Quentin’s 11th Birthday

Quentin turned 11 years old this month. He celebrated with a sleep over and small parties with family. On his birthday day, Neil and I stopped at his after school program to bring his gifts from the Beamer side of family. We sat outside with him as he opened his presents and soon there was a larger group of his friends watching and wishing him happy birthday.

On the website, click on any photo in the gallery to view them larger and with commentary. Use the arrow keys to move through the rest of the gallery. Photos by Neil.

My Birthday Month

What a wonderful birthday day, week, and month I am having. So many wonderful thoughts and wishes sent my way. Thank you!

Fresh water aquariumAt the beginning of the month, Neil asked “How would you like an aquarium for your birthday?” I was leery but a few hours later he found a fully operational 55 gallon fresh water aquarium from someone moving to the mainland and by the end of that same day it is was sitting on the lanai! It is perched up so we can see both the aquarium as well as the ocean from our computer desks. We sit outside on the couch each morning with our tea and watch the fish enjoy their breakfast. The real gift is that he does all the maintenance! (That’s no small thing since it sits outside and gets a few hours of direct sunshine each day.) Neil posted some videos of the fish at different times of the day on youtube. New Aquarium 05 – Evening Feeding is link to one of them and you can view any of the others from there.

Quentin opening presentsTuesday, we drove up country to Ulupalakua for the winery tour, wine tasting, and picnic lunch. My great nephew, Quentin, turned 11 that day, so on the way home we visited him at his after-school boys and girls club to have him open his presents. Neil and I sat with him outside with the present pile from the grand and great-grandparents plus his dad and ours. Soon there was a whole group gathered around him to watch him and wish him happy birthday. He was loving being the center of attention as well as getting all the gifts. He had a cake Saturday night at his birthday sleepover and was getting another cake birthday night with mom and Grandma Marjorie, so I just brought some birthday cookies thinking he could share with some friends. I had to break them in half so make enough to go around for the whole group!

Since I don’t really need things, Neil has spent the month pampering me with delicious dinners and special chores. On my birthday, he beautifully detailed the inside and out of our convertible. He said he did it on my actual day because that was the only way he could make sure I didn’t come out to help 🙂  It really shines! Well speaking of things, we have gotten a few new technology items this month that are taking time to learn. We needed a new camera in time for birthday photos and got a new Sony Cyber-shot to replace our old broken one. Plus our phone contract was up, so now we both have new phones to learn. And my real treat was getting a new Android tablet. It arrived the day before my birthday and I only had it on twice. I can now spend the rest of my birthday month playing with it.

Nan and Neil at birthday dinnerMy birthday morning, Neil put a candle in my scone and we had our tea on the lanai with the fishes. We drove south for the day visiting several beaches and just enjoying our Maui home. We shared another picnic on Makena Beach and played in the sand. For dinner we went to one of our favorites, Monsoon India, and enjoyed the sunset as well as the food. Oh, and the day wasn’t complete until we made a stop at Ono Gelato for birthday ice cream!

Thank you for all your love and wishes. What a special birthday!