Olivia Turns Six!

We celebrated our baby girl turning six with a party at our house. Several of Olivia's school and soccer friends attended. She took her role as hostess seriously, donning her finest fairy costume, tiara, and jewelry.

We went with a Costco birthday cake because they are delicious and feed an army for very little money. Jackson picked out the cake decoration.

Pizza, cake, and a delightfully out-of-tune rendition of "Happy Birthday."

I've noticed a trend of not opening birthday presents at the party, but some of Olivia's friends said they were excited to see how much she loved their gift. So we went ahead and let her open them.

Then it was out to the backyard for some good old-fashioned party games. We did egg-and-spoon races, and sack races too.

Bashing the pinata.

A great group of kiddos, a super fun afternoon.

Olivia had school on her actual birthday. She reported that her teacher gave her a crown and the class sang to her. After school, Tony and I gave her a couple more small presents from her family.

Finally, the following weekend, we celebrated at Chuy's with her grandparents. I had the guacamole soft tacos.

Olivia enjoying her complimentary birthday treat from Chuy's. 

Olivia, I love to see the big girl you are becoming. You are a kind and caring friend, daughter, granddaughter, student, and teammate. You are creative and inquisitive, independent and strong. I am so proud to be your mama.

Olivia Turns Five

Olivia started off her fifth year of life by feeding breakfast to her ponies.

For a special dinner, I made the Leek and Bean Cassoulet with Biscuits from Veganomicon.  I stuck it under the broiler for a minute after it finished cooking, to get the biscuits nice and golden.

I subbed chickpeas for the navy beans. It was so good!

Olivia requested a Rainbow Dash cake this year. She is just a little obsessed with My Little Pony these days (and Shopkins, and Monster High!) It was fun and challenging to make and to decorate. For the cake and frosting, I doubled the vanilla cupcake and vanilla buttercream recipes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World.

Wishing.

Whoosh!

At five, Olivia loves roller-skating, gymnastics, fairies, princesses, hour-long baths, board games, cuddling, being tickled, and all things pink and purple. She can count to one hundred and she is starting to learn her sight words. She wants to grow her hair long like Rapunzel and she is excited to start kindergarten in the fall. She is a delightful little girl and I am so lucky and thankful to be her mama.

Birthday Boy

So I already mentioned how Jackson celebrated his sixth birthday up in Oklahoma with his cousins. We tried to make the actual day special for him, too, in a more low-key sense. He woke up to presents from my parents and my brother and sister-in-law.

I made some special breakfast butterflies for him and Olivia, using the Sinfully Wholesome Waffles from Isa Does It for the "wings."

Later, a birthday dinner at his favorite restaurant, Chuy's. Celebratory margaritas for Mama and Daddy.

I ordered my usual combination of salad and veggie enchilada.

Jackson was a little startled when the servers gathered around our table to sing to him. But an ice cream treat brought a smile back to his face.

Throughout our meal we were kept company by a little cat who wandered around on the patio and found some stray salsa bowls to lick clean.

Happy birthday, Jackson! Six is going to be filled with many adventures.

Olivia is 4!

Olivia is four! 

In lieu of a big party this year, there were big gifts. Roller skates, for my sk8er girl who loves to go fast. In the picture below, she is wearing the baby skates I initially bought for her, the locking kind that strap on over shoes. But after a few laps around the house, she informed me that they were too slow. So we ended up exchanging them for big kid skates like Jackson's.

Also, bikes! Their first bikes. In a matter of days, they have gone from hesitantly peddling down to the mailbox, to tearing it up at the park. I have a feeling the training wheels won't be needed for long.

Olivia's birthday dinner was something new I came up with -- savory cinnamon rolls. I made pizza dough and layered on spinach, mushrooms, and mozzarella cheese. Then I rolled it up, sliced it, and arranged it in a baking dish. We pulled off individual rolls and dipped them in marinara. I guess I need to come up with a better name, though, since there's no cinnamon in these!

