Party on

We had a great gathering yesterday at our house for Mike's birthday, 16 of us at the dinner table. A few items were overcooked and someone took the ice cream cake out of the freezer too soon. (Ice cream soup, anyone?) Still, everything tasted good and, most importantly, we had time to talk and just enjoy each other's company. A lot of it had to do with being relaxed. Instead of worrying that there were kids running up and down the stairs and from room to room, we said, "Isn't this great?" The older kids found Spiderman on TV while the younger ones watched a bit of Nemo upstairs in our room while other just found ways to play. Marley stayed quietly in his room and was rewarded with lots dishes to lick clean after the company was gone.

Happy Birthday a couple of days later, Mike.