Trip to Dentist

This morning I took the boys to the dentist.  We walked there because the location is nice and close...technically James rode his bike on the way there.  It was Sam's first visit to the dentist (although last time he went with us to James' appointment), and I believe it was James' fourth trip to the dentist.  Upon arrival James immediately went into the play area, and I took care of signing us in and then changing a dirty diaper.  Shortly afterward the assistant came out and took a picture of the boys together for their little magnetic picture reminder of your next dentist appointment.  Then James had one x-ray taken of his back left teeth to finish up the set they had started at the last visit...last time they weren't able to get this section taken because James kept gagging on the equipment.  Once that was finished, James picked out a sticker for himself (green race car) and one for Sam (red race car), and we headed over to the dental examination area. 

James sat on the regular dental chair and allowed the assistant to brush and floss his teeth.  He choose cherry flavored toothpaste for his cleaning.  James laid perfectly still and followed directions exactly.  The dentist did an examination of James' mouth and said everything is looking great.  The dentist also made the comment that if all his patients were as cooperative as James, his job would be so much easier.  James is a little model dentist patient.  : )

When I asked James later if he liked his cherry toothpaste, he told me it was "kind of crunchy".  I know exactly what he is referring to, but it was pretty cute to hear him describe it that way.

Next came time for the dentist to examine Sam's mouth.  I sat with my knees against the knees of the dentist, and we just laid Sam back, so the dentist could look in his mouth.  Everything is looking good for Sam as well.  Also I was surprised that Sam was so willing to cooperate as well because usually he doesn't tolerate us poking around in his mouth or inspecting for new teeth and everything.  Don't get me wrong...I was grateful I didn't have a screaming child on my hands instead.

We set up their next appointment for six months out.  Hopefully Sam's adoption will have taken place, and he will be on our insurance by then.  If not, I will have to cancel Sam's visit and reschedule once we he is on our insurance.  Technically the dentist office does not take the state insurance; however, their initial visit with a child under three is free, so today's visit fell under that category.

We returned home loaded up with new toothbrushes, toothpaste, a couple toys and some balloons.  Both boys were happy.  What more could you ask for!

Sibling Visit Vent

Today was supposed to be a sibling visit for Sam.  I made arrangements for my brother and his son to come over for a play date with James while I took Sam to his sibling visit.  Keep in mind I need to leave my house by 9:15/9:20 (at the latest) to get to the visit location in time for our 10 a.m. sibling visit.  I got a call at 9:05 this morning from the brother's foster mom saying she thought she might need to cancel the visit for today because the brother is still really sick.  Originally we were supposed to have a visit a little over two weeks ago, but that one was cancelled due to the brother being sick as well.  The other mom then wanted me to call and inform the visit supervisor of the situation because she didn't have his number.  I refused to take that responsibility and told her that she needed to call him herself, and I gave her his contact information.  I am just a little frustrated that she waited to call and cancel the visit...thank goodness she hadn't called ten minutes later!  I imagine she knew the brother wasn't feeling well last night and could have cancelled then.  Part of me wonders if she woke up this morning and just didn't feel like having a visit, so instead she blamed the brother being sick and cancelled.  I feel a little bad saying that, but I have talked with her once last week and earlier this week, and we verified when the visit would be, and when I talked to her on the phone those times, she said the brother was doing much better and whatnot.

Anyway...the good thing that came about was a play date still took place between my nephew and my two boys.  My brother literally arrived at our house while I was on the phone with the other foster mom.  It has been awhile since they have been able to play together, so they had a lot of fun together.

It turns out my husband could have used the car today had he wanted to since I didn't have to drive out the visit.  Instead he rode his bike to work since I needed the car.  Oh well!  That's the way life goes sometimes.

