Monday, April 30, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 18

Once again, Alvin is away, so the next few days he is getting things that I am taking pictures of to send to him! Today's gift was this nifty light that plugs into the USB port on your laptop. This way, when Alvin is working into the wee hours of the night, he can do so in bed without disturbing me.

Here's what it looks like...

Sunday, April 29, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 17

What could be better than breakfast in bed? How about breakfast at the table...? I was planning to make a yummy English style breakfast (complete with back bacon) and serve it to Alvin in bed. But, after letting him get some much needed sleep, he jumped up, got dressed and came downstairs. It seemed weird to make him go back upstairs, so he enjoyed his meal with the family.

Saturday, April 28, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 16

Today's surprise is a night out on the town with me! Alvin will get to choose what he wants to do. His choices are: 1. a movie; 2. bowling; 3. a fondue dinner. #3 sounds great to me, but we never do #1 or #2, so either of those would be a nice change.

Okay, so our evening plans were thrwarted by Oliver's illness. He is doing much better, but we couldn't see leaving him with a babysitter when he was not well.

Here's the little guy having a snooze with Daddy.

Friday, April 27, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 15

Alvin was treated to a nice dinner tonight by our friends Rhonda and Barry. We've had some beautiful weather and the Dalys were nice enough to cook up some delicious burgers for us. We had a few cocktails out on their porch and enjoyed the evening. Only downside is that Oliver seems to have come down with the flu...I had to go home early to take care of him.

Thursday, April 26, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 14

Alvin might be famous! His surprise of the day is a weekend gallery show of his photography at Jamie's store/gallery ParkLife. What this really means is that I have to let him out of the house a lot so that he can try to get some new material for his big "exhibition."

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 13

Alvin is officially a member at another Chapel Hill hot spot. Okay, it's not really a hot spot, but you do need a membership at North Carolina bars (anywhere that does not serve food). His gift today was a membership at the Local 506.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 12

Today, Alvin received a certificate good for a shave. He will be going to a local "old-school" barber shop in Carrboro this weekend for a shave and a hair cut. Yes, he has a few left that can use a trim.

Monday, April 23, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 11

Alvin is traveling this week (what a surprise...), so it was a lot harder to come up with things to give him while he was away. Today he received a certificate from Ava and Oliver good for a hand car wash (I'll probably have to help, as well!). I wish I'd had a chance to scribble "wash me" in his back window and get a picture, but the car is parked at the airport!

Sunday, April 22, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 10

Tonight Alvin received "a toast." Are you sensing a theme here...?

We had a great time at the farm tour and came home and BBQ'd with Dave and Tzaddi (it was the perfect weather for it). We opened up a nice Italian "bubbly" I bought for Alvin and had a toast to his birthday.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 9

Today's surprise was dinner at one of the best local restaurants -- Magnolia Grill. Alvin was a bit irritated that I didn't tell him where we were going -- there are very few opportunities for us to dress up and even though I told him to look "smart," he would have liked to have worn a fancier shirt. Yes, high maintenance! We had a great time.

Here's a shot of Alvin looking sour about his shirt choice...

Friday, April 20, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 8

Well, I managed to pull off the best surprise to date. This morning's card said that Alvin would receive a "treat from faraway lands" after dinner. What this actually meant is that I had to rush off to the airport to pick up our friends Dave & Tzaddi who flew in from San Francisco. I assumed that Alvin figured his "treat" was some kind of dessert. So, after the kids had their dinner, I sent them and Alvin outside. I finished tidying the house and then announced that I would be going out for his treat. An hour later I returned with guests -- although I did drop them off in the driveway so they could ring the doorbell. Let's just say that Alvin was extremely surprised when he opened the door!

Here's the proof...

Thursday, April 19, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 7

Alvin's gift of the day was a certificate good for one lawn mowing service -- not by me, but by a local kid who does lawns. At first he thought I was planning to hire someone for the entire summer, but if you've seen our lawn, you'd know that could get expensive. So, for now, he gets a week off from lawn duty!

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 6

Today's surprise was a hint at what we are up to this weekend -- the Farm Tour. Check back for photos, but we will be visiting some local farms and hope to get up close to some baby animals, buy some fresh produce and maybe have a nice lunch.

Fun times at the farm tour (Oliver's dream car is in the background)...

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 5

A relaxing evening was in store for Alvin tonight! At least that's what was promised. Upon his return from work, he was greeted with a bubble bath, candles, magazines and a manhattan. I think he enjoyed it! I even locked the door to the bedroom so the kids couldn't disturb his "peace."

Make sure those bubbles are strategically placed!

Monday, April 16, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 4

Well, today's surprise did not turn out exactly as planned -- but probably for the better. Alvin received a basket of "British" food items this morning. I had a dinner out with friends and I planned to make him "beans on toast" -- yes, more toast! Trust me that this was a treat for him. As it turns out, bad weather kept Paul and Mandy here an extra day, so they ended up all going out to dinner with the kids while I kept the plans I had. Guess, the Heinz beans will be eaten another time...

Sunday, April 15, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 3

Alvin's gift today came from our friends (and current house guests) Paul and Mandy. They brought him a very cool pen. We also went out last night for dinner followed by cocktails at a new Carrboro hot spot.

Alvin, Paul and Mandy on our couch.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 2

Today's surprise was a picnic and a walk along the Occoneechee Speedway Trail. This is a trail that now surrounds what was one of the first NASCAR tracks in the country (built in 1949 and in use until the '60s). We did a bit of walking and then stopped on the old bleachers for a picnic lunch. We were with Paul and Mandy, our Scottish friends visiting from England.

Here's a picture of the family...

Friday, April 13, 2007

40 Days of Surprises . . . Day 1

As you may know (probably how you got here), Alvin had his "name on toast." I thought it was a great way to send people to this site who may want to catch up on the birthday festivities. This is the first of 40 days of birthday surprises. Don't forget to wish him a happy birthday (although you may want to wait until his actual birthday -- May 22nd).

Here is a shot of Alvin's first glimpse of his toast!