Family Reunion (Birthday?)

Tuesday, August 12, 2025

Today is my birthday! Happy Birthday to me.

What a wonderful weekend we just had. Last year I asked Ben if he would plan the next family reunion and I suggested it might be fun if he planned it around my birthday and included a float down the Salt River. He happily agreed and this is the plan he came up with.

FRIDAY

5:00 PM Family Dinner at Caldwell County BBQ

6:00 - 9:00 PM - Revel Surf Park - evening surf sessions and spectating

9:30 PM Hangout after bedtime at Kira's for those who would like to

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SATURDAY

8:00 AM Gilbert Farmers Market - breakfast there or light bite before

10:00 AM Pool Party Begins at 8052 E Peterson Ave, Mesa, AZ 85212

Snacks out (fruit, chips, cold drinks)

Pool Games: Cannonball Contest, Water Balloon Toss, Noodle Jousting, Relay Races, Treasure Hunt

Shaded craft table for little kids

12:00 PM Greek-Style BBQ Lunch - kebabs, pita, tzatziki, salads

1:00 PM Chill Swim / Wind Down

1:30 - 2:00 PM - Cleanup & Rest Time - head back to hotels/homes for naps/showers

5:00 PM Dinner at Organ Stop Pizza - pizza buffet & Mighty Wurlitzer organ show

8:30 PM Adults and older kids meet at 8052 E Peterson Ave to carpool to Salt River

9:00 PM Night Float on the Salt River - bring glow sticks, waterproof bags, and life jackets

The weekend went pretty much as Ben had planned except that Justins nephew ended up graduating on Friday night and he thought he should be supportive and attend. That’s alright, we substituted the Caldwell County BBQ with a quieter dinner at Joe’s Farm Grill. Ben & Sharley treated Lisa and I to dinner as a birthday gift. In fact, this weekend was billed as a family reunion, but it felt a lot like a wonderful and extended birthday party for me.

Around noon on Friday, we packed up anyone who wanted to come and headed to the river.

So peaceful

Mom did not like me getting too close to the horses.

Do you see that hole in the cliff wall behind me and Justin? It is near the left edge of the photo just below the halfway mark.

Justin and I swam over to that cliff, climbed up to the hole and jumped from there. It was terrifying. I have never cliff jumped before, mostly because without my glasses I am blind, and cliff jumping doesn’t seem like something I should be doing blind. Today I had my contacts on so no excuses.

I’m telling you, I have never been so scared in my life. I did something I’ve never done before; I closed my eyes. I swore I’d never do that because if I’m going to die, I want to see what’s coming. It was amazing and I will definitely be doing this again. I didn’t want any belly flops or slapped arms, so I basically stepped off the cliff with my arms tight to my body. It was great.

We had some unexpected visitors show up to make the weekend more exciting. Kari Williamson (I don’t remember her married name) came to visit Kira for a week and it happened to overlap with our weekend. It was good to see her.

Vicky and Thomas Cormack also came along. They recently moved to Arizona, and it was good to see them as well.

We got back later than we had planned so we cancelled the surf park and Ben and Sharley took Lisa and I to Joe’s Farm Grill and treated us to a wonderful dinner. It was a nice way to unwind from the exciting day.

The Farmers market on Saturday morning was amazing. I wish we had once this nice near us.

Probably the most interesting thing for me was this rotating barrel full of peppers. It had a propane torch blowing on it from the back cooking the peppers. I would probably have bought one just because I loved the way they cooked it, but I couldn’t find where they were selling them.

Ben’s pool is amazing, and they have a nice shaded area with tables. We spent the day going back and forth between the pool and the food.

We were at a store and Zanee saw Ben and Kira walking towards us, and she got excited. She said, “Oh my gosh, I never realized that Ben and Kira have the same nose. Mom had to take a picture to show that they really do. In fact, it is kind of amazing how much they look alike.

Ben and Sharley recently got back from Greece. They enjoyed the food so much that the meal on Saturday was all Greek food. It might look like Ben is doing the cooking, but Sharley put it all together and it turned out great. Thank you Sharley.

I loved it. It was really good, and I ate way too much. I gained three pounds this weekend, but it was worth every pound.

We took a break for a couple of hours and then Saturday evening we headed out for more food. The Organ Stop Pizza place is quite an experience. They serve some really good pizza, and while you eat it, this amazing organist serenades you. The organ stops activate all kinds of musical clusters spread throughout the room. Right above our head were the drums and a bird in a nest that would sing. They have puppets that sing and many other bells, xylophones, bugles, etc.

You can make requests for the organist to play specific songs, but I think he has his repertoire (which is very good) and ignores the requests. He obviously doesn’t ignore all the requests because they asked him to play happy birthday to me. Mine wasn’t the only name mentioned but Kira made me stand and it felt like the entire place was singing to me. It was embarrassing but fun.

After we stuffed ourselves with pizza (thank you Justin) we got ourselves ready and then headed out for a nighttime run down the river. While the daytime floats are wonderful, the nighttime ones are so much better. With the sun gone it is still nice and warm, and the water keeps you from getting too hot but you don’t feel like you are being fried plus there are fewer people, and it is soooo peaceful. Sorry, I don’t have any pictures from the nighttime run. It was dark.

But the weekend was not over yet. Sunday, Evan was ordained an Elder, so we attended church with Kira and Justin. Their church is starting to feel like home for us, we get there so often. We were also blessed with an unexpected treat at church.

Kira took piano lessons, but she excelled on her Oboe, so we rarely get to hear her play piano. At their choir practice, the pianist failed to show up so Kira played the piano. She will say it was not good, but I thought she played beautifully. She’s definitely out of practice but I could tell she could be an amazing pianist if she had time to practice.

Their choir was small, but I think they sang beautifully. It was a treat to hear them. Kira, Justin and Piper are all in their choir. Justin sang a beautiful solo, but I think the other two men were supposed to be singing with him. Their lips were moving but I only heard Justin.

Ben came to the ordination which took place right after church. Justin gave Evan a beautiful blessing.

Afterward we went to Kira’s and Justin cooked some amazing tri-tip. Ben even serenaded us on the trumpet. He doesn’t remember all the notes, but he can still make a nice sound on it. It was a day of wonderful musical surprises.

After the crowd died down, and before we left for home, I gave Kira a father’s blessing and Evan was able to “stand” in the circle. It was a great experience.

We had an uneventful drive home, and it was great to sleep in our own bed.

Like I said, this was billed as a “Family Reunion” but it felt like a wonderful three-day birthday party. Thank you, Ben, for making it happen and thank you to everyone who helped make it special.

--------------------trivia--------------------

The meeting between Trump and Putin in Alaska over the weekend has some interesting ironies. First of all, it took place on land that was once owned by Russia, and second, the primary reason that Russia sold Alaska to America was because they needed the funds to support their war in Crimea. 

Second, but related trivia, when Russia owned Alaska it extended all the way to California.

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