Sunday 22 July 2012

The first decade is the hardest


Excuse me for not writing for a while - it has been a whirlwind of cake making, Fete preparation

My stall at the Fete in the Park last week


.........and sleepover management in the Welch household over the last few weeks!

First of all - a quick look at the couple of cakes I promised you in my last post.  The Wedding cake.....

 

A three tier, cheerfully colourful cake, draped in bunting and topped with it's very own tea party!



 
The little mouse on the top was a special addition requested by the happy couple to represent their son, cheekily chomping on a sugar cube - as he apparently loves to do when visiting cafes!  In my book, anything can be meaningful, and it was important to me that the grooms cup, held the bride's cup, holding the little boy's mouse - a picture of family in tea party form!

And, yes, I did indeed maintain the general stickiness for one more week and make an Olympics Themed cake to raffle for Children on the Edge and I am sooooo chuffed to report that it raised an amazing £400.  Thank you so much to everyone who took part in the fund raising.  The generous donations you contributed will go to COTE's work in one of their many projects with marginalised and vulnerable children across the world.  It will make a difference.  You have made a difference.


You may not be surprised to know that I was relieved when eldest son announced that what he would most like for his birthday cake was a good old fashioned chocolate cake, which he wanted to smother in sweets himself.  Oh, the joy of simplicity.  He has been itching to use the chocolate cake recipe from the Roald Dahl book he was given for being ring bearer at our friends' wedding last year and could I deny him?  Yummy.  Delumptious, even.

 
Can you spy that naughty hubby eagerly waiting, fork in hand?

After a very wet adventure in the nearby river, his guests were treated to Mexican wraps around the fire and a night under canvas in our garden.  we filled their tents with those brilliant light up balloons you can get now and I made each of the guests their own sleep over pillow, roughly based on this tutorial.  This is such a neat idea; each pillow has a zip up pocket, to store you Pyjamas, book or midnight feast in and a handle to carry it with across that field after and evening round the camp fire!




They loved them, especially as the pocket was filled with sweets.  Well, he's too old for party bags....but I'm not!

So, even after a 5.50am wake up for us (and our neighbours) the whole thing went OK and they are now all back in their beds.  Phew!


These are the girls' versions of the pillows....so lovely to make something that could work for both boys and girls and to use some of my lovely vintage fabric for something that will be used again and again and hopefully be part of making new memories.


One decade ago we began this adventure of family by bringing into the world our precious first son.  Since then, we've brought 4 more into this world (the youngest of whom is stubbornly sitting on my lap as I type - refusing to succumb to sleep!)  The thoughts and feelings I have around this are probably too profound to put into words here, although I wish I could.  It's been an amazing 10 years, of growing, changing, challenging, discovering, learning to love more, learning to let go more, finding balance, seeking stability, yearning for peace (!), embracing the chaos, creating the order, searching for better ways, kinder ways, softer ways, more honest ways, working hard, playing lots, laughing often, crying sometimes, loving always.  It has been an honour to be mum to these boys so far.  I am honoured.

Eldest and youngest.


And Reu has finally fallen asleep on my lap, so I'd better transport him to bed.  Good night. xx