Sorry for the delay, but a busy weekend has fed right into a busy work week…

We flew into Cincinnati and arrived about dinner time on Friday night. My dad and Tim picked us up and we drove downtown to our hotel for the night. My mom is/was on a cruise with her sisters, but she kindly reserved a couple rooms for us. The first stop with Ed Sr. and Tim was for some food at RockBottom Brewery. It seems like I always end up here for dinner when downtown, but who can go wrong with good beer and good food!

We then made the nearly two mile walk over to the Beer Sellar. Originally we were going to take a cab over but since we ended up walking there we arrived at the bar a little later than we wanted to. Weeks earlier we had sent out an evite to friends and family to join us at the bar to celebrate my dad’s 50th birthday. We kept it a secret from him, and when we walked into the bar about 50 people we had invited stood up and shouted, “Surprise!” In the end I was glad that we were late, the surprise was great.

We spent the rest of the night at the Beer Sellar and it was a great time. Our friends in the band Greenstreet were there to provide some great music and of course the 60 beers on tap did not disappoint. Be sure to head there throughout the summer when Greenstreet is playing again. I know I will if I’m in town.

Saturday was spent out at my parents’ house relaxing and recovering from the night before. Later in the day I took a couple of rides in my dad’s new Mazda 3. I even rode on the highway in the car! Remember that my last car was an almost identical Mazda 3 and that I no longer have the car because it was totaled on the highway just outside of St. Louis. Anyway, my dad and I hung out at the Hais’ house for a few hours after dinner and from there I headed to bed knowing that Sunday would be an early morning.

I awoke to the sounds of banging pots and pans on Sunday. I guess that Kim had convinced some of her family that this was the best way to wake me up. I then began searching their house for my Easter basket and found it a half hour or so later. The Easter Bunny gave me all sorts of weapons (aka tools) that airport security would have loved. Everyone then got ready and before too long many of Kim’s aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. started showing up for their annual Easter party. The good thing about west side Cincinnati Easter parties is that you can still play cornhole! The party was a great time and it was good to see all of Kim’s family again. Just as things were wrapping up, we got a ride down to the airport and flew back to KC. I’m still a little exhausted from the weekend’s events, but I have my first full week of work in while to rest up.