it's good to be 38 so far...

my birthday weekend with friends kicked my 38th year off to a fine start. feeling good. got my feet back on the ground this year. a little clarity about what i do well, and making choices about how I want to live. cleaned out the cobwebs, cleared a lot of clutter, and opened up a lot of questions about who I am and where I want to go. don't have many answers to the questions, but I am on the right journey. ;)

and oh boy, I have quite a summer packed with journeys and adventure planned.....

meat!

no one went hungry, and significant amounts of meat was grilled!

adult refreshment stop...

on the way home, Geordie, Arvind and I made a visit to our beer Mecca... the Russian river brewery in santa rosa. home of my beloved (and by far, one of the best beers on the market right now) pliny the elder.

the three if us shared the 18-beer sampler. so delicious! standouts were "happy hops" and "supplication".

and no birthday weekend would be complete without a new hoodie! thanks again Arvind and Mala for such a fantastic gift! :)

playing about in boats

our big adventure for the weekend was loading up all the families into the boats, and crossing the river for an afternoon on the beach on the other side. it was hilarious that it took us hours to coordinate getting everyone over there.... but everyone enjoyed a low-key afternoon.

river queen crew & sunset birthday celebration!

on Saturday evening the girls put together a birthday toast on the upper hot tub deck... complete with customized beer mugs for me, wine glasses for shannan (her 40th is in July), decks of cards for mani, and a variety of party favors for Otis & olive (celebrating 4 years old on may 31st).

it was an awesome festive evening. girl couldn't ask for more on her b-day! xo.

the "river queen" mansion on the Russian river

for the long memorial day weekend this year, Mala and I rented a mansion on the banks of the Russian river, and herded 18 of our beloved friends, and their 10 children to join us for some fun and relaxation. it was quite a full house!...

first off, the house itself was amazing! 7 bedrooms, 2 living rooms, 2 kitchens, and about 18 porches! the game room (a.k.a. "man town") had a pool table, fusball, & ping pong, and giant tv, and games galore! of course, poker was played. outside, there was a huge hot tub on the deck overlooking the river, as well as a boat ramp stocked with a variety of canoes and kayaks.

it was a whirlwind at times with all the families around, but we never had a chance to get bored. some went wine tasting, I never left the property.

http://www.vrbo.com/286986