Yesterday Today: A Very Sweet 16

Miranda's Sweet 16 came on January 18th. Evelyn had a surprise party for her on Spirit Cruise Line, inviting 10 of her closest friends. There was a lot going on just prior to this special day.

Besides living with the "surprisee"...Evelyn was also dealing with working full time, Mark being away in London for almost 3 weeks and getting Xavier ready to move to California at the end of the month. Just thinking about all she had on her plate makes me feel exhausted!

I offered to help - (with Nikki's wedding and Xmas behind me) - I had plenty of time on my hands. She was spending a pretty penny on this party and didn't want to go overboard (pun intended) with the favors. I felt my creative juices stirred up and jumped up and down shouting - "me..me...me" - to be given the task of taking care of the favors! I am so happy she handed those reins to me. I was in 7th heaven!

When Nikki had her Sweet 16 (14 years ago) - we had personalized candy wrappers made up. Foula, a graphic designer located in the office below mine at the time, was kind enough to design & print both the invitations and corresponding wrappers. Nikki & I just cut them up and "wrapped" them. I was able to design and print Miranda's on my own equipment. Evelyn only asked for a NYC theme and I was off to the races. I was thrilled that she liked the one design I "submitted". There were many proto-types and much tweaking before I settled on the final cut. Then it was onto my next favorite thing. The hunt for a bargain! The Hershey candy bars! I was amazed that a single candy bar could cost as much as $1.50! Whaaat??? I wanted to make enough for all the guests...16 of them and spending $24 on just candy bars went against my grain! I was finally able to get them for just under $10 which was pretty good! I was even able to include extra candy in the form of "coins" and miniature bars of Snickers, Mars & Milky Way...with their mini personalized wrappers. Oh yeah...I was on a roll!

I saved Evelyn a trip and went to Spirit and picked up the tickets beforehand. I was also the person who would be meeting up with Miranda's guests to lead them on board. I had never met them but thanks to Facebook, was able to recognized a few of her BFF's. It was helpful to have Nikki with me to assist. Everyone was SO GOOD because they were on time! Whew!

Miranda didn't have a clue until she arrived at the pier and then she "knew". But there were still a lot of unknowns and so it was with a cautious demeanor as she appeared in the room. When she finally turned to greet her friends, her face was filled with glee and excitement. Everyone was hooting and hollering and smiling ear to ear. What a sight to behold!

Happy Birthday, Sweet Miranda!