Kaboom--it's Kdee's Birthday

What a wonderful 4th of July vacation we had up at the family cabin! The Ribclan enjoyed 5 days of awesome weather, fireworks galore (personal show plus many booming versions from neighbors), swimming, wine/blender drinks, birthday celebrations and lots of laughter. After time with our extended family and friends, we are reminded about how lucky we are to have such special people in our life, and an amazing place for all of us to come together--especially to celebrate Kdee's big 6th birthday!

Here are some fun highlights from the big weekend (along with many pictures):
--Our weekend was shared with ribB's Uncle Bob & Aunt Jan and their children Mike (his wife Becky, children L & Ncle) and Dana (her husband John, and children Mgn & Nck); we also enjoyed time with ribB's other uncle, Bart, Aunt Donna and their children A & C. Their life-long friends, Carl (aka Blender Boy) and Rose also joined in the fun along with their children J, K & A. Whew!

--To officially celebrate Kdee's birthday, we enjoyed cupcakes and opening presents on Tuesday. Grandma Honey & Paul were able to stop by on their way home from Paul's family celebration in a nearby town. We barely managed to squeeze the 6 candles on the cupcake (next year we're definitely back to a cake!), but the tight spacing also allowed for an easier "blow out" of said candles! Kdee received some really fun & thoughtful gifts from everyone there, and we are so grateful for the fun celebration that everyone took part in. (We also had a celebration at home on Wednesday--dinner out at her favorite restaurant at home, Kingdom Buffet, and opening more gifts back at home.)

--A big part of celebrating a fun summer birthday at the cabin is the swimming, which Kdee loves. She has really become quite the fish in the water. She has mastered swimming without a life jacket/floaties/etc. and even got more adventurous with being "thrown" and enjoying more of Bart/Donna's "launch pad" on the water. As one would expect, she was ready to be in the water almost every day at 8am! (Yes, all this swimming did lead to one really loooonnnnng nap on Monday.)

--Little B was also quite the water bug, loving every minute of swimming with dad/mom. He is not afraid of getting his face wet (quite the feat for a little one), as demonstrated by the multiple times he splashed and dipped his face into the water to blow into it. He also really loved being thrown up in the air by ribB, complete with a landing splash. We were amazed by his broad smile and belly laughs over that one!

--Kdee & Little B enjoyed fishing excursions with ribB. Little B got the chance to see a Northern up close...and was a bit apprehensive about it. Kdee and ribB got a chance to see Mike toss his pole in the water, and subsequently dive in for it. Whoops!

--Little B was constantly on the look-out for "deer!" and also loved chasing down "BOB!". He is pretty connected to both Bob and Bart, which is a hoot to watch. He is lucky to have 2 wonderful mentors and fun uncles.

--Kdee played on and on with her cousin M, who is 4. They really did well together (very minor moments of dischord) and played many rounds of Polly Pockets, baby dolls, swimming and "music concerts". She also enjoyed time with cousin L, who's 3. We absolutely love having cousins the same age as our children...it's so fun to watch them develop such nice friendships (as was the case with ribB and his cousins, especially M's mom, Dana. On a funny side-note, AndiR once thought that Dana was ribB's girlfriend because she always sat next to him in our Poli Sci lecture (they were actually taking turns sleeping/taking notes for each other).

--On Sunday afternoon/night, we enjoyed a festive time at Bart & Donna's cabin. Bart & AndiR enjoyed lots of our "favorite wine" and blender boy, wearing his new official "blender boy" t-shirt, was busily keeping our glasses filled. As you may suspect, Carl has acquired this name by experimenting with Bart/Donna's cabin blender and various alcohols. Yes, many are interesting. Yes, some are not so good. Yes, some are highly approved. You never know what you'll get, he just makes it up as he goes! Blender Boy also has a NA side to him, making the kids many fun NA drinks like Root Beer Freezes. We always laugh a lot with Blender Boy & Rose, so it's a treat to have time with them and hear the crazy stories from the long friendship they have had with our family.

--ribB, John and Bob put on another fabulous fireworks display, on Monday night. All of the tired kids were troopers and stayed up late to watch the well done show. After 3 years, the boys are definitely getting the timing and coordination of fireworks down to a science. As always, the barking balls were a favorite...conversation piece! :-)

--We all enjoyed seeing cabin neighbors and lifelong ribclan family friends, "Cookie" and Louie. This couple is nothing short of amazing. At 80, they kayak the lake everyday, busily attend to their cabin, fish, walk, drive around the country seeing their kids...you name it, they do it. They inspire us as great role models for aging and enjoying life to its fullest.

--We made the most of our last day by leaving late--8pm. Not only did that allow for some late swimming, but we also got to see some fun fireworks on the way home. We pulled over to watch the Stillwater fireworks, which are notoriously the area's best. We're used to watching them out on our boat (as they're shot over the river), but they were still absolutely awesome from where we were. Both of the kids fell asleep 1 hr before we came upon them, and there was no waking them up. I tried SO HARD to get Kdee to even open an eye, but it was all in vain. They both slept through them and ribB & myself enjoyed a peaceful fireworks show...always a treat.

Our week back to work & life as we know it has been a slow, tired adjustment. Kdee had her last t-ball game last night, which went pretty well. Little B has been out of sorts--either sick or teething, we're not sure. He actually got sick for the first time at Kdee's t-ball game (over my leg, mind you!). He's had a mixed bag of symptoms over the last day, but seemed well enough today to go to daycare (cross your fingers!). Tomorrow is Kdee's friend party, which she is really excited about. We will have around 10 children at our house, playing outside with lots of water-related fun. Slip-n-slide, giant inflatible waterslide (rented from ribB's co-worker), pool and water balloons. It is our goal to wear out each and every child so all parents will have a peaceful night! We're always amazed at how much work & energy it takes to pull off a birthday party, but it is so much fun to see Kdee with her friends, it's well worth it.

Pictures: Kdee with her cousins M & L, ribB & little B playing in the water, folks eagerly awaiting the annual cabin fireworks display, the ribclan after swimming.