Birthday Bash

I can't believe that our grand baby is three years old! On one hand, she hardly seems to have been on this earth very long at all... and on the other hand, she seems to have been here forever!!

Our son and daughter-in-law invited us to Alexis' third Birthday party.... and then mentioned that maybe they could use some help with the Birthday cake! OK... I can help. I used to enjoy making themed B-day cakes for my kids.

Alexis does not watch TV (they don't have one)... but she has been allowed to watch Puffin Rock shows on the computer, an animated show originating in Ireland. So... Grammy CiCi looked at pictures from Puffin Rock and planned how she could make a cake... and cup cakes... that were Puffin Rock themed:

Then I checked the online RSVP's... 54 people were coming. 54?!!! You MUST be kidding!!

We thought they were crazy!

My son had sent me a link to an applesauce cake recipe he thought would be good. I went to the store and bought the ingredients.... then I went back to the store again to buy the applesauce I forgot on the first trip. Evidently... applesauce is a key ingredient of an applesauce cake!!

One batch of the recipe made... one 9" round cake... or 15 cupcakes. I baked 5 batches of the recipe... two for the cake and three for cupcakes. Oh, and I made another trip to the grocery store for more butter. Ugh!

Then I began icing the cake... using a cream cheese icing. The "Mr." made another trip to the store for more powdered sugar. I was less than organized!

I forgot how long it took to making icing, color it and squish it out of a decorating bag. I became very frustrated. The cupcakes weren't going to happen... not as I imagined them. But, a quick fix was to color the icing and make a rainbow... it's all part of "Puffin Rock".

Image from the Internet

The party was being held in a small park just down the street from our son's house. The weather was perfect. The bounce house was delivered and set up and people began arriving. There were toddlers and babies and kids all around. The moms and dads stayed, too. Pizza arrived. Many, many pizzas!

Then we brought out the cake(s). The party goers enjoyed the cake. I received many complements on the applesauce cake itself. After three hours, folks began to leave and the party wound down. The party did not meet our expectations of a disaster waiting to happen. Everyone had a great time. There were only a few tears from minor bumps or affronts. There was one scuffle over who should have a certain stick. And there was only one toddler who went home in wet pants! It was a phenomenal day!

Mustangs

We saw a herd of Mustangs!

To be honest, I should say we saw small bands of Mustangs.

We saw some as we drove out of Bryce Canyon, UT.

There were a few more along the road heading south.

And finally, there was a large band in Kanab, UT.

If you put them all together, it would make up a herd.

OK, to be fair, they weren't ponies...

What we were seeing were Ford Mustangs.

It seems that the Ford Mustang is 50 years old today. That's an awesome track record. Ford is commemorating the birthday with a celebration at the Charlotte Motor Speedway concurrent with one in Las Vegas.

The Mustangs we saw were just a few belonging to a group of 100 cars rented by 200 members of the Mustang Club de France. They were enjoying a group tour of the west before the official celebrations began. What a fun trip!

Most of the cars sported this banner, which, in case you can't read it, says:

Mustang 50th Birthday Celebration

50 years 1964/2014   Mustang Club de France

Las Vegas

source

Happy Birthday, Mustang!

It's hard to believe you are a half century old!

What's With Those Scorpios?

Today is Birthday day. 

It is both my brother's birthday, 

and that of my younger son.

They are both delightful men. It is hard to think of my son as a man, but... 'tis true as he turns 25 today.

My brother and son don't really favor one another.... except in their actions. They are both engineering types. They like precision. They love a good problem to solve. They are friendly and outgoing. They are Scorpios.

I don't have a lot of faith in Astrology and the meanings of Zodiac signs, but I found it interesting to look at 'my' boys and see if they follow published norms.

Here are a few snippets from various sources:

"Scorpios cannot refrain from testing others with cutting remarks, not because they want to hurt them, but because they want to know them better through their reaction."

This is partially true for both men. I don't think either would ever say anything truly hurtful, but they both enjoy analyzing people and are very perceptive. My son has an incredible vocabulary and a quick wit, which he will use in conversations, sometimes just to test another's perception.

Another quote about Scorpios:

"Your aggressive attitude may equate with sly inquisition as often, you remain silent, introverted and secretive, mulling over turbulent thoughts in the depths of your mind, leaving others puzzled by your quite strange behaviour."

