have to try. She has great style. Unanimously we would say that all of our best clothes and most favorite outfits/accessories have been gifts from mom. Pretty much my entire closet is "hand-me-downs" from my mom. It is the running joke when my friends compliment my clothes that they say "That is so cute! Did it used to be your moms? Or did you borrow it?" I just consider that I hit the jackpot by being able to fit into her clothes. Even as I sit and type this right now, I am wearing jeans, a blouse, a sweater that used to be hers and a bracelet and earrings she gave me as a gift. This is a regular thing. Matt & Sandy presented this leter and for this, we all decided to WEAR something to dinner that night that mom bought us (some like matt wore head to toe...including underwear) We also gave her a new crossbody purse.

Y - Youthful - this was the grandkid gift. My mom is SO full of life. I said it before and I mean it, she is my kids favorite person. If they haven't seen her in a day or so, they are asking when they get to. When the are hurt or scared or sad, they want to call her. I want to have my feelings hurt sometimes, but I just can't blame them. I feel the same way. She might have turned 60, but she is SO young at heart. She is invested, involved and so interested in each of their lives and makes everything just more FUN. For this gift, we got her a gold bar necklace with an initial of each grandkid on it.

Throughout all of this presentation and gift opening, there was lots of love, tears, joy and not many pictures.

But, the memory of the night, I will never forget and I hope she doesn't either.

My kids were super sad that they didn't get to go to the adults only dinner celebration for mom, so on her actual birthday, we celebrated again. She put up all the decorations at her house and we came over and ate, sang and celebrated her again.

Oh, we love Honey SO much.  Happiest of birthdays!