Today is Mel’s birthday.

And last Saturday was Scout’s.

Happy birthday and belated birthday to you both!

Please assault their blogs with comments of love.

I’m terrible with birthdays, so please forgive me if I’ve missed yours.

(Photo of WonderMike enjoying a full-size cupcake.)

Imagine my surprise yesterday, when I was wandering by the lobby between meetings at work and I saw this handsome fellow!

“I’m actually here to see him,” he told the receptionist, pointing at me.

My brain clicked and whirred for a moment, lagging as my body reached out to hug him. Up until this point Mel was just picture on the web, some kind words in a comment, on the other end of an email and an enjoyable read.

I knew he was coming to the Bay Area, but was away from my desk when he called to say he was on his way down from Davis. After a quick tour of the office and a very friendly meet-and-greet with Janie Sparkles (he’s a father to the adorable Tuck), I sent him off to an even more delicious destination (in Berkeley, but I’ll let him describe) and did the bare minimum rearranged my schedule to play hooky take the afternoon off.

Ladies and gentlemen, he’s even more charming in person, knows his textiles (we visited Lacis), and knits some darn impressive colorwork! I’m looking forward to spending more time with him in May.