mum of 16 years

Today marks the day that our lovely Luc has made the journey around the sun 16 times. It also marks the day that I have been a mother for 16 years. Wow!

I rediscovered the egg image today, and it seemed somehow appropriate. Eggs and motherhood. I love the simple perfection and sense of calm that this image conjures. Mother nature has a habit of evoking these feelings. With all my eggs off the boil and no longer being able to have babies, it makes my lovely three all the more precious. 

The eggs pictured were purchased from a local farm that raised free-range chickens of several varieties. The resultant eggs were a mix of subtly different shades and sizes. I had hardboiled the eggs for one of the kid's birthday parties, and they were simply coexisting in a bowl together. 

Despite Luc towering over me now (at a stately 6'2"), he has a lovely gentle nature, is a deep thinker, and a truly wonderful soul to be around. I'm in deep admiration of his motivation and tenacity to not only write—but also illustrate and promote—his own cyberpunk novel. I only aspire to the levels of procrastination that can take someone to 150,000 words! 😜

Birthdays on school days, when one has to be out the door at just after 6:30am, mean celebrations have to be delayed. Oh well. A slice of carrot cake and a nice cup of chai with the family after school will have to suffice. Happy birthday my cheeky monkey—your Nanma and Grumpy would be so proud.

Cake Walk

The boys participated in a 'Cake Walk' for their Cub Scout Pack. This involved making a cake, decorating it and then offering it up for a silent auction. Luc made (another) Carrot Cake. A relatively easy cake to make, the only difficult task is to grate carrots to measure two cups - enough to try the patience of a nine-year-old... for the second time in a week! He frosted it with a cream-cheese frosting and decorated it with letters and carrots he had made from another batch of fondant I had made. 

A busy schedule for Nic resulted in me making his cake - the fastest cooking cake I could find: the good old Swiss Roll. All Nic had to do was to spread it with freshly whipped cream, spread over some fresh raspberries, roll it up and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Easy. 

When at the function, each child became obsessed with a particular cake: Luc coveted a Pineapple-Upside-Down cake, Nic desperately wanted a cake covered with Marines in battle and Mietta was convinced she was going to get the much-admired (and highest bid) Campfire cake. The Campfire cake was SO very appropriate with a couple of marshmallows roasting over a burning log fire. It was truly breath-taking. 

We had two major meltdowns once it was discovered that only Luc had been successful in winning his choice of cake. Warren & Sarah, who had helped their son Jackson with his brilliant Campfire cake, stepped in and very graciously offered to make Mietta her VERY OWN Campfire Cake. 

We had one VERY happy young lady the next day when we collected her cake. 

Still very impressive, this cake was not half as spectacular as the cake sold in the auction. The marshmallows hadn't (yet) been toasted on the cake above, and the fire wasn't quite as roaring (flames were made from melted butterscotch and Lifesaver candy). 
Nic was appeased with the promise of some plastic Marine figurines to decorate his own (future) USMC cake. 

090909 - One year today!

Our darling little girl turned one year old today! How time has flown: it does go faster with each subsequent child. In her first year, our little one has managed trips to Australia, the UK, the west and east coasts of the US, and a complete change of abode/lifestyle. Taking it all in her stride, our happy little one is completely at home playing in the dirt in her new garden.

My husband wanted to do something special to mark the occasion, deciding to make a carrot cake complete with cream cheese frosting. This was a special dessert loved by us all. He admitted that this was the first cake he had ever made 'for someone'. I felt a little miffed that I hadn't been his 'first' (cake recipient) - but can't deny our little miss the title... besides, I am currently enjoying the spoils with a cup of tea as I type!