Grace's Birthday

Grace turned ten years old. She convinced me it was a special birthday, as she was entering the double digits. As such, she needed a special cake. Occasionally, I will humor my children. This was one of those times. She wanted a decadent chocolate cake she had seen shared on Facebook. After studying photos of several such cakes, this is what I came up with:

She was over the moon with delight. I'm pretty sure we all now have diabetes, but it was a sensational cake that was enjoyed by many.

She enjoyed her presents, friends, and family, but the cake shall live on in infamy.  She told Michael she was glad we got pictures because she wanted to "remember the cake forever." Goofy girl.

Michael's Birthday

On Monday we celebrated Michael's birthday. He celebrated by taking the day off work and spending the entire day in the shed working on his bicycle. I didn't think to grab a picture, because that would be a boring picture. He still hasn't quite managed to get it all back together again. Hopefully he can by the time the rain lets up.

Once again I didn't get him any presents. I am bad at this thing. He did make an Amazon wish list though, and I did manage to order his gifts. They are due to be delivered tomorrow, just seven days after his birthday.

I did manage to make him a special dinner of chicken pot pie and his favorite banana/gingersnap/caramel ice cream cake. Libby even made the caramel sauce from scratch!

We just made a baby cake, due to the back to back holidays. It was thoroughly enjoyed, despite some cosmetic melting.

Mother's Day

This year I begged not to be served breakfast in bed. The kids didn't understand. The next day Ethan shared this comic with me. This. This exactly.

When we came home from church they did make me a nice brunch and gave me their carefully-chosen presents. They always go with chocolate. I don't mind.

We had a lovely dinner I hand-picked from Trader Joe's and Michael heated. As long as I don't have to cook, I'm pretty flexible. Michael also cleaned the house, which is all I really wanted. It was a nice laid-back day, which was needed with Michael and Grace having birthdays the coming two days.

Ain't He Pretty

That's Ethan in the back, in the floral print. This is how he went to early morning seminary and attended school. Ninth grade was having a Shakespeare day, so Ethan decided to dress as Thisby from Midsummer Night's Dream.

He just saw the picture and said, "Eww, not that picture. I'm sure there are better pictures of me wearing a dress." Yep, he's worn a dress on more than one occasion. That's my boy!

Not My Baby

What can you say when your nephew and niece-in-law ask you to watch their baby three days a week? The only answer I could possibly give was a big ol' "Yes!" He shows up at 5:30 in the morning which is horrible, but other than that, he's been great.

It is so much easier taking care of a baby when there are lots of hands to cuddle, feed, and change diapers. It's so much easier than when mine were all little. It almost makes me want another. Almost.

I just love this cute face!

He loves his fox toy. He loves it so much he ripped the arm off it, and then was exceedingly proud.

I love having him over three days a week and it also makes me glad I don't have babies anymore. It's easier with all the kids pitching in, but it so easy to forget just how much work they are.