Cookies, Cupcakes, & Leis, Oh, MY!

LD loves to help me in the kitchen (thank goodness because when she's old enough, maybe I can convince her to tackle the dinner preparations every now and then) and is always somewhere around the kitchen...usually standing on her chair at the counter surrounded by all of her "supplies" for her latest dish.  So, when it came to planning her 3rd birthday, we thought no further than what we know she loves...baking.

We had a blast decorating cookies with some close friends.  All the kids were great sports about wearing their aprons (LD had one created by a friend from our Japan days and I adore it!).   They loved slathering their cookies with icing (thanks to Granma for making delish peppermint flavored frosting!) and loads of sprinkles, mini-chocolate chips, and other delectable delights.  Poor LD did have some temporary lapses into the wonderful world of being three...it is during moments like these that I can hear a booming theatrical voice say "it has begun."  Thankfully, her party included friends who have watched her "grow" into her diva skin of toddlerhood and could offer the reassurance I needed to know they'd come back to visit even after the party.

I was so happy to have mum and Papa here to help celebrate.  Mum helped decorate her cupcakes and we made them her favorite color, pink, in honor of her current love affair with "swa-bey-ye-cake" aka Strawberry Shortcake.  Admittedly, her favorite part of her birthday this year has been singing along with us and emphasizes the me in an operetta fashion that could easily land her a part in an Opera at the NY MET.  She is a little diva who loves to sing and I just can't get enough of hearing her singing voice.

An impromptu lei making class led by no other than DF H had all the ladies with a brand new beautiful yarn lei.  My mom loved it so much that by the end of making one, she was ready for diving into making 20+ for the ladies in her bible study.  We gained a lot from our lei making session.   One of the most important ones being just good ole fashioned gal time spent around a kitchen table after the aftermath of a birthday party. 

Note:  I'm pleased to report that mom did indeed succeed in making all of her leis and they were gorgeous!  She should indeed be proud of herself.  The ladies at the yarn shop recognized her instantly by the time she was finished and shared with her more ideas of future creations.  On the day I decided to totally change my lanai, she taught one of my neighborhood friend's how to do the yarn leis so, yes, DF, you have officially left a legacy of lei making behind.