Update on Appeal

We found out the appeal birth dad filed has been dismissed.  Now we must wait until the end of May for the remittitur to take place...essentially for it to be legally binding that the appeal is not acceptable and adoption may proceed.  Once that occurs, we will be able to sign the official adoption paperwork and hopefully have a court date within 2-4 weeks.  Perhaps Sam will become a legal member of our family by June at the earliest.  Everyone already considers Sam an official member of our family, and that won't change at all, but it will be nice for the adoption to take place, so Sam can have our last name and be added to our medical/dental insurance.

However, now my husband and I really need to start working on a middle name for our little guy.  We will be keeping his birth first name (although changing the spelling...to the spelling we are used to...let's just say Sam's name was spelled two different ways on his medical card and paperwork in the beginning, so we went with one way, and technically his birth certificate has it spelled the other way) and of course Sam will be getting our last name.  We haven't put a lot of thought into a middle name up to this point, but it is time to start pursuing that.

Misunderstood

Here I have been thinking that Sam has been dealing with a cold (he had a slight fever and a little congestion).  Sam has been quite the cranky little guy lately, and we had sort of written it off as once he feels better, he will bounce back to his normal self again.  Well...his fever disappeared, but Sam has still remained clingy and extra sensitive.

Today I was helping Sam with something, and I noticed some white in the very back of his mouth.  I took him over to the couch and forced him to allow me to look inside his mouth...Sam wasn't happy about that at all.  He isn't a fan of allowing others into his mouth, so his first trip to the dentist this Friday should be interesting to say the least.  Anyway...during the course of my inspection, I realized that Sam is not only pushing through some molars, but four molars to be exact...two on top, two on bottom, and they are already a sizable way through his gums.  The poor baby!  Here Sam has been misunderstood for several days, but at least he has been getting loving care just the same.  However, now I can at least offer some cold or frozen food in the mesh feeder for Sam to help soothe his gums now that I know what is actually causing his discomfort.

James' Birthday Party

James had his birthday party this weekend.  It was a lot of fun!  We went to a bounce house, and it was so relaxing not to have to stress about every little detail...that job belonged to someone else.  I enjoyed just coming, dropping off the cake and favors and then sitting back, playing a little, taking a lot of pictures and visiting a bit with our guests.  It was also nice to have some of James' friends at his birthday party.  If the party had been at our home, it would have been a lot harder to host everyone.

Overall I think the party was a big success!  My husband and I really liked the stress-free feeling of having a venue take care of the planning. 

 

Here is the final Jeep cake for James' birthday.  He loved the cake as well as his modified Power Wheels Jeep he was given.  This is the Jeep my husband has worked so hard on, and it has delighted our son beyond measure.  There are still some small things that need to be done to finish it up, but the Jeep is running, and James can drive it.  Once we add the seat belts, Sam will be able to join him as well.

James' Birthday

Today was James' birthday.  The birthday party will come on Saturday, but this was his actual birthday.  Much of the celebrating did not take place until Daddy came home from work.  However, we did spend two hours outside playing at the park in the morning, and I did make James a special birthday trail mix (peanuts, chocolate chips, marshmallows) as a snack for the park. 

We went to dinner as a family tonight.  James got to choose between spaghetti or burritos, and he choose spaghetti, so we ended up having dinner at the same place as last year, and we were able to get seated on the trolley as well which was really exciting to James.  When they brought out the ice cream, a crew of four workers came over to sing "Happy Birthday" to James after they lit the candle.  James was pretty funny...he got quite shy and buried himself into Daddy.  He wouldn't blow out the candle until all the workers had walked away.  On the car ride home, though, he was talking so happily and kept saying "Happy birthday" over and over again.  I really think he enjoyed his dinner out, and that is what makes it special.

At home before bedtime, Sam gave James a birthday gift.  It is a larger red die cast convertible Mustang car.  James thought it was the coolest toy ever!  He kept telling Sam "thank you for the car" and he happily gave Sam kisses goodnight (the goodnight kisses are hit and miss but tonight James was excited to give Sam a kiss).  James even shared his new car with Sam insisting that Sam needed to stay up "one more minute".  Then James carried the car all night...through the bedtime routine and even off to bed with him.  I am glad we decided to have Sam give James that gift.  I think it just helped to spark a little extra love for the boys.

