Ian's birthday celebration

I am such a heel for not mentioning already that Monday was Ian's birthday! (Oh, in addition to forgetting Kylie's teddy when we left home last Thursday, I also forgot Ian's birthday card... My mind is getting mushy at far too young an age!) When we got to Ian's dad's house (now known as grandpa ~ whew, hope that doesn't make you feel too old Grant!) we were going out to eat to celebrate another year of wonderfulness of my darling husband. It's a good thing Kylie napped in the car on the way back from DC! She apparently felt rather good after her nap and chilled out in the lawn chair on the front terrace until we were ready to go.

We were treated to a fantastic Indian meal where we shared our main dishes. I'm not sure which was my favorite, they were all so tasty! Kylie liked the rice ~ in fact she went face first into her place mat with an open mouth to inhale her rice several times ~ and one of the appetizers that I have no idea what it was, but wasn't a fan of the spiciness of the rest of the food. (That's okay, we'll build up her tolerance for heat as we go along). When we left she just grabbed Tony's hand and then looked at her grandpa like, "Well, are you gonna hold my other hand or what?" and took off out of the restaurant without a second glance at her daddy and I. She did however check to make sure we were following her as she walked out the door of Raaga (by the way, if you like Indian food and live near DC, I highly recommend it!)

As soon as we got back to grandpa's house there was some scurrying in the kitchen and then out came the cake. Four layers of moist chocolate cake filled with chocolate ganache. Oh my was it rich and delicious. I'm not sure who enjoyed it more, Ian or Kylie. Even though it was Ian's birthday, he made the sacrifice and let Kylie lick the candles. (That's one way you know it is love, Ian doesn't share his chocolate frosting with just anyone!) And after letting a 14 month old eat a few bites of rich chocolate cake, of course you can't go directly to bed...

So Kylie opened and played with the new horsie set her Uncle Josh brought her. The horses are velvety and have incredibly soft manes and tails. She loves to pick up her (or my) brush and try to brush her hair, so she was thrilled that her horses came with a brush! As soon as we told her to brush the horse's mane, she immediately did and thought she was pretty hot stuff.

Oh how I love this child God selected for our family! She couldn't fit in better. Each day brings about new developments and even more devotion! I don't know how we ever got along without her, her smile and laughter are our joy!