Seven Heaven Birthday

Entertaining, Musings on Life and Beauty



I neglected to post about out little evening birthday party for my 3rd daughter last week.  I love seven year olds.  They’re helpful, sweet, teachable.  It’s an awesome year if you’ve got a 7 year old in your house.  After our early outdoor breakfast I let the children play while I baked the cake.  It was so sweet to watch my eight year old offer to french braid her sister’s hair on her birthday.  Lots of little things like that happened on her birthday which are precious for a mother to observe.

The highlight of our party was an outdoor movie projected on the side of the house.  We watched Ramona & Beezus which happens to be a movie I love.  It makes me laugh.  It was really fun and made us all wonder why we don’t do it more often (perhaps because this summer’s mosquitoes have been terrible).  Before the movie we had my brother, his girlfriend and her daughter come over along with some neighbors for cake and ice cream.


She also requested lasagna, which didn’t sound like much fun to make on a hot August night.  I wondered if I could somehow make individual lasagnas in my muffin tin and what do you know but a quick google search yielded plenty of people already doing it.  I got some pointers from those ideas and whipped some up.  They were delicious (recipe to come).




We also served a special treat:  Marionberry licorice, her favorite.


The cake turned out beautifully.  It’s the first birthday cake I’ve ever made that I really feel proud of.  (I’m not good at birthday cakes but would like to be.)


Everything about the cake was made according to her request and I think she liked the final product.


It’s hard to believe this sweet girl is already seven.  I can still remember so clearly having her crawl around my house as a baby.  One of my favorite pictures of her is her standing on our front porch the day she turned 3.  It’s true that time speeds up with each child and I am reminded that there are still many moments for me to catch and hold on to a little longer.  I don’t want to miss any of this.  I love her so much.


And I still adore her freckles .  It was a happy birthday in so many ways.


HH

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Hunter’s Star Quilt Top

Quilting and Sewing



I’ve wanted to make a red and white solid quilt for a very long time.  The classic Hunter’s Star block seemed like a great pattern for it.   I’ve been working on this top here and there all summer and at last it’s ready for basting.


One thing I liked about this method is how efficiently fabric is used.  I don’t have a single scrap or leftover piece that’s wider than 1/4 inch.

I’m off to piece the backing so I can get this one quilted.

Edit:  After many requests, the pattern for this quilt has been written.

It is available here .

Hopeful Homemaker

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The Penderwicks

Children's chapter books



I confess I may be hopelessly old fashioned in the reading department.  I love wholesome books that celebrate and depict good, traditional childhood.  I’m not a fan of books that thrust all the world’s problems on children, or books that have thinly veiled social agendas.  While I enjoy fantasy, I like our reading to include more real life fiction than anything else.  I like reading about children who have adventures, who learn to solve problems, who learn to get along with one another.

Well, Jeanne Birdsall’s Penderwicks series is fabulous.  We loved the first when it came out a couple of years ago (and won the National Book Award), followed by a second and then a third earlier this year.


I’m not joking when I say these books have been all over the house this summer.  All four of my oldest children are reading them, sometimes sneaking them away from a sibling who wasn’t finished because they couldn’t bear to wait.  I’ve been reading them aloud to the younger children as well, when I can get my hands on one.  I even have a duplicate copy of the first and we still can’t get them to stay in one place!

The Penderwicks are a family of four girls and their father.  Their mother died of cancer shortly after the baby was born.  They have adventures, they have arguments, they serve and love each other, and they all have distinct personalities which make us laugh.  They are a wonderful family to read about.

If you’re looking for the perfect series to give to your children, please consider these books.  We love them, plain and simple.  And we’re hoping she writes more.

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