Overall James enjoyed his birthday, but he did ask about the bounce place and his Jeep cake, so he is still aware the full birthday celebration hasn't happened quite yet.

Also my husband and I are wondering if perhaps some of James' misbehavior is related to the approach of his birthday because today was such a great day for him compared to the past couple days.  Or it could just be the good and bad days of toddlerhood.  Either way, we appreciated having James' birthday be a happy time of celebrating together as a family.

Husband's Birthday

Yesterday was my husband's birthday.  I wanted to make it special for him because he has been so busy putting together James' birthday gift, and James' birthday is today...Sam's was a few weeks ago, and I know my husband's birthday just gets lost in the midst of everything else.  Technically his real birthday gift will come in April when I take him out the Michelin star restaurant like he has always wanted to try.

So for breakfast I used the frozen Rhodes cinnamon rolls (the ones you throw right into the oven from the freezer...not as good as homemade, but I didn't have the time, and these would suffice) and then made a sausage and cheese omelet to accompany them.  I sent a birthday card from me with his lunch to work.

While my husband was at work, the boys and I walked over to a sporting goods store and found a running shirt that we took home and decorated for Daddy.  James picked out the shirt he liked.  This was the interesting part because Sam fell asleep on the way home, so I did James' footprints first.  Then James was actually the first one up from their naps even though he was the last one down; however, once Sam woke up, his footprints were done and eventually I wrote across the shirt and set it back out to dry.  We needed it to dry and get wrapped before Daddy came home from work.  James helped choose what colors would be on whose feet...the yellow for him and the light blue for Sam.

 

For dinner I made a dry rub and rubbed it on some filets that my husband barbequed for us along with some avocado salsa to top the steaks (Steak Rub & Salsa Recipe), some from scratch cresent rolls (Crescent Rolls Recipe), jalapeno poppers (fresh jalapenos filled with cream cheese that were barbequed), and parsnip french fries (these were actually quite good and pretty sweet too).

Then for dessert I made individual sized apple pies with a lattice crust, homemade vanilla bean ice cream (Vanilla Bean Ice Cream Recipe) and a homemade caramel sauce (Caramel Sauce).  I love the step by step process for making a caramel sauce.  I was able to successful on my first attempt thanks to these wonderful directions.

Anyway...enough recap about yesterday.  Now I need to make sure today's birthday boy, James, has a wonderful day!

Battleground

Our home front is turning into a battleground...not the kind where people fight to the death...although occassionally there is some pushing and hitting (between the children, not the adults), but the kind that makes you, as a parent, dig your heels into the ground and stick to the boundaries you have in place for your children.  It is a hard job.  My husband always says that doing the right thing is often the hard thing, and that is so true.

People don't tell you how hard it is to set ground rules and enforce them, but in my opinion, it can sometimes feel like the hardest part of parenthood.

The past couple nights James has been pushing the boundaries left and right to make sure all the rules still apply.  Technically yesterday during the day time was pretty rough too.  Thankfully today during the day was much better.  I am not sure what has brought on this sudden change in behavior, but I will certainly be glad when it has come to an end.  Consequences are not fun to hand out...whether they are natural consequences or time outs, but they are necessary for learning what is appropriate behavior.

I really felt bad for my husband tonight because today is his birthday (I will talk more about how we celebrated his birthday in a different post), and he wasn't able to spend a whole lot of time playing with James because James was choosing to make wrong choices and had to deal with the consequences of his actions (time outs, missing out on birthday pie/ice cream...this we just decided to do later after the boys are sleeping, going to bed without stories, etc.).  It broke my poor husband's heart, and I can't say I blame him because it broke my heart for him as well.

Here is hoping tomorrow brings a greater outlook and better behavior...especially since tomorrow is James' birthday.

