Baseball and a Birthday

Although Dale does not officially turn 60 until Monday, a birthday this big calls for lots of celebration.

In the last couple of weeks he has had the opportunity to enjoy some early festivity and a special toast with Ashley and Jason during their brief visit before returning to London and with Courtney and Jeff while we were in Richmond last weekend. Saturday night I continued the celebration at Citizens Bank Park. We had procured tickets to see the Phillies take on the Pirates from a couple we met at Lizzie and Dan Poole's wedding in May, and the tickets were for seats in the Hall of Fame Club section of the ballpark. While that was a known, the unknown for Dale was the fact that I had arranged a little birthday package. He received a new Phillies hat and his name appeared in lights on the Jumbotron. The Phillies delivered a victory over the Pirates, 4-2, with three triples, a double, and plenty of excitement, and I let him eat and drink exactly what he wanted without even a raised eyebrow. He loved every moment of it!

Today we will head up to Short Hills, New Jersey to celebrate this milestone with the rest of Dale's family. Although his sister, Beth, and I planned this gathering, she is in charge of the exact activities. It was supposed to be a complete surprise for Dale, but his brother, Hal, spilled the beans in a phone call earlier this week. We will see what the day holds. Stay tuned.