It has been a busy couple of months. If you read my previous post you saw that John and I had a fabulous vacation out west visiting a lot of national parks and various other places of interest along the way. Just prior to our leaving for vacation, Jill turned 26 and we celebrated her birthday. I gave Jill the option to choose whatever she wanted for dinner and John and I would fix it. She chose Mexican. I was not surprised - that's the food I craved while I was pregnant with her and I guess it got into her system before she was even born! For dinner we had hard and soft tacos with all the fixings, nachos, and Mexican rice. For dessert, we strayed from the traditional flan for birthday cake (white cake with chocolate icing) and ice cream. Jill was only turning 26 but the candles were sure burning brightly!
Jill's cake with 26 candles
If you know anything about Jill, you know she is a very crafty person. She can create just about anything out of a pile of scraps! She has been talking about embroidery machines for the last 6 months or so. She made Christmas stockings for she, Sam, and Michael last Christmas and wanted to embroidery their names on them, but no embroidery machine...she had to take a friend's Christmas gift to a store to be monogramed because she didn't have an embroidery machine... she would like to make some individualized baby gifts but she doesn't have an embroidery machine...if she only had an embroidery machine, she could make so many things and start her own business! So, we took the hint and got her an embroidery/sewing machine for her birthday. I don't think she was expecting it at all. The look on her face when she opened it was priceless!
Jill was surprised with her embroidery machine
Jill has been busy learning how to use all the features on the machine and has followed through making gifts for friends. I now have a list of things I want monogramed and am currently on the waiting list!
When we returned from vacation, it was David's turn to celebrate his 24th birthday. We gave David the same option for dinner - choose your favorite meal and John and I would prepare it for him. He chose steak, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. Since Jill and John were on a carb conscious diet, I also fixed cauliflower gratin (yum-0!). For dessert, we had birthday cake (chocolate cake with chocolate icing) and ice-cream with homemade chocolate Ghiradellli chocolate syrup!
David, his fiancee Summer and her daughter Kennedy
David is very hard to buy for. He does not have a lot of wants and it is like pulling teeth to get him to tell you what he would like as a gift. So, when he tells us what he would like, it is not going to be any surprise to him when he gets it. David wanted some new golf clubs for his birthday. Since I don't know anything at all about golf, he had to choose exactly what he wanted and send me a link so I could check them out and purchase them without looking too dumb purchasing something I knew absolutely nothing about. Needless to day, he was very pleased with them!
Kennedy helping David open his present
We also had a little something for the kids, Michael and Kennedy. A long time ago, before Michael was even a glimmer in Sam and Jill's eye, John and I saw a see-saw at Costco (our favorite place to shop!). John wanted to buy it and put it away for the grandkids we would have someday. I thought he was crazy but we bought it anyway. It has been sitting in our basement for about 3 or 4 years, but I'm really glad we bought it because I haven't seen it at Costco again since we bought it. The box says it is for children over age 6 and neither Michael nor Kennedy are anywhere near that age. But, we thought with adults around, they would be able to use it before they are 6 years old. So, we brought it up out of the basement and put it together on the deck. We had it covered up when everyone got here and took them out on the deck to surprise them. I think the grown kids liked it a lot more than the little kids. I hope that changes as the little ones get older!
David, Kennedy and Summer on the see-saw
Sam, Michael and Jill on the see-saw
Kennedy having a blast on the see-saw
Sam, Jill's husband, left to lead a mission trip in the Dominican Republic on June 18th. Sam has been doing mission work there since he was a child doing mission work with his parents, brother and sister. Jill was always involved in mission work when she was a youth. However, she had never done mission work out of the country until she met Sam. She and Sam have spent every summer since they have been married doing mission work in parts of Mexico, Peru, and the Dominican Republic (they are both fluent in Spanish so there is no language barrier). Jill did not want to leave sweet baby Michael for a long period of time this year so she is not going until July. Since Sam has been gone, Jill and Michael have been staying with us. Since retiring, I have spent the majority of my days doing whatever I want to do whenever I want to. Having a little one around and keeping him on his schedule has made my days totally different. Our house is not baby proofed and with Michael walking now he is in to everything! His toys don't interest him for very long and he wants to start getting in to all kinds of other "adult" stuff that is sitting around. He is in to my paper, getting the remote controls, the telephone, pulling the leaves off my plants, eating the dog's food and playing in her water bowl! But, it's all worth it to have he and Jill spending time with us. We have gone to the park near our house to play, we went to the Zoo, and have spent countless hours playing around the house. I am really going to miss them when they go home!
Michael on the playground
Michael and Jill on the bronze statue of Willie B
Michael discovering Willie B
The petting zoo at the Atlanta Zoo
Hydrating - it was a very hot day!
1 comment:
That last picture of him drinking his water definitely sums up the day!! He was exhausted! :)
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