April Fool

The Nixie is eight?  How this happens I'll never understand. She livens the hours. She sparkles, and she spunkles.  It need not be said that we love her dearly, but say it I do.

 It always begins with a birthday breakfast and April Fool's jokes, which for some reason always take the shape of wide eyes and an endless string of "Look out the window, Mama!  There's a deer/bear/chipmunk/dead chicken/etc."

Annika must have been having a growth spurt judging by her breakfast request. Bring on the food!

Don't forget the elephant parade.

Annie wanted another pirate ship cake this year, frosted green with orange stars and brimming with pirates and elephants and cannons and treasure and such.   John took the Biggles out for the morning while I made the cake, and once it was finished, the Littles were sure it was a giant, edible toy and treated it accordingly.




Susannah really got into it.








Annika helped place the fences, lanterns, and figures, including this tiny muscle man, to whom she gave a fistful of frosting so he wouldn't go hungry.

She also set up the opposing pirate ship, which, unfortunately, was not edible.  (I just didn't have it in me to make a quadruple batch of cake batter.  A double batch is the usual limit.)

 Elephants will parade any ol' place they can, apparently...

Dakota shows off his admirable cheekbones (Native American blood'll do that to you).

 

Annika shows off Dakota's card.  He didn't know her cake was going to be a pirate ship, but, really, there's always a good chance. 

 

And, at the tail end of the party, Luci showed off her bellybutton.  That girl knows how to perk up a simmering celebration.  Hoo boy!