kids, cake and saying goodbye

A couple weeks ago my son Alex left for his semester abroad in Rome so we had a family dinner/going away party before he left. Being the favorite uncle that he is with all the nieces and nephews (they couldn't seem to get enough of him this summer), he will certainly be missed greatly by all of us...

All the kids had a great time swimming, playing and running around the back yard together...

We grilled some meat, I made my favorite salad...

and Christine made this amazing cake. Beautiful to look at and delicious to eat. I think everyone literally licked their plates clean... there was not a spot of frosting to be found as we were doing the dishes...

It was a lovely night, but we sure do miss Al...