Acarith's Birthday Party!

Acarith for her birthday wanted a candy castle cake. She wanted the cake to be strawberry with a strawberry filling and cheesecake inside. I took my 12x24 cake pan, put 2 strawberry cake mixes in it, baked it, then divided it in half. I used another cake mix to make two 9x9 round pans for the top. I also made a 9inch round cheesecake. For the filling, I took 5 cups of chopped up strawberries, 5 T. of cornstarch, and 1 cup of sugar and boiled until thick. The square bottom part I made a cheesecake pudding filling. Whew! Then I froze the cakes and refrigerated the fillings until I was ready to assemble.

My mom was able to be with us and she really enjoyed watching me make the cakes and was a big help with washing the dishes. Acarith, Tirzah, and Selah enjoyed licking all the spoons and bowls when it was time. I made towers for the cake with rice krispie treats, formed them into circular tubes, and then dipped them in white chocolate when I was done. This way, I figured those who only eat gluten-free could have a treat. I dyed the white chocolate purple and dipped the sugar cones in it then put candies on the bottom.

Ta-da! Presto--a cake appeared! Well, not quite! On Saturday morning, the day of the party, I had the fun part of assembling it all. I put skewers through the rice krispie towers to hold them in place (Tim also was a big help with this!) Used coconut dyed green for the grass, lined the cake with gumdrops, added some finishing touches with my purple frosting, and it was ready to roll!

Acarith loved how the cake turned out! It is hard to believe my girl is now five years old! She is such a sweetheart. Sometimes with her being the quieter child she can get lost in the shuffle, but her sweet spirit shines through and wins over the hearts of those who know her.

Tim found a play castle at a garage sale just a few days before the party!! It was great--when her little friends arrived they could play in it or color it. That castle was a hit with all the little kids. I'm thankful my husband is a great garage sale bargainer!

The party went smoothly. The kids all behaved. The cake was tasty. Definitely had a great party! I'm so thankful for the incredible girl the Lord has given to us.

Tirzah Attends School!

Since the beginning of January, Tirzah started attending school at Verde Valley Christian School. It's a branch of Verde Baptist Church and located here in Cottonwood. Most of you know that up until this point she has done the video school through Pensacola Christian Academy. I just want to share with you as to why we made the switch. First of all, we discovered the school has a great tax credit program, making the cost for tuition very affordable. Second, last semester we noticed Tirzah getting stressed out doing school with all the siblings around. Yes, she had her own schoolroom but it was difficult to keep all kids out of that side of the house for six/seven hours. Several times I actually caught her crying because she wanted the experience of real school and real students (not virtual). And third, when I went to check out the school, I interviewed with the principal and met several of the teachers. God gave me peace--a peace I can't explain. When Tim went to the school, he felt the same peace. 

Tirzah is doing great at school. Her teacher loves her and is the spiritual mother of the school. I can't say enough wonderful words about her. Tonight, Tirzah acted out a part for Mrs. Potts, the teapot woman on Beauty and the Beast. She did a great job!

We had so much fun attending the spaghetti social and pie auction tonight at the school. I made a sweetheart cookie pie and it sold for $200!

Hardy in this picture tried bidding on a pie. He really wants to go to the school too but can't because the second grade class is full. Hardy understands that; he was so cute tonight and really made an effort to make friends with some of the other boys his age.

 Our whole family had a great time tonight! I'm excited about the new friends we have made and looking forward to a great year!