Teenager in the House!

We officially have a teenager in the house!!

HOW?? HOW is Daniel THIRTEEN already?!!

It was a bittersweet day for me- a day of celebration and a day of nostalgia. Google kept reminding me about this day with flashback pictures of a very young Daniel. Thanks, Google. Let's just keep the tears coming. 

I wanted fun and pizzazz to the day a little bit, but at 13, it's a fine line between that and the cool factor. And of course Daniel's birthday fell on a school day. I ended up making posters and putting them up all over the first floor. We also did the streamers in Daniel's doorway as we've always done (modified now for cats). It was fun to make a little fuss and stretch my creativity a little bit. 

Ben made cinnamon rolls for breakfast to kick off the day- yumm! Daniel obliged in posing for a few pictures before he left for school. He's a great kid and I sent him off to school, watching his every step until he disappeared from my view. 

The morning threw me for a very nostalgic loop shortly after sending Daniel on his way. In a strange twist of fate (meaning me taking Kaleb to school because his bus didn't show up), I ended up very near to our old house, so I drove by it. I looked upon what was Daniel's bedroom window, remembering how it felt to sit in his room and play and read, how he'd love to look out that window, how I'd watch him sleep, and how the rocking chair rocked on its own just before he was born, like it was ready, we were ready for a lifetime with him. I looked at all the trees and the yard and the mulch he dug up and played in. It felt like another life. A lifetime ago. It was a strange feeling actually and yet a very sweet one. Those early days were incredible and so filled with life and love and our amazing boy who delighted me in a million ways, ways he'll never know the full extent of. Anyway, a fun trip down memory lane.

After school, he and Annabel did their homework and then we dove right into the presents and our traditional scavenger hunt (which Daniel specifically said he still wanted!). It was so fun to surprise Daniel with a few things he didn't expect! He's always shown such delight and pleasure in gifts- it's the sweetest just to watch him open presents. I love every single one of his expressions and even the quiet subtle ways he shows his happiness. I basically could stare at my children every moment of the day and not ever get bored. 

Daniel's dinner request was Red Robin, which we hadn't had in forever and Ben brought home. We sat outside and ate. Daniel built some new Lego sets, we watched a movie, and we ate a very delicious ice cream cake which Annabel happily made for him. And yes we made 13 candles fit onto his cake slice! It was a lovely day all around.

I cannot believe we have a teenager now. Happy Birthday, Daniel! We love you so incredibly much!! You are an amazing, wonderful young man! I'm glad you are finally taller than me. I'm glad you're mine. I'm glad you're YOU.

Good morning, Birthday Boy!!

This was a fun poster to make.

I liked this poster most. House shape, 13 chimney, and numbers in the smoke (2008-2021).

A surprise birthday message in our driveway from Grandma Mary Kay and Aunt Wendy! (Which we all missed due to a crazy busy birthday morning in which I drove Daniel to school with his instrument for a change and Ben took Annabel to school extra early for her reading club.)

Our old house...those were the days...

Daniel with his birthday message.

A birthday walk with Cosmo.

Time for presents!

Following the clues for his scavenger hunt...

He walked right past this find...

And he found it!! Haha. This one was Ben's idea. Annabel saw it right away when she got home. Daniel probably walked past it ten times before this. Heehee.

Red Robin dinner! Yum!

Lego building!!!

Cake time!! It's thawing, still thawing, still thawing... Also we had to top it with the chocolate ganache, pictured next. It still had to thaw after that...eep.

Annabel wanted a picture of what the inside looked like. Looks delicious!

Happy birthday to you, my dear boy!!

Ben had the brilliant idea, of course he would- he's genius, of taking a picture of my teenage boy with his Mickey, as we've done since he was one month old (pictured below, link from October 2008). Daniel was very happy to do this! We now have this picture framed. :) Oh how I LOVE that we took this picture! What a moment of a million memories!

Sleepy Daniel. I love this picture- classic Daniel, classic teenager.

That picture above of Daniel with the candles lit up...I saw it and instantly thought of the picture to the right below (from the Mr. Turkey song video in November 2012)- that quirk of the head, the eyebrows, the smile- he's just the same as he's always been and even handsomer now. What a comparison- I LOVED it!

A Google Memory- Daniel is one year old here. So cute.

I saw this Instagram post on Daniel's birthday, sourced a few different ways as noted in the pictured, it says: "You will not be the same person a year from now, you must decide which way you will grow." How fitting to read on a birthday. Indeed, much changes year to year. I can't wait to see how Daniel will continue to grow in this next year and beyond! Life is so incredible to witness as a parent...

 Happy Birthday, bud- we love you SO much!!

Our Life: August

August odds and ends!

Annabel baked a new kind of cupcake- Boston Cream Cupcakes! They were delish! Here she is trying her hand at cutting out the middles for the cream- she did a great job! 

We got nanoblocks of a couple national parks on our trip and I had fun putting them together. Here's the one from Arches. Daniel had started this one, but the directions are so confusing and the blocks so very tiny, that he passed the project off to me. I had fun!

 

 

The cats are "helping" Daddy change the pads on the feet of the chairs.

