It’s birthday month around here! Mom and Dad made a delicious birthday dinner for me that I chose from options they offered!) that they delivered still warm! Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, roasted brussel sprouts, bread, and a blueberry custard pie!

After Grandma and Grandpa departed we were inside when suddenly, Griffin lost a tooth! We recently purchased a bike trailer for Reid to ride in when we go on our longer adventure bike rides. He was getting a big large for the upright seat that goes on the back of the bike. We call this his bullet and he absolutely loves riding in it. All the exploration and no work, even a nap from time to time to no surprise.

I took the kids to their semi-annual appointment, which was Reid’s first “real” check up. He did really well and like getting to wear the spiderman glasses. And Griffin had a good checkup as well.

On my birthday, Kevin decorated the kitchen with ginormous 4-5 balloons and flowers. As per their tradition, the boys helped Kevin make my bunny cake. After they had it wrapped up we headed up to Nocterra for dinner and drinks while the weather was pretty nice. Then it was back home for presents and cake.

 

My “big gift” this year, that I’ve been wanting forever was a dumpster! When we arrived home from Nocterra there was something orange in the driveway and I could not figure out what it was, but as we drove up the driveway I figured it out. Over the next week Kevin took to the basement storage area and various other places and filled this bad boy up! We had plenty of space and the timing worked out that the Bethune’s were able to add their swingset that they wanted to part ways with also. Yay for purging!

Unfortunately, one night when Kevin was pulling out of the garage (with Brutus in the back of the car), the basketball hoop was all the way down and with it being completely dark he hit the corner of the backboard with his rear windshield. It made a loud pop and then shattered. Poor Brutus was scared to death though we weren’t able to immediately get him out because of all the broken glass. We didn’t want him to walk all over it. We eventually got him out through the passenger door. Thankfully Kevin was able to have a local repair shop pick up his car, replace the window, and drop it back off. That all worked out great given that we didn’t really have childcare!

Here are some sillies and flashbacks thanks to Google. I’m always amazed how much the kids are changing and growing up when I get these reminders.

 

Up next was Griffin’s 8th birthday!! What? Not sure how we’ve already arrived at 8, but here we are and he was excited for his birthday. He was up at the crack of dawn with excitement. Kevin and I had decorated the kitchen the night before and when he came down he was excited to see his gifts and blue chair. We Facetimed Grandma and Grandpa during the opening of his gifts – that was new and different! Then we rode our bikes to dinner at Culver’s, Griffin’s choice. It was a nice ride but a bit chilly to sit outside with ice cream!

Once we got home we surprised Griffin with his cake – Pokemon! We sang happy birthday, he blew out his candles and had some cake, and then was onward to trying out his new rollies! He was really excited about these and for the next couple of days was up early before school and out in the driveway improving his skills. Within just a couple days he made crazy progress!

 

Everything checked our wonderfully at Griffin’s 8 year well-check. No shots, great weight gain and inches grown.

Haya stopped over for a birthday visit and gifts for the boys with baby Summer. She’s growing like a weed and is super cute! Griffin loves his huge remote control Corvette and Reidy loves his bowling set with a light up ball. It is always good to see Haya and Summer.

For Griffin’s “party” we had a small gathering of neighbors join us for mini-golf. It turned out to be a wonderful sunny afternoon perfect for putt putt. Afterward we headed home for pizza and driveway hockey for the kids and hang out time in our driveway for the adults. It was a perfect evening.

This is the third most common area you will ever find Brutus, actually he’s typically in the mulch just behind him against the edge of the grass. He loves to go outside and just lay in the sun. He will prance all around the kitchen and bark or scratch at the door just to go outside an lay down!  Griffin is holding some of our “overwintered” bonus carrots from the garden that we took out when prepping the bed for this year. And later are some pics of Griffin and Reid’s creative play. Always finding new things to do and making fun things up.

 

Lately we’ve seen some four-legged friends out in the morning while on our walks. This particular morning there were five deer just checking us out as we walked down the dead-end road. Brutus just zones in on them while prancing along and they just stare right back. Sometimes they dart away and other times just wait for us to pass and continue doing their thing.

I arrived at work one Sunday afternoon to find that Robert, our IT consultant, had spontaneously installed monitor mounts at my desk giving me a whole new setup! It was a nice surprise and one that I’ve enjoyed as it gives me more countertop to use. The little things!

We stopped over at the Bethune’s house to drop off Amy’s birthday gifts and the kiddos all played outside for a bit running around the yard and climbing the fence. We were only there for a brief bit before heading to the rink for another birthday party. Griffin has vastly improved in his skills and confidence since he’s been using his rollies in the driveway. Those skills just translate right over to the ice I guess!

Thankfully now that there is a vaccine available for Covid-19 I was able to schedule both doses for me. So now I’m just a couple days after Kevin for both shots. We are both receiving the Pfizer vaccine.

 

And here are a couple to just make you smile. Silly Reid and his many faces and styles. With not having regular childcare Reid has been largely on his own while Kevin is on phone calls. Every now and then he’ll pop in to Kevin’s office to check in and say hello. You never know what he’s going to show up wearing (or where you may find him sleeping later) :).

We were fortunate to have our Millcreek Spring Fling Kick-off event this year at the Food Truck Depot in Delaware. This building we took the picture in is actually open on two sides, so it provided good air flow. There were sand volleyball courts, several food trucks, and everyone seemed to enjoy being able to be together and out and about.

 

Check out these videos 🙂