Kyle Kopp and Too Much Birthday

As I write this entry, around 10:30pm PST, I have a feeling the clock is lying to me. There's no way it's pre 2am. I am as wiped out as I've ever been. ... ever. ... e-v-e-r. They day started at 4am when I awoke to the pitter patter of little rain drops. ... not a good start for a birthday party that will be mostly out doors. Everyone got up around 7:30 and we got showered and dressed in our pre-party duds and out the door to Grandma's house to help set up, which when you are 1 years old means getting in the way. We said "damn you dirty rain" to the clouds and set up everything in pure defiance of Mother Nature and, it worked. By noon the clouds gave way to a gorgeous sunny day and the soggy ground got. ... well, a little less soggy anyway. The first guests got there around 2:45 - which let me point out one of the main differences between white people and Greek people. ... punctuality. Most "americanized" folks tend to show up either on time or early. If it's a 3 o'clock party and you're there at 3:05 you spend the next 20 minutes apologizing for your tardiness. If you're a Greek and you show up for a 3 o'clock party at 3:05, you circle the block until 4 because there is no way that anyone you know is there already. This is a point of conflict in our marriage. We compromise by being 15 minutes late everywhere and then I apologize while she waits in a corner for the people she knows. Hey, it works. Anyway the party was in full swing by 4 and let me say, it was really swinging. That house was packed! It was tough because we sent out a lot of invites, but only got a handful of rsvp's, so we had no idea if we were getting 20 people or 90 people. We ended up with around 50, 60. Nice group too. Kids were running around playing in the "kid zone" we set up in the living room. Adults were talking and laughing. Jon was cooking about 30 pounds of tri-tip. And the girls were eating up the spot light. Just perfect. I could not believe how many presents were there. ... it took us forever to get through them. But it just reminds me that my girls are really something special. They are loved by so many wonderful people, and that's how we've survived this past year. Grandma's and Yiayia's who open their doors, feed us, cloth us, change us. Aunts and Uncles (from newbies to Great, Great's) that hug us and kiss us at every turn, and some of the best friends that money can buy. ... and we don't even have to pay them! Well. ... not all of them, anyway. ;) Point is, this was an amazing way to celebrate the biggest of all birthdays - the very 1st - and it reminds me how many people truly love us and how lucky we are to have them in our lives. And let me point out that this does not mean all the people that truly love us but couldn't make it aren't appreciated as well. The distance that separates us from you is only physical, we still appreciate the emotion support and the good vibes you're always sending our way! Now to bed, like the idiots that we are we agreed to go out to brunch in the morning. Are we stupid or crazy? I'm going to say both. ... some form of "stazy". .. or is it "crupid"?