Happy Birthday, Eric!

I've organized a birthday party for Eric every year since 2008, and last night was the 5th annual get-together. For the happy occasion, I made a really fun cake*. I need to work on my cake writing skills. Writing with frosting is HARD. But even with the messy handwriting, it came out really well! Everybody seemed to like it, and when I cut it everybody said "WOW," so I must have done something right!

our friend's birthday is next weekend, so i included her name on the cake, too!

surprise! rainbow cake!

here are some action shots of making the cake

Everybody brought appetizers and drinks, and we served lasagna and salad (and cake + ice cream). I'm still stuffed. After we ate, we all played a fun game that our friend brought. We laughed until we couldn't breathe, and had so much fun. We have great friends, so getting everybody together in one place is the best. 

Many thanks to our guests for making it a night to remember. And a very, very happy birthday (tomorrow) to Eric!

*If you want to make one of these cakes, here are the directions I used as a reference. I didn't follow the Weight Watcher's diet guidelines at all - I just followed the directions on the box of cake mix. Since I'm not a baker and making a cake is scary, I decided a box mix was safest (Betty knows what she's doing), but you can definitely do this with any white cake recipe if you're a confident baker. And you're not afraid of a lot of food coloring gel. 

Cupcake Stickers

This week, I mailed a few birthday surprises. Lately, I've been terrible about birthdays (as in failing to get gifts for the people I love), but this reminded me how awesome they are. It's fun to choose a prize and it's also exciting to find that a gift is well-received.

I included teeny notes with the presents, and I stuck these super cool cupcake stickers to the envelopes. They really looked pretty wonderful, if I do say so myself.

{another cell phone photo}

Ninety Two Years Old

Yesterday Eric's grandfather turned 92! That's pretty cool, huh? We joined him, his older sister, along with Eric's aunt and cousin for dinner last night to celebrate. We ate at Blue Canoe, and Eric's other cousin was our waitress, which was extra special. We were seated outdoors, and it was a gorgeous night for a birthday celebration. 

This photo was actually taken on Saturday night, when we celebrated with Eric's dad, mom, and brother, since Eric parents wouldn't be around for the actual day. So there was lots of celebrating going on, which is only right since 92 only comes around every once in awhile and is a pretty big deal.

Second Blog Birthday

Happy birthday to us! We started this blog TWO years ago! I made a little video of some of my favorite photos and memories that we've blogged since last August.

Thank you all for keeping us company here on Objects of Communication! You're the best! :)

[Related: First Blog Birthday]

Birthday Party From Afar

Most of the time, it's easy to forget that I live in a city. Our tiny road has several small apartment complexes and the surrounding streets are filled with similar buildings and a good number of multi-family homes. It's quiet around here, and that's pretty great. But we don't have a yard, or even any grass. Just some weirdly fenced-in wood chips out front, and a parking lot in the back. So in the summer, if I want to spend some time reading in the sun, I have to pack a bag and walk a few blocks to the park. I am joined by others who read and picnic and listen to their iPods on towels and blankets scattered all over the hill. We're all there for the same reason, I presume: to spend some time outdoors and it's closer than the beach.

On Saturday, there was a little birthday party going on at the house right next to the park. There were a bunch of kids running around chasing balloons and playing games. It was an overcast afternoon, so there weren't many people sunbathing and the kids had a lot of space. Birthday parties used to be so awesome with all the fun decorations, games, arts + crafts, and running around like maniacs. 

I only had my Blackberry with me, so this is the best picture I could get from a distance. I polaroid-ized it, which made it a little awesome-er.

Surprise Balls

My brother's birthday was May 31, and my sister's is tomorrow. A few days before Max's birthday I learned about Gina Namkung's surprise balls on Poppytalk. Inside layer upon layer of crepe paper there are little prizes and trinkets that fall out as you unravel the ball. They're so amazing! My absolute favorite thing about getting gifts is the unwrapping, and a surprise ball is all about the unwrapping. To me, it's the ideal gift. So I set out on a mission to make them for my siblings. 

First, I went to the toy store and got prizes and candies to wrap up. Then, I went to the party store to get crepe paper and a few little extras (like chicken stickers -- how totally awesome! -- and star confetti). Then I wrapped and wrapped and wrapped and wrapped like a mad woman, wrote a birthday card on yellow heart, and shipped it off.

