The Big 4-0, and an Oddly Large Amount of Unicorns.

I turned 40 this Friday, and it was quite a weekend. 

But first, I had to learn how to golf. Unrelated, but in retrospect kind of a funny pairing.

I didn't want to embarrass myself at the Law Day Golf Tournament, so Seth found an awesome family-run driving range Tuesday night and we all headed out to work on our swings. 

(Fine, mostly Finley played in the sand, but a good time was had by all)-

until I swung anyway after Seth warned me not to with his long-handled and wildly expensive custom driver under the (metal) sunshade, and this happened.

Luckily he has a tremendous sense of humor (and far less financial conservatism than his wife), and he forgave me in time to be a last-minute fourth at the tournament the next day. We did not win by any wild stretch of the imagination, but we golfed with my boss and I did not get fired, so I consider that a success. Plus, it was practically a day date, sharing a golf cart and splitting lukewarm Bud Lights and cursing at divots together.

We switched back to something we're slightly better at the next day, though, and resumed after school soccer practice. Finley sported unicorn accessories, Ford showed off his sportsmanship, and Dad-kid drills looked like this. So, pretty much the cutest thing ever.

And then, having kind of snuck up on me, it was the big day. It started with "Mom, I pooped"; included cleaning the entire house, having to drag 50 pounds worth of kids on my morning run in a  stroller they've definitely outgrown, and folding three loads of laundry; and then, because Seth Nieman is the best husband ever, the limo showed up.

Finley + Ford were beside themselves, and so were we, watching them dance and pretend (?) to sip champagne.

It's been a rough year or so for Team Nieman and I hadn't been feeling particularly celebratory, but Seth put together the sweetest, most thoughtful surprise party, at one of my favorite places with many of my favorite people

from all the different moves and deployments and jobs and stages of my life. It couldn't have been more special, or made 40 feel more like a gift.

(Even if, from looking at the pictures, you'd be pretty sure it was Finley's party. Hilariously, the next day she told us "Mom, I thought your party would be lame, but it was the best night ever.")

Ford also had a good time, although he's a second kid so significantly less photographed; and partied until he- literally- fell asleep in the limo.

And we finished off the night in matching unicorn onesies.

As one does.

As if all of that weren't enough to make a gal feel insanely lucky and loved, Seth came up with the birthday present of a lifetime: my very own RV, which I had been secretly (fine, maybe not so secretly) coveting for years.

Milestone birthday and Mother's Day all in one weekend is a lot, but Seth rose to the challenge and took his wife and his Mom to our perfect place for Mother's Day "brunch," Dirtbag Ales Farmer's Market, where we drank craft beer,

threw axes,

and did Mother's Day right, in low key Nieman style.

Oh, and Finley got attacked by fire ants. And Ford bought himself a half gallon of chocolate milk, with money he literally pickpocketed from me. You know, all the best stuff.

We capped off the weekend with the maiden voyage of the new camper, just down the road at Smith Lake, where we learned the seriously complicated ins and outs of RV usage and the kids had a blast with "their" new camper.

Too many great photos from the weekend of a lifetime to pick a favorite, but I am beyond grateful: to my friends who rearranged schedules to be there and make the occasion special, to Jayne for making the trip out to surprise me and never complaining about being assigned the worst camping and bedtime jobs, to F+F for making absolutely everything at least 1000 times more fun, and to Seth, for loving big and gifting bigger. (And for bending over backwards to make 40 special.) I am lucky indeed.