Happy 40th!

My parents' celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary yesterday, but we planned a celebration for them at the same time as my dad's 60th birthday.  We were able to pull off the surprise b/c I told Mom it was Dad's 60th birthday and she participated in the planning.  After she left to get dressed for Dad's party, my brothers and sister-in-law set up the anniversary part of the party.  Notice the cake, yeah that was my first attempt at making a from-scratch cake.  One of my members from the gym used to bake wedding cakes and she helped me with the icing.
I also gathered letters from many of my dad's friends and family members. I had hoped to collect sixty memories, he had over thirty letters that  he opened with Mom after the party.
Our six were unable to attend the party b/c we got a nasty stomach bug the night before the party and we did not want to pass our germs to anymore party goers.  I was so thankful for facetime b/c Mom called us as Dad was pulling into the parking lot and she carried us into the party where she discovered the anniversary cake and we were able to see both surprises. It was a difficult day to the say the least on our end, but was so grateful so many people came together to celebrate my Dad's birthday and my parents' anniversary.