Jeep Practice Cake

Yesterday I finally got around the making a practice Jeep cake for James' birthday party which is coming up this Saturday.  I have never made a shape cake before...one that you shape yourself.  First I found a chocolate cake recipe I wanted to try: Moist Chocolate Cake.  So I started by whipping together a batch of cake mix and filling my mini bundt pan with the batter.  The mini bundt pan makes six cakes, so I knew we would be able to sample a couple of them to make sure the cake was good before I made the whole cake based on that recipe.  I was happy with how the bundt cakes turned out...they will make perfect wheels.  Also my husband, James and I agreed the chocolate cake was yummy!

Once we determined the cake batter was a hit, I went ahead and whipped together a few more batches, making two 13x9 cakes and one 8x8 cake.  Fortunately, I baked the cakes in the afternoon and then waited until the boys were asleep to assemble the cake.  That gave plenty of time for everything to cool off and allowed me to focus only on the cake.  First I put together a base for the cake.  I ended up wrapping a book in foil and using some frosting to glue it to my cake holder.  Then I wrapped a piece of cardboard in foil as well for the cake body to rest on.  Next time I will using a thicker base, so the wheels can be set more accurately.  The wheels are just glued to the cake with a decent dab of butter cream frosting.

For the filling between the layers I created a whipped ganache.  I have read the idea somewhere before, and I have been wanting to try it, so I figured why not try it out on my practice cake.  I carved a little of the 13x9 cake off using a serrated bread knife to make the form of the Jeep.

 

Next I took the butter cream frosting I had made and did a crumb type coat over the Jeep.  I left the wheels alone though.

 

I had to make an additional batch of butter cream frosting in order to color it for decorating the cake.  When I have asked James what color he wants his Jeep cake to be he has gone between green and blue, so for the practice cake I decided I would make a green Jeep.  I dyed some of the frosting tan first and started by doing the top (although I goofed up and forgot to factor the doors in...the practice Jeep just doesn't have any doors).  Then I used the green coloring to get the frosting ready for the body.

 

 

After the initial frosting application, I need to go through and start adding some details.  I used some of the white frosting to create the headlights and windows.  I also used some of my leftover whipped gananche (but softened) to cover the wheels including the middle section. 

Of course at this point in time the cake is still missing some vital details.  I used black coloring and filled a decorators bag in order to pipe out the finer details.  For the actual birthday cake, I will make sure to include the doors, more lights and perhaps even a spare tire.  My husband and I also decided I should cut the 13x9 cakes to make them just slightly more narrow, so it looks more Jeep-like.  Between that and adding an extra layer of 8x8 cake on top, it should work out well.

 

The true test was how the cake in its entirety turned out, and since I couldn't just cut a wedge off to sample before sending it into my husband's work, I had to just sit back and wait to hear how it was.  The verdict is...everyone LOVES it!  The cake is really moist, and the filling and frosting work perfectly.  My husband says to make it the exact same...except in regards to the areas we already mentioned we wanted to change.  I am happy I don't have to alter a crucial component (frosting, filling) before the party.

Follow the Leader

This morning we went as a family to get smoothies.  After we purchased the smoothies, we walked around the shopping area a little bit since the weather was nice and also to help burn up some energy.  Sam was walking around all over holding onto his kid sized cup of smoothie.  Every once in awhile Sam would fall over and then get right back up and start walking again.  Sam was making all sorts of excited noises and grunts as he walked along.  The adorable part was James started to walk behind Sam copying all his movements including the wobbly walk, the noises and falling down in the exact spots and in the same way that Sam did.  It was something simple, but in our minds (my husband's and mine) it was extraordinarily special. 

Snuggles

First thing in the morning, James is wanting to be snuggled....technically first thing upon waking up including waking up from naps.  He wants to curl up in your lap on the couch and sit there together for awhile before the day begins.  Fortunately for him, Sam has been sleeping in ever since the time change, so his morning snuggle time has been uninterrupted which wasn't the norm just a few months back.  The same cannot always be said about post nap snuggles because sometimes Sam beats James awake, so James cannot get the undivided attention he so desperately seeks.

