Don Riggs' Father's Day gifts finally arrived.

Last June the Bellevue resident's sons and daughters-in-law gave him a poem explaining he had to wait nine months for their perfect presents.

Both couples were expecting babies the same day.

They didn't arrive that way.

Natalie was born to Ken and Krissy Riggs of Renton on Feb. 11, a few days early. Aelric was born to parents Tom and Heather Riggs of North Bend on Tuesday, more than two weeks late.

"Must have been some party," Riggs jokes about the timing. "We expected an announcement from one or the other couple, but not both at the same time."

To celebrate, Don Riggs' co-workers at KMPS radio rewrote the first lines of a popular country song by the Judds called "Grandpa" to say, "Grandpa Don, tell me what's in the news today." Riggs is the morning newsman on the station.

His wife, Maria, shares his delight. Both babies were born at Overlake Hospital Medical Center, where she is a nurse.

Musically speaking: Crossroads Shopping Center's free concerts - on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, with open mikes on Thursdays - attract a large following.

Marketing manager Lynn Terpstra mails postcards announcing the lineup to interested folks, and to grateful ones.

Recently an Issaquah woman telephoned Ellen Cooksley, assistant marketing director, to thank her for the free live music. She appreciated the postcard announcements so much, she told Cooksley, that she offered to pay the postage.

Airborne: Jay Fiske, owner of Northwest Benefit Auctions in Woodinville, takes the term "busy weekend" to a new level.

Tonight he's auctioneer at a Heart Association benefit in Michigan. Then he flies to Dallas for a private-school auction tomorrow, and Sunday will be at Seattle's Paramount Theatre for the Allied Arts Auction.

That's three auctions in three days in three time zones.

"Maybe it isn't a record, but it's a heck of a weekend," Fiske said. "And some people complain about having to mow the lawn on Saturday."

Car aid: The complimentary valet-parking service at Evergreen Hospital Medical Center has been a hit in its first month.

Patrons aren't visitors looking for an easy parking stall, says spokeswoman Gail Neubert.

The majority are pregnant women, and patients headed to the cancer center for chemotherapy or radiation.

One maternity patient, who used the service when she was headed to a doctor's appointment, wrote a thank-you note.

"What a pleasant surprise to find your valet parking," she said. "I'm six months pregnant and have a 19-month-old little boy. Thanks for the first-class service."

Ouch: Never brag about your health. I've credited vitamins and semiregular exercise for my health when everyone around me was dropping out for days with the flu.

This will teach me to brag.

My turn came, not with flu, but with a week of dental trauma due to an infection.

The good side was I've always wished I could consume milkshakes every day.

Alas, my personal limit was two - even if they were chocolate. ------------------------------- Sherry Grindeland's column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays in The Seattle Times Eastside edition. You can reach her by phone at 206-515-5633 or 425-453-2130, e-mail at sgri-new@seatimes.com, fax at 425-453-0449, or mail at The Seattle Times Eastside bureau, 10777 Main St., Suite 100, Bellevue, WA 98004.