If you have known me any time at all, you know I have an irrational love of cake. The taste and smell, of course. But also, a the look of cake. And I especially love PRETTY cakes that TASTE and SMELL amazing. From the time my first son was one, I've sought out a "cake lady" to bring my vision to life in the form of sugar. I had a great cake lady in Forest City (Janet). I found one in Columbia for the one set of birthdays we had there, and then was mostly without one until this year. If the friend of mine who made this cake wanted publicity, I can assure you, I'd flood the internet with references, but she doesn't want to create a business out of her passion. I can honor that.
I think I need to write an entire blog about the beautiful cakes the boys have had over the years, but since THIS particular post is supposed to be all about Bailey, I'll stop drooling over cakes for the moment and move on.
My third child, the greatest surprise of my life, has turned 7. He got a super celebration this year as we were in England on his actual birthday. Sherri gave him a full birthday party at her house, and honestly, it was plenty party to sufficiently celebrate Bailey! He loved it and it was his favorite part of our England trip. I can't thank her enough! Then we got home and celebrated Bailey with our friends at our home. Bailey is my child who most loves to be at home so when his brothers started planning their birthdays (last SUMMER) and they wanted large get-togethers at the bowling alley or indoor play places, Bailey wanted his to be at home. Easy enough!
Thanks to the
Caltriders (who were sorely missed at Bailey's party, both by the boys and the adults) we were able to let the boys eat their pizza on the porch. We inherited their outdoor furniture and have already had several meals out there!
And now you'll see why I find someone to make cakes for me. I have no talent whatsoever for decorating. I can make it taste just fine, but it is U*G*L*Y! Now, please note that I'm referring to the icing part of the decorations. The letters and green icing and characters are beautiful and well done, thanks to the Birthday boy.
We made this cake yesterday in keeping with our family tradition (that started last year, so I'm sort of amazed at how seriously the boys now take it). In 2010, because we weren't celebrating with a party on Carson's actual birthday, but did so with friends a few weeks early, we decided to make a cake together ON his birthday to celebrate. A month later we did a similar thing for Bailey's 6th birthday. 2 months later for Hayden's, we had to do the same to keep things fair (I don't like that word... 'nother blog for 'nother day). Well, guess what? They remembered that this year and so Carson and I whipped up a cake together. A month later, Bailey SO remembered that, even though he's already had two full birthday parties! :) But who can argue with a 7 year old with two missing front teeth when he says he wants to spend time just with you? Not this mom! And so we spent a portion of rest time yesterday making this cake.
Now, in breaking with normal practices, Bailey didn't want a triangle slice of cake. He wanted his name. So, as best I could, I cut the top layer off giving him all 6 letters.
No cake making day is complete without big brother kissing the baby and getting chocolate on his face.
Now, in the next picture I understand that I used too open an aperture here, therefore blurring Parker out (even though I adjusted hoping to get them both in focus) I couldn't resist adding this photo. For whatever reason, Bailey's using his 'gangsta' face and it's adorable.
Happy Birthday, sweet Bailey. You are a joy to your family and we are so glad God surprised us with you!
Happy Birthday, sweet Bailey. You are a joy to your family and we are so glad God surprised us with you! 
The new seat:
Here is Matt in front of Westminster Abbey.
And here he is with a sleeping Parker in front of Big Ben. During February and March we spent a few weeks studying England and its major landmarks. We learned that what we can actually see is called "Clock Tower" or "St. Steven's Tower" and the bell inside is called "Big Ben." The minute hand is 14 feet long and made of copper. It's hollow to keep it light.
We love this bridge. It's called "Tower Bridge" and it's just beautiful.
The day we visited Cambridge proved to be the day I had more time to try out some creative things. The city is less busy and we spent most of the day in pedestrian zones, which means we were less concerned about the boys stepping into traffic. Bikes were everywhere, as were signs warning bikers not to chain their bikes to specific fences. 
At the end of Cambridge day, we went to Sherri's house, a friend of Jessica's and Zak's. Sherri had planned a full-on birthday party for Bailey! She made a strawberry checkerboard cake with Buzz Lightyear on top. She served this cake on Star Wars plates and had the table decorated with a solar system table cloth. Everything was so well thought out and after we returned home to Germany, Bailey said that Sherri's house was his favorite part of the entire trip. Makes a mommy happy!
And the next day, the babies got a rest. Here's Connor sacked out on the floor of our hotel room, chilling while Jessica taught me how to play Fluxx. Pretty fun, but it takes a while to get the hang of it. I won the first two rounds, then lost the next 10!
Part of the day we spent outside letting the babies swing, play in the grass, and letting Owen and Bailey run free, with no cars to watch out for. Just a free, relaxing day.
Zak and Matt took Hayden and Carson to Oxford to eat lunch at a very special restaurant. The Eagle and Child is where C.S. Lewis and J.R.R Tolkien sat together every Tuesday and shared their timeless manuscripts with each other. When we returned to Germany, the boys both said that this was their favorite part of the trip.
On our last day in England we had a few hours before our ferry back to France. We saw Dover Castle and were SO highly impressed. The castle was so well preserved and the historical importance was meaningful to us. Here you can see me reading to the boys about the underground tunnels that were used during WWII.
