Number One!

After surviving a year "under the sun", we reward young humans with a party.

But really, we are rewarding ourselves for not completely losing our minds, whether accidentally or on purpose, in the past 365 days.

A co-worker was kind enough to lend us her apartment for a wonderful one-year bash, but there was a catch: we had to wear ridiculous fuzzy animal ears. TheFry, being the birthday boy, got to wear a bow tie.

We ate one of TheFry's favorite rarer foods: spaghetti. The noodles aren't difficult to find here, although they're a tad more expensive than you would find in the USA. The sauce was more expensive: a little less than $5 per jar. Still, it was a welcome treat.

We always get sauce on our face when eating spaghetti.

He likes the camera-lady.

Next, we opened presents from my very generous co-workers.

TheFry wanted to taste the shiny paper.

One of his favorite presents was a duck. It's got a string that you pull and then it rolls along.

It also tastes great!

Another present was a wonderful pair of winter pajamas. How thoughtful!

TheFry received many other really wonderful gifts, and we were all quite surprised. Among them were some winter shoes and a really great stroller. Thank you, everyone!

Finally, we had cake. I baked it at home. We also made the frosting at home by melting chocolate and butter together, then whisking in powdered sugar until the frosting became thick, but not clumpy. Delicious and simple! The cakes were cut in half and filled with either strawberry jam, persimmon jam, or more frosting!

Then, I helped TheFry blow out the candle. I wasn't expecting to look so conspicuous.

He may not have been able to figure out the whole "blowing out the candles" thing, but he sure knew how to eat the cake!

What would the event be like without a family picture?

Thanks to everyone who made this day really great!

Happy Mother's Day!!!

Happy Mothers Day, all you wonderful Mamas out there! Enjoy these beautiful apple blossoms, found not five minutes' walk from our home!

Spring has truly arrived "in full bloom"!

We even saw some cherry blossoms:

They are my favorite flower as far as blossoming trees goes (Tiger Lilies are my favorite of all flowers) - and it was the perfect gift for Mother's Day to see these flowers as I walked with TheFry on Saturday evening.

While we were walking at the park, we spied this bench with what looked like a bouquet of flowers on it...

But it wasn't a romantic gesture from a guy about to propose to his girlfriend, as I had hoped. Then again, I am a sap sometimes. But the flowers were pretty anyway, and I love the big shiny building in the background. There's something quaint about a city park.

We spent a lot of time watching these two birds. They kept singing and chirping and TheFry would just smile and laugh and kick his chubby little legs. Eventually, they flew off and we headed home.

TheFry has been eating a lot of spinach lately. We make our own baby foods at home, and he is afraid of the food processor. Therefore, I tend to prepare the foods after he goes to bed, and sometimes it takes several hours (like if he keeps waking up every hour). Such is life in an apartment. But I think a messy face is a cute face.

Lately, TheFry has been pushing himself up on his hands. Sometimes he forgets to unclinch his fists.

Here he is, chubby and happy and dressed like a mime (that one was for you, Mom ;) ).

This one's my favorite. That's not a tooth - it's just his gums. He really likes to play with his tongue, including turning it sideways (which I myself cannot do), chewing on it and the like.

In other news, I have a romantic husband! He made chocolate ganache-covered blackberries for Mother's Day! Aww...

Yes, those are slices of candied kumquat zest adorning the little nuggets of blackberry deliciousness!

A blurry close-up because I only have a P&S...

That's better! Mmm...ganache was a little melty, so it stuck to the paper instead of peeling off like plain chocolate. The blackberries were savory yet subtle - not overpowered by the ganache and yet now overpowering it, either. The kumquat added a little bit of zing to the overall feel, and a much-needed crunch. The sugar coating on the kumquat zest kept it from being bitter (which is how I remember kumquats from my childhood).

To be honest, I was skeptical about the kumquat zest because the only time I've ever had kumquats they were extremely bitter. However, this was an amazing dessert and I have a wonderful husband who stayed up after work buying and preparing the ingredients for me! He even made chocolate-covered pecans (also with the ganache - sadly, no pictures), and pecans are my favorite kind of nut!

Well, happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there, and here's hoping you had a relaxing day with good food and family who loves you! Until next time!