This little piggy went to market

And this little piggy tasted YUM!

This little piggy is broken :(

So this Mama Piggy can't run.

And every day after Kindergarten, these little piggies go wee-wee-wee-wee all the way home.

The End.
Oink, oink.

There

Is

No

Denying

It

Any

Longer;

FALL

Is

In

The

Air!

(And on our plates.)

It's a Jungle out There!

Here are some pictures from Finn's birthday party last weekend. For a long time he said he wanted to have his birthday party at a riding stable, so everyone could ride ponies and have cake and a BBQ afterwards. Neil and I liked that option, as the barn would have provided everything except the cake!

But, a few weeks before the fact Finn changed his mind and asked if he could have a Safari Party at home. So, he sent out these invitations to his friends:

Finn and Lily helped Daddy decorate the living room, set up colouring stations, and found all their African animals to put all over the house.

The day before the party Finn spent the afternoon at another birthday party, so Lily and I got to work in the kitchen and baked and baked and baked. What, you ask?

Safari Cookies, of course!

And the morning of the party, Lily volunteered again - this time to help make a ...

... cupcake snake (that is eating a mouse).

Finn loves chocolate cake, so he got this (homemade) chocolate cake with a (bought) edible cake topper. He loved it!

Neil thought of a lot of fun games to play with the children, like "What time is it, Mr. Lion?" ...

... "Feed the Monkey" ...

... "Pin the Tail on the Lion" ...

... or the (politically very uncorrect) "Big Game Hunt".

The colouring stations, pinata, Safari quiz and other games were also a hit - especially if there were African themed prizes to win. You wouldn't believe how passionate 6-year-olds can be about things like a bouncy ball with zebra stripes or a little plastic lion that "poops" bubble gum.


After three fun-filled hours the kids were picked up and we went straight to our local Italian restaurant where some beer (Neil), wine (me), pizza e pasta revived us enough to handle the clean-up and putting Finn and Lily to bed.

Another year down! ☺

Finally, the long overdue...

BIRTHDAY POST!

Somebody very special is SIX years old now! Oma and Opa were here for the big event and Finn (and everyone else, too) had an awesome birthday. Daddy even took the day off work. Finn's big day was filled with:

Happy Birthday wishes and blowing out candles

Lots of cool presents

Fun-filled hours at the pool

Lunch at a "Running Sushi" place that Finn picked

Ice Cream

Playing with his new toys

Birthday cake (chocolate, what else?)

And trying out something new!

Today Finn celebrated his birthday with the children at his Kindergarten.

And on Saturday his six best friends will come to our house for the "Safari Party" that he wished for.

.

Our Finn. What can I say about him? He brings so much joy into our lives. I get a hug and a kiss after he opens his eyes in the morning, and before he closes them at night. Seeing him grow up is such a gift.

.

The other day at church Neil took all the kids upstairs for a story and playtime (there is no regular children's church during summer holidays), and told them about God's promises to Jakob. Neil then asked the children what God had promised THEM. No one said anything. Except for Finn. He said: "God promised me a home in Heaven."

.

And so,

"While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about."

(Angela Schwindt)

.