Finally the wait is over and I can finally tell you all about the surprise plans that I have had in place for the last few weeks. No these are not to do with a holiday that myself and Mr Warehouse will be going on in less than a fortnight. Nope, these are the wonderful birthday surprises that I have been keeping secrets from Mr Warehouse for the last few months. And with my birthday falling an exact month after Mr Warehouse's, I am sure that the same amount of effort and preparation is going into my presents and surprises as did his.
It all started back in the beginning of the summer when I decided that it would be a lovely idea to celebrate Mr Warehouse's twenty-fifth year on the planet as best way I could buy throwing a surprise party / meal. I soon realised that after looking back on my 25th birthday party that Mr Warehouse would not appreciate being the centre of attention and a huge surprise. As a result it was plain to see that a nice sit down meal with the family and friends he held close would be the best idea. And so, over the coming weeks and months I researched into the different venues and restaurants that would be able to cater for what I needed. After settling on a local restaurant that specialised in Chinese with an all-you-can-eat party menu I was sold.
The fact that they had a function room was even better as the parents of any children being brought along did not have to worry about them disrupting the other customers meals. It would mean that the adults and children alike could have freedom whilst celebrating with good food and even better company. I had the idyllic idea of setting up a colouring station with lots of colouring pages and pencils in one corner of the room in order to keep the children occupied whilst their parents ate. There would be like music in the background and a table for gifts and cards. Alas though this never came to fruition and I shall tell you as to why.
After weeks of getting up just after Mr Warehouse had left for work at around 6am to bake several cakes in order to stack on top of each other in some sort of towering cake and frosting excellency, I failed and instead succumbed to the fact that I am no Mary Berry and decided to just bin it all and opt for a Waitrose "Ready-to-decorate" golden vanilla sponge cake. I will admit that yes I did indeed go to Waitrose on my lunch break and purchase a very plain cake and decorated it myself with chocolate icing and candles, all in the effort to pull off the idyllic birthday cake that I had imagined in my head. Of course though my imagination is a lot better than my ability in making and decorating cakes. Suffice to say that the cake went down better than the cheesecakes also brought for dessert. The guests even question as to whether it was homemade by myself.
But waking on Friday morning to a excited Mr Warehouse, I made myself a cup of coffee and sat down with his birthday presents. Opening the birthday cards that had come in the post first from my Grandma and Nana, Mr Warehouse was delighted that this was the first year he had been given a birthday card by them both. Ripping open his other presents, Mr Warehouse unveiled the secret I had been keeping for the last few weeks and months. A belt, a super-large, fluffy bathrobe in Navy, a bag full of 2-penny coins so that we could go to the seaside and play on the arcades all day long whenever he wanted was just a few of the many gifts I bought him. But I saved the best until last.
After a quick doctors appointment, I rushed over to the venue in order to decorate and drop off the cake and colouring pages. Making excuses to Mr Warehouse as to why I was leaving work late on a Friday, I walked into the venue only to discover that the hefty deposit that I had paid in order to secure the function room was in actual fact redundant and our guests would now be seated downstairs in the normal restaurant area. No colouring station for the kids, no designated area for presents or cards and certainly no display area for my knock-off-Nigel-cake. To say I was angry was an understatement however I did not have enough time to worry about this as I still have to get home get ready and back to the restaurant without Mr Warehouse assuming anything was wrong.
Coming home I talked through my day as normal and explained that I was thoroughly looking forward to our date night. Hoofing Mr Warehouse out of the back door in order to walk the dog before we headed out I quickly called through to my Dad and the restaurant to make sure that the people had all started to arrive. Heading out the door I was shaking with nerves and anxious that Mr Warehouse may find out what my last and final surprise for his birthday may be.
Driving down the road slightly I asked Mr Warehouse to go in my handbag to get me something. Unbeknown to the boyfriend he reached inside and picked out a small wrapped box.
"Happy Birthday!" I exclaimed as I continued round the corner of the residential streets. Shocked and speechless I asked if it was a good present. Mr Warehouse had just opened up one of his last presents, a leather bound wallet with Marvel characters on the outside. Inside however was something even more Marvel-lous! For months all I kept hearing from the boyfriend was the fact that the now infamous Richard Jones who won Britain's Got Talent 2016 performing magic alongside a career in the military, was coming to Bedford in the autumn. I played hard to get and said that I did not know who Richard Jones was, but as Mr Warehouse went into full detail about who he was and what he did, I was secretly looking all the best seats in the house in order to see him live and in action. The money that I have paid for the tickets was certainly worth having Mr Warehouse speechless in the passenger seat of Vivienne.
Still reeling from the surprise that his girlfriend had bought him pretty much front row tickets to the show that he had been looking at for the last six-months or so, I parked the car and we entered the restaurant. Shock again blessed Mr Warehouse's face as he looked around at the friends and family that had joined him to celebrate his birthday. There was maybe an inkling that someone may be up to no good when he noticed some guests walking in late as we approached the venue but other than that he was stunned. Pheeew! Finally I could breathe a sigh of relief, all in the knowledge that everything was over and I did not have to lie or sneak about anymore.
In terms of the meal itself it was OK, however the combining factor that I had paid a lot of money for a deposit and with the promise of a function room only to be then seated with everyone else in the restaurant, plus the annoying factor that the restaurant staff did not even take out orders for another hour and a half totalled to making the experience less than satisfactory for myself. Parents of some of the youngest members of the party had to leave as they were already passed their bedtime and they only had the opportunity to consume the starters. Anyone with all other children older than toddlers were asked to cough-up as despite the children not eating from the menu they were still snacking on Prawn Crackers and tit-bits from their parents plates. The colouring pens and pencils as well as the drawings were only helping the children so much and as the Borden crept in from sitting at a empty table for so long the noise of the restaurant got louder. This was not what I wanted and certainly not something that I have signed up to when I spoke to the restaurant originally to host the event.
However, that being said the food was lovely as always and freshly prepared to order, and all in all I think that everybody had a good time including the birthday boy himself Mr Warehouse. But in no uncertain terms I have been told under no circumstances I am I ever to throw a surprise birthday party or meal again, so ...
'Til next time, Love A.Lou xx
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