Santana Row. Best outdoor mall in the world.
After walking around the mall for a while Billy, Brooke and I went over to my friend’s house because they invited us over for dinner. I walked in and next thing I knew all of my friends were there yelling surprise. I was literally shocked. They are all such good secret keepers.
Don’t know how I ever lived without these girls.
Over the last 6 months as a joke I would always tell Katie (Bangs Friend) things that I wanted for my birthday meal. Each time she made me something amazing I would say… I HAVE to have that for my birthday because I loved it so much. Little did I know she kept a list of them all and made sure that they were at the party and so everybody brought different things.
(She is a little stinker… even though it was her birthday on Friday and my birthday isn’t until Wednesday she refused to let this be a double birthday party….I will get her back).
CAFE RIO PORK SALAD BAR!!!!
My favorite chicken nuggets, caramel corn, lasagna cups.
The best darn homemade crescent rolls you have ever eaten in your life (Billy actually said that was the best thing he has ever eaten… EVER!) Brooke could even tell that they were amazing.
Potato soup with all of the toppings. This is in fact my idea of heaven.
And then the desserts. I don’t even know where to begin with the desserts.
Death by Chocolate
Chocolate cream pie. And since it was for my birthday I was forced to eat both of them and take the leftovers home with me.
The icing on the cake was that they all agreed to play Monopoly with me. Monopoly is my favorite game in the world and the only people I can ever get to play with me are my nieces (my nephew won’t even play with me anymore) so they all spent three hours of their life playing my favorite game with me. It was the perfect night. I was actually feeling really homesick on Friday (I know, really tough life…) and so last night meant the world to me. Love my California family.
Brooke and i totally won. Happy Sunday! I will see you in a few hours for a giveaway that you won’t want to miss.
What a coincidence! We just had a surprise 50th birthday party for my mom last night! Hope you had a good time!
PS Love how Brooke is laying down with the girls!
All that food looks amazing! What a blessing to have such sweet friends!
Oh my stars that is one of the greatest ideas I’ve ever heard and both of those cakes?! It’s good you didn’t pss from from the Death by chocolate cake because that pie looks amazing too. Wow, I’m glad it was so fabulous!
They are turning a lot of malls into outdoor malls down south on the East Coast which I love. Nothing like warmth, sun and shopping. If they turn any into outdoor malls in upstate NY…I won’t go ha ha…
Normally I don’t correct my spelling errors but the pss could have a few vowels put it and I mean pass LOL. Have a great day!
What amazing friends! I hope you had a blast :-) that’s huge for billy to say it was the best thing ever! I think you’re finally wearing off on him! Happy Sunday!
what a great time! I am a bit envious, I have never had a party. I might need to throw one for myself this year.
My friends threw me a surprise party one day and it was really awesome. Granted, it was at a pizza place but it’s the idea of it. All of your foods look AMAZING. Chicken fingers and death by chocolate would be like my dream. All of your friends are practically professional cooks and bakers by now! You certainly know how to pick them well ;)
Think I gained 10 lbs. viewing this post! What a great group of friends!!!!
Your California family is AWESOME!! You must have been stuffed by the end of the night….all of the food looks so amazing. And we have to know a little bit more about those crescent rolls!! Happy Birthday!!
What a wonderful group of friends!! Happy birthday to you Janae!! :)
What an fun surprise! It’s so cool that you’ve made such amazing friends in such a short period of time. That and having family close really helps with a move to a new area! I hope precious Brooke won that Monopoly game :) Oh and that’s what my son has been asking to do for the past couple of years on his birthday-play Monopoly-lol!
That is so sweet :) Your friends sound so thoughtful! Being homesick is hard, especially around holidays and birthdays. I am in Michigan right now till April, been here since January and I am missing home this weekend too. I am so glad you got to spend your birthday in style! But you haven’t shared, how old are you now?! :)
You have such awesome friends!! So sweet.
happy birthday beautiful! you deserve it all! <3
How cute is Brook!!! She looks like she is playing monopoly too!!!!
And the food at your surprise party looks delicious!
Awe that’s awesome! Happy Birthday! The food looks amazing!
Happy Birthday! I love and cherish people who remember and act on the small things we say. such thoughtfulness is a gift to the world!
