My dad turns the bit 6-oh today, amazing considering he doesn't look a day over 70! (I kid, I kid). He's still in great shape if you don't count the rickety old knee, the busted up wrists, the crippled back, and the countless aches and pains that go with being a “senior citizen”…but HEY, he gets to save 20% off at Shoppers Drug Mart twice a month now, that's gotta count for something.
My sister and brother-in-law threw a party for him this weekend, so Char, Kaylin and I made the trek down to London, our first big trip, and our first overnight stay with the Kegger (for those not “in the know”, Kaylin's full name is Kaylin Elizabeth Garside…or K.E.G.). She travelled really well, sleeping the entire two hours down to London, and sleeping fairly well in my old bedroom (she was a little overwhelmed all weekend, and she had some restless sleep, but she did well).
We went over to Ryan and Kari's on Saturday night, where Kaylin and Paige got to hang out, there's a couple of awesome shots of Paige and Kaylin on the couch together. Paige is soooo big now, it's awesome to see where Kaylin will be in another 14 months, but I have to admit I enjoy the baby stage too. She's so portable right now, and her poop doesn't reek to high heaven.
On Sunday my dad and I started to install new closet doors in the front hall, but we had to get ready to leave because the party was at 2, and my dad had no idea about it…so Char and I made up excuses about how Kaylin was getting cranky, and we'd better hit the road. Mom made an excuse to get dad to go shopping with her, but first they were going to stop by my sister's.
Char and I got there late, around ten after two, and pretty much everyone was already there. When my dad arrived I think he was pretty shocked to see everyone gathered as we had all made excuses as to why we couldn't see him…I have a feeling he was starting to feel like nobody was going to recognize his birthday…mission accomplished!
It was awesome to get to see everyone, and Kaylin was passed around like a bowl of chips…which she didn't seem to mind too much until a couple of hours in when she had a little melt-down…luckily we took her into Chris and Annette's bedroom where Kaylin calmed down and started chatting with us quietly in her little girl voice. She was good to go after that and we went back to the party.
We also got to meet Kaylin's cousin Keira who's two weeks younger than the Kegger. She's shorter than Kaylin, but she'd give her a run for her money in the weight class I'll bet. The two of them were pretty cute together, and it's amazing what a difference those two weeks make. Just seeing pictures of Kaylin from two weeks ago makes me realize how much she's changed.
Dad got a ton of cool gifts (including a 4-in-1 laser level/stud finder/estimator/wire finder that I'm totally jealous about).
We left around 6, and Kaylin talked to us almost to Woodstock, where she finally settled down and fell asleep. We got home around 8:15, and she slept until about 11, when we woke her up to change her diaper and get her ready for bed.
It was a fun weekend, and I'm pretty sure dad had a pretty good time. I got a few great pictures of dad holding Kaylin, for what was apparently his first time!
He may be old and rickety, but he's still my dad. Happy birthday you grizzly old bear (mind you even though they have a computer, my folks haven't hooked themselves up to this “interweb” thing that the kids are all crazy with…so he may never see this).