Kyle and Heather's 30th Birthday

Last month was Kyle and Heather's 30th birthday! As a brand-new wife, I felt that it was important that I not drop the ball on such an important milestone. Also, parties are way more fun when you're married, so any excuse to throw one is great!

I was so excited to plan something memorable for Heather (Kyle's twin sister) and Kyle, that Adam (Heather's husband) and I began talking back in early February about what we should plan for them. We ended up planning (ok, it was mostly Adam...he has amazingggggg connections) a progressive evening for the twins, culminating in a surprise party filled with family and friends.

Heather and Kyle thought they were going out to dinner with Adam and I. Little did they know...

First, I surprised Heather by showing up at her house prior to her "leaving for dinner". She was given a pink crown and "30th Birthday" button to wear. We loaded her into the van, and told her we were off to kidnap Kyle. Heather asks a lot of questions, so we had to instate a "no questions" rule.

Next, we arrived at UpTime (Kyle's office), and I surprised Kyle with a sash and a button of his own to wear. Adam then presented Heather and Kyle with a basket of food, much like the popular food show Chopped. They had to open the basket and, based on the items inside, try to guess what the evening entailed. After that, they got their first clue, and the added surprise that Zeke and Bekah would be joining us for the evening!

Stop #1: Firefly Kitchen

Outside Firefly Kitchen, the first stop on the tour

Firefly kitchen is a local fermentation business that makes really yummy kimchi, kraut, etc. This was, of course, one of Adam's connections (I don't know anyone cool).

Getting a tour of the kitchen.

Fermenting in process!

Free samples - awesome!

Kyle and Heather also got free reusable totes. Score!

Opening their next clue...

Stop 2: Domanico Cellars
Next we drove about 3 yards east of Firefly Kitchen for a wine tasting at Domanico Cellars (another wonderful connection of Adam's).

Stop 3: Dinner at Tulio with Kyle and Heather's parents!
After a quick wardrobe change at the church, the twins opened their next clue that led us to Tulio. They were extremely shocked to walk in and see their parents, Pete and Mary Ann, sitting at our table! Pete and Mary Ann had been at UpTime when we initially surprised the twins and had played it cool, so the twins were very surprised to them at dinner!

Stop 4: Surprise Party!
Pete and Mary Ann gave the twins' final clue to the waiter to put in their dessert menus. Instead of ordering dessert, their final clue instructed them to head to the Roof House (a private area above a local business owned by Kyle's uncle) for dessert with a "few family and friends". They were incredibly surprised when they got upstairs and found dozens of family and friends were there to celebrate with them!

Surprise!!

Kyle's mom Mary Ann and his aunt Cheryl - party planning experts!

Birthday Twins!

All in all, it was a really, really, really great night! Many thanks to all who helped put it together. Happy 30th Birthday to a wonderful husband and incredible sister-in-law!

PS - Big thanks to Mara for taking all the pictures!