A King's Island Birthday Celebration!

As per the usual, I'm sitting at my desk on Monday, downing caffeinated beverages and obsessing over the weekend's events. This weekend was particularly special because Wheat turned 26 on Saturday! 

After the Fever game on Friday, we made our way to Lebanon for the night. Even though it was 2:00 AM, my whole family was awake, primed and ready to sing 'Happy Birthday' to him. They surprised him with an ice cream cake, a banner, balloons, cards, and even a personalized pinwheel.

The next morning, we woke up far too early for a long day at King's Island. Jenn offered us tickets because it was the day of her company picnic, so we didn't have to pay for admission or lunch! We also had early admission, so we entered the park before the general public. Mrs. Koenig and Paul took advantage of the short lines and hopped on Banshee, the newest roller coaster. Wheat and I made our way to Top Gun (which they now lamely call 'The Bat'), then did Drop Zone with Jenn.

After Drop Zone, Wheat and I jumped on Congo Falls for quick relief from the already-stifling heat. We got absolutely drenched. Next, the crew headed over to the Eiffel Tower to admire the view of the park from the one-third scale replica of the real thing in Paris. I assure you that it's plenty tall enough - You can feel the whole thing swaying in the wind.

Just a little wet, eh?

Next, we hopped on the carousel so Kenzie could finally partake in something. By the way, I was not photo-bombing this picture. I was actually just that happy to be on a merry-go-round.

After the carousel, we made our way to Planet Snoopy (formerly known as Hanna-Barbera Land), so Kenzie could ride some more rides. We opted out of The Great Pumpkin Coaster and settled instead on some blue ice cream. We win.

I went a little overboard taking pictures in Planet Snoopy because I really love Peanuts. I yearned to watch "Charlie Brown's Hoedown" in its entirety, but settled for snapping a few pictures from afar.

Next, we headed to the picnic grove for lunch. There were hamburgers, hot dogs, fried chicken, potato salad, popsicles, and other summer-type foods. Please ignore the humidity hair.

This is what 26-year-old boys do when they're bored after lunch.

After lunch, we passed through Planet Snoopy again on our way to Dinosaurs Alive! Although it was fun to laugh at the animatronic dinosaurs and pose for hilarious pictures with them, I would probably skip this next time around to save more time for rides and shows.

By this point, every ride in the park had a really long line, so we decided to ride the train over to the water park for a couple hours. We changed into our bathing suits, spent a bit in the kiddie pool, did two loops on Splash River, then hung out in the wave pool. Unfortunately, Jenn, Paul, and Kenzie had to leave by then, so we thanked Jenn again for the awesome day and parted ways.

Shortly thereafter, Wheat and I decided to head back over to King's Island. As soon as we got changed and boarded the train, it started to rain, so we took cover in the arcade in Coney Mall. Wheat, of course, was in heaven - There is nothing he likes more than basketball arcade games. He also chose the biggest case on 'Deal or No Deal,' which was a first, so we ended up winning an embarrassing amount of tickets yet again. With our winnings, we accidentally fleeced the arcade worker and walked away with a bear bobble head and a dozen walking dinosaurs, though we're pretty sure he only should have handed us one, not the entire box.

Finally, we made our way to the pavilion for the '80s music show. The show itself was pretty subpar, but the costumes were hilarious and you can't really beat a Michael Jackson impersonation.

Please also notice Cher and Tina Turner in the background.

Although the park was open for five more hours, we were tired, hungry, sunburned, and damp from the rain. So, we picked up Wendy's and went home to relax for the last bit of my guy's special day.

...and relax they did.

I'm so happy I got to spend Wheat's entire birthday by his side and I can't believe it has already been a full year since his last one. Although I spend a lot of time reminiscing on good memories with him (which is essentially what this entire blog has become), the thing I love the most about Wheat isn't what we've already done together; It's what's to come. I've spent my entire life feeling nostalgic and recounting times I wish I had back, but not with him. With him, I'm constantly looking to the future, excited for everything headed our way...and that is a very welcome change.

Happy 26th Birthday, to the dreamy guy who makes me feel like every day is my birthday. I love you, Wheat.