Grandma's big Nine-Oh went off without a hitch. We had a great time and she enjoyed the surprises, despite her initial protest. I got to Baltimore and met up with 2bit and Chris. Boomer was also with them and very excited to meet me (and smell Sydne). We made it to Gma-Hoof's by 3 the next day and called her from the driveway. She didn't realize we were there until we were standing right in front of her window and had to tell her she could hang up the phone. :)
Friday night we went out to dinner at my uncle's favorite restaurant where I remembered the joys of fresh crab meat and scallops. Saturday was Gma-Hoof's surprise party, which worked out well because we managed to get her out of the house and set up the table so that when she got home, it was ready to go. She came in and saw me with the camera before she saw the table with the cake, punch, and other treats and immediately started fussing at mom because she "didn't want a big reception." 
Needless to say, once friends and family arrived she was the perfect social butterfly and loved every minute of it. Now, I figured dinner out and a party would take care of the birthday surprise, but no, there was more. Mom remembered that Gma-Hoof loved lobster and, once the party crowd cleared out, dinner preparations began with lobster tails for all. Once again, she was pleasantly surprised and asked whether she should expect any more surprises. We assured her that was the end and, when I talked to her on Wednesday, she was still "recuperating" from her parties and talking about how we managed to surprise her so many times. 
This past week was, well, cold. The weather has turned much colder; snow and ice have fallen with more expected today and tomorrow. As a result, I turned to soup and am trying my hand at winging it on vegetable soup. I figure if you put water, and vegetables in a pot for long enough, it has to be good. I guess I'll have to wait and see. 