Loving... Beach, Birthday, Baking... Beautiful!

Loving taking a deep breath. A pause from party planning.
Time to stop working. Time to celebrate my girl's special day, and enjoy the moment...

Loving a morning spent at Mon's place.

Loving a gifted friend... who gives generously of her time and talent...

...and cupcakes. Made specially for the birthday girl. Packaged up in a box.
Made With Love by Delissimon. It's right there on the label.

Most especially loving peanut-buttercream frosting. Oh.
I think I died and went to heaven right there.

Loved licking the smooshed frosting off the inside of the box after it slid off the birthday girl's lap on the way home. NOT Loving that the box fell and smooshed the cupcakes... but I have to try and find the silver lining somehow. I nearly cried seeing those beautiful cupcakes smeared. I knew I should have got Dash to hold the box. *Sigh*

But still. I repaired them as best I could (grateful I had taken pictures already); we stuck candles in them and sang happy birthday to our girl after dinner. Thankyou so much Mon. What a blessing!

{Hehe. Also loving what Dash said to me on the way home when I told that Mon was on TV once, a cooking competition called NZ's Hottest Home Baker...
He said, "Mum you should go on a competition too, cos you're a really good baker!"
Well bless my cotton socks. *Blush*}

But I digress. before the cupcakes were smooshed, there was the beach.
Right on Mon's doorstep. Wow.

Loving my beautiful country. Grateful for my beautiful country.

Loving the way kiwi kids race to the water. Even in the middle of winter.
Middle of winter? Pshaw.
That was two days ago. Those Antarctic gales have moved on leaving us thinking its Spring already.
I mean, just look at that lot. Do they look cold to you?

Loving splashing in waves.

Loving the way being in the outdoors forms kids into a happy bunch of funlovers. A "gang" if you will.
Funny how a bit of salt water can provide common ground.
Big boys playing with little boys. And even some girls.

Loving the way "dipping your toes in the water" becomes "diving headfirst" when kids are involved.
Loving that I know this now. I'm OK with it. I expect it.

Straggle-haired, sopping wet, sandy-footed larrikin in back seat of car?
Not a prob. Nothing a vacuum cleaner and an old towel can't handle.

Loving new friends united by waves.

Loving the way the simple things are the best.
The natural things are the funnest.
The silly things are the ones they'll remember.

Loving blue blue eyes. Rosy cheeks.

And supermodels who decline to enter salty seas in favour of keeping the birthday stockings clean and dry.

She may not look exactly ecstatic in these pictures; that's because its a hard call to make.
What to do on your birthday?
Watch the fun from the shore and keep your clothes dry?
Or dive right in and end up wet?
She chose dryness.

But don't worry. She didn't miss out. She had a great birthday.

She whispered to me when I kissed her goodnight, "This was my fourth-best birthday ever. Don't worry, Mum, I liked it. Its just that I have so many good ones to choose from..."

Loving that. And grateful for it all.

{Linking up as usual. You know the drill}