April 2011

My beautiful daughter

Her tulips look beautiful!

Tulip photography by Audrey

We have butterflies!  They came out of their cocoons!  This one is still working on getting his wings stretched out.

My dear friend, Jillian, visiting from VA.  Miss her sooooo much!  Audrey took the picture, hence the low angle of the camera:)  

At the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival with Grandpa Levy!

Easter eggs!

Easter morning

Easter brunch at the Chief's Club

The Levy men

Easter egg hunt in the backyard

We had deer in the backyard during our Easter egg hunt.  That's life in Anacortes!  Love it!  

Playing at the mall

Audrey released her butterflies!  They're so pretty.

More tulips!  Audrey had a planter with bold tulips and one with pastel tulips.  The pastel tulips bloomed later.  They're beautiful!

Happy birthday, Joe!

Audrey wanted to make a cake with fondant icing for Joe's birthday.  She loves to watch Cake Boss and Cake Challenge and this has been a dream of hers.  I told her I wasn't sure if I could do it but we'd give it a try!  Here she is kneading the fondant.  

The fondant had to sit in the refrigerator for a day, so on Day 2 we started working on fondant decorations.  The decorations will need a day to set up, so on Day 3 we'll actually put it all together - and eat it!  She's forming the loop of a bow in this photo.  

Using a pizza cutter to shape the loops.

  The finished product!  Joe loved it!   We thought the color would be more chocolate brown but this was as dark as we could get it.  We learned a lot about working with fondant so next time we'll do even better.  Most importantly, Audrey and I had a blast making this cake together and Joe thought it was great!  Later that evening, we took him to Seeds, a great restaurant in La Conner.  We don't always have the luxury of being together as a family for birthdays and holidays, so it was wonderful to spend the day with Joe on his birthday.  We are so blessed to have Joe as a husband and father!  

Homemade chocolate cake with homemade chocolate buttercream and homemade chocolate fondant.  Did I mention that it's all homemade?

It tasted so good!!

Audrey planted tulip bulbs in the fall and we have the first bloom of the season!  

She loves being a farmer:)

All dressed up for the VQ-2 Change of Command Dinner at the Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham

Audrey has caterpillars!  She's checking on their progress.  We're hoping to have some butterflies in a few weeks! 

A week or so later, they're hanging upside down from the lid and are turning into chrysalides!  So exciting!  Stay tuned for more adventures in metamorphosis!

March 2011

Jacks' being silly wearing Audrey's backpack.

Jack with Dr. Berliner, the doctor who delivered him, at his 18 month checkup.   He is a big, strong, healthy boy.  We are so blessed.

Hanging out at the library

Audrey learned how to felt yarn at school and she made a felted heart-shaped soap.  Her teacher liked it so much she entered it in the Anacortes Student Art Show!  

Audrey learned to finger knit at school so she wanted to set up a finger knitting store at Washington Park and sell her creations.  She asked a few of her friends to join her after school and they had fun knitting necklaces at the park.  Unfortunately, they didn't make any sales to the poor unsuspecting people who happened to be visiting the park that day, so the other parents and I made sure to buy plenty of necklaces!  The little boy sitting on the end is Kai, Audrey's boyfriend.  

Being silly wearing Mommy's hat.  

Jack's hair has gotten a little out of control.  Time for a haircut.   Audrey thinks he looks like an Oopma Loompa because of the way it sticks out on the sides.  

He's got a bit of a mullet going on.  

Haircut strategy: turn on a movie, give him a lollipop, and snip away!

After the haircut.  Much neater!  

 I left a few curls in the back.  

Yes, that's a spider costume he's wearing.  He's silly.  

My handsome boy.  He did such a good job sitting still for his haircut.  Well, mostly.  

Watching the gardeners at work.  He loves it when they use the leaf blower.  

This is the playground at Audrey's school.  Audrey loves to play after school when the weather's nice.    

Jack thinks he's a big kid playing on the kindergarten playground:)

Trying to decide what to cook for dinner