#17

Today is officially the first day of autumn, but with temps over 100 degrees it certainly felt like summer. Despite the heat, we still managed to have FUN as we celebrated M's 17th b-day. It was a MUCH cooler day in Spokane on the day he was born -- there definitely was a hint of fall in the air. Today it felt more like the 4th of July, minus the fireworks.

M. at three months -- what a cutie!

The birthday boy slept in until nearly 10 o'clock this morning, so he didn't get much school work accomplished today. It was a self-proclaimed holiday, I guess. (Ah, the beauty of home schooling!)

We made a conscious effort to only include family for the kids' birthdays this year. We love including friends, but there is something special about "just family." There was less stress involved, that's for sure!

M. had a few of his favorite foods for dinner: tri-tip, garlic mashed potatoes, Caesar salad, green beans, and sparkling cider. In lieu of cake, he opted for homemade pumpkin pie. (I made several trips to different grocery stores in search of canned pumpkin. Apparently there is a shortage of canned pumpkin. Seriously! I finally found Libby's pumpkin pie filling, which worked out okay; however, the final product just is not as tasty as the plain ol' canned pumpkin recipe. Oh, well! I was ready to make the pie from scratch, but I couldn't find any whole pumpkins either. Next year, I will plan ahead & stockpile several cans of pumpkin! Okay, so there was a little stress...)

Miss Millie designed a treasure hunt for her big brother. It took some time searching inside & out, but he finally located his gifts inside the car. (He was a good sport & played along with the game.)

The final clue led M. to "Beatrice" (the nickname for our Audi's Navigation system). Bea had a message for the b-day boy that was written in the same monotone voice that she speaks in. How can the written word "sound" flat with no inflections? I am not sure how she did it, but she did. ;-)

The American Girl box was a joke.

He wasn't fooled for a second.

We got M. a Garmin Nuvi GPS & accessories. If only he would have had it to help him navigate the twists & turns of his treasure hunt. ;-) Now if only he had a car to go with that GPS... As long as he gets to borrow his dad's car, he's happy.

There are only seven candles on the pie --
the "teen" part is implied.

So, we are now into an "odd year" with all three Smithlings at odd ages -- 11, 15, and 17. The fun of the birthday month is over. :-( Millie was quick to point out that Bartholomew & Jemima will have their 1/2 birthday on the 27th of September, but I won't be baking any cakes or pies for those two. A can of Fancy Feast will have to be enough of a celebration. No candles either.

#11

The bagel tree produced a bountiful crop this year just in time for Miss Millie's eleventh birthday. What a fun tradition! (We have promised our youngest that this is a Smithling custom that we will keep going for as long as she's under our roof. I'm certain that our neighbors think that we are NUTS! They might be right.)

Everyone in the fam. enjoyed a tree-ripened bagel, we shared some of the carb-laden goodness with the neighbors, and then we stocked our freezer with leftover "fruit." We should be set with breakfast fare for a while...
There were numerous phone calls from well wishers, e-mails, and LOTS of greeting cards to help add to the festive mood. Millie helped decorate her cake, which was supposed to resemble Jemima.

Multitasking Millie was able to decorate a cake & talk to her grandparents at the same time. :-)

That cat looks good enough to eat.

Some folks say that Millie looks like her mommy...
Must be the whiskers.
What do you think?!

We went bowling in the afternoon. Gutter balls were the order of the day, and they were plentiful indeed. We all are LOUSY bowlers. The important thing is that we had FUN. Right? Next stop: Cool River Pizza. (Bowling combined with raucous laughter works up an appetite.)

Finally it was time to open presents & eat cake, but the b-day girl insisted that we all wear face makeup so we, too, looked like cats. Cats rule. Since it was a party, and our little girl won't always be little, we all agreed to her whisker request, no matter how silly we may have looked.

The b-day girl had fun drawing whiskers on AJ.
Now that's a patient & kind auntie.

Meow!

A litter o' Smiths?
(Father Smith wanted curly whiskers, so curly whiskers he was given. Interesting.)

AJ & the B-day girl


PRESENTS!!!!!!

