Happy Birthday Dad(s)!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Last week, we celebrated the birthdays of two of our favorite men: James and my dad! (My dad's birthday was first--both in days and in years, of course.) Since their birthdays are just two days apart, and since we're conveniently neighbors now, the men decided to have a joint party. So last Sunday (on my dad's actual birthday and two days before James') we gathered at my parents' house to commemorate the occasion(s). It was a grand celebration.

We kicked things off with some Mexican stack-ups (a big surprise there, since that's the meal requested every year!) and two pies: raisin cream for my dad and chocolate cream for James. Bethany helped me make the chocolate pie, all the while singing, "Do you want to make PIE like a SAMURAI??" and then we yelled, "PIE-YAH!!" a lot. (Please refer to The Backyardigans episode #2, Season 2 entitled "Samurai Pie." It's a good one.)

Anyhoo, after stuffing ourselves with good eats, it was time for presents! Again, I had help with the gift wrapping from a certain three-year-old, the fastest bow-sticker in the west!



This year we surprised Daddy with an iTunes gift card:



A new shirt:



And we were all REALLY surprised with all of the extra doo-dads that Bethany stuck in with the shirt (I didn't see her slip those in!), including some dress-up rings, a bit of ribbon, and a refrigerator magnet (you never know when a fella is going to need those things):



Then we totally didn't surprise him with the Shop-Vac, because he'd asked for it many times and it was sorta expected. But he was happy just the same!



And then Dad opened his gift that we all pitched in for--a fancy schmancy "Little Giant" ladder so he can reach the tops of his new very-vaulted ceilings and turn off the smoke detectors if they're acting up (er, he'd never do that really . . .)



But he was very pleased with his ladder. Either that, or he's a good actor and just seemed really pleased! And then . . .THEN. . . we ate pie . . .



And raisin cream pie is perhaps some of the best dessert ever, ever, EVER created. So I made a chocolate pie for James, but ate the raisin pie myself! YUM. All in all, it was a fun party for two wonderful men whom we love dearly! Happy birthday, guys!