Ethan and Ehlana:
Happy 12th Birthday, Naomi – again!
Since we’ve been celebrating all weekend and this is a double or triple update for all of that news; that’s where we should begin this report! Let’s get at that from Friday afternoon.
Once we were packed and ready to go, we headed over to Naomi’s house; met Aiden there; and got right to the having fun plans! We did a band practice that included working on new songs for the dance next month; we helped Naomi’s father with making dinner; and then that meal was a bit scary because Zack and Eli were in fine form and felt the need to annoy Naomi and Ehlana as an early birthday gift for Naomi. That trend continued throughout the evening, but Aiden and I managed to divert Zack and Eli for a while with some gaming action; and the pranks and practical jokes stopped by eleven o’clock due to a parental cease-and-desist order. Our evening highlights were all about co-ed cuddling, a movie, and sofa sleepovers; so we had a really happy end to our school week!
Naomi’s birthday began with Tai Chi for four; a special birthday breakfast that included a few gifts for Naomi; and then we were set free for the rest of the morning after three of us helped with the breakfast clean-up. Our Saturday micro-report happened when we stopped in at home for a quick round of birthday best wishes for Naomi from Mom and Dad; we grabbed out bikes; and went for a chilly morning ride and hung out with a few friends along the way. We needed to be back at Naomi’s for lunch; that was a snack-meal; and then we got ready for the party – which for Naomi, Ehlana, and some of their girlfriends began with a visit to the salon! Aiden and I helped Naomi’s father with getting some decorating done while the girls were busy; he picked up the cakes from the bakery; and then there was a social hour that started at around four o’clock as the girls began to arrive from the salon and the guys came over from homes or elsewhere. Zack and Eli were put in charge of the video gaming in the family room, and that generally worked to keep them out of trouble and busy through until dinnertime. Music videos and chat time went on in the living room through until Naomi’s mother brought the Pizzeria pizza order home with her after work at the salon; and here’s probably the best spot in this update for a personal side-trip that is all about Naomi and me.
While Ehlana and I had a joint gift for Naomi, and we usually don’t write about specific gifts, in this case, the gifts I gave Naomi were also a top tween gossip story by the time we got to that social hour. I gave her a birthstone ring that she opened this morning – and an official boyfriend. That was obvious to our friends by then, since I chose the ring size expecting that it could be a pinkie ring by the time we’re grown up; and Naomi is wearing it on her ring finger like a promise ring. For the record, I’m okay with that; since I am going to marry Naomi – and I can handle all of the razzing I’ve already been getting from the other guys. The drama is silly anyway; since we’ve basically been an unofficial couple since we were seven; and we’ve loved each other since we were babies!
Moving along, Naomi’s birthday dinner was scary – and we’re totally basing that on the food and drinks games that were led by Zack, Eli, Miles, and Joshua! About half of the guys got in on those competitions; some of the girls actually egged them on while the rest were generally grossed-out; and that’s all we need to write about that! The gifts for Naomi went better – except for gifts from those same four guys that were all gag gifts of varying levels of grossness; and then we wrapped up with the rest of the usual birthday song and desserts. Ehlana, Aiden, and I helped with the post-dinner clean-up; and then our evening fun included an ‘unplugged’ dance with Naomi and the Haunted Harmonies providing some of the music with music videos for the rest of the time. Dancing and chatting was in the living room again, but video gaming continued too; and some of the guys entered the tween danger zone by choosing that over dancing. Aiden and I did not have that problem. We played and sang for about an hour; danced with our favorite girls after that; and then the dance transitioned into a movie and cuddle time at around ten o’clock. Naomi picked the movie, but didn’t try to mess with the guys by going with a total chick flick. She went with an action-comedy that we all enjoyed and included lots of laughter; and then the official party began to wrap up after the show and as we headed toward midnight.
No, that is not a small town thing or due to any of the stories that Cassie’s friends like to come up with about aliens or other supernatural reasons for midnight being an important time for being safely in our own home – it was totally because we all have church in the morning and only four of us were staying for the night – including Zack.
We didn’t get to sleep by midnight – it was closer to twelve-thirty before the rest of Naomi’s guests were gone; we still had some clean-up to take care of after that; and it was past-one by the time we were able to get around to the co-ed sofa sleepover in the family room. Zack and Eli still needed to bug us one more time, but we survived the run-by prank; and then we wrapped up our night with some music videos that we fell asleep to while winding down with some post-party chat fun.
That brings us up to today! Tai Chi and breakfast was a rush as we all also got ready for church; Naomi and I got some bonus tween drama attention as news spread about us officially being together and her ring; and that made for a pretty good morning at church and Sunday school. The weather has been pretty good with a high reaching the mid-fifties, so our afternoon adventures included biking on the trails and park playground fun with some friends and younger cousins. The final blast of fun for Naomi’s special weekend was a big family-and-friends’ buffet dinner at the Inn; and that’s where we found out about some family news too.
Congratulations Neil, Michelle, and the entire Ryan, McEwan, and Johnson clans – it’s a boy! Nolan Ryan was born today; mother and baby are doing great; and that is about all we know so far because Nolan only joined us out here in the real world shortly-before Uncle Adam, Aunt Deborah, and the rest of their hometown family got the news. The timing could mean that we won’t meet Nolan until May or July in-person, but there is a good chance that some of our Johnson family cousins will be making a trip to meet him sometime within the next couple of weeks.
As for the rest of our day, we enjoyed that meal; we walked Naomi and Aiden home after collecting Silkie to take her for a walk too; and then our evening since getting home with Mom and Dad included a Magi lesson and bath or Jacuzzi time. Now we’re ready to crash and nap; since even junior Magi Masters need to catch up on sleep now and then – and we are definitely there tonight. That’s also all we have for tonight; so we’ll just wrap this up and get on with the nap time now.
Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!
