Block Party Summer!

Saturday was Chet's 6th annual Block Party, an early summer Client Appreciation Event that grows and improves year after year!!

Here's me and Parker E. in our matching pink t-shirts - YAY!!  The shirts were such a fun addition for this year's festivities - the Wilsons made them one by one using the Cricut and a heat press machine! ❤

Chet Lee also hired a great photographer named Ashton Marie this year, which is why there are lots more photos in this post than usual! The right middle pic of the Evergreen crew makes me happy - Hope's teacher + Elizabeth, Jess, and Kristin!

Always a fun way to start the summer!

It was a really great turnout, and lots of people stayed longer than they did in years past!

The face painting lady (Karen) and the balloon artist stayed busy all afternoon!!

Henry Edward blowing me a kiss! ❤

(Right middle pic is on our way to Andy's after the party!)

Wonderful Wilson Fam!

Love the backyard swing pic of Jeffrey and Henry!  Kate with her butterfly balloon, pre-catastrophic fall!  Kate excited to see Donetta, who was in Tulsa with Ava this week!  And the Moss family with their balloons and bouquet!

The kettle corn and Loco Lemon truck were also very popular, along with Chet's new yard signs!

Parker was first in line for the face painting (and chose a unicorn, obviously), and Tate was the last one to ask for a balloon animal (penguin, one of my favs)!

Chet and his neighbor accidentally twinning, fun Wilson family photos, and Chet with Debbie, the co-sponsor for this party!!

Karli Marie's flower bar was a big hit, as well!

Love the trio pics from 2024 and 2025, and I'm proud of our health progress!

Side Note:  I followed the latest trend and asked ChatGPT what we'd look like as dogs - was not expecting this anthropomorphic animated response, but it definitely made me laugh!!  (Full post with random ChatGPT commentary coming soon - always entertaining!)

So much summery cuteness and fun, and yay for seeing Cody and Yolanda again!

Quick throwback to the first block party in 2020, because planning and hosting a community-building event for family and neighbors and friends is exactly how my fav extrovert responds to a global pandemic - that feels very on brand! lol
Shane and his friend wearing masks in an already-hot popcorn truck... woof, baby Tate offering me popcorn (him asking to open it so we could "see what's inside" still makes me laugh), Karli's bday sign (that one fell on her actual bday, and please note the original bricks on their house that year), Sarah and I by the pool for Karli's Qdoba bday dinner, and the Wilsons and Fuldas!

2021: Baby Parker's first party - I was already smitten, Chet with the Rise Home team, Tate feeding GiGi popcorn, Moss fam party of 3, and the Gas Petal Flower Truck! (This was the year I left a bit early as Dad was hospitalized.)

2022:  The only year I've missed it - won't happen again if I can help it - I believe Holly Dei was in town.  The pics of Parker and Jemma help date it for me.

2023: Their neighbor Steve served as a photographer that year - this event was about a month before Jon's heart attack, and I think about that when I see the pic of me with him and Kristin.  They did a raffle drawing for Allison's Tulsa cityscape painting, I came early and popped in and out while attending a CCU group seminar in their upstairs loft room, and this Popcorn King pic was my profile pic for Chet's calls for quite a while. lol

2024:  The year of the H-Tea-O truck and the first time they did their own flower bar, which went really well!

Okay, back to 2025... so many details in bringing all of this together - Chet and Karli go all out and do an amazing job planning and hosting this every year!  It is never lost on me what a privilege it is to be in their close circle.  After cleanup and sampling Karli's cannoli cake from Carrabba's (yum), I joined this crew for the Whataburger and Andy's custard afterparty!  Parker was hangry and emotionally distraught before dinner, but she cheered right back up when the cheeseburger arrived.  Best.  =)  Also, us repping the full rainbow of color here makes me pretty happy!! =)

*Post title courtesy of Nick-at-Nite, circa 1997!  ;-)
Aww, childhood summer memories!!

❤ ❤ ❤