Kevin's 30th Birthday. . .

The Birthday lunch. Herb Roasted Chicken with Red Peppers and Onions. Loaded with garlic. Loaded with lemon pepper spice. Loaded with multiple other spices. Tender. Juicy. I do have to admit, it was one of the best chicken dinners I've ever made. (FYI - the red pepper was cut from the ginormous one I found in Santa Rosa.) We also had salad with Ranch dressing that came in our sea shipment. For supper, most of the Americans came over for pizza. Mollie even brought two new brasilian friends of hers. We ate guacamole (loaded with fresh-pressed garlic and lime juice) and Doritos, chocolate chip cookies. Then we played English Catch Phrase with a German and two Brazilians. That definitely added to the humor of the game.

July 25 just happened to be one of the coldest days of the year. . . and we didn't have electricity for most of the day before or that day! Emma wore her hat for most of the morning and we kept her in her fleece pajamas so she wouldn't freeze. Later in the morning, Kevin caught her holding an empty cup of coffee. We think she was trying to warm her hands on it, much like her parents do when they are freeeezing!!

I found this massive red pepper and two giant avocados at Nacional, the WalMart-like store about 45 minutes away. We ate lots of guacamole that weekend!! Rocket's Cafe and Bar opened recently and their food and service are amazing! Kevin had a burger and fries and I ate something that resembled chicken enchiladas. We also drank fresh fruit smoothies. Mmm.

I numbered each gift and we had fun opening each one.

30 Gifts for the 30-year old man!!!

Well, July 25th has come and gone. My husband is 30 years old, or as they say here, he has 30 years. Kevin had been in Porte Alegre during the week, so I had lots of time to plan and shop, without having to be very secretive. I wanted to do something really special for him, something big, but I knew I'd have to be creative. The thought of having a huge surprise party for him was a little overwhelming so I decided to have a small pizza party. I started thinking of gifts that I had already purchased in the States, and then I remembered a few things that he said he wanted here. The list of gifts was growing. Then I thought, What if I could give him 30 gifts on his 30th birthday?? One night, after Emma went to bed, I started the list of 30 things. It really was a lot of fun. One thing I've always tried to do for Kevin's birthday is love him by not spending a ton of money on everything, so I thought of several gifts that wouldn't cost a cent. Several of his gifts included lists of 30 things. . . for example, 30 Things I Love About You, 30 Places We've Been Together, 30 of My Favorite Memories With You, 30 Verses for Your Life, 30 Things I'm Looking Forward to With You, and a few other lists. Back in February I was in Manhattan and bought him a K-State sweatshirt and long-sleeve T-shirt. I successfully hid those gifts from him for almost 5 months!! One gift included hacking into his personal email to let everyone know it was his birthday. He had so much fun opening his emails that weekend! Thanks to all who responded! Another gift was cards from friends and family in the States. Several people from work and church sent cards via Jen (thanks Jen!), and he had many laughs opening those cards. I bought him a few items that are native to this area, like serving dishes for churassco and then a caipirinha set. The thought crossed my mind this week. . . It really is more blessed to give than to receive. Kevin had lots of fun opening gifts and reading notes, but I had tons of fun getting it together and watching his smiles, hearing his laughs, and knowing that he was feeling loved. He had a great day. I had a great day. Emma had fun telling him Happy Birthday over and over. One of the things I'm looking forward to with Kevin is growing older with him. . . loving him more deeply, being loved more deeply. . . knowing him more, being known by him more. . . getting gray hair together. . . watching our hands age as we hold them through the good times and the bad. . . laughing and loving and living and praying and crying and all the -ing things, good and bad. My husband is amazing. Absolutely amazing. Now he's 30 and amazing. Happy 30th Kevin.