Let them eat cake . . .

There is nothing like a pair of two-year-old assistants when it comes to frosting a cake.

They take a very definite hands-on approach to the project. And they think that checking out the taste of each layer before the cakes is assembled is imperative. After all, you wouldn't want to use one if it didn't taste good, would you? And with the frosting, no one will notice those nibbles.

Well, not the nibbles, maybe. But almost certainly someone will notice the great gaping gouges where enthusiasm took over. Let us just say that both layers, the bottom even more than the top, met with double approval.

Let us also say that they have a saint for a big brother because he didn't complain when they tried to help him stir the frosting, and he just sighed and rolled his eyes when they smeared chocolate all over their faces. He didn't even mutter when they patted chocolatey hands on him. Eight is a truly wonderful age.

Two year olds walk around with this sort of "color me astonished" look on their faces. As if they are just coming to grips with all sorts of things and they need to check it all out. They find licking mixer beaters an amazing experience. They find getting birthday presents confusing. Why, if you get something, do people make you put it away before you can play with it? Just because it needs to be put in the car to go home, why can't you play with it NOW? (very good question).

They also have opinions. The blue cup with the cartoon Tasmanian Devil on it is highly prized by one. The purple with some other creature on it is the only one the other will look at. One doesn't care which jacket he wears. The other wants ONLY the red one. One thinks the dogs should come in. The other thinks the dogs should go out. I think my son has his work cut out for him. It's a good thing that one of his gifts is that he raises boys so well.

Anyway, the cake was lopsided, droopy, held together by toothpicks and had six baseball players stuck into the top of it, knee deep in frosting so that when we took them out to cut the cake, they looked as if they had been slogging through mud. But no one cared. Everyone loved it. We all ate lots. One more birthday to go. What fun!

ps: if you haven't entered the scavenger hunt and would like to, please stop by my website and go to the contest page. The "first" winner has already been selected. But everyone who gets the answers will be in the drawing for the Grand Prize "Here Comes Winter" goody box. It's been a lot of fun so far. I'm impressed with how many people have stopped by and answered the questions! Thanks.

pps: yet another Batakis has surfaced!

ppps: Spence and Sadie who?