It Was Really Howlin' in Howland Today

We celebrated Amy Marie's birthday this afternoon (Unlike Kendal, it is today) at Dan and Laura's (Sweeney) house in Howland Township, OH (Outside of Warren). We had breaded chicken on the bone, rigatoni, meatballs, salad, rolls, among other things. Most of the food came from a restaurant that I will reveal as soon as I e-mail Dan and Laura to find out the information. (6-28-08: I only e-mailed Laura and learned that the food came from The Wave restaurant in Sharon, PA.) The food was appetizing.

I believe that the attendance level ranks about the same, if not more than Kendal's party last Sunday. The guest list among my family included Kathleen, Patty, Tim, Maggie, Dan Sr., Patrick, Amy, David, Lois, Mike Schabel, Mandy, Aunt Rita, and her son Johnny. In addition, Dan Sr.'s Mom, two brothers, (Of Dan Sr.) and at least two nieces (Cousins of Dan Jr.) were also there. Not to be outdone, the Graham (Laura's Kin) family was well represented. Outside of relatives, some of Dan Jr.'s co-workers as well as Sue (Laura's maid of honor at her wedding) were present as well.

The weather was nice, though we had some breezes. The party was indoors and outdoors. Thankfully, there was plenty of space indoors, although there were some minor "obstacles" that were partially avoided with shortcuts. I can't imagine all these people at the old house in Chardon, OH (The attendance today outranked Amy Marie's Baptism) since shortcuts were practically nonexistent, and the new house is a lot larger, though I'll miss the old house and its traditional charm.

Speaking of charm, Dan Sr. accompanied the singers on his guitar as we sang "Happy Birthday." Amy Marie had an individual birthday cake. (Kendal also had the same deal last year.) The cake (for all of us) was from Giant Eagle. (Pittsburgh based grocery store chain, but with a large presence in NE Ohio, Toledo, Columbus, and other areas) It met my expectations. Eventually, Laura opened up Amy Marie's presents and cards. It was mostly toys. She received a few of the same things. I had a brief moment of inspiration, but since there are so many toys out there, and people like to shop at a variety of stores, I decided that a gift registry would be quite "mindboggling." However, the value of gift cards has been clearly illustrated. By the way, Bob and I gave Amy Marie a Toys 'R' Us/Babies 'R' Us card. We sent Kendal a Kay Bee Card for her birthday (Bob wouldn't let me send a card without a present. I'll slip the coupons for baby products that I was going to give Kendal at her party in Marnie's birthday card that I'll send her this week. It should be in "safer hands." If you've read the Kendal-Hayden blog, you may get the humor. (This applies to people who don't know Marnie. In reality, she is a wonderful niece.)

In closing, today's party was a really fun event. It allowed me to reacquaint myself with Patrick, Amy (My niece, not the baby), and David, and to a lesser extent to some other people. It allowed me to see the new house. I'll see more of it as time goes on, but I am impressed. I hope that tomorrow's more "adult" party for Kathleen's birthday will be just as entertaining. Tune in to find out.

It May Have Been Hayden's Coronation, But Kendal Won the Crown.

I saw my Great Niece Hayden for the first time today. However, Kendal conveniently grabbed the spotlight as we also celebrated her birthday (It's really June 4th, but thanks to the three day weekend, Mike, Marnie, and company came in from Howell, MI for the weekend.). It was held at Mike's parents house in Medina, OH (about 30 miles South of Cleveland). It was a nice affair with food from Dominic's Pizza in Medina (Same as last year, (Pre-Blog)) and contributions from Maggie, Mandy, Lois, and perhaps others. Maybe the Kendal-Hayden blog could give some more insight. In addition to the mentioned participants, Mike Schabel, Marnie's brother-in-law Tim and his girlfriend, my brother Tim, and Mandy were present, as well as a lot of Mike Schmidt's relatives and some friends of Mike and Marnie. It was your typical child's birthday party with kids running around. A pinata of Elmo as well as Beanbag toss were also featured. However, Kendal opened up some presents when she felt like it before we could gather around to view the enjoyment. She didn't finish the job before most of us left. Eventually, I will let you know about the rest of Kendal's present opening.

There isn't much to say about Hayden except that she cried when Grandpa Tim held her, but it faded soon after he passed her off to someone else. She cried again later in the evening, but Marnie handled the situation. In closing, it was a party to remember.

Let us hope that Amy Marie's party next weekend is as successful.

Family News

A few weeks ago I learned that my niece Amy and her fiance David will be married on May 16, 2009. I expect to see them a week from tomorrow when we celebrate Amy Marie's first birthday. Of course, we will also see Dan and Laura's new house in the Warren, OH area.

Speaking of great nieces, I will be seeing Kendal and Hayden on Sunday at my niece's in-laws in Medina. It will be an early birthday party for Kendal, but it will allow some of us to see Hayden in person for the first time. They are coming in from Howell, MI. The Kendal and Hayden blog is now an "official" link.

If you haven't already noticed, I added some RSS feeds to my blog recently. The one from Boston is my favorite TV station in the market that I haven't seen live in person in almost 15 years. I should be seeing it next year, if not sooner when I go to visit Patty, Dan Sr., Amy, and David, either for the wedding or just to visit.

The Indianapolis one is one that I have never seen in person, but 8 is one of my favorite numbers, although Channel 3 (WKYC) is my favorite station here in Cleveland. (I don't watch Channel 8 (WJW) a lot, although I love most of the sitcoms that come from Fox. I have also peeked at Mike and Juliet, That's Life, (Robin Swoboda's program (Go to http://www.myfoxcleveland.com for details, if you are from out of town.)) Tyra, and other shows throughout the day.) The main reason that WISH is here is because the call letters sound cool.

These sites are my first forays into RSS feeds. Widgets are easier, but these two RSS feeds are worth it. As far as I am concerned, widgets and RSS feeds both serve the purpose of providing outside information to personal web sites. I hope that you enjoy these widgets. There may be more to come.

My next report will deal with the Kendal and Hayden festivities on Sunday. Read the Kendal-Hayden blog for more details, if they are available. Enjoy the Memorial Day weekend wherever you are.