Homemade cakes have become our birthday tradition, and this year my girl requested a Princess Elsa cake because she lives and breathes Frozen. ("Mommy, the cold doesn't bother me anyway!" she informs me whenever I remind her to wear a hoodie outdoors.)

Happy fourth to my shopping buddy, cuddle monkey, sweet girl, tiny tornado, princess, Olivia Avery.

Birthday Ramen

I wanted to eat someplace new for my birthday. Tony, lover of all Japanese food, talked me into Michi Ramen. We started with a bowl of salted edamame, Jackson and Olivia's favorite appetizer. It keeps their little fingers busy.

Most ramen bowls are made with pork broth, but Michi offers a vegan bowl as well. It comes with chives, sprouts, cabbage, green onions, and wood ear mushrooms. I added sweet corn and mayu (blackened garlic oil). From first slurp, I was in heaven. The noodles were chewy, springy, perfectly cooked. The broth was hot and delicious. I finished the entire bowl of noodles and veggies, then slurped down the rest of the broth! 

Tony had some kind of pork bowl, and the kids had plain noodles with broth. They love using chopsticks -- they get right in there!

A cute little placard on our table advertised mochi ice cream desserts, so we let Jackson and Olivia each choose a flavor. They went with blueberry and strawberry.

Little scoops of ice cream sealed inside a chewy, glutinous rice package...they had never had anything like it. Instant approval.

"Mom, I love Japanese food!"

After one visit, Michi Ramen is now vying with Elizabeth Street for my favorite Austin restaurant!

On the way home, we swung by Capital City Bakery to pick up some birthday cupcakes. Olivia chose a confetti cupcake, vanilla with vanilla frosting and sprinkles.

Jackson went for one of the seasonal treats, a chocolate cupcake with peppermint buttercream, and candy cane pieces sprinkled on top.

I couldn't pass up an eggnog cupcake. 

I had a lovely birthday, attending a "painting with wine" class with some girlfriends, finishing up all my Christmas shopping and wrapping, and spending lots of relaxing time with my family. Couldn't ask for a better start to 37!

Olivia is 3!

My baby is now a three-year-old, as she reminds me multiple times per day. Olivia has big ideas about what turning three means. 

A three-year-old gets a train cake.

A three-year-old throws a birthday party.

A three-year-old celebrates with her friends.

Being a three-year-old is pretty awesome.

Jackson's Birthday Dinner

 

Jackson's birthday fun wasn't limited to his party at Chuck E. Cheese. Since Tony unexpectedly had to miss the party, we had a second celebration one evening when Tony could be a part of the festivities.

 

First we had dinner at Chuy's. I had my usual, veggie enchiladas.

 

 

After our meal, the wait staff came out and sang Happy Birthday to Jackson and gave him an ice cream pop.

 

Back at the house, we had cake. Jackson requested a fire truck cake this year. Actually, he requested one last year, too! But this year, he specified that it should be in the shape of a real fire truck. I did my best to oblige him.

 

Then came a few presents.

 

He is really into dragons right now!

 

He likes clomping around in his new Monster Feet.

 

A very happy birthday for an awesome little dude.

Jackson is 4!

It is hard to believe, but my little baby Jackson turned four last week.

 

 

I had a sense even before he was born that Jackson would be a "spirited" baby, and my premonition proved true. He was so happy and alert -- always smiling and laughing and ready to play.

 

 

 

As he gets older, I am amazed by his energy. His daredevil nature can make me nervous, but I love his enthusiasm and excitement. I hope he always retains his adventurous spirit, whatever life brings his way.

 

We baked some cupcakes for his birthday party. He did the sprinkles.

 

 

We had his party at Chuck E. Cheese. It was Jackson's first time there. He has seen the commercials so he was very excited about it. The monster truck was his favorite ride.

 

Happy Birthday, sweet boy! We love you.