Teresa's Birthday

We had a little Cains chicken dinner with the Taylors for Teresa's birthday but what she really wanted was to go to Ameristar Casino and have their prime rib Wednesday special.

The prime rib wasn't the best (sure is a good thing the casino paid for it) and we didn't have much luck at the slot machines. But Teresa got to celebrate her birthday the way she wanted. Happy Birthday Teresa! 

Orchid Recovery

I have lots of plants and do very well with them but I've never been able to keep an orchid alive. I think it was last Mother's Day, Michael gave me a beautiful orchid.

After a few weeks with me, the orchid began to die off. The leaves were still green but the vines had turned a very light green. I was tempted to just throw it away. Then my nail tech told me I needed to water it from the bottom. Soon dark green vines began to grow and the orchid started budding.

Now it looks like this. Either the orchid likes the way I water it and sitting in the office window (which faces south) or I've finally figured out orchids.

Easter

I've never been one to be too traditional about food for holidays. This year we spent Easter at Teresa's. She's almost done with the remodel of the interior of her entire house. Our dinner was not the traditional ham and potato salad but fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and fried green beans. We still had the deviled eggs or Michael wouldn't have come.

Hazel wasn't feeling the picture taking time, so this is the best I got. Still a very good Easter being with my family.

Michele's Visit and Pre-Easter Prep

Michele made the long trek from Denver to Kansas City to catch up on birthdays and celebrate an early Easter.

I always try to fill up her days while she's here to make her trip special. Her first surprise was an early Easter gift. Dr Pepper is Michele's favorite drink and I just couldn't pass up these Peeps when I saw them in the store. They mostly tasted like marshmallows but the sugary coating might have had a bit of Dr Pepper flavoring.

Then it was off to visit Hazel for her birthday. Michele wrote a story about Ruby the dragon who saves Jellybean Junction from the googlins by launching marshmallows at them with a catapult. That was my favorite part, launching the marshmallows at each other until things started to get out of hand. There was also something about programming Ruby to do different things...go forward, spin around, etc. A lot of artificial intelligence stuff that I'm not that familiar with.

Teresa and I have spent most Fridays during Lent searching for the best fish and chips. With Friday being Good Friday, we wanted to take Michele to the best one we could find. Turns out none of the places we went were that great so we took her to Culver's. Not only was the fish and chips great tasting, we also had fried shrimp. Culver's was also passing out small samples of their frozen custard so that saved me a trip to Andy's for Michele's birthday treat.

At the Taylors, the kids were busy dying Easter eggs.

Each kid has their own version of the best way to dye eggs. I'm glad I didn't have that mess to clean up.

Saturday was the Easter parade in downtown Lee's Summit. Michele was wanting to head back to Colorado so we went to the parade just long enough to get a picture.

But the kids stayed, walked the parade and took a picture with the Easter bunny. Goldie wasn't too happy about that and Hazel sat as far away from the bunny as she possibly could. At least she's not hiding her head...she's getting better at taking pictures.

Meanwhile, Jamie and Lincoln were in St Louis at the motocross races.

Busy couple of days but well worth it. Happy Easter Michele!

Hazel Turns 5

While Violet prefers spending her birthday with friends, Hazel still wants the themed party.

This year a princess party!

The party was held on March 24th so we celebrated again on her actual birthday at no other place than Chick-Fil-A. I swear these kids could live off Chick-Fil-A every day. Except Lincoln. He and I like Taco Bell!

Violet's Birthday

Eleven years ago, actually 10 years and 11 months ago, Melissa started posting pics of Violet's birthdays with a number on the shirt.

Today the tradition continues as Violet celebrates her 11th birthday. Some things are just too special to change. Happy Birthday Violet!

The Chiefs Win the Super Bowl!

I love following the Chiefs play football and noticed the Super Bowl was going to be in Las Vegas this year. Price of tickets to the Super Bowl is extremely costly so last November I asked Teresa if she wanted to go to Las Vegas for the Super Bowl. I figured we'd just watch it on TV in a bar.

Little did I know the Chiefs would actually be in the Super Bowl so that made our trip extra special.

As I expected, Vegas was a zoo but my casino host was able to get us tickets to a Super Bowl party. Just like going to the Super Bowl only no ticket cost. We got to see the game on a giant TVscreen. Food was provided all through the game as well as drinks.

To top it all off, the Chiefs won the Super Bowl. This is the new Sphere constructed in Vegas. It's actually a concert venue in a circle shape. This continually rotates with changing advertisements.

The crowd going back to our room was huge and we actually had to stand in line to get on the elevator to go to our room. But what an experience. Teresa and I are thinking of making plans for next year's Super Bowl. This time in New Orleans. We're hoping for a Chiefs three-pete!