The (every other year) Yearly Meal

There are lots of things to love about Alaina, but I think the part where I can always tell her what I am thinking and the part where I can always expect the same might be my favorite.  My last few trips home, I have spent a lot of time in the car and visiting people.  I love to see the people, and I don't really mind the car, but in the end, it doesn't feel much like a break.  So this trip, I decided that if someone wanted to see me and Stephanie, they were going to have to come to us.  And that is what I told Alaina, because I can just tell her that.  She went for a run and came up with an excellent plan that involved her coming to me, which I felt a little bad about, but she said that she wanted to (the favorite part: She said she wanted to = I knew she did want to = guilt absolved).  Anyway, in what is becoming a bit of a tradition, we hit up a German restaurant (which are oddly hard to come by) for a good meal and beer with Stephanie in tow.  Stephanie did not have much of the meal (and obviously no beer, at least not that I noticed), but she mostly sat in her seat and mostly didn't disturb any other patron's meals.  Photo-bug Alaina made sure we captured the memory, just like we did 2 years ago in North Carolina.  Not a lot has changed since then.  Stephanie is a bigger and harder to take out to eat, and I apparently order larger beers now (which may or may not be connected to the part where Stephanie is harder to take out :)), but German food is still fried and covered in gravy, Alaina is still great company and we, apparently, still favor the same hair styles...