Tiptoeing Through Strawberry Fields with Fish Shoes

 

Saturday, July 20, 2025

Terry, Mallory, Hayden, and I all readied ourselves for the hour and a half long drive to Eugene. We drove to Mallory's home in Sutherlin and picked them up, and off we went. Sutherlin is about eight miles north of Roseburg. 

We chatted along the way about life in general. Caught up on our lives for the past couple of weeks, and now for chatter about the party. I was excited to see the family again. Our family is so important to me. Nothing better than spending some time catching up with their lives, too. 

My granddaughter, Kaylie Rose, is home again, moving from Arizona to Oregon after schooling and work. She will be signing up for more classes to continue her pursuit of a medical career. Even though her mom, Marina, is off traveling around Paris and Poland, she will be able to attend the party. 

I will miss Marina and John, but hey, it doesn't suck in Paris, I am sure. From the photos they are sending home, they are fine and enjoying their vacation to the fullest extent of vacation law. 

Anyway, back to our little Novalee and her birthday celebration. I was informed there would be a bounce house and a nice giant water slide at this party. I couldn't wait to see the kids having fun with that! Of course, you apply a large water slide to a party of grown-ups drinking some beer, and yeah, I think the kids may end up being kicked off while some parents slide down themselves. Wanna bet? 

Teasing aside, I'm sure the adults will enjoy the slide too, even without beer. Most of us do not drink, so there aren't alcoholic beverages up for grabs at most gatherings. But you never know ...

Arriving at the party, we headed for the backyard where the decorations were up, the pools were full of people splashing, and there was food galore inside the house. Brandon had the pork smoked and ready to become pulled pork sandwiches when it was time to eat. It was definitely an awesome party!

Jessee and Dawn had gone above and beyond in decorating again. They always do such a wonderful job!

Specialty frosted sugar cookies had been ordered and set out as an offering for party guests. 

Novalee was decked out in her beautiful birthday dress, while big sissy, Zyrah, matched in her red and white gingham dress. They are always dressed so cute!

Novalee had an especially adorable smash cake made just for her ...

Strawberries dipped in white, pink, and milk chocolate were set out on plates. Cupcakes in white and chocolate flavors were topped with vanilla frosting and Novalee's face as the focal point. 

Trays of Oreo cookies were dipped in white, strawberry, and milk chocolate. 

Bottles of water announced Novalee's "Berry First" Birthday. 

Inside white wooden boxes spelling out O-N-E were crackers, cheeses, carrots, salame, broccoli, olives, edamame, blueberries, cantaloupe, and more. 

After we all indulged in chips, dips, veggies, cookies, strawberries, and all that Jess, Dawn, and Brandon had to offer, we found a shade tree to sit under to watch the excitement. 

The tall water slide I was told about took center stage by the chicken coop. Kids were sliding down and hitting the pool of water below. 

Little play houses were set up all over, along with trikes, small activity tables, a slide, a splash pool, and a wading pool. The kids were in dreamland. 

Even the adults had things to do. Chatting with each other, playing beer pong, and other activities were available. 

Terry found his favorite pal, Rex. Rex is my granddaughter Jessee's dog. He's a big sweetheart. We adore that pup!

I walked around the yard to see if I could locate the birthday girl and her sister. Novalee was in the wading pool, having the time of her life. Happy birthday, sweet baby!

I couldn't find Zyrah at this time. I think she was inside one of the playhouses. 

Children were on the water slide periodically, splashing into the pool below. The weather was fairly warm, so the pool situation was looking like a better idea to me as each minute passed. 

I began to look through the decorations on the patio again and noticed things I had not seen earlier. 

The first year of Nova's life was recorded in pictures. 

Milestones in Nova's life. 

This was the little bounce house for the kids, along with games and activities around the grounds. 

There was a slide for the kids, and corn hole plus beer pong for the adults. As I was sitting in the shade watching everyone, my grandson, Coby, came by. We said hi to him and his wife, Delaney, just as someone said, "Have you seen Coby's shoes?" I looked down. After several minutes of shock, I began to laugh. I asked where they found that odd footwear, and Delaney told me she found them online. I couldn't stop laughing. They were the strangest things I had seen in some time. He was wearing a pair of fish. 

