We took a leisurely swim in our hotel pool in the morning of our last day of vacation. After checking out of the hotel, we started driving home to St. Louis. During the drive our van occasionally started making a loud noise as we speed up. I had a pretty good idea what the noise was, but it was annoying. More importantly, loud noises generally upset Danelle and give her a headache. However, she didn’t complain when I went fast. As she wasn’t complaining, I started going faster with traffic. She noticed the sound but said not to worry about it. I was so pleased that I could go as fast as I wanted, that I didn’t think twice about the fact that she wasn’t complaining.
When we finally got home, I pulled the van far back into the driveway. The first thing I noticed was that the back door of the house was ajar. I immediately was pissed at my mother in law for leaving it open as she was looking after the house while we were gone. I seriously considered firing up my motorcycle and going for a ride to clear my head. Somehow, I kept it together and decided it was best to just unpack the van and let it go. I had been on the go since the previous weekend and had not really caught up on sleep. I was looking forward to a simple night where I could sit on the couch and do nothing. But first, I needed to enjoy the benefits of my own personal throne…
As I entered the house, I was caught off guard by a large “SURPRISE!”.
Danelle, Steve, and Jackie had planned a late surprise birthday party for me. All of the driving fast was allowed so I would get back to the house on time for all of the guests. I was shocked to see friends from all aspects of my life at my house to wish me a happy birthday. Knowing me so well, the party had no gifts, people were just to bring their favorite pizza, making it one large pizza party!
There was even a cookie decorated to look like a pizza.
A heartfelt thanks goes out to all of my friends that made the surprise party. I was told more than once that I was the only person known that could put up with a surprise party after a long trip and drive home. I don’t know how anybody couldn’t be happy when they are surrounded by that many friends!
Hogan