July is forever birthday month over in our neck of the woods. We have Isla and Lester's on the 18th, and then Bear's on the 31st. Then, when you add in the extended family you also have Hillary and Eli's, who also happened to be here this month for a huge family reunion we had happening. To say that it has been fun [as well as a healthy dose of chaotic-something we specialise in with our family haha!] would be an understatement. Still, I personally feel like its important to make each and every child feel special and valued individually-and what better day way to focus on that then celebrating their bdays, even if its small?

For months, Isla has been saying she wanted a 'Coco' bday. She loves with her whole heart, and when she saw that movie, she decided once and for all that it spoke to her. She endlessly sings in the most heartfelt off key amazingly beautiful little voice of hers all the songs from the movie, and every night after I kiss her goodnight or we read scriptures she tells me she has 'a proud corazon.' So, even though they don't exactly have party ware for that and we had a million other things going on, we made do and did our best to give her what she wanted.

I picked up some papel picado to hang in the back yard, made her a chocolate strawberry layer cake just like she wanted [I soaked each later to make it a little play on tres leches too haha-but it had to be chocolate, bc she is a die hard 'team chocolate' forever.], got her a tiny pinata to go along with her presents, and played the soundtrack. All the family who was here helped it feel like a little fiesta, and she was in heaven. Typically, she struggles when she is on the spot, but this time, she loved being the centre of attention and I loved every second of seeing her beaming. Then a few days later we got spoiled with hair cuts and mani pedis and lunch w Lolo and Lola.

All in all, it was adorable and she gave me the proudest corazon in the whole world, just like she has every day since she was born.






And as far as my bday boy/man goes, we went out for dim sum and some shopping with his family, which is exactly what he wanted so he didn't have to be the centre of attention haha. To each their own I suppose. I feel like every day is our birthday bc of how lucky we are to call him our guy.

And with that, I will end this post, with the promise of a post about said reunion and the related visits, and of course, about our Bear boy's 1st birthday. Life is grand!

Honestly, of all the delicious desserts options there are out there, cake is probably one of my least favourites. I just feel like there are so many other things I'd rather try, that have equal or better taste, and definitely better, more complex texture....

..but then cake is such an institution for holidays and and is often so visually stunning. It just screams celebration and Americana and happiness. So, I have decided to put my biases aside and improve my cake making skills haha. I don't know that I will bake them very often-but I want to be sure that when the occasion arrives, I am ready and rearing to go!

So far, we've tried making a naked funfetti cake-it was Christina Tosi's recipe, and I loved her thoughtful approach to adding texture and color to it. All in all we were pretty happy with the results-it tasted like childhood and fun, and the texture was good-but I still found it all a little bit sweet for my liking. But thats what cake is I suppose haha. I think I still prefer things like princess cake, which is a bit more balanced, with the tart raspberry jam, creamy custard and whipped cream, and sweet marzipan to envelope it all with its light and fluffy sponge cake layers. So far, thats been my favourite cake to both eat and make, as well as the most challenging. We also attempted a quick galaxy mirror glaze cake [the interior we made chocolate with cream cheese frosting and pecans layered inside]. I thought the effect was perfect-it looked just like a shiny galaxy with stars and all-but I definitely need to improve my finessing the frosting layer underneath, so you won't see the shotty work when I glaze it haha. I think this is one of the many reasons cupcakes appeal to me-they are yummy, you can control the amount of frosting to cake ratio, and they are easier to dress up and make pretty. Of all the cupcakes I've made, I think my favourites that I will keep coming back to are Cookies and Cream, Butterbeer and Red Velvet, and of course, classic chocolate. But still, all in all, its been fun practising something that isn't my strong suit, and I am happy to see improvements here and there.

The further I get into my makeshift food education if you will, the more I fall in love with cooking-but sometimes, it feels good to go back to baking which is where it all started for me.

8 years ago, when Lester and I finally did get married, she was there. She was there 2 years later at my first baby shower, and there in some of my most difficult times in OKC through care packages and notes, and she has been there for every single one of my significant life events since then-as well as several non important ones along the way. She has supported, listened, laughed, cried, taught, and been a true friend to me over all these years when I've changed, and my family has changed, and I have felt honored to be able to there to do the same here and there for her.

And this weekend, I finally able to make good on my end of that old promise when I had the pleasure of attending her and Conrad's wedding. My girls were floored to be able to be part of it as well, as they got to be flower girls. The funny thing about it is even though it was HER wedding, the whole things was clearly done with everyone else in mind. It was held at beautiful children's museum by Coyote Point with gorgeous views, and lots of fun things to do for all ages. It had special touches all through out, like with an artist to do caricatures of the guests, a photo booth, and music that everyone could enjoy, no matter how old or young. It had fun interactive science exhibits to play with, and animal visitors, and even a science playground. There was delicious food that suited everyones various diets, and even little goody bags to entertain the kids. Basically, above all, the whole event exuded love-Becca and Conrad's love for each other, their love for all of us, and our love for all of them. It was by far one of the most fun wedding I've ever been to, and I loved every second of it. I will never forget the memories I got to make with my family, and that I've gotten to make. I'm excited to add it to all the ones I already have with Becca, Liz, Lisa, and Drea, and for the opportunity to make millions more.

The girls danced the night away-[Isla in particular-after 2 hours of non stop dancing, I insisted she take a break and cutie pie girl said 'Whew-thank for snapping me out of it!' I love her!] and we did as well, and we got to catch up with so many good friends. A high light for us was participating in the Horah, as Lester helped lift the bride and groom on their chairs and we all got to hold hands and dance with them. All in all, it was a perfect experience, and I am so grateful for it.

I guess I'll just end by saying, with my friends, especially Becca, I feel like I can be myself-with my 3 kiddos and wonderful husband in tow-and even my sarcastic sense of humour at times haha-and they still love me and genuinely want to be a part of my life. That is a special, and rare thing I think, and I will always cherish that.

So congrats to the newly weds-and now, its not too late for you catch up to us in making some more besties for my kids haha!