¡Feliz Cumplaños, Padre!

HEY EVERYONE!! -- Since we're not all able to be home (in fact, only 28.5714% of the original 7 of us are at home right now), I thought we could all write what we love about dad and/or our favorite memory with him for his birthday!

Dad! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! Among many, one of my favorite memories of us took place a few weeks before my mission. All of us kids had fallen asleep upstairs watching a movie, and I woke up and looked around and realized that it was one of the last times that I'd be around everyone like that before we all ran off to missions and/or college, and it hit me pretty hard that I was really going on a mission. I went downstairs to find you in your office, and I explained to you what I was feeling and how freaked out I was, and you gave me a huge hug and (of course) I started bawling, and apparently I was crying so hard that it caused my nose to start bleeding, which got all over the back of your shirt! We went inside so you could soak it in water and we sat and talked on the couch for quite a while and you calmed me down and told me about your mission and how life in South America is (which was all true except for me having to eat rice and beans! haha) but I was just so grateful to have such an understanding and caring dad. It's been really hard to watch Rach and her family react to the loss of her dad, they miss him so much, he was such a good influence in their family, as you have been to ours, Dad, my heart goes out to them, because I can't imagine how that must be for them, our family wouldn't be the same without you, I am so glad that you and Mom found each other and started such an amazing family. Thanks again for everything you do for us, Dad, I love you.
-Kev

Monday Morning Confusion

Macs are fun.

gday father!

I think your cool

Laughing is fun
Oh how your belly sings
Very clever are you
Everyone agrees

You better be working out
Only two months till our race
Upset i will be if you fall on your face.

Please never change
Only stay the same
Pretty much you are the greatest
So i hope your day wasn't lame

am i a great poet or what!?!? i love you dad happy fathers day!

cheers
em

Many Happy Returns...

I always wondered where that came from. Returns of what? Or from what? But anyway, since I'm thus far too shy to call, this is my "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!!" to you, Dad/Curt. You & Michelle have raised such a beautiful family, and I am so happy that I am now a part of it. At the times when Steve is the most proud of himself, he tells me that he thinks he is a lot like you. Yesterday in the car he just said, out of nowhere, "I think I'm a lot like my Dad." And he had this brilliant, totally content smile on his face--I think there is no bigger compliment he could recieve than to be told he is like you. You have a big heart and a way of making people feel special and loved. And I think you should know, I love my Dad so much, and it is not lightly that I refer to you as my second "Dad"(even though I always put the /Curt on, out of respect to your wish that I set the "CURT NOT DAD!" standard). :-) Thank you so much for making the trip down for my graduation. My family loves you, and so do I.
Love,
Jamie

The many faces of Dad

On this Father's Day, and in a montage-esque sort of way, I would like to present some of my favorite pictures whick reflect the many faces and moods of Dad:

Genuine happiness.

Pensive.

Scheming.

Professional.

Touchdown?

Proud.

Alert.

Happy Father's Day!!! I can't tell you how glad I am that you are my Dad, I know I speak for everyone when I say that, along with Mom, we kids couldn't have asked for better parents, and we all love and look up to you as much as you love and look up to Grandpa. He is such an incredible man, and it's no secret that you are, too! Wish I could be there with ya today! Love you, Dad!

Feliz Dia dos Paes

Happy Father's Day Curtis, even though I am not oficially your daughter-in-law yet. It is 12:47 in Seattle right now and I am hoping that I am the first one to wish you Happy Father's Day. But, more than that, I am hoping that you get to eat your favorite meal, that you get a nice long foot rub, and that you eat some dark chocolate (maybe even with coconut). Your family is so lucky to have you as the patriarch of the Waltons and I am so thankful that my children will have such an amazing Grandpa to look up to!

Invitation Preview

Hey, friends, I'm just about done with the invitation, let me know what you think
(I'm sorry that there is no mention of the pig roast on there)
It's a tri-fold, so when it's closed, all you see are the top picture and our names:

HALF DOME

I AM PRETTY SURE WE NEED TO HIKE HALF DOME THIS SUMMER~! maybe those of us who are in town would want to go the monday after the wedding? Let's plan it! We can drive up early in the morning, hike all day, and then drive back that night. I don't mind driving like last time. Let me know what you all think and when would be good!

woot woot

number one- went to a thirsty merc concert... it was brilliant.

number two- upon jamies request: another picture of my mullet. however, i straightened my hair in this picture so you cant really see the damage.

number three- me and jane

number four- i am a pirate

Best birthday ever!!

Hey everyone! Well, yesterday was one of the best birthdays I ever had! Rachel knows that I love surprises, (and that I usually end up ruining them in one way or another, thus ruining the surprise) but she did such a good job. Last week I saw that she was looking at a piano on craigslist, and said that would have been a lot of fun to have one in our new place, I could tell that she didn't want me to have seen that, though. Later, she confessed to having gone to look at the piano a few days later and was miserable because she couldn't get it, so I consoled her and told her that it would be fine, and that I didn't need anything like that for my birthday! (As you will see, she is master of the "sneaky-sneak" -- she definitely belongs in this family!)

So last night, we went to a park after I got off work, and had a picnic dinner. Afterwards, she told me to wait there for 15 mins, and she'd be back. She had me listen to a birthday message she'd made for me on her iPod, which was really sweet, and then she got back and blindfolded me and drove me somewhere, and then ditched me for another minute (so I'm standing somewhere unknown with a blindfold on my face) then she leads me in this door, and takes off my blindfold and lo and behold:
. . . I'm standing in what will be our apartment after we get married and there's a PIANO!!!! She totally surprised me, after I had consoled her for not being able to get it, I didn't think she was going to get one or anything. I was blown away that she was able to have surprised me like that! A friend had given us the portrait of the Savior as a wedding gift, and the photo of the temple was one that I'd taken, that she said "hadn't worked" when she took it to get blown up at Wal-Mart. She totally got me!

So . . . the only candles that Rach could find were a three and a zero . . .

So I'm 30 now? That's what I get for making fun of Rachel for being old . . . even though I am now, too . . .

It has a little bit of water damage and some other work, but I'm going to re-finish it, I'm excited! One of the guys who helped move it in owns a piano shop and says that Rach got a really good deal on it, and he was blown away when he looked inside it and saw how the strings were in such good condition.

Steve, this picture reminded me of that Seminary video that we made where you were reciting that scripture and banging away on the piano like Stevie Wonder.

I love this girl!!

Thanks everyone for making it such a fun birthday, I love you all!!!