The bedtime trend is Daddy gets to snuggle with James before bed...this takes place after pajamas, teeth brushing, bedtime stories and prayers.  Daddy lays down in the toddler bed with James and snuggles him for a little bit before saying goodnight.  This is a very sweet time, and for my husband's sake, I hope it doesn't end too soon.

During the day I used to snuggle James before his naps.  I say used to because it has been a couple months since James has allowed "Mommy snuggles" before his naps.  Today was a nice change, though.  James requested "Mommy snuggles" and since Sam was already tucked away in his crib for his nap, the timing was perfect.  It was nice to lay down with him for a little bit before giving him a kiss on the forehead and slipping out of his room.

Anyway...it made my day to be able to lay and snuggle James before his nap.  I was a little sad when he decided to exclude me from that awhile back.  He is growing up way too fast, and I know these snuggles are precious and won't last forever.

A Little Clingy

We went to a Saint Patrick's Day party today.  I purposefully dressed both boys in green shirts for the occasion.  While we were there Sam was fairly clingy compared to normal...granted this was a new home to him and there were a lot of people in the house.  Sam was wanting to be held a good portion of the time.  Part of me was grateful for this behavior because so far Sam has not exhibited much separation anxiety...sometimes he will cry when he is first dropped off at the church nursery, but that has pretty much been the extent of that.  Don't get me wrong...I don't necessarily want Sam to cry every time my husband or I are out of sight, but in the adoption world, it is a great sign to see separation anxiety rear its ugly head...it is a sign of secure attachment and bonding.  Once again, don't get me wrong...I do think Sam has bonded to our family, but a little more separation anxiety would help ease both  my husband's and my minds.

After Effect of Surgery (Possibly TMI)

For the most part my body has recuperated well from my appendix surgery in August.  Generally I forget I even had the surgery.  Every once in awhile the scar will get hit just right, and I will feel the sensitivity.  However, one part of my normal body functioning seems to have been altered, and I wonder if it will be a permenant change.  Instead of getting the feeling that I need to use the restroom, my lower abdomen area will just feel a stabbing pain, and that pain lets me know my body is ready to relieve itself.  Thankfully this doesn't happen when I have to pee or I would be quite miserable.  I just assumed this feeling would pass with time, but it has been over six months, and the pressure and pain continues.  My husband read somewhere online that probiotic yogurt is supposed to help with that...according to other people who have the same problem after surgery.  I have considered picking some up at the grocery store, but I have been averted by the idea of it all.  I am thinking I will give it a try though.  Hopefully the yogurt tastes good...that is one of my concerns.  Also I feel old having to take a probiotic yogurt when my body functions just fine, but the pressure/pain is a bother.  Oh well!

Sibling Visit Update

Recently sibling visits have been reduced to once a month.  I am happy with this decision since the visits take so much time out of my day, and the boys don't really interact together for more than a minute at a time...if that.  Also I do believe the visits are hard on James because he is left behind.  Although he gets to have a special play date with some friends or see a wonderful family member, there are small signs of distress that James emits on visit days...subtle things that no one else probably notices, but I do, and I feel bad for my sweet, little boy.

Today's sibling visit was cancelled because Sam's brother is sick...it sounds possibly like the flu.  I am glad I received the phone call before I had left the house for the visit.  Since I was told early enough, I was also able to call my friend and let her know she no longer needed to watch James for me that morning.  She has plenty of time to make other plans for her day now if she wanted to.

It is interesting to me how the supervisor of the visits just expects my schedule to be wide open.  He called just a little bit ago to try to schedule a make-up visit to take the place of today's visit.  We went over possible dates, and I had to say no to three of them which the supervisor didn't seem pleased about.  We finally decided on a day that would work for both of our schedules.  I am supposed to assume that date is fine unless I get a call back from the worker once he talks to Sam's brother's foster mom.

