Hubby's B-Day

Kevin turned 29 this year!  WHAT?  And he was finally home on his actual birth day.  Normally he's traveling at some fair or festival and we're not together on the day.

We were in Switzerland for my last birthday and Kevin bought me a keychain in London as my gift, so I had promised Kevin that I wouldn't get him anything.  The trip was a Christmas gift to each other as well as a birthday gift and every other celebration throughout the year.  I agreed, but I couldn't let his birthday pass by empty-handed.  So...I did get him a small little gift- a set of collar stays in multiple sizes.  He always forgets to take his collar stays out of his shirts when they go to the dry cleaners and he just left a set at the beach in early June, so they needed to be replaced.  These are wooden, so hopefully they'll last a long time and be thick enough to remind him to take them out of his shirt.  Something small, but it was nice to have a little something to give!

Kevin's birthday was on a Friday and I happened to have tickets to Rascal Flatts at Walnut Creek that night.  So, we rushed home from work to pack a weekend bag and then headed out to the show.  Around 10pm, we packed up our blanket and lawn chairs and hopped in the car for the 2 hour drive to High Rock Lake.  Kevin's buddy, Wes, has a lake house and all of the Barton baseball boys were heading there for a weekend of fun.

On the lawn at Walnut Creek!

When we arrived past midnight, Wes and Christina were in the driveway with a cookie cake singing happy birthday and waiting for Kevin to blow out the 2 and the 9.  It was super sweet!  I wish I had gotten a picture!

The weekend was super relaxing and we had a great time being with friends.  Wes came down to the beach earlier this summer, but it had been a long time since we had seen him before then.  Kelly is tough to pin down, so having him in the same state was great!  Mick's wife has already moved to Hawaii and he's heading there soon, so it was a good "last" weekend for the guys to be together.

Crazy boys re-creating their annual baseball picture....the years may have caught up! :)  Hilarious

I spent pretty much the entire day in the water!  When we weren't in the boat, I was floating on a life jacket with a drink in my hand, just living the life!

What lake trip is complete without a fire?

We left the lake around noon on Sunday and went home to unpack and do some laundry before heading to Clayton so my parents could treat Kevin to dinner for his birthday.  We ate at Skylines and it was SO good!  Dinner and dessert and our bellies were really happy.  We stopped back by their house and my mama had gotten Kevin a gift!  So sweet!  I love that she goes all out for his birthday now!  It's really cool!

We made the drive back to Raleigh to settle in for another work week.  But, I have to show you this amazing sunset that I followed home!  It was just the cherry on a really awesome weekend!

Baby Tea!!

The same weekend, in fact the very next day, I attended a baby tea for Elena and her baby girl.  She just happens to be due the day before Ashley!  Elena is in my current Bible study!  Funny how all that happens.

Elena's sister hosted the shower on the screened-in porch of the boat house at Bond Park.  It was seriously the most laid back but fancy shower I've ever attended!  The location was perfect for this momma.

 

The spread of food was to die for!  I felt like we were having a true British tea!  Finger sandwiches and fruit with pound cake and a berry compote.  And peach sweet tea.  Perfect for a hot summer day! 

Lindsey Laughlin's photo!  Yeah, I stole it!

Dainty tea cups held flowers...and we ate on real plates with cloth napkins!  Fancy!

After chatting it up with some other guests and enjoying our food, we had the opportunity to paint onesies for baby Ballam.

It was SO MUCH FUN!

Next came a slew of gifts!  This sweet girl is going to have a house full of things to learn and grow!  I'm especially jealous of the bins covered in woodland animals!

Such a fun afternoon and a great time showering Elena!  You and John are going to make amazing parents and I can't wait to meet baby girl when she arrives!