The candles were successfully extinguished in one breath. Hooray! The "Jemima" cake was tasty, the birthday girl couldn't have been happier, and confetti, wrapping paper, & ribbons were everywhere. Those are all clear signs that it was a great party. "Eleven" is off to a great start!

One more September b-day to go...

#15

Number 2 Smithling is now 15 years old!

Liesey-Lou was no more than a few months old in this photo, but she already had smiling all figured out!

She is still all smiles!

And so begins the crazy month of September when all three Smithlings turn another year older & hopefully wiser, kinder, more patient, loving, faithful, disciplined... Or at least that is our prayer for our offspring.

Liesey's official b-day on 09-09-09 was rather "up in the air," as we were traveling to Ft. Worth, Texas, for a few days. We squeezed in a "Pinkalicious" cupcake & a couple of presents prior to the flight. She enjoyed a tasty(?) b-day dinner at the Denver airport -- orange chicken @ Panda Express. (Considering that our other dining options were Mc D's, KFC, Pizza Hut, or Ben & Jerry's, I'd say that the b-day celebrant made the best of a fast food situation.)

Oh, I could write a lengthy detailed description about our whirlwind tour in TX, but that will have to wait for another day, if at all. There simply was toooo much going on, and I would have to write a L-O-N-G entry that would likely bore even the most faithful "INOKWACA" follower to tears. Real tears... Suffice it to say that we had a very nice visit in TX, and we liked all that we saw; however, it was nice to fly back home to a cool Delta breeze. Ahhh! 'Nuf said.

We returned to CA at midnight on Saturday night. It felt more like 2 A.M. to us, so we promptly went to sleep. After a Sunday filled with church & Nutcracker rehearsal, Liesey finally enjoyed "her" traditional b-day dinner of homemade chicken pot pie.

"Let them eat cake!" The birthday girl was thrilled to see the beautiful cake that our dear friend Bonnie made for the belated, yet oh-so-special, occasion. Better late than never... The fondant pointe shoe on the top of the cake was the perfect touch to the black & white work of art. How's that for a birthday menu? "Pie" followed by cake makes life sweet indeed.


Jenny & Ruth dropped by on Sunday evening to wish their friend a happy, happy b-day, so that was an added treat, or perhaps the proverbial frosting on the cake? :-)

Last night, before ballet class, Pat gave our girl the tutu that she has been working on for several weeks. We "commissioned" Pat to make a Spanish or Don Quixote style costume as a special gift for our favorite ballerina. Red is her favorite color! It turned out really well, so there were smiles all around.

Add a beautiful flamenco fan, and the look is complete. And it is LOVELY! Our girl is lovely, too -- inside & out. We couldn't be more proud of her.

Sooooo, it only took six days to get everything taken care of for our 15-year-old's special day. Whew! This has to be the most drawn out birthday celebration, but it certainly is a memorable one.

One birthday down, two to go.

Pick up a dime & a pick-up line

It was a gorgeous Sunday afternoon in Santa Rosa, oh, soooo many years ago (23 years, to be exact), when two sisters decided to wash a car in Woodlake's parking lot. I'll always remember the date: September 7, 1986.

"He" was on his way to his car. As he walked by the soapy car, he said, "You're going to make it rain."

What kind of a pick-up line is that, anyway? Oddly enough, it eventually worked. It must have been my optic yellow, "so-flexible-you-can-pick-up-a-dime" Playtex Living Gloves that caught "his" eye. Or maybe it was the car, a 1979 Rally Sport. (I'll never know for sure...)


The sisters agreed that our neighbor was a nice & friendly guy. And he was kinda cute, too. We chatted a while, then "he" was on his way. We rinsed the soap off of the hood, dried the car and didn't think much more about meeting the "boy next door." (Well, okay, I thought about it a little more. I'd be lying if I said otherwise.) And, no, it did not rain.

We met "him" again, became friends, he & I started dating, then seven months from our initial meeting, we were engaged!

(This photo was taken in late October 1986.)

We knew it was a great friendship from the start, so I'm glad we didn't waste a lot of time on a long drawn out courtship & engagement. We were married eight months after his proposal was accepted. We are now approaching our 22nd year of marriage in December.

And to think, it all started with a dirty car. And rubber gloves.