vive la france

We just got back from spending a lovely 10 days visiting Steven's parents in the south of France.  (view from their front door.)

We had a lovely time, traveling around the small towns, seeing the sights, eating the food, chatting with family. (garden I want to go to when I die)

Much more about it in coming days.  I hope you all don't get bored of all my travel photos. (Steven's parents, the year they got married) 

making a hard play for the "Best Aunt Ever" award

My nephew Declan's birthday isn't for another couple days, but since yesterday was our last night all together in Colorado, we decided to celebrate.  (Did I mention we're in Colorado for the holidays?  We are.  It's lovely.)

Since cakes don't turn out that well here at high altitude (at least not when I make them) and I had some left over sugar cookie dough in the fridge, I decided to make him a giant pop up bulldozer birthday cookie.

I just cut the parts using a template and then assembled them with a TON of royal icing.  It was really easy, I swear.  The only hard part was trying to pipe the icing with 3 kids trying to sit on my lap or steal a taste (I didn't really mind). 

I decided to make a bulldozer partly as an homage to last years cake, and also because...

after the candles were blown out, we had a demolition derby.

The kids took some of the parts home with them this morning.  Can't wait until next year.

house to home

It was a gingerbread extravaganza! 

Steven had a log tower, a pretzel fence and some window boxes.

My nephew Colin's house had a tootsie roll mailbox and an awesome "Christmas tree".

My brother Michael started the mailbox trend and put some gargoyles on his roof.

My nephew Declan had a backyard ice rink, gummy worm curbs, Oreo siding, Starburst and Smartie roof tiles and if you look very carefully, a family of gummy bears living inside.

My niece Riley got banished from the candy table before she got to the front because she was eating way more candy than she was putting on her house, but her roof still looks fabulous and pink.

My sister in law Annie's house had a gorgeous roof and french doors in the back.

 And I decided to live out my farm owning fantasy in gingerbread.  Barn complete with weather vane.

preview

Today, we all, Riley (2 and 5/6ths), Declan (4 and 356/365ths), Colin (6 and 3/4ths) Annie, Michael, Becky, Steven and me (grown ups), made gingerbread houses and they are awesome.

I'll confess that Declan's is my favorite, but only because none of the other kids read blogs. If you repeat what I said to either one of them, I will deny it, and make sure that you get nothing but coal in your stocking next year.

Riley's is the pinkest, Michael's has gargoyles, Colin's has an awesome "tree", and Annie's has french doors.  Steven's is the most ambitious (he's an architect, it'd be embarrassing if it weren't) and mine has a house and a barn because I made all the gingerbread parts and the frosting and I want a barn in real life.

But Declan's has a red ice rink that is surrounded by flowers because, "they all should be."

Photo's of the finished houses tomorrow, but I have to say this is a new tradition that's even better the second year!!

merry and bright

My mom said to my niece Riley (almost 3), "What do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas?"

Riley replied, "M&M's."

I hope your holidays are just like Riley's.  So much fun that the only thing you can think of to make it better is just a little chocolate.

And that Santa brings it for you.

Merry Christmas!

wish list

During the Thanksgiving weekend, my mom gave my 4 year old nephew, Declan, a LEGO catalog and a bunch of post-its and said, "Mark the ones you like with the stickers and maybe Santa will get you one for Christmas."
Declan replied, "OK!"  and handed this back to her a little while later.

That kid cracks me up.

birthday boy

Today is Steven's birthday so I'm going to cook him something special.  Not sure what yet, but I'm thinking there might be lobster.
Happy Birthday Steven!  I love you!

(Tomorrow, after the birthday hoopla I am going catch up on comments made and emails owed.  It's been a crazy few weeks and I'm terribly behind.)

(and no, I did not make that cake.)

favorite

This weekend we went to Chicago for a conference and snuck in delightful visits with friends and family.  I took about a thousand photos of our niece Riley, but I can't decide which is my favorite.  The one where she looks like the charming goof ball she is,

the one where she looks like a baby supermodel,

or the one where she's got cake on her face and a sugar induced crazed look in her eye.
It's a good thing I don't really have to pick just one!

Art Prize

Check out this really great piece by Mike Leonard about Art Prize on the Today Show.

My favorite part is when one of the artists says that the real prize is getting to show her work in a great venue and have it seen by so many people.

Well that, and the part around 1:05 in where they show Steven, Josh and Matthew's piece.  :)

a keeper

Want to make sure that your husband loves you (even though you are clearly insane)? 

After a lovely Sunday spent picking vegetables and a delightful dinner with good friends, at around say 10:45pm, have a panic attack and ask him to go with you to your community garden to put a frost cover on some of your plants and see what he says.

Steven's a keeper. 

image here.

prize worthy

Steven, Josh and Matthew are headed to Grand Rapids to install their piece for ArtPrize this afternoon.

I am so excited to see it finished and in place at the park.  As they work on it inside it looks HUGE!

If you are in the area, go see it and vote!  Top prize is $250,000 (no typo) and if you vote for them and they win I will bake each and every one of you a cake.

bragging rights

Forgive me for bragging about my husband, but I am so excited I can't help myself.  Steven and his colleagues Josh Bard and Matthew Shulte won an R+D Award from Architect Magazine for their project, Digital Steam-Bending: Developing a Parametrically Adaptable Wishbone Structural System!

Inspired by Thonet furniture and canoe construction, combining 21st and 19th century technology, and using only natural materials, they created a system that can be to create moveable or temporary structures.

They are going use the system to build one such structure at the Frederick Meijer Garden and Sculpture Park in Grand Rapids as a part of Art Prize this September.  (Vote early, vote often!)

But the best part (to me anyway) is that their work is on the COVER of this months Architect Magazine!

Sorry this last image is so ridiculous, we haven't received our copy yet!