dads surprise 50th birthday down south

So I ended up having a great trip in San Fran and had 24 hours in between the red eye flight that brought me to back to Canadian soil, and the morning flight that flew us to Jacksonville, Florida.

My dad lives in Ponte Vedra Beach/Sawgrass, Florida. It is a beautiful town and my sisters and I (And our boyfriends and friends!) love going to visit. This time was no exception. My step mom planned a huge surprise 50th birthday for my dad and I am not kidding when I say HUGE. She sent out the invitations around Christmas time and rented out a beautiful patio of a restaurant called the Aqua Grill, surrounded by a small inter coastal.

Long story short, I cannot believe we pulled off the surprise, but we did. My step mom, Kim, did such a great job organizing everything - it was so much work and it is VERY hard to keep a secret from my dad!!! Around 80 people ended up attending and people flew in from all over North America for the party, so needless to say it was such a reunion!

I'll start with Friday. My youngest sister Shane, her boyfriend John and my boyfriend, Ian and myself, all flew to Florida. My other younger sister Bridget and her boyfriend Spencer were flying in later that night. We arrived at the airport and my step mom managed to sneak away from my dad, saying she was going to pick up our stepbrother Trevor and came to get us at the airport. She drove us to our hotel so we could check in and it was such a beautiful hotel. We stayed at the Sawgrass Marriott, and our villa was overlooking the Sawgrass Golf course, where they play the TPC every year. We shared a room with Shane and John, just because it was easier that way. Our room was beautiful!! Then we went and picked up my stepbrother Trevor from his friends house and Kim took us to see the rest of our family, who were staying at a Marriott in Jax Beach, overlooking the ocean.

It's always wild times hanging out with my family. My dad has 5 brothers and sisters, so there are 6 of them altogether and they are a riot! Only two of them couldn't make it, so it was a great time hanging out with my aunts, uncles and cousins. we ordered tons of Chinese, pizza and Greek salad, and sipped on wine and beer.

That night I couldn't sleep, so when Bridget and Spencer arrived around 1:00am, I crept out of my room and into their room to chat for a bit! I didn't get much sleep that night, as I fell asleep around 5.

We woke up the next day, and were quite groggy. We showed and Bridget and Spence came over, having already gone out for breaky and done a little exploring. The six of us decided to explore the hotel a bit together and take advantage of the free mimosas given out in the hotel lobby.

We walked through the grounds on our way to the main building and lobby and were quite pleased with our surroundings. Bridges, ponds, and two pools were evident, and when we looked a little closer the hot tubs caught our eye. The one hot tub, which we later explored, was buried a bit deeper and was surrounded by plants and ponds. It was awesome.

We headed to Publix, one of the main grocery stores in Florida and i started to rain. We stocked up on wine, beer, danishes, snacks, deli meat and sub ingredients and headed back to the hotel to lounge, listen to some tunes, hit up the hot tub and pool and catch up. Bridget's friend from boarding school even came to visit for a bit.

6:00 came quicker than we anticipated and we called the shuttle (us girls were in heels and dresses, so we didn't want to walk!) and arrived at the party. It was so exciting to wait for my dad and Kim to show up-- we had no idea what his reaction was going to be! A group of my dads friends from high school, university and beyond, were guessing how long it would take for him to swear. Needless to say, it didn't take long.

The patio kind of curved around, and we all went to the side. My dad and Kim were walking in and my dad kind of did a double take, and didn't realize it at first, then he looked at Kim and looked back at the crowd and was in SHOCK. It was a good thing he had his shades on because he most definitely shed a tear or two. He went to the first group of kids that were closest and just started hugging everyone. He went up to my cousins and started trying to ask them about work, but was so flustered and shocked, he just said "I don't know what the h*ll I am saying." He put his friend Paul, since he has known since he was 4, into a headlock because Paul had called him earlier that day and said he was golfing in Toronto. Well, he wasn't completely lying- he and the guys rented a house down the street from my dad and were golfing together- just in Florida! He was so happy my sisters and I made it too, along with friends from all over the map, not to mention family members.

I just can't believe the surprise was pulled off! It was so amazing!

There was a band, an awesome buffet, an open bar, a massive cake with a hockey game set up on top, and laughter n every corner. M step mom created a massive picture of pictures that everyone had sent in to her, and people all signed the border of it. There was a slideshow on the bar on a digital frame of old pictures, and on each table there was a bouquet of flowers and various old pictures of my dad sticking out with black and white checkered ribbon and party favours. So cute! So thoughtful! So much detail!

We had such a great time and were the last ones to leave at midnight, and Bridget, Spencer, Ian and me went back to the villas and lifted a table from our balcony to theirs and played drinking games with cards until who knows what time.

I cannot even begin to explain my hangover today, and it is too painful to think about, so I am not going to.

We woke up, checked out and Kim picked us up and took us back to their house for brunch. My step mom had hidden all the food at a friends down the street and there was SO much of it. My dads friends that rented the house down the street came over before their flights and ate and of coarse my dad was making eggs with is 'fresh basil from the garden.' The food looked and smelled wonderful, but unfortunately, I spent an house before my flight lying in Trevor's bed, not able to move. I think the rest of my family came over later, after we left for food too. Kim did such an outstanding job, and my dad was as happy as a clam. It was great.

So here I am back in Fort Erie. My great grandmother on my moms side passed away at 96 years old on Friday, so we are attending the funeral tomorrow. Shane and John are still in Florida. (Oh, and I walked by LL Cool J in the Atlanta airport and barely knew it!) My mom, Ian and I ordered Chinese and ate at my nannies and Ian and I reminisced about the trip. It was short, and definitely sweet. Family and friends are the most important thing we have in this life, and it is times like this that we can sit back and take it all in. My dad is definitely surrounded by loyal, loving and wonderful people, and that shows what a special guy my dad is too.

Until next time...