Well, celebrations abound last weekend in the Lu Crew home! We had a trifecta of Bella's 5th Birthday + Clay's 40th Birthday + Mother's Day on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, respectively. Needless to say, it was a weekend full of fun and we are all still pooped from the festivities. A look at how we celebrated each:
Bella Turns 5!
We kicked off the weekend with Bella turning One Whole Hand!
Because the forecast called for chillier, rainy weather, we opted to celebrate the weekend before. My sister recommended this awesome inflatable company, Morton Amusement, so we reached out to them and ended up renting a bounce house/water slide combo. That Sunday, we invited friends over and bounced and water-slided (water-slid?) allllll dayyyyy long! Bels loved it and we loved seeing friends of all ages that day. <3
Her actual birthday was pretty low-key: traditional birthday breakfast date with Dad (which, like Harrison's two weeks prior, involved a to-go order and in-home dining because #quarancation). She spent the morning playing with her new gifts while I knocked out homeschool with the Big 3, and then, it was time for her lunch request: Taco Bell. HA! When I asked Bella what she wanted for her birthday she was insistent on two things: a purple cake and Taco Bell. And what the birthday girl wants, the birthday girl gets. Next, she was surprised by a visit from her Bammy and GGram, who drove up to hand deliver her birthday gifts and spend a little time with us. The day ended with her dinner request (burgers!) and a movie, snuggling on the couch as the rain fell. She had a great day, and we loved celebrating our big 5-year-old birthday girl!
Because the forecast called for chillier, rainy weather, we opted to celebrate the weekend before. My sister recommended this awesome inflatable company, Morton Amusement, so we reached out to them and ended up renting a bounce house/water slide combo. That Sunday, we invited friends over and bounced and water-slided (water-slid?) allllll dayyyyy long! Bels loved it and we loved seeing friends of all ages that day. <3
Her actual birthday was pretty low-key: traditional birthday breakfast date with Dad (which, like Harrison's two weeks prior, involved a to-go order and in-home dining because #quarancation). She spent the morning playing with her new gifts while I knocked out homeschool with the Big 3, and then, it was time for her lunch request: Taco Bell. HA! When I asked Bella what she wanted for her birthday she was insistent on two things: a purple cake and Taco Bell. And what the birthday girl wants, the birthday girl gets. Next, she was surprised by a visit from her Bammy and GGram, who drove up to hand deliver her birthday gifts and spend a little time with us. The day ended with her dinner request (burgers!) and a movie, snuggling on the couch as the rain fell. She had a great day, and we loved celebrating our big 5-year-old birthday girl!
Clay Turns 40!
We awoke the next morning ready to celebrate our main guy turning the big 4-0! A couple months ago, when this quarantine craziness started, I tried to brainstorm something that would make his birthday special, seeing as how we'd be spending it at home. And then it hit me: how about 40 gifts for 40 years?! I know that sounds like a lot, but it was seriously so fun watching him walk into the kitchen and realize what was waiting for him.
Some gifts were as simple (but as sentimental) as homemade cards, gift certificates for back scratches, a scrapbook I had created way back in 2002 when we first started dating, a stash of his favorite chapstick, graphic art with the sound wave and lyrics of our wedding song, and a supply of his favorite straws from Starbucks. ;)
Others were personalized/birthday appropriate items: a new hat, a shirt to wear for the day, a vintage 1980 tumbler, and custom koozie/ornament made by the one and only Molly of Blanchard Designs.
Still others were things that I knew he would love and were specific to him: Waffle House waffle mix (thanks to quarantine, Waffle House has been selling it online for the first time ever!) and a waffle iron (which I used to make his birthday breakfast), his favorite bourbon, a new hammock, etc. The kids and I seriously LOVED watching him open his gifts.
Some gifts were as simple (but as sentimental) as homemade cards, gift certificates for back scratches, a scrapbook I had created way back in 2002 when we first started dating, a stash of his favorite chapstick, graphic art with the sound wave and lyrics of our wedding song, and a supply of his favorite straws from Starbucks. ;)
Others were personalized/birthday appropriate items: a new hat, a shirt to wear for the day, a vintage 1980 tumbler, and custom koozie/ornament made by the one and only Molly of Blanchard Designs.
Still others were things that I knew he would love and were specific to him: Waffle House waffle mix (thanks to quarantine, Waffle House has been selling it online for the first time ever!) and a waffle iron (which I used to make his birthday breakfast), his favorite bourbon, a new hammock, etc. The kids and I seriously LOVED watching him open his gifts.
He spent the day golfing with seven great friends, and then we spent the evening hosting around several friends and their families at a big backyard cookout. It was such a fun way to celebrate our newly appointed 40-year-old, and we loved every minute.
Mother's Day!
But wait! Why have two back-to-back celebrations when you can have three - ha! We celebrated a lovely Mother's Day on Sunday, and I loved sweet time with my Crew and the sweet time to myself. :) A definite highlight was that I got to get in a good workout while my hub volunteered to knock out the next day's e-learning. I cannot begin to express the stress this immediately lifted off my shoulders, knowing that Monday's work would be done before Monday even arrived. We enjoyed lunch together before going on a nice, long family bike ride. I got to spend hours reading a great book in the lovely Spring weather while my hub played with the kiddos nearby. I got to relax and write and watch a show I love and lounge around while chores were being done. And then we enjoyed takeout sushi from one of our favorite sushi restaurants. We ended the day with our Sunday ritual of "AFV" before all crashing early (like, before 8:00 pm, all of us!) after an action-packed, fun-filled weekend.
This weekend was one for the books. I continue to be so thankful for the extra family time we have been gifted during this time of quarantine. While there are exhausting and challenging, stressful and anxiety-provoking, come-to-Jesus moments, there is so much beauty here, too.
I am also grateful that we are able to slowly start re-immersing ourselves back out into the world, dipping our toes into the social realm as we work to find a better balance in our lives. While I'm not yet sure what that will look like, I do know that this weekend was a really good one, one we will remember forever as we celebrated big and celebrated together.
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