Birthday and Christmas

Trimming the Tree

We finally put our Christmas tree up. We could not find a tree stand, so it was wedged in an alcove for the past week, while Eric searched fruitlessly at Megamaxi and KyWi (marvelous hardware store). Finally, he used our bucket, filled it with soil and 'planted' the tree. The lights are up and Maya added her silver and red balls, and it looks wonderful. Our living room is transformed by the tree, and with Christmas music and candles, we are definitely in a Christmas frame of mind.

Ordinarily, I wait until after Maya's birthday on the 17th, to prepare for Christmas. I don't want her to feel that her birthday is lost in the holiday rush, but this year, since we will be leaving in a little over a week, we will be celebrating both her birthday and Christmas. She will have her birthday party tomorrow. We have invited a couple of friends from school, and several children she has met through the people Eric and I know. They will come to the house and play games, have pizza and cake, and watch a movie. I am not sure what it will be like in our very small space with so many people, especially if their parents decide to stay, but I did not expect everyone we invited to come!

Start of Violin Cake

Maya wanted a 'violin' cake for her party. I used my little toaster oven to bake eight cakes, and cut out a violin shape and covered it with brown icing. I am not sure where to find piping to outline the fingerboard and strings, but we have food colouring and Eric is confident he can add the details. We also iced a regular layer cake so that we have one cake where we can shove her head into. Maya is excited to experience a faceplant, so we will provide it for her. It is the Ecuadorian custom to push the face of the celebrant into the cake, but I am not sure how edible the cake is after that. For the years we have been together, Eric and I have regularly made odd and interesting and entertaining sorts of cakes for special occasions. I did not make a fun cake for Eric this year; we were staying with Isabel and Erica, and Eric had just been robbed and was very unhappy and insistent that I don't spend money. But we are back on track now.

Ready for Christmas