Tony's Birthday

Tony celebrated both his birthday, and starting a new job, during the same week. We were not able to have a date night, no sitter at the moment. So, he went out to see Straight Outta Compton with some pals while I watched the kids. We also celebrated with a family meal. I made my Tex-Mex loving  husband some tasty enchiladas with cashew cheeze, black olives, and red Hatch chile sauce.

The kids and I also made the Boston Cream Pie Cake from Vegan Pie in the Sky. Jackson and Olivia looked through the whole cookbook together and that was the one they chose. Good pick!

We are so proud of Tony as he starts his new director job, which he has been after for awhile. It is going to be a great year for him.

Spring Festival

I ordered Vegan Pie in the Sky as a "Pi Day" (3/13) gift to myself and the timing was perfect, since Jackson's school had asked for baked good donations for the cake walk at their annual spring festival.

First up, the Pucker Up Raspberry Pie. The edges of my crust got a little overbaked, hopefully nobody minded. I was surprised at how easy the lattice crust was! And it was fun cutting out the little heart shapes. I felt very Betty Crocker-ish.

Next up, Maple Pecan Pie. Looked and smelled wonderful!

We did not donate all our baking efforts, to be honest. I also made a batch of Boston Cream Pie cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take over the World. My chocolate ganache topping was wayyy too runny to dollop on top of the cupcakes. I had to thicken it up with some extra chocolate and coconut oil. There will definitely be a next time and I will cut down on the amount of milk used. Biting into the cream-filled cupcake center is pure heaven.

Anyway, the festival! Unfortunately Jackson had an upset stomach and could not attend, but I took Olivia for a couple of hours. She headed straight for the bounce castles first.

The human hamster ball was a new experience for her. 

. She was stumbling around like a tiny drunk person after the climbed out!

Random dude with a white bird just hanging out on his head. Sure, why not. This is Austin.

Try as she might, Olivia did not manage to dunk the teacher, but enjoyed trying.

Her favorite activity was the foam pit. "I'm swimming in clouds!" she exclaimed.

"This is the best day of my life!" she also exclaimed. Olivia may be prone to hyperbole but you have to appreciate her enthusiasm.

Later, I ran her home and then went back and volunteered for a couple of hours at various booths. That was fun too. I was starving when I got home, and I had a BLT craving. I cooked up some tempeh bacon and piled it on my favorite pumpernickel-rye swirl bread along with tomatoes, lettuce, hummus, and avocado. BLT deluxe!