this is 5!

The  eggs were filled and inspected:

then hidden amongst the decorated yard:

which, of course, included ducks:

Because it was time for Rain Dragon's Red Egg Birthday Hunt again! She's five years old and the red egg hunt is now officially a tradition, with kids standing at the ready:

for the big signal:

to GO!:

This year's  red egg hunt was fast and fierce:

But everyone made out like bandits:

And there was still enough energy to celebrate with cake:

Cake made by Auntie Christine, the fondant rainbow shapes on top are "barnacles" requested by Rain Dragon

Make a wish, Rain Dragon!

  And Happy 5th Birthday!

and this is four!

All week, I've been obsessing about the weather. Would it rain? Cloudy? Super windy? Why?

Well, because it was time for Rain Dragon's  Red Egg Birthday Hunt!  We invited her whole class (and some other friends) and a wet egg hunt was not preferred.  

But, thankfully, the sun shone and our backyard looked like this:

We learned from last  year to rope off the egg searching area so that no one got a head start!

We used decorations from years past:

strawberry souffle!

And other outdoor objects found a new use:

The Totoro House (renovated due to damage done by snow) housed some special eggs...

Everything and everyone was ready and waiting....

I try to explain the rules to a bunch of 4 year olds!

For the Red Egg Hunt to begin! GO!

the crazy chaos!

Some kids went one way:

Other kids went another:

Rain Dragon might have had a good idea where a bunch of eggs were hidden...

The labyrinth was well searched:

Unlike last year, the planets were on the ground. 

Until all the eggs were found!

After all that excitement, there's nothing like some good high-sugar cake to keep things livened up:

a Totoro cake, of course! Like all our projects now, a collaborative effort! Rain Dragon made the ducks and placed all the decorations (which is why they are all facing different directions).

For a happy birthday song and wish for my favorite four (!) year old:

i can't believe she is 4!

What did she wish? I don't know, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was to have her birthday girl status everyday because she definitely took advantage of it:

She got her friend to push her all around the yard and race around the labyrinth!

Happy 4th Birthday, Rain Dragon!

On my desk Monday

Okay, not really in my desk, but floating in my living room are the leftover balloons from Rain Dragon's birthday party! More on that tomorrow...

Marshmallow Ducks!

(see full image)

What do you do if your toddler wants to bring in a birthday treat but the class has nut, gluten and dairy allergies? You make marshmallow ducks, of course!

Happy birthday to my favorite rain duck dragon!

and this is three!

So, the novel took a back seat this weekend so that we could decorate the yard like this:

Because it was Rain Dragon's birthday!

We had another birthday red hunt, this time making sure all the eggs were red so that the connection to the Chinese tradition was a little more direct (in Chinese tradition, red eggs are used to celebrate a child's birthday--the red egg hunt is our own personal take one it!). Even so, it was not very traditional--but the Rain Dragon's friends didn't seem to mind.

The hardest part was holding back the crowd:

On your mark, get set, GO!

The yard was in much better shape this year and the weather was cooperative, so I think it  was a successful hunt!

at least it was for Rain Dragon:

Also, this year instead of trying to do the cake last minute, we assembled it with pre-made fondant decorations and turned everyone's mouth's blue:

Rain Dragon loves planets and ducks!

which might have been what Rain Dragon wished for:

 

Happy 3rd Birthday, Rain Dragon! 

Happy Birthday, Rain Dragon!

So even though we've been in our new house for over a year now, it's still very much a work in progress. This is evidenced by the lack of landscaping in our backyard with its dirt piles and sparse grass.

But Rain Dragon's birthday wasn't going to wait for the grass to grow or for us to plant bushes. This was particularly troublesome as I had promised her an egg hunt for her birthday.  Even before Easter she's been enamored with egg hunts and with all the Chinese traditions about red eggs it seemed appropriate to me. 

So, the Sasquatch and I had to get creative...and I really mean that literally. We landscaped with bushes of our own creation:

As well as adding animal friends:

I painted everything, the Sasquatch cut them all out, and we both decorated the yard and hid the eggs:

We had to rope it off so that the kids didn't sneak in ahead of time:

Because once the egg hunt started, it went really fast:

But Rain Dragon loved it, which is what mattered the most to us:

Unfortunately, I spent so much time on the egg hunt preparations that I didn't get the chance to do any special decorations like last year; and I also had to rush her special Maisy cake (it's also why I look so haggard in all the photos--we were up late!). I'm not that happy with how it turned out:

But luckily, at two years old, Rain Dragon isn't that picky...I can't believe she's two!

Happy Birthday, Rain Dragon!

Rain Dragon's Lucky Destiny Birthday Party!

Have you just moved? Do you need incentive to unpack and clean your house?  Do you feel like you just want a challenge? I have the solution for you! Have a party!

Yes, even though we were still in boxes, I decided (I take full responsibility, the Sasquatch agreed under protest) that we should have a party to celebrate Rain Dragon's first birthday!  Even though it was a belated birthday party, I was afraid if I waited until we were "ready" she'd be a teenager. 

So we had Rain Dragon's Lucky Destiny Birthday Party! It was themed in red, for luck:

As well as dragons:

first time I baked in the new house!

It was a mad scramble getting the house in order. The Sasquatch's mom very kindly sewed the curtains and pillows for the living room:

it's still a work in progress

But what got the most comments was how I color-coordinated the books on the shelves!

I did this for effect, but it's actually a really great organizing system. Easier to reshelve than the alphabet and I always remember cover colors!

Old friend and new neighbor Alissa brought the red balloons:

And old friends and neighbors-no-longer traveled the distance:

with new baby!

and needed immediate nourishment:

The swingset was a big hit:

it came with the house and distracted from our rather sad landscaping!

And Cousin Lily played "Happy Birthday" on her flute:

I feel like it was just yesterday when we were celebrating her birthday!

But the big event  was when it was time for Rain Dragon to choose her destiny!

If you've read my book Year of the Rat , you'll remember how one-year old Max chooses his destiny at his birthday party. That is a real Chinese custom!  A one year old is presented with a variety of objects, each one symbolizing his/her future vocation.

We had Rain Dragon choose from money (finance manager), wrench (contractor),  computer mouse (computer programmer), book (author/librarian), thermometer (doctor), paintbrush (artist), ball (athlete), spoon (chef/baker), solar lamp (new energy engineer!).

After much hesitation, she chose....

she was a little overwhelmed by all the attention

The spoon!

maybe she will fulfill my cupcake dreams!

Yay!  Rain Dragon is going to be a chef!

Well, even if her lucky destiny isn't quite accurate, at least we know she had a very lucky  birthday party!

everyone clapped, so she clapped too!

Thanks for coming! Happy Birthday, Rain Dragon!