Thursday, February 22, 2018

Alex's Birthday Part 2


Alex turned 16 on 11 Feb. It happened to fall on the date of our big Family Birthday/Anniversary Dinner. Birthday celebrants get to pick dinner and their cake. They also wear the pig hat and get gifts. Alex wore the big hat and had his cookie dough ice cream cake on the 11th. Today, the 22nd, we  opened his gifts after baking and before Life Groups. On the 25th, he will have his birthday dinner. Usually the "at home family" will have their birthday dinner ON their birthday, but his happened to fall on the extended dinner...and we were hoping his choice - a burger burn - would land on warmer weather on the 25th. 

We gave Alex a toboggan, a few fishing things and a vest. The others gave him fun shirts. As Nolan said, "This is what happens when you put one thing on your birthday list."  






We are no strangers to 'rolling birthdays'. One year we all put off our birthday until Michael got home from the Middle East. LOL

Winter and Baking

 Just when I thought winter may be losing it's grip we woke to 8 inches of new snow and lots of baking orders. The ruler was slipping - the back shows 8 in, the front had caved.....

 Thursday - nowhere to go; host Life Group in the evening. I love our down day Thursdays. Some worked outside.....
Cory, Alex, Nolan, Michael 

World's Best Snow Removal Crew
 Some played outside....
Auntie Arielle and Bella 
Bella (10 1/2 months) knows she is not supposed to have her pacifier unless she is sleeping. She has taken to putting it down her shirt. She seems to think we won't notice it's there. LOL 
We see you Bella 
...while they worked and played outside, Stacia and I had orders to make a cheesecake and 11 dozen cookies. We planned the cheesecake for Saturday and went to work on the cookies.  Stacia was excited to see how the orders collected collected overnight. She commented, "God really does know the times of our days. There is no other day this week we could have spent the day baking." She woke up early and was done with school by 0900. It was an "at home" day....we baked and packaged until a couple of hours before Life Group. 
Chocolate Chip 

Macadamia Nut/White Chocolate
Making memories with Stacia 
 These 7 dozen went into a box and shipped to Afghanistan....others went to VA and one dozen found a local home. 

Shew....all done with time to clean up before Life Groupers arrive. 

All this baking is part of our seed project. Michael and Nolan are making some pretty pine coasters. Well, Michael is making them....Nolan, true to his business bent,  invested in the project.