Neither guy shows much outward aggression. However, if pushed they will both boil over, rapidly! However, my son is often very quiet.  My brother? Perhaps when he was younger.

"Scorpios are fiercely independent. They are able to accomplish anything they put their mind to and they won't give up."

Wow! Ain't this the truth! Perhaps I should have read this when my son was a child - it might have prevented a few battles! Both men have followed untraditional paths in their lives. My brother has been very successful - I'm thinking my son will be so as well. I do know that he won't give up!

"Scorpios have an excellent memory and combined with an inability to let things go, they can hold a grudge against someone who did them harm forever, in fact a Scorpio rarely if never forgives and forgets."

This cracked me up. My son was the type who remembered everything - well, except to do his homework! One time, when he was 4, he pestered us about doing something his brother was doing. We told him he could do it when he was 7. Wouldn't you know, the day he turned 7 he asked about it?!

"Scorpios make excellent doctors, surgeons, scientists and leaders, they are perfectly suited to any form of business that makes a difference in the world, greatly impacts people and society and a most importantly, Scorpio has to be in a power position."

My brother was never happy working under someone else. He started his own business and ran it successfully for years. My son may be the same. He certainly wants to do things that help people and he actually refused to apply for jobs in companies that have a negative impact on the environment or defense contractors.

There is so much more I could read... and write. It was very interesting to read the descriptions on different sites, and see how they related to the men. But, I guess one can always interpret things and twist them to fit the situation.

Regardless, I hope that both my brother and my son have a wonderful Birthday and a fabulous year!






Sources:
http://www.astrotheme.com
http://zodiac-signs-astrology.com
http://www.astrology.com

Saturday Centus: Party Flavors

Jenny Matlock has challenged us to write 100 words and incorporate, "Birthday Party Flavor" in our response. I loved writing this - it evoked a wonderful trip down memory lane, and oh, those memories have lots of 'flavor'!

There was nothing I loved more than putting together a themed Birthday party for my sons. Each year, weeks before the big event, I’d involve the Birthday boy and we’d go all out in planning. Although the cake was aways a surprise, we would make important decisions about the invitations, decorations, music, games to play, and most crucial, the Birthday party flavor. Yes, you read that correctly! It’s one of those ‘cute things your kids say’ that remain in the family vernacular. We had fireman parties, a soccer theme, Davy Crockett and the Teddy Bear Picnic - each party having its own distinctive ‘flavor’!

 Click on the image below to visit Jenny's page and read more responses to her weekly challenge.

Rain, Rain...Go to Colorado!

Update on my previous post, "Oh, the places I'll go"...

You guys are too smart,

You know where I'm at.

With Tropical Storm Debby

I'll need a rain hat!

Lucky for us 

it's not about Disney.

We came to celebrate a birthday,

not necessarily to see Mickey.

Shhh! Don't tell hubby's mother,

part of the surprise

is her grandboys are coming!

She won't believe her eyes!

So, we'll have some time to visit

and enjoy one another.

We'll try to stay dry

and enjoy being with Mother!

She’s a remarkable woman,

she’ll be 90 years young,

but she’ll be the first one to tell you

She’s only eighty-one!

Here I sit, listening to the rain fall. It's been raining almost 24/7 since we arrived, and will continue to do so. I've heard that the Jacksonville area, where we are staying now, has had over 12"of rain. Tropical Storm Debby is stalled in the Gulf and is inching her way toward us, swirling moist air our way. Why, oh why, couldn't that air be sent to Colorado, Utah and New Mexico, to name a few? At home we are experiencing triple digit temperatures and winds. What isn't already dried out is getting that way and our state is a tinderbox. At this point I've lost count of which fires are burning, which are contained, and what new fires have begun. I don't have the score card. I heard on CNN "almost half the airborne fire suppression in the country is in Colorado." Thousands have been evacuated from homes. Some have been allowed to return, but the fires are still burning and only the wind knows which way they will move. That is why I wish just some of this rain could somehow be transported to the west. I guess that's life, though, feast or famine; fires or floods!

Birthday Greetings to a Special Guy

Little boys have wonderful dreams,

And if they are lucky they become kings!

My Prince Charming swept me away.

And I'd like to wish him a Happy Birthday!

Have a wonderful Birthday dear hubby.... and many more!