"We have Birthday Party!"

Last week while Derek and I were getting ready to meet his parents for lunch, when we heard the girls singing "Happy Day!!" at the top of their lungs. They had sung it all morning, so I didn't think too much about it. Then I heard Anna-Kate say "i want ice keem!" and it occurred to me that I had noticed Derek's birthday cake sitting on our dining room table without the lid on it and with one piece left. So I sent Derek to check on the girls, following close behind him. This is what we found:

Somehow the girls got 2 plates and 2 forks out of the kitchen, cut the cake into what seemed like 2 equal pieces, and proceeded to put it on each of their plates! All with very little mess! When Derek asked Kristen what they were doing she proudly said "we have birthday party!!"

Scary thing is that I think Anna-Kate was the instigator in all of this, since she's the one who would know where to find the plates and forks! I also think she's the one who served the cake, since it was right by her chair!!

At least they chose paper plates!

Happy Birthday!

I celebrated my 23rd birthday on Monday. As you may remember, last year's birthday was less than exciting. Instead of cake being cut, I was. An appendectomy on one's birthday is memorable for all the wrong reasons, but this year would top all others for the best of reasons.

I simply assumed that we would have a nice dinner out with family and maybe a few cards or well wishes from others. I was wrong. Let me just say that Nicki has never been a good secret keeper. She usually gets to excited to keep it in or she just looks like there is something going on. But as we left the house Monday, she was a cool operator. We had spent most of the day Monday cleaning the house and organizing Anna-Kate's bedroom to remove some clutter. I finished mowing the lawn just in time to shower and leave for Chili's where my parents were meeting us.

I was a bit anxious cause my best friend from college, Scott, was coming into town to stay the night and he was to arrive any minute so I wanted to make sure he got to Chili's to join us. As we left, Nicki mentioned that another good friend, Alan, and his family had a gift for me so we had to swing by and see them.

When we got there, I was too irritated about us running late and not knowing where Scott was to notice the ridiculous nature of the visit. Nicki said they were back by the pool so we all walked down the back steps to the pool. When we rounded the corner I was greeted by family and friends with a surprise party. Anna-Kate even sang Happy Birthday to me!

I couldn't believe Nicki had kept such a secret and that I hadn't caught on. We had a blast at the pool and the guys came over later that night and we stayed up late enough for me to realize just how old I am.

Other than the surprise factor it was a fairly typical birthday party. But seeing friends and family take time out to plan a special celebration for me was an expression of love that was overwhelming. I'm not sure if I'm a good enough friend, son, husband, or father to deserve it...but it sure beats the hospital.

I Love Aunt Sari

I just had to share this video from Sunday! Since our last trip to Franklin Anna-Kate has talked about my sister Sara non-stop! She says "I wanna hi Aunt Sari" and talks about how much she loves her! It's really sweet and I know that Sara loves it. The only problem is that when Sara is on the phone Anna-Kate doesn't want to talk or she says "hi" and runs off! So, I caught her in the act!! This is for you Sara: