Heather's Birthday Weekend Extravaganza

We tried something new this year. Heather's birthday fell on a Sunday this year, and so instead of doing a nice, home-cooked dinner t hat night, we had a birthday weekend. Unsurpisingly, Heather loved it and wants a repeat next year. Yeah ... not likely. But this year did go well.

Friday night we used a gift certificate we had and went to a really nice restaurant called Clydes. The restaurant is a collection of old buildings that formed a homestead built in the mid-1800s, complete with the main house and a gigantic barn (which we ate in). The inside of each building has been extensively remodeled into a modern restuarant. It was great food and a good start to the birthday celebrations.

Saturday had beautiful weather, and so we went hiking around Great Falls, which is a rocky waterfall on the Potomac. There were fences around the lookout spots to encourage the young and inexperieced from climbing around the falls, but obviously they were not really meant to keep the likes of us out. While taking a picture of the falls, Heather dropped her glasses off a 35 foot cliff. Luckily, I have some experiece with rock climbing. So as my first gift to my wife this year, I gave her an unforgettable adventure of scurring down the side of a cliff, hiking around the bottom, and then having a thrilling climb back up. Even though she may say that she was scared for some parts of it, I know that deep down, she was grateful for the unforgettable adventure.
That night, we met up with some friends from Heather's work for some of the best mini-golfing I've ever had. Not far from where we live, there is an awesome mini-golf course called "Perils of the Lost Jungle." The outdoor course is decked out in Indiana Jones-esque jungle decorations and all sorts of things that jump out at you while you golf (triggered by motion sensors). One hole, for example, is surrounded by all these frogs that "spit" water at you while you golf. Another hole that is right next to a pond has an alligator that jumps out at you. My favorite is the last hole. When you go to pick up your ball after sinking it in the hole, there's a sensor that shoots a blast of air and the ball right back out you. It scared Heather witless the first time.

After an exciting round of golf, we ate a nice dinner at Olive Garden. While we were waiting for our table to open up, our friends went and picked up about 10 huge helium balloons and gave them to Heather. It caused quite a stir as we all stood outside the restaurant with Heather holding a huge string of balloons. I would have never guessed that so many people would be so interested in her balloons. We had small kids and grown adults alike stopping to give Heather a quick "Happy Birthday." One little girl even gave Heather a small toy as a gift. And we even got a couple of cars to drive by honking and shouting "Happy Birthday" with the windows down. It was hilarious, and Heather and intensely embarrassed. It was perfect!

The birthday weekend ended on Sunday with a nice breakfast in bed and a hearty Primary birthday song.

This is the cliff we had to shimmy down to retrieve Heather's glasses.

A Yankee Farewell

Last week, the Woodruff family had a solemn, unusual mid-week gathering. For almost a year, we had been planning on getting together last Tuesday night to say goodbye to baseball's most famous stadium: Shea Stadium of the New York Yankees. It's not that any of us had ever really had an individual connection with the stadium or were huge fans of the Yankees. But as dedicated MLB enthusiasts throughout the years, we felt a desire to say farewell to such a historic landmark.
So last Tuesday, Nate, Dad, and I all drove up to New York from the south. Adam, Sarena, and the kids drove out from the north. Kyle flew in to La Guardia (after a lovely evening in Denver's airport), and we met Mitch Bates there. This was my first trip to the Big Apple, and I think it was Nate's and Kyle's, too. My first thought about the city as we drove over a bridge and it came into view was how big it was. It sprawled across the horizon. My other first impression had to do with the traffic... it was horrible! And people were extremely aggressive. So although it was not exactly enjoyable to drive in the city, by following the old adage of "When in Rome...," I was able to get us around without too much delay.
The game itself was nice. We had seats way out in the "bleachers" section of the outfield (which unfortunately we found out too late doesn't connect to the rest of the stadium). But we still enjoyed the game, especially when Kyle's and Jared's name lit up the big screen when it listed everyone who was having a birthday that day. Oh, and one other thing: the hot dogs were only okay there and the pretzels were a huge letdown.

My Devious Little Plan Is Working

So months ago, I set a devious little plan (whoowaa haaa haaaaa - this is where the generic evil music is played ... like the fru - its of the devil) to manipulate all my inlaws into setting up their own family blogs. My siblings have all done it, and we love reading and commenting on our entries. We're not addicted bloggers, mind you, but we add updates frequently enough to make it worthwhile.
Since blogs worked so well with the Woodruff family, I thought it would be great for the Carr family, too. I made the suggestion via email last spring and, to my surprise, was harshly shot down. But I was undeterred. I decided to continue my efforts ... covertly. Heather and I decided to target Laura and Josh first. They are the most technologically savvy and are always sharing pics online anyway.
Yesterday, our hard efforts at subliminal manipulation paid off. Laura and Josh finally set up their blog. They might claim it's because their friends all have one and they wanted to stay better connected, but I know better. It's all thanks to my devious little plan!
So, the rest of you Carr family, be forewarned. We're turning our incredible powers of cerebral persuasion on you next.