37/52 - Anders's Birthday

Happy Birthday, Anders! It's hard to believe, but we now have a 7-year old first grader in our household.

Anders hadn't mentioned a big party or a list of friends he wanted to invite for his birthday this year, so we decided to keep it small and simple. It seems likely that in future years he will have more definite ideas in that area, so why rush it? The weather was perfect, so we sat outside and enjoyed ourselves while Anders opened some gifts.

Most of his birthday wish list consisted of LEGO models, all of which he loves. We have to ration them; each day, he gets to build one of the models from a single set. He gets so excited that he would try to build them all on the first day!

Grandma Lee knits some crazy socks for Anders, and he LOVES them. The crazier, the better!

A few weeks ago, Grandma Donna brought her leaky iron over to take apart with Anders, and they both had a great time doing it. So for his birthday, she had the idea to buy an old-fashioned alarm clock for him, with the primary goal for him to take it apart and see how it works. Great idea!

While we didn't have a large party, we were thankful to have some family with us to celebrate.

Grandpa Reidar helped with the Erector set.

But now to what everyone is waiting for: the cake. Since he has been old enough to express an opinion, Anders always seems to request a vehicle design for his cake. This year, he wanted a Hess Flatbed Truck, fashioned after one of his model Hess trucks. Sure, why not?

Anders requested the same flavor as last year: carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. It's his favorite!

This year's new addition to the cake design palette: sugar glass. Leif made in the toaster oven and used it for the grille of the truck.

After all that effort designing and assembling the cake, though, it always ends the same. Delicious.

Nice work, Corinne! And Happy Birthday, Anders!

- Mike, Corinne, and Anders