May your year be just what you need it to be!
What fun! Looks like a great party and super sweet friends. I now want to recreate all of this for dinner.
wow, bangs is an awesome friend! so thoughtful! happy birthday!!
aww you have such fantastic friends! how unbelievably sweet!
As amazing as all of the food is, I’m going to have to say that your friends are even better :)
Happy, happy birthday! What a great surprise for a party!
SO sweet! You have some amazing friends.
And so I was realizing Katie (but she’ll always be Bangs Friends) and I totally share a birthday.
You have the best friends in the world! Such an awesome surprise party!
So I’ve been super jealous of Bangs friend all this time and now I REALLY REALLY want to BE her AND be her friend at the same time (…?) so she can throw me a party, too. I need to put out an ad for a bangs friend of my own!
Wow that’s incredibly sweet of Bangs Friend!! The meal looks amazing :) So thoughtful! You’re very lucky to have such awesome friends.
Aww, you have such amazing friends! Glad you had such a fabulous birthday.
Awe. That is so sweet! The food looks amazing, PLUS we could all use a Brooke to help us win Monopoly :)
How sweet! I’m so glad you had such a great birthday celebration! And wow, all of that food just looks incredible. I’d say your friends did pretty darn good. ;) We live away from family too, so I know how important it is to have good friends out here in Utah that treat us like family. I don’t know what I’d do without them!
Happy birthday!
What an incredible party (and party food!) I love to play Monopoly too but I have no fellow Monopoly-lovers. Sadly it’s no fun solo :( Ah well, I usually lose at Monopoly anyway!
xxx
That was so sweet! Have a great birthday on Wednesday!
Awww YAY! Glad you enjoyed your surprise party. Your CA family is so thoughtful in making a Cafe Rio salad bar! And that cake looks AWESOME!
How fun! That’s really sweet they had all your favorite foods there.
You have such amazing friends! All that food looks wonderful. Happy early birthday :)
Happy birthday, I love Brooke’s little outfit, where did you get it?
Thank you so much! I got it at target!!!
What an amazing group of friends!
The Kidless Kronicles
Your family is adorable and your friends are too sweet!!!
Ramblings of a Suburban Mom
Awwww, so sweet!!! What a fun party. Bangs friend, excellent idea!
BANGS FRIEND IS AMAZING!!!
best bday ever :)
I’m gonna start dropping hints to hubby ;)
happy birthday week! xo
I agree, Bangs Friend is the best… I wish I could live in California and be friends with you guys too, haha. The foods looks AMAZING!
Happy early birthday Janae! I am sure this will be your best birthday ever because now you have Brooke here to celebrate it with you :)
What sweet, amazing friends you have! Looks like a great spread – that death by chocolate cake looks so tasty! Happy early birthday :)
I would totally play Monopoly with you :)
The food looked like it was AMAZING!
So glad you have great a great CA family to keep you happy.
Hope your birthday was amazing! That sounds fabulous!
Wow, what a celebration! Those desserts look awesome and it sounds like you had a blast.
How lucky you are to have such amazing friends! Btw where did you all meet in California? Do you live in the same building?
Hey!! I met most of them at church!
That’s awesome!!
That’s so sweet; you have great friends. Happy Birthday! I love that picture of you and Brooke looking at the candles in the dark!!
Can bangs friend be my friend too?
All of that food looks amazing!! I want a bite of everything.
I love monopoly too but can’t find anyone to play with me either.
Wow I would have to sample all those desserts!
That is so sweet!! What a blessing I have such selfless friends! PS…I’ve lived 4 hours away from my family for almost a decade and I still get homesick.
What amazing friends you have! How sweet! I’m so glad that they were able to keep it a secret for you — that’s the hardest part! I’m glad you enjoyed your night!
P.S. Watching parenthood on Netflix.. if I get addicted, I’m blaming you.
Wow you have some pretty great friends! I am now going to have to show this to all my friends as a hint to what I want for my B-day… ;)
your friends are the cutest ever! i can’t believe how perfect your surprise party was! happy early birthday :)
I love this! Seeing all of the laughs, good friends, and good food makes me so happy. So glad you enjoyed it!
