Get out the fire extinguisher, it's Builder Daddy's birthday!

Today is my dad's 85th birthday. On Sunday, my parents along with my sister and brother-in-law came over to Casa de Builder for a little birthday hootenanny.

Grandpa reading to one of his biggest fans.








The whole fam damily - Mom, Dad, my brother-in-law Richard, my sister Kathie, and Joey. Oh, and Monkey Man has his back to the camera. And I believe that's my finger in the picture too.











Holy shit, call the fire department - that's a lot of candles! My mother looks somewhat concerned, don't you think?
















He was pretty happy that he blew them all out in one breath. I was pretty impressed too.











Then all the old folks got cold so we sat out on the deck and watched the deer walking through our woods and drinking out of the creek. Two does and a fawn.

This is my mom. She will be 78 this year, if I figured that correctly. Looks pretty good, doesn't she?





This is my sister, Kathie. Also known as Bad Sister. No, we don't look anything alike. Yes, we come from the same parents. Any more questions? We get those questions a lot. Or at least I do.










And in an unprecedented show of courage, Rufus allows my mom to pet him. This has never happened before, and may never happen again. I suspect he'd gotten into the liquor cabinet or something.











And another successful night at Casa de Builder. You know where my parents are right now? In freaking Seattle, visiting my brother. My sister and brother-in-law went along too. I hope they have a fantastic time, my dad has had his bag packed for weeks.

Considering that August 18th will mark a year since we almost lost my dad, I'm more thankful than ever that he's made it to another birthday.

Love you, Dad. Love you a lot. Hope you have a fabulous birthday!