While maybe a few of you knew, due to my excited tweets over the past few weeks, I just arrived home in Cleveland, OH! My plan was to surprise my mom for her 60th birthday, which is today. It went off without a hitch!! Well, except for when my dad almost blew it the other day!! My operation surprise planner himself!! When talking about where to eat for her birthday dinner, he told my mom he checked with the chef at the restaurant to make sure I would have something to eat [GF + veg]! However, somehow he was able to back track and have her believe it was for a trip home I was planning to make this summer. I threw her off more by saying things like, “why would I come out right now when you’re coming next week to Colorado???” and “How could I possibly come home with all the house stuff going on here!!” She bought it!! What she also found out last night is that now she gets to fly back WITH me to Colorado and get two full weeks of mom/daughter time. :) Happiness all around! So here is how things went down last night.

Flight departure: 7:05pm

Flight arrival: 12am [3hrs + 2hr time gain]

Flight delayed due to weather: 8pm

Real flight arrival: 1am + 1hr car ride home – My very kind brother picked me up from the airport!

2AM – Me at the front door, called my mom and obviously woke her up!

me: “HI mom!!!”

mom: “HI…” confused

me: “I just wanted to call and say happy birthday!!”

mom: “oh…okay…thanks” still confused because of how late it was

me: “What are you doing?”

mom: “sleeping…”

me: “Oh, well do you want your first birthday present??”

mom: “umm, okay..” tired + confused

me: “COME TO THE FRONT DOOR”

mom: “WHAT! HUH???”

me: “Come to the front door!!!”

mom: “What??? You’re here?? NO…you can’t be here…HOW could you be here???”

me: “Come to the front door and check!”

mom: “WHAT?? Huh?? No way!! How did you get here???” confused + excited voice

me: RINGING DOORBELL for proof!! Dad has video camera on mom in the bedroom!

mom: “WAIT you’re here??? For real??? Oh SHIT!” drops phone..puts robe on [my mom is not the swearing type! haha]

Mom walks out, dad is video taping!! Lots of gasping ensued!

mom: “ohhhhhhhh my gosh!!!!!!!! How did you do this?? I’m so confused?? You were coming all along?? You really tricked me!! I really believed you weren’t coming since I’m coming next week!”

…and then it went on from there.

There was some squealing from the mom, and some mother/daughter dancing that always happens when I come home. It’s sort of like a waltz/polka and involves funny singing noises.

Then she starts talking about my comforter dilemma!!! Hahahaaha

When she finally went back to the bedroom to go to bed [she’s a speech pathologist and had to get up early for school!] I could hear more squeals of excitement to my dad and her saying “but there’s nothing she can eat…I don’t have any gluten food!” :)

Too cute!!

But mom…you had just what I wanted. Steel cut oats!! I also found quinoa pasta!! :) There were lemons, for my daily lemon water and even some local eggs to mix into the oats. Don’t need much more than that!

I wasn’t sure whether to eat breakfast or lunch because I wasn’t up until noon, EST. I was up last night until 4am trying to fix my blog again. It crashed due to a CPU problem. Again! Fingers crossed that the problem was solved this time!

I went with breakfast….obviously. :)

Pecans are DEElicious!!! It’s been too long since I’ve had them. One of my favorite nuts!

1 egg mixed in, cranberries and a nice big glob of PB!

Feels good to be home!

Do these photos look familiar??? :)

My parents hung some of my Etsy prints in the kitchen!! I just saw them hanging for the first time. Pretty cool!! :)

I couldn’t be more excited to be home for my mom’s birthday and to see the rest of my family. The only thing that would make this better is if Chris was here with me!!! Okay and maybe the crazy dogs. :)

{happy birthday to my mom}

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Thank you.

For all that you do.

All of your support.

All of your love.

All of your advice.

Your hugs. Your phone calls. Your cries. My cries. Our laughs. Our silly kitchen dances. Your pouting every time I leave Ohio. Your thoughtful care packages. Your backwards smiley faces (: Your still not being able to send a text message. ;)

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