Showered With Surprises

Just this past Sunday, I was surprised with a baby shower for our little boy. Now, you may be thinking that it's odd for someone to receive a baby shower at just 5 1/2 months, but this was the only time David and I would be in Missouri before our son is born. (We don't get to visit very often.) Despite knowing this was the only time we'd be here until then, I still did not expect anything. Everyone, including David, did a great job of keeping this a secret.
Just two weeks ago I was literally crying to David about how I didn't think I would be getting a baby shower. Now, this had nothing to do with gifts and everything to do with thinking I wasn't going to get to enjoy the "experience" of a baby shower. The gifts are nice, but it's just like your wedding showers - it's part of the wedding experience and celebrating a momentous occasion with family and friends. To get to the point, I just planned on not having this experience. David and I were spending the 4th of July weekend at his mom and dad's cabin and wouldn't get into Mexico until later Sunday afternoon. We are leaving on Friday, so I figured there wouldn't be a shower since we weren't really here on a weekend and it's difficult for people to get away during the week.
Well Sunday morning David's parents started talking about how Nancy (David's mom) and I could head out early afternoon and maybe do some shopping, and David could stay around with his dad and help out in the yard and do some fishing. I went up to David and told him I wanted him to come with me and go to my parents' house. I was finally convinced to do otherwise. Nancy and I headed out and by 1:45 or so I told her I was getting really hungry so we stopped at Chipotle in Jeff City. I was starving, so I'm pretty much wolfing down my meal. Meanwhile, Nancy takes a few bites, goes to "use the bathroom" (actually making a phone call to remind someone to call her in 5-10 minutes), and then comes back saying how filling Chipotle is and she'll save the rest for later. We headed to Target and Nancy receives her phone call. I hear her saying, "It's okay", "No, I can come in". She gets off the phone and tells me Dr. Burke called her and some twins are being born prematurely so they need her assistance as well. I tell Nancy, "No problem. We'll just turn around and head to Mexico." Nancy did a great job of going along with this story. I started asking her all about the twins and saying how it would've been nice to go shopping, but of course this is a priority; I just hope things go well. Then I asked if I should drop her off at the hospital. She says to drop her off at the house and she'll get the car. This makes sense to me b/c otherwise someone would have to pick her up from the hospital later.
So, we pull into the driveway and Nancy tells me to park in front of the house. I needed to use the bathroom (I was just playing perfectly into the plan), and Nancy said that was great because she wanted to give me my birthday gift early. We walk in and she tells me it's in the living room. I turn the corner and there are David's aunts and grandma and my mom and grandma and family shouting, "Surprise!" I started smiling, then crying and just felt overwhelmed. My mom looked at me and told me I looked beautiful. I think she was jaded by my pregnant belly. Since I knew nothing about this, I was wearing khaki shorts and a gray t-shirt. I told everyone I felt like I needed to change.
It was such a wonderful shower. We went downstairs and there were decorations everywhere, food, a beautiful cake, games... I still can't believe this was all for me. Everyone wanted to know how I was feeling and asking all about the baby. Then we went upstairs and opened gifts. I felt like there should've been at least twice the number of people there with all the gifts we received. Our son will not be lacking in anything. Everyone was so generous. He received a bib set and one of the bibs said, "Grandma doesn't say 'no' ". Apparently, no one will be able to tell him "no". He will be the first grandchild on either side of the family. While we received many nice gifts, I think I was a bit partial to my mother's gifts. She gave me a hand-knitted yellow sweater that both of my brothers and I all wore, a bunting I wore, and a blanket and sleeper that my younger brother wore. We all laughed at the sleeper that Stephen apparently wore because he was such a big baby and this outfit seemed like he could've worn it for a day before he was too big for it.
I will post some pictures once people send them my way. Of course I didn't know to have my camera. What a wonderful surprise! So that happened...