Kyle's 24!!

We had a great time celebrating Kyle's 24th birthday - Dominica style! His birthday is July 14th, and it just happened to fall on the day after we got back from San Juan. I was so caught up in thinking about the Step that I neglected planning for his big day! I had some ideas, but at about 10pm the night before, I decided I was going to plan a dinner and invite our friends to celebrate!

I know, I'm crazy. But I woke up early the next day and went to all three grocery stores, as well as the shacks to get fruits and veggies. As I started preparing the food, I was a little impressed at how smoothly things were going. And of course that never lasts long...

Kyle had classes that day and wouldn't be home until 5:30, so I had plenty of time to get everything together before he got home so I could surprise him. Well, the surprise was on me because he sent me a text message saying they finished early and he would be home around 3! Ashley just stopped by, and I had just started to make icing to decorate his cake. And to top it all off, the kitchen was a disaster area! So we came up with the solution to clean up and move everything to Ashley's house.... well, we were so flustered, we forgot that it would make a little more sense to move just 3 doors down to Katy's apartment. So Ashley and Katy began work on the cake as I quickly cleaned up the evidence of any surprise dinner party so Kyle wouldn't see!

The next few hours were a big blur! I can't stop thanking Ashley and Katy for all their help - I don't think there would have been a dinner without them! Ashley hurried home to get ready, and also make pasta salad and corn on the cob. I finished the cake and put together chicken skewers with veggies, and Katy grilled them while I took a shower. All the while, Kyle was just a few doors down with no clue what was going on!

I planned to have the dinner on a deck on campus that is right by the sea. So once we had everything prepared, Ashley & Ryan came and we loaded up the car. I don't even know how many bags we ended up having!! But somehow it all fit and we got it all safely to the deck. We frantically set up, as 6:30 kept creeping closer. With Ashley making the finishing touches, and Chris, Katy, and Ryan on their way, I left to meet Kyle.

I met Kyle at the front gates, and he had no idea where we were going. We walked along the beach, and finally came to where the deck is. He got a little suspicious when he started hearing whispers, but everyone popped out and yelled, "Surprise!!"

Surprise!!

The menu was comprised of some of Kyle's favorite foods. To start off we had deviled eggs, veggies & dip, and pasta salad. Then we had sweet honey & Italian chicken skewers with veggies, and corn on the cob. For dessert we had Kyle's mom's infamous fruit salad and also the Cubs birthday cake! I also was able to make little favor bags to go along with the Cubs theme - they has Cracker Jacks and Wrigley's gum in them!

Kyle was impressed that all the dinner plans happened without him knowing! (And I was just thankful we were able to pull it off!) Dinner was great, and it was fun to be able to spend the night with friends, with the sunset and water as our backdrop!

The whole gang: Ashley, me & Katy. Ryan, the birthday boy & Chris

Kyle & his Cubs Cake! Even though he's 24, he's not too old for a baseball-themed party!

Go Cubs Go!!