 

Plainfield car show fun! Uncle Brian and cousin Josie came for a play date one afternoon in August, mentioned they were going to the car show that night and did we want to come...you bet we did! Such a fun day with my brother and family! First up is an "eye" car- Daniel happily let me take his picture in front of it! Next up is a Bentley, much like one the character in our book, Skulduggery Pleasant, drives. After the car show, we all headed to the park, where Ben was very nice to push the kids on the saucer swing!

 

 

Kitty company.

 

A visit with Hannah! I had really missed her while we were gone on our trip!!

One last summer sleepover blast for Annabel and Aggie! First we hit up the local beach/pool for swimming, sand play, and a picnic dinner. Home to a movie for the girls. Then they woke up and made donuts! Yum!

 

Ben took the kids camping one weekend, just one night at a nearby forest preserve. They had fun!

There happened to be activities in that forest preserve the morning after their campout, so they stayed for some more fun.

Annabel is already collecting fall recipes to bake! As most 10 years old do, right? She's so cute. She spends her free time browsing Sally's Baking Addiction website (we have all of Sally's books and love her recipes!), so she's started quite the collection of recipes. So fun! And yummy!

More national park nanoblocks- this time it's Mesa Verde!

 

Notable world news...A ship had gotten stuck in the Suez Canal, and to put it in perspective, I shared this tidbit with the kids since they know I am a fan of books by Oliver Jeffers...turns out his books were on that ship (he'd posted this news on his Instagram). Wild, eh.

Daniel was very eager to get started on his Halloween costume. Goodwill for the win! We found a perfectly good sport coat...in fact, I think, I hope!, it might even work for his 8th grade graduation! (Yes, I realize that's a year and a half away, but one can hope!) Anyway, it was SO fun to shop with Daniel for the pieces for his costume. I loved our time together! He happily tried things on and even posed for pictures! So, here are the first glimpses of that costume for you! (We didn't buy that hat however, though we did need one...this one just wasn't it.)

 

 

The cats just LOVE this bag, which lives under my desk there to the right (it's for library books that need to be returned)...they are forever "attacking" it or just plain sleeping in it.

We had a fun outing to Target one day and both kids got fun games, nice Mommy that I am. This one, Daniel's choice- The Worst-Case Scenario game- had us cracking up! 

 

Annabel had her nose in this book, Exploring the White House, for the day or so it took her to read it- she literally devoured this book, read it every chance she had, and then handed it to me, "You HAVE to read this, Mommy!" She was telling us SO many stories from it while she read it, too, which was SO cute. She just really loved this book. She's on a bit of a history kick right now. I love that.

No 5th Grade Nutella, to Annabel's dismay! (This was at Target. Also, why? What the heck is this about?)

The kids found boxes of Girl Scout cookies left in the pantry and I'm getting mighty tired of seeing them languishing. They pulled some out for a snack, asking how many could they have, I literally said as many as you want. Both tried to finish the entire box off, haha...I don't think either managed but they sure thought I was awesome there for a moment as I let them live out their fantasies!!

Annabel was still helping Daddy out at the local airport. So fun for them!

 

Annabel had been DYING for this next book in a series we love to come out...the library copy we put on hold came before my pre-ordered copy arrived (very weird, but whatever) and of course she couldn't wait to get her hands on it. She started reading immediately while I was finishing my book browsing, and then she literally had her nose in it while walking out the door of the library that day...and I believe proceeded to finish it that night. She really liked it. I love it so much when I see my kids glued to books like this.

Trips down memory lane as I work on photo books...

 

My family came over to our house for a big gathering when Aunt Kathy and Uncle Bob were in town. So fun to see everybody!

Kitty company.

  

 Daniel wore his new Woodward Cruise shirt for picture day! So fun!

 

More kitty company...again.
 

 

 

If I wonder where the cats are at any given point in the day, one is almost always in Daniel's room in the box lid by his desk. They do love being there.

Annabel's teacher's birthday was about a week after school started. In her reply email to Annabel, before school started, she said she'd happily be a taste tester any time for Annabel's baked goods. So Annabel was very excited to bake cookies for her teacher! We even got fancy boxes to package them up. We made double chocolate Hershey kiss cookies. This first picture is Annabel being silly and showing how hands-free using the mixer. She sure loves this thing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cat in the bag.

 

 

 

This is Ziggy who does not normally snuggle me, so this was extra sweet. He was literally all over me that day.

 

Cosmo loves to sit on Daddy's desk. Clean desk not required.

 

Ben snapped this silly picture when I showed off one of my latest t-shirt purchases. The shirt says, "Ask me what I'm reading." Answer at the moment: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (for my book club meeting next week- I'm really enjoying it!)

 Love my library during late afternoon with the sunlight streaming in just so.

 

 

Annabel and her friend Zeynep baked the double chocolate Hershey Kiss cookies, same as mentioned above, one afternoon! It's a super fast easy recipe, so it's perfect for a play date. The cookies were delicious!

Belly up, Cosmo!

 

 

 

Daniel and his epic Lego set ups! So fun!!