Last weekend, I hosted a little surprise 40th birthday weekend in Chicago for my husband, Bob...
He was thinking it was just a little fun get away to our old city of Chicago, but I arranged a series of different surprises throughout the weekend...
1) Friday evening dinner at Joe's Crab and Steakhouse with his brother, sister-in-law, and some close friends...
2) Saturday morning brunch (including comfort foods such as omelettes, fruit, cinnamon rolls, fried chicken, mac n cheese, mashed potatoes, and their famous Bloody Mary bar) at his favorite spot, Stanley's Kitchen and Tap with his U of Michigan and St. Louis friends...
3) Saturday pre-dinner drinks at our hotel with his old Arthur Andersen/SPX friends
4) Saturday dinner/party at Mercadito, a fun Mexican restaurant with the addition of Cleveland friends, Atlanta friends, and more local family/friends.
5) Saturday after-dinner at Celtic Crossings, our favorite little neighborhood Irish Bar, the site of our first date, actually!
I attached a few pics from our old stomping grounds and more from the weekend...
I made these 20 x 30 photo collage boards for the party...
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| Our neighbors and friends made this for Bob....hilarious! |
FRI evening...Joe's Crab and Steakhouse
SAT morning...Stanley's Kitchen and Tap
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Bob is happy as can be, enjoying his favorite brunch at Stanley's, esp the Bloody Mary Bar...   |
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| Waitress surprised us w a round of shots... |
SAT evening...Mercadito
SAT evening...Celtic Crossings
My toast to Bob....
First, I would like to thank you all for
coming!
I know it is a TALL order to coordinate
sitters and travel plans to get away for the weekend. We appreciate you all making such a HUGE effort to celebrate
Bob’s birthday with us…
Bob, How can I possibly KEEP
This toast so short and SWEET?
There is just so much to SAY,
As you turn 40 YEARS today!
Family and friends have gathered, from NEAR and from FAR…
To celebrate with you, even the OLD MAN that you are.
They have traveled from Atlanta, Charlotte…
St. Louis, and Michigan…
From Pittsburgh, Chicago, Cleveland and even COPENHAGEN!
It is hard to believe all the memories and
achievements you’ve MADE to this day…
Your hard work, passion, charisma, and
integrity…. have clearly PAVED the
way.
From growing up idolizing, your talented OLDER
brother RICK…
To accepting you’re the only Patterson MAN,
without the name, DICK.
With college friends Bill, Chad, Steve, Jeff,
James & GREG, you certainly had
lots of FUN……
Whether at Mitchell’s or Angelo’s or the
Naked Mile RUN.
From the dingy house on HILL street , with the slanted, creaky FLOORS…
To the tailgates and football games, when only
GREG knew the SCORE.
But college was just an early example, way,
back, WHEN…
Your hard work and dedication, led you to
Arthur ANDERSEN
From endless auditing NIGHTS with Smeltser
and KLEMM…
To the traveling from client to client, and trying
to figure out the E-LAN.
From the late night couch CRASHING with
cousins Les & Heather WOOD…
To our children’s 4th of July
swimming and playing, as long as they possibly COULD.
From your transition to SPX, moving you AGAIN
and AGAIN…
To the pounding and the hounding of SCHWANEKE,
who of course, is now your FRIEND.
From the teasing and the TAUNTING of khaki
wearing Michael TODO,
To the Vanilla Ice KARAOKE of Schwaneke’s
khaki rapper SOLO.
From our early relationship DRAMA, witnessed
by Tom and Elisa LASS…
To later weekends spent with them, laughing
so HARD we wet our PANTS.
And then there are NEWER memories, you have
recently SHARED
With our Rocky River neighbors and friends,
who certainly DO CARE
From block party corn hole MATCHES with Ryan CRANE
To Perch fishing, boating, and tubing, with
ROB LANG
From summer front-porch BEERS, with Russell
and SOLECKI
To the Halloween get togethers, with the Goldbergs
and CLEMENTIS
Your life has truly been an ADVENTURE, a wild
and crazy TRIP
From motorcycles, and Vegas nuptials, to the
older-brother FLIP
From moving to NINE different cities, in the
last decade and a HALF
To having 3 babies in 3 1/2 years, still not BELIEVING
the MATH….
From watching you BECOME, a Dedicated,
Loving, & Caring DAD
Even though our 3 kids SOMETIMES drive us a
little MAD.
Although you are truly BLESSED, with so many
loved ones and MEMORIES…
I
feel like the lucky one, to keep you in MY company.
Though you have a shiny bald HEAD, you can
get CRANKY and STUBBORN too…
I can’t imagine enjoying my LIFE, with anyone
more than YOU.
You are hard-working, thoughtful, FUN, hilarious
and TRUE…
I could not wish for a BETTER husband and
father, to our three little BUCKAROOS!!
So, here is a ‘Happy 40th’ toast
to YOU, Robert Martin Patterson,
We wish you many more HAPPY and HEALTHY years
with MEMORIES that never END….
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