More Merriman Merriment

This has been quite a fun week for our family.

Kate arrived in town from Austin, Texas on Thursday. She met Elsa for the first time at the Half Day Cafe in Kentfield on Friday morning. Elsa was in her usual high spirits and entertained us all as we ate our breakfast and generally just watched her bang on the table and enjoy herself.
Porter and Elsa at the Half Day Cafe

On Saturday, Kate hosted a small birthday celebration for Porter and me at my home. Chhanseda and my grandsons, Bentley and Davis, drove down from Auburn. John had to work on Saturday at the hospital, so he could not make it. They met their newest cousin, Elsa. Chhanseda could not keep her hands off of the newest member of the family. She is terrific with babies. The boys each had a turn holding her, too. So Elsa got lots of attention.
Chhanseda and Elsa


Davis, Chhanseda, Elsa and Bentley

Bentley is now over 6'2" and still growing... Davis is not far behind. It is so wonderful to be closer to my family and be able to see my grandsons more often. Elsa will have two big cousins to watch over her when we visit.

Porter, Elsa, and Oma in her birthday hat.

We all had birthday hats to wear and enjoyed cupcakes and ice cream as well as fresh fruit and a platter of wondeful cheeses.

Elsa and Kate

Aunt Kate is a favorite... she stayed with Porter and did the early morning shift on Sunday morning which allowed Porter to stay in bed a little later than 5 am. Elsa is still needing to be fed in the middle of the night. She is catching up on her nutrition and is eating so well.... Aunt Kate is going to do another sleep over and early morning duty tomorrow morning. What a great sister!

Kate will be able to stay in Marin through my birthday on Wednesday. It is wonderful to have her here and have time to visit. She really likes her new office in Austin and has already had her first dinner party with friends from work. Lulu, her lab mix, is loving all the water at the dog parks. Apparently, Austin is a very dog friendly city and so there are lots of great places for Lulu to go off leash and have a great time.

My apartment lends itself well to having visitors with its one large living dining room area. Everyone has a space to be. Kate is christening my 2nd bedroom and bath. It is so nice to have these rooms for guests. I am loving my apartment. It is working out very well and is located just 10 minutes away from Porter so it is pretty easy to drive up over the hill to her home.