P's birthday

Last year, P announced that she wanted a house cake for her 6th birthday. As time went by, the request morphed into "Winnie-the-Pooh in a house," and finally, "Winnie-the-Pooh's house." I spent the past week or so mulling over how I could possibly make Winnie-the-Pooh's house out of flour, sugar, eggs, etc. I studied the illustration in the first chapter of the original Winnie-the-Pooh, which we recently finished reading, and then made my attempt.

I was fairly pleased with the result, which was achieved by delving into fondant-making. Fondant is a fascinating substance formed by heating a sugar syrup to 240 degrees F, spreading it out on a marble slab, and moving it around until it suddenly turns from clear and smooth to white and grainy. After kneading this, you have a glossy paste-like substance which can be coloured and turned into Winnie-the-Pooh and other accessories. Although it is made of pure sugar, it isn't as tasty as I would have guessed. I think next time, I'll use marzipan, which I know and trust more.





In any case, the birthday girl was perfectly happy.





We spent the day in College Station with Ari's grandparents, who have a swimming pool. In the morning, P worked hard at it and learned how to swim. She hasn't worked out how to breathe at the same time, which limits her range. Describing her accomplishment, she announced, "Now I have super powers."

As the next picture shows, we have a girly girl - she was thrilled to receive a dress, bead necklaces, clip-on earrings, and flowery flip-flops. After the presents were unwrapped, she enjoyed playing with her foam dollhouse and dolls and her Rush Hour logic puzzle, and looking at the poster of a "princess castle" we got her.