Happy Birthday Daddy!

I felt a little guilty that Osei's birthday wasn't going to be very special.  We are in Colorado for a month living out of suitcases (which is definitely special), but Osei and I have been together almost every minute.  So no chance for surprise plans or gifts or anything like that.  And, it is not like you can completely avoid new parental responsibilities just because it is your birthday (though I changed the big ones!).  So, we had to improvise a little to make the day special!

Thursday morning we met with my old high school cross country coach, Joanne, for coffee at the Laughing Goat in Boulder.  We enjoyed catching up with Joanne, and I have a feeling she made a quick expert assessment that our little girl has some athletic potential (wishful thinking that she'll follow our footsteps and fall in love with running?)

Then Osei and I went to Beau Jo's pizza for lunch.  We weren't that impressed, but were pleasantly surprised when Grandma Nancy stopped by to say hello.  Yay us for making a plan and sticking to it!

Afterwards, we took a drive around the neighborhoods of Denver to explore a little.  As we plan our move to Colorado later this winter, we can definitely both see ourselves ending up in Denver!

Then we met up with a high school friend of mine (and fellow Fairview cross country runner) for happy hour.  We enjoyed meeting her new husband, Nadav, and spending time with both of them.

As if we couldn't pack more activities into our busy day, then we met Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Ralph at BJ's for dinner.  The pizza here exceeded our expectations, even though it meant a two-pizza kind of day!  I carried Palesa in the ring sling the whole evening, and she did wonderfully.  In fact, as we walked along Pearl Street to meet Beth, I even nursed Palesa in the sling (while walking).  We had a few strategically placed blankets for warmth, but otherwise, it was all pretty natural and normal!

Overall, I felt extremely blessed to spend another birthday with my dear husband, Osei.  Happy Birthday, love!

Coffee, and date night, anyone?

On Sunday, Osei and I took Palesa to a church in Denver.  After the service, I held Palesa in my arms rather than put her back in the Moby wrap, because we were headed to the car.  A woman came up to me to admire the Moby wrap.  She said nothing about the adorable baby in my arms, but asked where I'd bought the wrap, and went on about how stylish it was.  And then she exclaimed, "and the great thing about it is that you don't even need a baby to wear in the wrap!  You can just wear it out and about!"  Hmmm, I don't know about that, but I'm glad that we can both agree that the Moby wrap rocks!

Afterwards, we went out to lunch at Noodles and Company.  I'm proud to report that despite eating with chopsticks (while wearing Palesa in the Moby), I didn't drop any food on her head this time!

Later in the afternoon, we met up with a Smithie (and Fairview) friend of mine, Makenna, for coffee.  We enjoyed hearing about her adventures around the globe, and all of the inspiring things she is doing!

Finally, Sunday night Osei and I had our first "adults-only" date while Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Ralph watched Palesa.  It was mostly a dinner date.  Except we drove to Whole Foods to pick up prepared food, which we brought back to my mom's house to all eat together.  We were maybe gone 40 minutes, but it was the first time we've both been away from her!