Another small vent about the supervisor for the visits...like I mentioned earlier, the visits have been reduced to once a month.  When he called to talk to me about that, I asked him if visits would take place on the 2nd or 3rd Tuesday of each month or how we wanted to work that out.  He then goes on to tell me the Tuesdays towards the middle of the month...I asked for clarification, and as he spouts off some future dates...some of them are the 2nd Tuesday, some are the 3rd Tuesday.  This is a little frustrating to me because I would rather have a consistent visit schedule, so I can plan appointments and other necessary activities accordingly.  Oh well!

Sam's 12 Month Check-Up

Today was Sam's twelve month check up.  The dr. noticed a heart murmur that he hadn't heard before.  He said usually any serious heart murmurs would have been picked up much earlier, but he is sending out a referral to have Sam seen by a pediatric cardiologist to get a heart echo scan just to double check.  The dr. said there is a heart condition that might not present itself until a little later, and he wants to rule that out which I appreciate.  I am not overly concerned seeing how I myself have a heart murmur and so does James...neither of which have been issues.  Besides it is fairly common for children to have heart murmurs.  I should receive a phone call in the next week or two to schedule the heart echo.

We are supposed to put Sam on whole milk now which we had expected.  He hardly has any formula left, so I think after tonight's bottle, he will be on the straight milk.  Technically we need to get rid of bottles as well.  So far Sam only gets a bedtime bottle...the rest of the day he has been having sippy cups.  The bedtime bottle needs to go which really saddens my husband because that is his special time with Sam.  I told him we don't have to start tonight or anything...we can just make sure within the next week or two we pull Sam off the bedtime bottle.

Here are the measurements for this dr. visit:
Weight: 23 lbs. 12 oz. (60th percentile)
Height: 29 in. (20th percentile)  I am not sure this measurement was precise.
Head Circumference: 47 cm (70th percentile)

Sam is already wearing size 18 months shirts, but the 12 months pants still fit...at least most of them although some of them I do have to roll up the bottoms a little because they are too long.  James and Sam are similar in the shorter legs.  However, for the sake of the waist, I may have to move Sam up to the 18 months pants soon and just roll the legs, so he doesn't trip.

The poor guy had three immunization shots today as well as a foot prick to check his blood hemoglobin levels.  Sam handled himself like a pro...of course he cried, but he calmed down pretty quickly afterward once I was holding him in my arms again.

Overall everything looks good...we just have to get Sam's heart checked out.

Sharing the Bathroom with Boys

I never thought I would have to look for puddles before I stepped into the bathroom or make sure the toilet seat is dry before using it.  Now that James is using the toilet, that is a different story.  For the most part it is due to lack of aim and thinking he is finished when there is still a little left in his system.  I don't fault James for this, but it is getting a little old.  I am not sure at what age this gets better, but I am hoping sooner rather than later.

I have been in the restroom with James, and he will be doing a great job peeing into the toilet and then all of a sudden his stream will be hitting the back of the toilet seat and spraying along the floor or wall.  The pressure increases or James tries harder to get more pee out or perhaps he even moves his hands just right.  It's something all little boys have to learn how to control and aim.

And, now I am no stranger to looking for pee puddles before setting foot into the bathroom...part of being the mother of a boy, I suppose.

Hard Decision

For a little while now my husband and I have been seriously discussing whether or not we will be closing our home once Sam's adoption is final.  When I say closing our home, I mean not taking in any more children...even siblings to our boys.  Before we would have told you we would do everything in our power to keep the siblings together...meaning we would always have a spot open if James or Sam had a sibling come into care, so they could grow up together.  However, it was much easier to say and think that when only James lived in our home.  That would have been easy...of course we would have taken his siblings in a heartbeat, but the fact is, his sibling never came into care...he stayed in the home with his birth mom.  We had waited past the time frame they would check in on James' birth mom and then we waited several more months afterward before we opened our home for the second time and ended up with our precious little Sam.  We wouldn't change that at all.  We love both boys so incredibly much, and they are growing to love one another as well...in the way siblings do.

