Happy Easter - At the Barkers

Let me preface this by posting the email thread that went into planning our dinner timing. It had all of us laughing at our desks and each of us tried to out-do each other with our responses.

From John....
Mom is calling around now, and we are all invited. Monday looks like the best day, as far as I can tell. Is everyone on board for Monday Easter dinner? We can do it here, or at Mom and Dad's, if Mom and Dad will let us all back in the house. Last time I went over, the door was locked. The nerve...

From Eric....
Why am I the only one CC? Is it because Debbie makes all my decisions?

From John....
Eric, I just CC'd you for reference. I didn't put you in the to: field because:
1. Yes, Debbie makes all your decisions. Didn't you read the small print at your Wedding?
2. You are special
3. I wasn't actually sure if you could read
Don't feel bad, eventually we'll live close enough to each other that we can insult each other in person...

From Debbie....
Monday is fine with me, but if not, go ahead without us on Sunday.

From Eric....
Ditto!!

From Lynsey....
Monday is good for us... we are going to Shawn's parents for Saturday brunch.

From Maureen....
Sounds good to me. John are you okay with that?

From John....
Mo, Uh, I typed it, so I think I'm ok with it. Let me check with you though to see if I am OK with it. You may tell me that I am not ok with it, at which point I'll have to consult the rule book.

Eric, Did you get a rule book? I only got page 1 which is just the table of contents.

From Eric....
This is found in Appendix A labeled Mind Melt!

From John....
Make 2 billion copies, 'cause no other man has ever gotten a full copy before.

From Matt....
We are good for Monday. PS - I need a copy of that book Eric.

From Vanessa....
He'll have to bring it to you in parts - it's pretty heavy and Eric hasn't been around the Barkers long enough to build up his muscles moving around furniture.

PS - please don't leave it lying around the house like you do with all of the other papers that you bring home :)

From Eric....
Ill bring the Cole's notes instead...as Matt's attention span would not last past page 2.

From Dad....
Mum is currently out someplace shopping, so hold the final arrangement for an hour or two (or several - she went to HomeSense), but I suggest we do it here on Monday largely because I cannot imagine where we can all park on John's street (as the mud-river is politely called).

Also of course, we are in dire need of a fire alarm test at 81A and the Yorkshire Pudding should tell us if the system still works.

From Dad....
Mum has decided! Monday Easter DINNER at 81a - 5:30pm - Roast Beef and the usual accompaniments - we look forward to seeing you all.

From John....
Can we make it Sunday instead?

From Dad....
Not a problem John, your dinner on Sunday will be alongside the third snow bank on the left past McDonalds in Portage La Prarie. For everyone else 81A at 5:30 on Monday.

Well we all turned up Monday for the Roast Beef feast and it was chaos as all Barker events are now that our family has grown so much. Simon arrived in high fashion in his Easter tie. We thought that it would drive him batty but he knows when he looks good and he likes to flaunt it. Granddad finally got to take Simon for a spin on his tricycle. He had been waiting to do this since he put it together after Simon's party. Watch out anyone who got in his way as there was no stopping him on his laps of the house - poor Olive is already jumpy with all of the kids around and now she has to worry about being mowed over by a tricycle. True to Dad's prediction, dinner was announced by the fire alarm and we all took position to combat the smoke - I stood under the fire alarm and waved a pillow, Braedon hit the fan, Eric opened the back door, Mum opened the kitchen door and Dad opened the dining room window - you would think that we had done this before :) Dinner was yummy as usual and Simon loved the yorkshire pudding which means more people to compete with at roast dinners. He followed that up with more ice cream (we can't help it, we're soft as he loves it so much - it's a good thing we never buy it otherwise we would probably let him have it at home everyday) served by Granddad. He was very demanding as usual. After dinner it was the usual kids gone wild - everyone was screaming, crying, climbing and playing - three kids under 5 can create quite a lot of noise. It was a fun celebration and it's hard to imagine that there will be another Barker next year to add to the mix.