I may regret this one . . .

Hayden's 11! He had a great birthday including laser tag with friends, Oreo crunch cake, a sleepover, Muppet movie and dinner with family, basketball watching, and a great present - a new drum set! It's louder than I thought it would be, but I am enjoying hearing him jam out. He's been taking lessons for a while now, but had no way to really practice. He's planning on playing percussion in the middle school band. Jillian is not a fan, but Kara and Kate swarm around him like groupies. He's teaching Kara to play. Right now the drums are in his room. It works, but it's pretty crowded. Happy birthday to my son! I love this kid. He's growing up and doing great things.

iPhone photos:

We bought the drums at a local shop. The owner had the sweetest perm mullet I've ever seen in person. I wanted to get a photo with him, but other customers were waiting. Here's a photo from some guy's blog that will show you the awesomeness, if you are curious. Sam was very nice and helpful and I will definitely go back to his fun shop.  

Lots of things are awesome!

Anyone see the LEGO movie? We saw it the weekend it opened. So glad I didn't download the "Everything is Awesome!" song. I think it would make me insane. I wish I could say that everything is awesome, but I can't, so I thought I'd modify the title. Still fairly catchy, I think.

It was 65 degrees last week. We went for a walk by some ponds and then out to dinner as a family. That was awesome.

 Kate loves to have a bath or shower every day. I try to make her wait for every other day. She's so cute in the shower.

 Kate and I like to take selfies sometimes when we are waiting for things. We are very good at being puffer fish. Awesome.

Jillian turned 13. It's her off year for a party, so I took her and some friends ice skating. They all said it was harder than they thought it would be, but they had fun. She's a great teenager so far!

My garden is starting to show signs of life. I think a few plants died off completely during the freeze we had (not awesome), but most look fine. Can't wait to get back outside and work. I did some pruning and clean up, and Kyle planted some new grass.

I'm still having back pain and trouble from a strain I got around Thanksgiving. Not, not, not awesome. I hate not being able to run and exercise like I'd like to. Trying physical therapy, massage therapy, and herbal remedies. And painkillers. I have an appointment for a steroid shot in a few weeks if I'm not feeling better. Blah.

What's awesome in your life?