Very sweet of them to hook you up with all your favorites. But I am feeling left out. Guess my invite got lost in the mail or something… ;-)
what a great group of friends you have!! happy early bday!
I’ve NEVER had a surprise party! How fun that looks! And what an awesome group of friends. Lucky lady!
What sweet friends you have!! It’s so wonderful that you were able to meet a great group in a new place; that really makes it home!
Awww that is so sweet of them!! Haha and that’s a lot of food that they made! Clearly you are a well liked woman!
Awwww! What amazing friends, that is just too special :)!
What a sweet friend! Can Bangs Friend start a food blog so I can make some of her creations?!
That’s so awesome! It’s such a blessing that you’ve been able to make so many wonderful friends since moving. Enjoy them!
Santana Row looks so nice! I wish we had more outdoor shopping centers like that in the Northeast. I went to The Grove last year and was in heaven!
Speaking of heaven, what awesome food and friends! Looks like a blast :)
I would pay serious cash to be at your birthday party, I would leave in a food coma and not regret it one bit! I love Brooke’s pony in the last pic! :)
Happy birthday, Janae. That had to be an awesome surprise. Having great friends makes being away from family soo much easier. Hope you and your cute family have an amazing Sunday!!!
Ps–I think bangs friend should start a blog for all of her amazing recipes ;)
I agree, having Bang Friend’s recipe would be great!
Seriously! Or perhaps a guest post by Bangs Friends to share some of her recipes for the stuff above!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JANAE!
Oh, how sweet. You have some awesome friends! :)
This is awesome! You have a fantastic group of friends :) Come to Michigan and we can have a monopoly marathon!! I love that game and no one ever wants to play.
That is so sweet of your friends! I love those tall candles on your cake and I have always wanted them on a cake!! I know how it feels to be homesick yet enjoying new adventures at the same time, it’s not easy but you will get through it with your great support system.
Oh, Janae! This makes me so happy!!! I can’t imagine how tough it is to be so far away from your family…seeing how much you are loved by these girls is amazing!!! Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday!
Sounds like amazing friends and an amazing night. Happy Birthday!
Just goes to show that the Lord blesses you when you’re in the right place by giving you the right friends. And food, I love when he blesses us with awesome food.
Happy Birthday!
I know I sound old in this comment, I guess my 30ith birthday is approching. I’m just embracing the oldness. Sigh.
What a wonderful group of friends. Happy birthday Janae.
What awesome friends you have!! All of your pictures are so gorgeous! Clearly I need a new camera… :) Or I can just hire you to come take pictures for me? ;)
This is such a nice surprise!
Awe, you have the best friends ever! Happy belated birthday :)
http://carlkatie.blogspot.com/
How awesome! Sounds like you have some fabulous friends… I threw a surprise birthday party this weekend too, so much fun!
What an awesome friend to make you all of that! My husband threw me a surprise birthday in January to! It was my first surprise party ever and i was actually very surprised!
P.S. I want that death by chocolate cake!
Aww that is so awesome! What great friends you have!
What great friends you have!!! Happy early birthday!
That top picture is beautiful! Serious Christmas card potential! Happy Early Birthday! You are so spoiled by your Cali friends! :)
Those are some awesome friends!!! Happy early Birthday!!
How fun! I live away from my family as well and know how important it is to have good friends away from home. YOU found them!
Awww. What sweet loving friends! So glad you found a circle that you have so much fun with :) Happy early Birthday :)
I haven’t played Monopoly in years. I was never good at it. lol.
Such great friends, you are very blessed! Happy Birthday to you and Bangs friend : )
Question-Lasagna Cups? Please share!!!!!
How wonderful!!! :)
I know I am a little late, but I hope you had a great and FANTASTIC birthday!!! :)
That is just the cutest surprise!! Your friends and how they treat you are a reflection of how well you treat them and love them. Cheers to you!
That was SO sweet! What amazing friends!!!
I LOVE the picture of you holding Brooke with the cake. She’s looking at that cake, like MOM, PLEASE let me have some of that :D
Omg that is amazing, a surprise party with all of your favorite foods!!!
Awe what great friends!!! How did u meet all of them?
Hey Kristin! I met most of them at church!