Weekend review

Weekends are just the best! It is so nice to plan a few "out of the ordainary" things and enjoy some "what we want to do" time instead of racing non stop to keep up with what everyone else wants us to do.

Friday night we had an adults night out with Cam & LaRane and Katie & Clark. I got tickets to a much-anticipated dance program at the University of Utah put on by the Odessey Dance Company. It is called "Shut Up & Dance". They perform different programs about 3 times a year. Paul & I went to their "Thriller" program last October. It was all Halloween, scary, off the beaten path, very unique and original dances. We enjoyed it so much. In the program that night was an advertisement for this Spring performance and I decided then it would be fun to come with all our adult kids so when the tickets went on sale I grabbed some up. The performance we went to was subtitled "Let It Be". All the music was from the Beatles -- original soundtracks. The dances were again very original and up beat and entertaining as well as beautifully performed. There was even one performance with the dancer dangling from above the stage from a couple of 20 foot white ribbons that she would wrap around her body in various ways and twist and twirl "a la Cirque d' Solei" (with whom she had trained for a period of time). It was incredible. Some of the dances were just silly like the routine they performed to "Will you still love me?" All the dancers came out on stage dressed like very old people with walkers and wheelchairs and canes and waddled/shuffled around to "will you still need me, will you still feed me when I'm 64!" Paul was a little offended by that one since he'll be turning 64 next week! All in all it was fun to be out together sans little ones. We're going to have to try to do this a few more times a year... it is good adult therapy.

But the highlight of the weekend was Aspen's 2nd birthday! So amazing to think that she is already 2! Wow, how time flies! She was really excited when it came to the present opening portion of the party! Most of the gifts had been put in gift bags all cute and full of tissue paper along with the present. She would just dig right in and start tossing the tissue out of her way and she even continued tossing the enclosed gifts, which were mostly clothes, just like the tissue. I'm not sure what she was expecting to find underneath it all but I don't think she was getting that the gift was the clothes. It was just funny to watch.

We had warned Katie & Clark that they might not like the present that we were going to give Aspen but you can see from the picture that she took right to it! Yes, we gave her that cute little battery-powered ATV. She climbed right on and when we showed her where to push the "GO" button she was off like a pro! She didn't really get the steering part so she mostly just drove straight into whatever she was headed for -- be it a wall, a chair or a person. I think it will be much better when she rides it OUTSIDE! Too funny! Oh well, it's that what grandparents are supposed to do : spoil the grandkids! I think we did a good job this time.