Brodie's 9th birthday

Brodie turned 9 yesterday, and for the ninth time in his ten February 19ths, it rained. No worries, though. He had a full day of school, homework and Tae Kwon Do, and then came home to be surprised by 3 of his friends from school who came over to have dinner and cake with us. Brodie was very surprised!

He wasn't planning on having any party because we had just returned from a trip to Big Bear Lake to play in the snow with our friends, the Urbans. Their daughter, Natasha, was born the day after Brodie and we have been friends since we met in the hospital that day. We rented a cabin together over the President's day weekend and spent the whole time playing in the snow. Sledding, snowmen and snowball fights. Brodie and Nik loved spending the weekend playing together with Natasha, and as far as Brodie was concerned, it was way better than a birthday party that only lasts a few hours.

It was great for Marion and I to have a few quiet days of relaxation, too. We enjoyed being away from the responsibilities of home and having a few peaceful nights of adult conversation by the fire. We made all of our meals in the cabin, and the sledding hill was right across the street. We never got in the car once after we arrived and it was a wonderful vacation.