The dilemma is it is highly unlikely any of James' siblings will come into care, but there is a good possibility that Sam will have siblings come into care in the future.  We don't want to create a situation where one boy has a blood sibling in the home...someone who looks so similar and shares the same history, and the other boy becomes the outcast.  Of course I am not talking in the eyes of my husband and myself...I am talking only in the sibling relationships.  We wonder what damage that would cause to the sibling relationships as the boys grow older.  We wonder if one child will look at the two brothers who look similar and resent them because he cannot have that.  We want our boys to love each other and treat each other as brothers do...whether they are blood related or not.  This is hard to explain, and I don't know if my words are making sense to you.

In a way it reminds me of my dad (technically my step dad who adopted me, but I think of him as my dad) who when he married my mom ended up with three children whom he loved as his own.  My parents talked about having kids together, but my dad choose not to because he was afraid his feelings for them would be different than his feelings for us, and he didn't want to create that environment in our home.  In a way I think my husband and I are trying to protect the environment in our home through this difficult decision.  We love our sons too much to add in unnecessary emotional pain if it can be avoided.

We cannot predict the future, obviously.  Perhaps we are overreacting and everything would be fine if we took in a sibling.  It may be that James and Sam choose to disassociate themselves from one another as they get older anyway...seeking out their birth families instead.  Truth be told, they may very well do the same to my husband and myself.  There is no way to know what the future holds, but in the meantime, we feel responsible to make decisions to protect our family and our home the best way we know how.  And, in this situation, we have decided against taking in any siblings.  Once Sam's adoption is final, we will be closing our home and moving forward in establishing our lives together without the involvement of the county or agency.

Sam's Wagon

One of the gifts Sam received for his first birthday was a Little Tikes wagon.  It is a red wagon with a door that can open for easy climbing in and out.  It took my husband and I a couple days before we made time to put it together, and now it seems to be the new favorite outdoor item at our house. 

Yesterday was our first day taking the wagon for a spin around the neighborhood.  James had a blast pulling his little brother along, and Sam sat there bouncing in his seat and making all sorts of cute, excited noises.  Then this morning we took the wagon to the zoo with us, and once again James loved pulling Sam in the wagon.  There was a small period of time where both boys rode together, but mostly James wanted to be responsible for pulling Sam along.

This afternoon after naps we decided to go outside to play.  James decided he wanted to ride his bike, so I put his helmet on and we headed out front.  Once we were on the front porch area, James changed his mind and decided he would much rather pull the wagon than ride his bike.  He pulled Sam to the park, we played, and James pulled Sam all the way back again.

Whoever thought to make wagons for children had a wonderful idea!  Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for the great gift!

Sam's First Birthday

Overall I was very happy with how Sam's first birthday was celebrated.  The cousins all had a blast playing together both inside and outside the house.  They always have a great time when they get to together...it is very fun to watch.  We had some family that could not make the celebration which was a little sad, but our other family members came even if they came early because they could only stay for a short while or if they came late and missed some of the party.  I must say my favorite part of a first birthday is the smash cake.  After all generally it is the most entertaining especially since we didn't plan any games or activities since Sam is so young.

Sam's smash cake was shaped and decorated as a baseball.  I wrote a large number 1 and his name on top of the cake.  I did put the smash cake on a foil lined cake circle to make it easier to store before the party.  Sam didn't know what to think of it at first, and we all though the cake was going to wind up on the floor when he tipped it sideways.  My husband helped pull the cake off for Sam, and Sam went to town on the frosting and smashed the cake mostly all over his belly.  I don't think Sam actually ate a lot of it...mostly just took small nibbles and played with it, but it was great fun to watch.  Sam even tried to share his cake with his guests...what a little sweetheart!  Eventually Sam just sat there without interest in the cake anymore, so we took him and gave him a quick bath and change of clothes before moving onto the gifts.

