A birthday, a cold walk, and a tired boy...

Today we...

celebrated L.'s 17th birthday:


The cake is the carrot cake recipe from The Hummingbird Bakery book - absolutely delicious and easy, even though I do not own a food mixer and did all the mixing by hand ( I've developed a very strong right arm over years of baking!)



Had a cold, but lovely walk up what we (unromantically) call "The Concrete Path" - a farm track through the fields from our driveway:






Some of us a little reluctantly:

And fell asleep on the sofa, too tired to sing his sister "Happy Birthday":

Look who's 9!

A couple of weeks out of date, but I. recently turned nine and I love the look on his face that sister E. captured in this picture. Oh the joy of blowing out birthday candles!

This is the first of the children's birthdays, all of which fall at this time of year when although bithday parties and teas in the garden are out, it is dark enough at tea-time to have the proper conditions for the ritual candle-blowing-out.

This year's "party" for I. consisted of going to the cinema with 2 friends to see the lovely film, "Up", and then having one friend to sleep over. Much more calm than in previous years, and because friend had gone home by Sunday tea-time it was just the family who were there to sing Happy Birthday and enjoy the chocolate brownie cake - a relaxed and cosy occasion.