Pre-Birthday Gift

So tomorrow is my birthday -- the big 3-0! Now while this birthday is one of those "biggies," it really doesn't matter how old I am turning, I always like to celebrate my birthday in some special way. Well this year, I told my DH that I didn't want any thing. Instead, I wanted to go on a vacation! It didn't matter how big or small, as long as we did something out of the ordinary, I'd be happy. I dropped not-so-subtle hints to him all year about it, but he just kept saying, "No, we have to save $$ for the basement... We have to save $$ for a sprinkler system... I am too busy at work..." and on and on. For the longest time I thought he was just fooling with me... and then I started to wonder... and then I started to get worried. I would be so sad if we couldn't get away for even a long 3 or 4 day weekend! Well, just a few days ago, my DH put my worries aside. He told that I will definitely have a big surprise on my birthday and that I would need a few things for the surprise: a few swimsuits, a pair of hiking shoes, and plenty of shorts/t-shirts. He revealed that yes, we ARE going on a vacay... for 11 days! WHOA! This is way bigger than I had even hoped for! He won't tell me where we are going until tomorrow (my actual b-day,) but he at least wanted to give me time to prepare. We leave for our surprise destination Sunday morning. Woo hoo! I am so excited.

One thing my DH also told me to bring is a formal dress... "just in case". Well, I have a perfect little brown and white dress I've been waiting to wear. This is the perfect occasion! One problem though... I didn't have nice shoes to wear with it. Must go shopping! So today, I hit a few stores in search of the swimsuits and such and just happened to wander through the shoe department as well. Just as I was perusing the sandals, my eyes fell upon the most beauteous pair of shoes I have seen in a long time. "Oh, those MUST be uncomfortable," I said, trying to give myself a reason not to buy them. I put them on and must to my surprise, they WERE super comfy! Uh oh... harder to resist! Just as I was modeling the shoes in a mirror, a lady came over and said, "Oh my, those shoes are so cute! You could wear them with just about anything..." She went on and on. That was all I needed! Those babies went right into my cart. Now I don't normally get all giddy over shoes and I certainly don't usually spend a lot of $$ on shoes either, but these I could not resist. So without further ado, here is a gift to me, from me!

Now tell me those aren't super cute! I say that these are totally worth the $$ since (a) they are super cute, (b) I need them for our vacation since they will likely go well with my dress AND (c) I can definitely wear them for work! See, case closed! Even my DH liked them... now that says something!

So my birthday hasn't even arrived yet and I am already showered with gifts! So far, 30 is looking good!