The main cake that was served to all the guests ended up looking pretty good, I thought...especially considering I have only decorated cakes for fun before.  We did make some homemade vanilla ice cream to serve with the cake as well.  I did end up putting a layer of preserves in the two larger sports balls like recommended by my husband.  Down below you can see a look at how the inside of the cake appeared.  I didn't think to take this picture until the very end, so fortunately there was still some cake left...technically what you see are the leftovers from the large birthday cake.

Honestly, I was a little disappointed in the taste of the cake.  I am not sure if that was because this was the third time having a sample of the same cake over a two week period or it is falls into the fact that I am more of a chocolate girl myself.  Whatever the reason, I just wasn't amazed like the first time I tried making the cake, and that was my disastrous attempt.  : )  However, I am still a fan of this Italian Meringue frosting.  That is deliciousness!  Most of this falls into the fact that I am not a fan of overly sugary frosting, and this is a lighter less sickly sweet frosting.  My mom even made the comment that she thought she could eat a whole plate of the frosting.  I imagine there is some exaggeration there since I don't know if anyone could chow down on just frosting, but I appreciate the compliment she gave on the frosting.

I will say after the party I told my husband I was so glad we were not having to do this all over again three weeks from now.  I am so relieved that James' party will take place at a venue where the workers will take care of all the details.  I just need to show up with the birthday boy, his birthday cake and party favors for the guests.  Speaking of which, I will need to make at least one practice cake before James' birthday because this will be my first attempt at a shape cake.  I may have mentioned it before, but the goal is to make a cake shaped like a Jeep for James' birthday.  I will have to make either an additional cake or some cupcakes as well to make sure we have plenty for everyone since we have friends coming as well as family.

Practice Cake # 2

I waited until last night to bake my second practice cake because we choose to send a cake into my husband's work since one of his coworkers is leaving.  Today is his coworkers last day.  I stayed up late baking all the cake sections, making the frosting and putting it together.  The good news is...the cake turned out great, I was able to practice making almost all the shapes I need for Sean's birthday party, and I got the frosting to turn out!  The bad news is...I tried to frost the cake quickly because it was late, and we wanted to go to bed, so the cake could have looked even better.

Let's talk the Italian Merginue Frosting for a minute.  First of all I would like to say that I really appreciate the information provided on this site regarding this type of frosting: Tips for Italian Meringue Frosting.  After my last disaster, I tried to research more about the frosting before tackling the cake again.  I really wanted to be successful.  Want to know the funny thing?  Once I added the last portion of butter to the frosting, it turned really runny and looked like my disastrous frosting from my first attempt.  I was so frustrated because everything about the frosting had seemed to be yielding much better results than last time.  I just kept the beater going, and after several minutes of beating, the frosting thickened back up and was perfect for using on the cake.  The worst part is, my original frosting attempt was probably fine...I just didn't beat it long enough.  I am glad to know that now though.  I was thinking I would need to do a simple buttercream recipe, but I was pleasantly surprised and pleased when my consistency was achieved.

Once again, time was not on our side, so I just dyed the frosting and spread it over the balls with a knife instead of piping it all fancy or taking more time to smooth it out better.  Below you will see the completed cake.  However, across the balls, I wrote "Mark, you have a lot of balls to leave _______!" (company where my husband works).  My husband came up with the expression.  Hopefully his office gets a kick out of the cake today.  I enjoyed putting it together...especially since I know I can do it again this evening for Sam's first birthday cake.  Success all around!  : )

Update: Everyone at my husband's work loved the cake!  Hooray!  However, I did get some good feedback for when I put Sam's birthday cake together.  I should make sure to fill the bigger sports balls with jam as well because they are so thick, and it is a lot of cake in those pieces.  Good information to have.  : )