Its a Celebration!

Yesterday we celebrated my sister and my dad's birthdays. Their birthdays are not on the same day, but they are just over a week apart. Not to upset either family member, but my dad was turning 60 and my sister was celebrating her big 21er. Don't worry, you are going to see those numbers later on in the post so its not really a surprise.

We started the night with dinner. Thankfully my mom made food that I was able to eat even with my diet restrictions. Here is the gang:

(left to right: Brett, Joshua, Karma and Joel (David's parents), Dad (Terry), Mom (Jenna), Brooke, David, Stephanie)

After we were bloated like a turkey from all the fixin's we headed in for a "surprise" coordinated by my sisters boyfriend. All we knew was that it involved a blindfold and a stick.

 Yes, that's right, it was a PINATA!! He made her be the swinger (for lack of a better word) and boy did that girl swing. It made me a little nervous to be taking pictures so close up, but I just could not help myself.

 

 

Halfway there...Look at how good that bear is feeling...

R.I.P

Once the bear let go of all of his candy and Luna Bars (yeah I don't know either...) everyone went running like little kids. There were no kids just to clarify.

I should mention here that my sister is actually moving to South Africa in about 3 months. She is going to be doing mission work for the next two years over there. She had recently returned from a mission conference that she attended so we got to have some time as a family to talk about everything she had learned.

After talking about the trip, it was definitely time for some present opening. We all gave dad an iPhone although I am still wondering if he is going to understand how to use it. Dad isn't completely tech savvy, but he is getting there. For Brooke we knew that there were few gifts that we could give that would be useful to her since she is only able to take a few possessions with her when she moves. So we went ahead and gave her money and this is how we presented it...

Before I tell you what it said inside...yes I am going to embarass myself greatly in just a moment...I want to talk about the card. Anyone who knows me probably knows I rarely give cards. There is something about cards that just makes me break out in a sweat. I can never find one that says anything halfway decent...no I just can't handle ones that say, "Your love is like a rose, sweet and powerful." I am just not nice like that. My card would say, "Your love is like a rose, full of thorns and aphids." I promise I really can be nice, I just am not so good at the lovey dovey cutesy stuff. Anyway, after being sick of paying $6 for a card that makes me gag I chose to start making my own. Seriously people this is the way to go! I love crafting, but I am by no means good at it. I just buy blank cards from the craft store, put together some pretty paper (isn't the glittery black paper oh so fab?!), add a detail or two, and there you have it! You doubt me, but I promise you can do it!

Ok, time to admit to what I wrote inside. The thing is, we didn't want to just give her money and be done with it. We wanted to give it to her somewhat creatively. So, here was my attempt at being a poet and well you SO didn't know it. Sorry.

We wanted to buy you something nice,

but we hoped money would suffice.

Some shoes, some clothes, some diamonds,

who knows,

but these were not the things we chose.

See, you are leaving soon to a new place,

so you'll have new things that you'll embrace.

We wanted to help you pack light

by offering something  that will fit just right.

So spend the money as you wish,

even on an expensive dish.

We love you,

this much is true,

and we hope you have a happy birthday too!

Love, Joshua & Mal

Next was cake and ice cream (no I didn't partake). I will leave you with this...