Now that I could breathe again, I went to get something to eat. The pulled pork was cooked by one of our hosts, Brandon, and wow, was it good! A dinner of pulled pork, potato salad, macaroni salad, chips of all types, dips, olives, celery, carrots, broccoli, baked beans, and a tub of Kentucky Fried Chicken's cole slaw. Great dinner! Our hosts sure have it all together!

Next up was Novalee's birthday cake. Jess brought out her smash cake and held it high for everyone to get photos before the toddler was turned loose on it. 

You could hear cameras clicking everywhere around the backyard. The cake was beautiful!

Cameras were still clicking as Nova dug into her cake. She wasted no time at all in making sure she ate as much as she could. 

Every once in a while, Nova would stop to clap. With cake on her hands, that was a great choice. Tiny pieces of cake and flings of icing sailed through the air. 

Such a happy little birthday girl!

Ah, yeah. Let's push our hands down into that cake. The cake had been frozen before the party, too, and was still in that state at the party. It was frozen to help preserve it for the party day in the hot temperatures that we've had. 

That cake didn't stand a chance! Nova had her fill, and Dad came over to clean her up. Brandon began to clean her face, ears, hair, and neck. After most of the cake had been removed, Novalee showed us how sleepy she was by taking both hands and smearing them all over her face and through her hair again. Brandon sighed and began the task all over. Begin with her hands, Dad. Begin with the hands. 

Once the pound of cake was removed from the toddler, she was released into the wild again. Nova was having so much fun. Kaylie Rose picked her up for a bit. Kaylie talked to her while Nova put her hands all over Kaylie's face. 

Nova was intent on examining Kaylie's teeth. 

Dad eventually took his daughter back into his arms, rocking her back and forth. She was tired, wet, and full. 

My great-granddaughter spotted me taking photos. It seemed to intrigue her. 

She pointed out my picture-taking antics to her dad. 

I soon got the "Elvis" look from her, just like her mother used to do when she was a baby. Nova doesn't have such a pronounced lip curl as her mother did, but she sure gives that look. 

I just adore this beautiful child. Always laughing and happy, very curious about things, and smart. I see her sitting back, taking everything in. She examines the actions of everything and everyone. Jess and Brandon have two beautiful, smart, healthy children. They are blessed, and so is the rest of the family for having them in our lives. I love them all!

Shortly after Nova's cake break, the adults asked the kids to get out of the pool for a while. See? What did I say? A little beer pong and off we go into the deep end. 

First, Jess. 

Moments later, the men gave it a try. But not before grabbing a gallon-sized jug of Dawn dishwashing liquid to pour it down the slide. Oh, yeah. Because what could go wrong? 

Kaylie Rose and Kylee joined in the fun. Let's see, who is the first one to crack open their head? 

This one came down head first into the soapy pool, but his head is intact. 

Now for this one ... will he be the one? Nope. He made it down the soft slide and into the pool of soap bubbles. 

Hey, he made it down in one piece, too. 

Last, but not least, Brandon made it down in an awkward position, but no blood yet. 

I hate the sight of someone being injured, though, so I moved away from the slide area. If someone was going to injure themselves, I wanted no part of it. Although by the time we left, nobody had to dial 911. It's all good. 

The day was over. It was around 7:00, and time for us to roll on home. Mallory and Hayden needed to be dropped off, and we had the hour-and-a-half drive ahead of us. Our puppies were home and probably needed to go out for their nighttime bathroom break. We went around the party telling everyone goodbye. It's always hard for me to do that. I know I will see them all again, but I miss them every time I have to return home. The hugs are plentiful. 

Another great gathering. We all had fun, but it was time to return to our homes in Roseburg and Sutherlin. Off we went. I snagged a cookie to remember the party (ha! Let's get real. I broke off a tiny piece and ate it. But sh-h-h. Don't tell anyone.) More great memories for Terry and me to log into our blog. So, here we go. 

With this entry, we do hope all of you spend time with those you love. Have lots of laughter, love, and plenty of those warm hugs in your life! Shine your light so that others may see through any dark spaces they might be traveling. Love and appreciation to you all!

Until our next entry, 

Terry & Vicki Macrae

Here's wishing many berry good times in your life!