Gramma's Happy Birthday

I wonder why she calls us gooney birds. We had so much fun and all the more because we were able to pull it off. Nobody snitched, not even Snutch. We were afraid to surprise her too much for fear that she would have another heart attack. But she didn't.

Tuesday night somebody retrieved Snutch from the ONT airport. Wednesday morning I got Knittery from the SD airport. I dropped her off at a grocery store where Chuggy retrieved her in the middle of school pick-up rounds. I tootled over to pick up Gramma (and Bobby) for our regular Wednesday afternoon quilting session. We quilted away the afternoon, (actually just cut fabric strips). Then Kedge came by after work to take Gramma (and Bobby) home.

Kedge (1) had arranged to take Gramma out to her favorite restaurant for a quiet dinner, just the two of them, on the night before Gramma's birthday. Unbeknownst to Gramma the rest of us watched from a nearby parking lot. We watched them drive in and park and hobble into the restaurant. Gramma's back was really hurting because of the afternoon spent quilting. We gave them time to get seated and settled.

Then Da and I (2) walked in and over to their table. We said we had heard they were coming here and we were hungry, too, could we join them? Sure, let's just move to this adjoining table for four. Okay. We admired a larger table obviously set for a much larger party, all decked out with flowers and ribbons and balloons. But then Ladybug (3) walked in and there just wasn't enough room for her so we told Gramma that that special table was really set up just for her! She painfully, but cheerfully, got up and started to move to the pretty table.
But before she could get up to move to the larger table, Chuggy (4) traipsed in carrying a large basket of flours sent from Snutch. It had all sorts of flours, whole wheat, gold medal, cake, even some corn meal. None of this real flowery stuff, that was too mushy and girly. Gramma was tickled that Snutch remembered her that way and went to the trouble of sending it.

We all found our seats and were getting situated when a heavyset waiter offered to refill Gramma's already full water glass. She politely refused saying that she hadn't had a chance to drink any of it yet. He insisted on topping it off anyway and she looked at him slightly irritated, then turned back to get settled. Then she whipped her head back around to get a better look at this pushy waiter. She did the classic double-take. Yep, she had recognized him. It was her son, Snutch (5), all dressed up as a waiter! He had flown all the way from northern California to be here. (I was enjoying this too much to watch it from behind a camera, sorry.)


That's when the tears started, she was so pleased and over- whelmed.

As we were perusing the menus Kedge's cell phone rang. It was Knittery (6), calling from Canada to wish Gramma a very happy birthday. As Gramma talked to Knittery on the phone, Knittery was walking up behind her and finally just put her arms around Gramma and gave her a hug. Then she hung up the phone. Gramma had all six of her children around her for her 80th birthday dinner.



And she never had a clue!