80th Birthday Bash- Check!

What a wild and crazy weekend!

I had a blast helping to host my Dad's 80th birthday! It was extra special, since this time last year we weren't sure he'd make it long enough to see my twins born, let alone another birthday. I guess being ornery has served him well.

We had a great turn out and Dad was so excited that so many people traveled from near and far to bring birthday wishes.

I got to see my Aunt Connie, who I haven't seen in ages. She looks remarkably like my Mom did the last few years- after she got sick and skinny. Mom was so happy to be skinny- leave it to her to find a silver lining in absolutely anything.  (I would say she looks "freakishly" like my Mom, but that makes is sound like a bad thing. It is certainly enough to freak you out though.)

My Aunt Connie is just as gorgeous as I remember her- I hope I age half as well. I always thought of her as so worldly and classy. And she actually is, even looking at her through grown up eyes. Here is a picture of her with two of my Mom's other siblings, my Uncle Richard and Aunt Joyce.

If I told you their ages- 1. they would kill me 2. you wouldn't believe me anyway. Seriously, I love these people.

Becky & Travis even made a flying trip to and from KC in one day. But we WERE able to get pictures of both sets of twins together. Not great pictures, but pictures. I'll have to post those once I get a copy.

I made a cake for the party. Well, actually I made 3, but 2 of them were kitchen cakes. (Cut them in the kitchen and serve them, so it doesn't matter what they look like.)

We also had cream cheese mints. Oh my, if you've never had these, you just haven't lived. I remember Mom making them for baby showers, bridal showers, weddings... this is probably one of my favorite things Mom made. My sisters Carrie & Darlene made the mints along with my niece Jen, while I was finishing the cakes. Jen's hubby Darrin mixed the coloring in the fondant (thank heavens!) to get the pretty blue color on the cake.

Special thanks would have to go to my sister Carrie's mother in law, Larinda, who had the mint flavoring and extra molds we needed and also helped out with tablecloths and set up. She's pretty feisty for being almost 80.

This is getting long, so I just need to say one more thing (and I'll probably put it on FB too)- my kids were AWESOME! I couldn't be prouder. They helped load and unload the van, set up tables and chairs, took and printed photos, got signatures for the memory book and on and on. The babies were good too, but just didn't want to go to bed- it was after midnight both nights. They slept until 9 both mornings, though, and were still sweet to everyone at the party.

Alright, I'm pretty tired, I think I should try to get some rest-it's back to the grind tomorrow. Thanks for being patient while I was out in the middle of nowhere!