Sunday, May 19, 2013

Basketball Cake...and Tears

Somehow I closed my eyes and took a sigh and my sweet baby boy...


...turned into this five foot tall, athletic, smart, funny, and handsome young man.
All it took was ten years. A decade. I have been a Mother for a Decade.

Now I understand all those parents and grandparents who told me time and time again, "Cherish these moments." "Love him up while you can." "He'll be grown before you know it." Because at the end of these next ten years, he will be twenty. A thought that makes my throat seize and my eyes fill with tears.

And I thank God for ten years of  gigantic smiles, bright brilliant blue eyes, goofy dancing in the kitchen, cuddles, excellent debates and discussions, reading together, music, praying together, endless laughter and endless adventures.

So how do you celebrate all this? With a cake! Doesn't cake make everything better??? Even the idea that your baby isn't a baby anymore is lightened up by his excitement over Birthday Cake!


Yep. That's Louie. My Ten Year Old.


And this is his awesome Basketball Swoosh Cake! Inspired by Parenting Magazine...they always have the best birthday cake ideas RIGHT before our Birthday Season starts!


Basking in the Glow of 10 Candles!

Now...excuse me while I grab some toilet paper...I've run out of Kleenex!

Monday, May 13, 2013

Countdown to Summer!

I may have mentioned before that my family has an affinity for Paper Chains...

Well. We do! Our three started asking if we could make a paper chain count down to Summer Vacation...right after Christmas! I was able to hold them off until now.


Here we go! Our "Spring" (and I use the term very loosely) here in Nebraska has been very cold. And wet. And gray. And drizzly. We had snowfall on May 1st...and the last time snow fell on Nebraska in May was 1967!

So to jazz up our chains...the kids made some smiley suns to remind us of warmer weather yet to come! And we went with a rainbow pattern, because who doesn't love rainbows?!?!


Katy pulling off her first chain.


John's turn!

Our fourth grader's final day is May 22nd and the little two are finished on May 24th. Just in time for Memorial Day weekend!