The opening salvo of April is always a little frenetic and to that we added a couple of milestone birthdays as well. Merrick became an adult and I became a mailing list candidate for AAA and AARP. Grace was nestled into the sweet spot straddling adulthood and fleeting adolescents. Merrick opted for a home dinner to celebrate and we gathered around for some sous vide, reverse seared flat iron steaks. Grace opted for the more traditional birthday sushi..making sure we ordered enough for a left over sushi breakfast. Grace had been lobbying hard for about 6 months for a friend party as well so by Sunday morning and late late into the afternoon she hosted a brunch for her friends and then they all painted portraits of each other. Her actual birthday coincided with the LaX season opener and she filled the stands with fans. Jan and Ron drove up, Bob and Nancy drove over with Ella, and Scott and Sonya meandered the DP roads to cheer her on. Grandprize had made a big roll out sign for her birthday and Ella convinced the team to roll it out during the game. She scored 2 goals and an game MVP in an overall tough loss to a solid team. The fans headed back to our house for some cake to celebrate even if she was out team bonding. Saturday we switched gears to my birthday and we headed downtown to join the hands-off protests that were happening across the country before heading out to eat and then back home for some some more cake and laughs with the whole family. Sunday was an early start for Bob/Nancy as the carpooled Ella back to EC in time for work. Sophia stopped over to get her car before heading back to LaX, Merrick went golfing, and I tried to catch naps during Grace's party. Just another great week surrounded by great people.
