My birthday

I got an email this morning inviting me out to dinner tonight.  A friend's birthday is Wednesday, and another friend of mine had talked to her (first friend's) husband to make arrangements to "kidnap" her and take her out to her favorite restaurant for dinner -- PF Changs.  First friend just had a baby two weeks ago, so it was kind-of a big deal.  I haven't been out with girlfriends in what seems like forever, so I jumped on the chance!  When I got to the restaurant, I quickly learned that we were celebrating my friend's birthday, and mine, which is Thursday.  It was a fun little sort-of surprise.

The last (and only) time I had a surprise birthday party was when I turned 18.  I'll be turning 32 this week.  So even if this wasn't originally intended to celebrate my birthday, and it was an afterthought, I still appreciate it.

My hunky husband

With Julie's school being a co-op, parents take an active role in ensuring the success of the school programs.  I help out in the classroom about once a month, and we also have fundraisers every so often, and we're required to help out with at least two of those per year.  One of them was last week -- Ben had volunteered to help with a dinner that the co-op was providing as part of an event at the church that sponsors it.  This being our first go-round with all of this, we're still figuring things out.  Ben emailed the coordinator of the fundraiser to ask a few questions, including an inquiry about dress code.  She told him she'd probably just be wearing jeans and t-shirt, that it was pretty casual.  He responded that he might just go out and rent a tux to be sure to stand out.  The next day she told me that she thought it was funny, and she fully expected to see him show up in a tux.

We didn't have a big wedding party.  Ben's mom made his fancy vest and bowtie for him (and my silk bouquet).  He wore them with a brand spankin' new black suit and a tuxedo shirt that he had found once at Goodwill.  He's got tuxedo buttons and three sets of cufflinks.

I got a devious idea.  The day of the fundraiser, Ben got dressed up in black dress pants, his tuxedo shirt with black buttons and cuff links, and put on his vest and bowtie from the wedding, and topped it off with a black jacket.

I think he looks pretty hot.

Thanksgiving song

Julie has been in a "real" preschool this year -- a local co-op, with 12 kids in her class and an actual teacher that isn't just the parent of one of the kids.  She goes to school Monday through Thursday, from 9:00-11:30am.  She loves it, and complains on Fridays (we're working on playdates for Fridays). Today was the last day of school until after Thanksgiving (tomorrow is parent-teacher conference day), so the kids had prepared a special musical performance for us.

Waiting for all the parents to shuffle in. 

 

Julie and her friend Charlie. 

 

Julie playing with the Tangram blocks after the song. 

 

The kids' "thankful quilt." Julie's squares are the bottom left two. One is a flower, the other says, I'm thankful for my Mommy, Daddy, and my sister, the color blue, bananas and apples, and Grammy and Gramps." 

 

This one is a friendship quilt, I guess. Julie's squares on this one are the purple on the far right, and the one right below it. The purple one says, "You are a good friend if you share." 

 

And here's the video of them singing their song.