Happy Father's Day!

[More pictures from this weekend are available at either Shutterfly or Snapfish.]

I've been having a great Father's Day weekend. First, I was able to leave work early on Friday and went to get a haircut. I got there early but it turned out the appointment ahead of me had to cancel, so I got to go right away! Things were off to a good start already, and the weekend had hardly begun!

Then I got a new tank of gas and cooked some brats on the grill -- the first use of the grill this season. Afterwards Binh and I took Anabelle out shopping to Galleria where we got a couple items for my dad for Father's Day. We also bumped into Sarita and her husband, Rob, and were amazed at how their son, Kirin, had grown. I think the last time I'd seen him he was only one or two months old and now he's 17 months! He looked so different!! It'll be interesting to see how Anabelle changes when she's that old. Good thing I have this blog so I can track her growth.

Saturday was a very busy and very fun day. First we went over to Becky and Aaron's house for a Father's Day brunch. My parents brought an amazing fruit salad with a delicious assortment of fruit, including our favorite -- organic bananas! Becky and Aaron took care of everything else: An egg bake; cheesy potatoes; and a fabulous Baked Apple French Toast dish. Everything was so good, but I was especially fond of the French toast: I think I ate 3 pieces with syrup and homemade whipped cream on top!! Before brunch we opened gifts. My parents gave me a spiffy blue golf shirt that makes my way-blue eyes look even bluer. We all went in together and gave my dad a gift certificate to Best Buy so he could buy whatever movies or games he wants, although my mom says what he really wants is a new digital camera. Then Anabelle gave Grandpa his gifts: The baby book Grandfather Remembers: Memories for My Grandchild and a picture frame filled with pictures of Grandma and Grandpa holding Anabelle.

Next we headed over to Grandma Mai's house (AKA, "Buckingham" or "Ba's") . We dropped off Anabelle and did a little shopping at Eden Prairie Center. Then we went back for a delicious Vietnamese barbecue. I was still so full from the big brunch that I couldn't eat anything until 7pm! Luckily I still managed to find room for the half-dozen desserts that people had brought: Apple pie and ice cream; cookies and candies; watermelon and other fruits; and a homemade berry torte with homemade whipped cream. Anabelle slept most of the time she was there so everyone was very excited whenever she woke up. At one point I was burping her on my lap and she went into her "active alert" stage so everyone crowded around to watch her.

Finally, there's today, which is actually Father's Day. Binh and Anabelle surprised me with a Father's Day gift bag. Lots of good dad gifts, including cookies, new underwear, and Burnout 3: Takedown! I've been wanting this game for a while now, so it was the perfect gift. I even got a chance to play a couple races and rounds of Crash Mode (my favorite: I love smashing up a ton of cars in a big pileup) while Anabelle slept this morning. Then later today Binh plans to make this the perfect Geek Father's Day by taking me to see Batman Begins. As I said, what a busy, fun weekend. If I knew Father's Day was this much fun, I would have had kids a long time ago!

And for all of you who want more pictures, here are links to pictures from both celebrations yesterday. I've uploaded the pictures to two services, Shutterfly and Snapfish. I've never used either, so I don't know how good they are but Snapfish gives you 20 free prints when you first sign up (Shutterfly gives 15) and their prices seem cheaper: 12 cents per print versus 29 cents at Shutterfly, and the shipping seems cheaper. But if you sign up you can try both for free!

Thanks to everyone who helped make my first Father's Day so memorable, especially little miss Anabelle herself: She's the best gift of all and I'm so lucky she's come into my life.