Surprise Weekend with Blogging Friends

Like I mentioned last week in my virtual shower post, I recently had a surprise visit from three of my blogging friends – Annie, Josie and Tara. Unbeknownst to me, their visit had been in the works for a couple of months. Eric had been emailing with them since just before the new year, and I was none the wiser. Here’s the story of how my husband and three friends pulled off the biggest surprise ever on the girl who was once impossible to surprise.

In late January, Eric mentioned to me that he had a surprise lined up for me the second weekend in February, “just some time to relax before the baby arrives.” He would’ve kept it secret, he said, but he knew I’d been scheduling hospital classes and planning various projects for us on the weekends. Plus, he wanted me to be able to find an outfit and knew I would need some time (maternity clothes shopping is pretty low down on my list of favorite things about pregnancy). I asked all kinds of questions in an attempt to figure out what his plan was, but he was steadfast in not giving me any clues. He did tell me part of the weekend involved dinner at our favorite Richmond restaurant, Julep’s. I just knew it was only a matter of time before I figured out the rest of his plans. I excitedly emailed Annie, Josie, Tara and Elly (who couldn’t come but was in on the surprise) and told them how sweet Eric was to plan something and how I had no clue what it might be. I even mentioned to them how good I am at asking just the right questions (read: manipulating ;)) and how I would totally be able to find out what the big surprise was. I feel pretty silly for saying that now! Since we have an ongoing email thread, the topic popped up a few more times. They must’ve been laughing to themselves as they read my emails in the time leading up to their trip, and they were all careful to be just interested enough without asking too many questions. At one point, I expressed my concern that someone might be coming to visit and how our house wasn’t yet ready for visitors. We haven’t been in our new house that long, and it’s not even fully unpacked. This bothered me more than it should have, and apparently my mention of it made the girls think I had figured out their plans.

February rolled around, and all I could think of was our dinner reservations at Julep’s. Things have been pretty crazy with us trying to settle into our new house and get ready for a baby, so I was insanely excited about a night out with Eric. When we walked into the restaurant, Eric slyly stood in exactly the right spot to prevent me from seeing my friends at a nearby table. When the hostess walked us to the table, I was beyond shocked to see Annie, Josie and Tara there waiting for us. I recognized them, of course, but my brain was not at all prepared to see them in such an unfamiliar setting. Then, in a very underwhelming display of emotion, I said hi. I think it’s the only word my mind could muster with the thoughts that were racing through my head. Three of my best friends, who all live very far away from Richmond, were sitting at a table in my favorite restaurant. They were there for me. They had traveled and taken time away from their families and important things all so they could be here to celebrate Baby C. I was too overwhelmed to cry at that moment, but I’ve definitely cried about it a few times since then (including while writing this post). I can’t think of a time in the recent past that I’ve felt so much kindness and love from someone other than Eric. It was truly breathtaking.

At dinner, we talked as if we’d all just seen each other. Honestly, I was still so stunned that I barely remember specific conversations. I do remember that everyone loved their dinner. Eric and I ordered fried green tomatoes and a cheese plate for everyone to share. Julep’s pimiento cheese and house-made crackers are divine, and I can never turn down their fried green tomatoes. Josie and Tara both had the pork porterhouse with spoon bread, and Annie and Eric both got the grilled pork shank over white cheddar grits. I had one of the specials, seared scallops with some type of wilted greens. It was an excellent meal, and I’m glad Eric chose it as our meeting place. You can never go wrong with upscale southern cuisine. Eric left before us to go home and pack a bag for me so that I could stay at the hotel with the girls for the weekend. We stayed up way too late talking Friday night. Saturday morning, we had brunch and the baby shower at Lulu’s. The girls all ordered shrimp and grits, but I opted for the biscuit and gravy. I could barely eat because I was pretty much in disbelief that they had planned all of this to celebrate Baby C, and it was all I could do not to cry at the restaurant. I should mention that while we were out, Eric was busy at home putting the final touches on the baby’s dresser and cleaning up the disaster I had left in the kitchen from making cake the day before. Yeah, he’s awesome.

We spent the rest of the day perusing Penzey’s and For the Love of Chocolate. Four food bloggers in a chocolate shop is certainly a site to see. The girls were snapping cell phone pictures (something I would’ve been doing except for the fact that it was very crowded, making it hard for this very pregnant lady to maneuver). All of us were wide-eyed as we looked at different chocolates, candies, and all the flavors of truffles and fudge in the case. When we got back to the hotel, Richmond got its first snow of the season. It was like a fairytale for me. We then drove to my house and looked at cookbooks until we decided what to make for dinner. After a coffee and grocery run, we came back and made this fab pimiento cheese dip and a hearty chicken pot pie with a genius biscuit crumble topping from The Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook. We all worked on different tasks, and there was no feeling of “too many cooks in the kitchen.” Being able to cook a meal with the girls was such an amazing, almost surreal, experience. After dinner, we attempted to make a Nutella pound cake that turned out to be a massive fail. The inside was so undercooked that when we turned it out of the pan, my fingers got burned when they pressed through the cooked outer layer and into the hot batter. It was not a pretty sight, and it’s never good to feel like you’ve wasted ingredients, especially when one of those ingredients is an entire jar of Nutella. What are the chances that four food bloggers mess up a pound cake?! Upon reading reviews of the recipe, we found several others had the same problem. Thankfully, I still had a few slices of Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake in the refrigerator, so we didn’t have to go without dessert. We stayed up talking until almost 4am and then went back to the hotel.

We got up way too early the next morning, and I was so sad to see everyone go. Tara drove all the way here from Connecticut and needed to hit the road. Josie and Annie had a plane to catch, so Eric and I dropped them off at the airport. I know I said goodbye too quickly, but only because I was barely holding it together at that point. I started crying as soon as we drove away. That weekend will go down as one of the best ones I’ve ever had. I’m still just stunned at the love and generosity of my friends, and I don’t even feel special enough to have received it. We moved away from Alabama four and a half years ago, and the only family members that have come to visit us in that time are my sister, brother in law, niece and nephew. The fact that I mean so much to these friends that they would travel here to see me and then throw a baby shower on top of that means the world to me. I know like anything I say will sound empty when compared with how I feel. I’m incredibly lucky to have them as friends, and I don’t know what I would do without them.

*All the pictures in this post came from Annie, Josie and Tara. The fact that we only got one decent group shot should tell you how much fun we were having. Also, the fact that I took no pictures when I normally have a camera attached to my eyeball speaks volumes about the type of weekend we had. Sometimes it’s better to savor the moments instead of trying to capture them.