I planned for the package to arrive mid-way between their birthdays so they could open them at the same time. They arrived last week. I was on the phone with them while they unraveled and discovered their little treasures. There was a lot of laughing; I think the surprise balls were a success!

*Today's Lost in Thoughts is full of loveliness. 

Remembering A Birthday

Birthdays are for celebrating and today would have been Tom's 29th, so I lit a candle for him when I woke up.

If you knew him, I hope you stop and make a birthday wish on his behalf. Even if you didn't, go ahead and wish for something; it'll be fun! Maybe go eat some cake while you're at it. ♥

Floating

When I have a bouquet I want it to last as loooooooong as possible. Some flowers die more quickly than others, and I don't want them to make everybody else look sad. As time passes I deconstruct it to make new, fresh arrangements. I'm sure many of you do this, too. I think it's pretty fun.

This rose was part of my birthday bouquet, but its stem wasn't looking too hot so I cut it off and let the bloom float in this little bowl of water. Pretty.

I hope you're having a sunny Wednesday. ☼

Opening A Gift

I got a birthday package from my Aunt Lisa + Uncle Joe, and it was so beautifully packaged that I took pictures as I opened it up.

It started with newspaper packaging, which was cool because they used the wedding announcements and drew little speech bubbles above the newlyweds to make it look like all of the couples were wishing me a happy birthday! Then there was a pretty little card and a box adorned with a gorgeous paper flower!

And last, but certainly not least, a wonderful necklace from laurel denise! My Aunt Lisa has a long history of giving me awesome necklaces, and this year was no exception. This one has a glass pendant that says dream, so that's pretty much perfect for me.

Thanks Lisa + Joe, you guys rock my socks off!

Birthday Bouquet

Eric got me a beautiful bouquet for my birthday. Now that's it's been a few days I've broken it up into two vases, to keep the flowers looking fresh, but it was a really gorgeous arrangement!

The last few days have been so busy. Mostly because it's been so beautiful that I've been spending every spare minute outside in the glorious sun! Saturday we went to Drumlin Farm to see the baby animals. I took a lot of photos, but most aren't that great. I'll post one or two as soon as I get a minute to go through them. Sunday we had Easter with Eric's family and some of their friends. I wore a dress and everything! It was fun (plus, there was carrot cake for dessert in honor of my birthday - awesome, right?).

There are a few more photos of my pretty, pretty flowers on flickr, if you're interested!

Open 3/30/10

I'm 27 today, and I don't feel old at all. In fact, I feel young and amazed that people consider me a grown up. When I was little it was always a little disappointing that I didn't feel different, but now I'm used to it. I suppose it would be sort of shocking to wake up and feel like another person, since growing, maturing, and aging are gradual processes that happen over the course of weeks, months, or years. Plus, I'm still me (even if I have grown up some), so I imagine that I'll always love opening presents (almost more than what's inside), eating sweets, and making wishes - you know, all the things that make birthdays special.

On Friday, I got a letter in the mail and I was super excited. I knew right away that it was a birthday card from my gramma, but I didn't open it because it had instructions on the back:

Well today I opened it as soon as I got out of bed, and it made my day. (Thanks gramma, you're great.) Then I opened the gifts from my family, and my day got even brighter. (Thanks family, you're great too.) And then Eric came home to have lunch with me and a birthday package from his parents was delivered! (Thanks Schwarzes, you are also great.)

I've been getting emails and phone calls and texts and facebook/twitter messages all day. I feel so loved, so I thank you all! Some of you have expressed concern that the rain might be ruining my special day. I want to assure you that it never has and never will. I was born on rainy day and I've had very few sunny birthdays (I think I could count them on one hand). I've grown to expect and appreciate the rain, especially since it usually leads to a little more of this:

And that's just wonderful, isn't it? I'm so glad I'm a spring baby. Happy birthday to me! ★

*I wanted to share my day with you, so I'm offering 27% off sales of $10+ in the Everything Little Miss shop. Click here for the details and the coupon code.

Nice Outfit

We saw this guy at the bar during Eric's birthday party on Saturday.

I snapped the picture with my blackberry, because I just couldn't let this outfit go undocumented.

Let's consider what he's wearing:

• bandana headband
• t-shirt with the sleeves ripped off
• kilt

Yeah, that makes sense. Thanks, dude, for making the night a little more memorable!

Eric's Birthday Cake

Saturday was Eric's birthday, so I made a cake for him. We decided on a brownie mosaic cheesecake; there were 4 parts to it. First I made the brownies (I used this recipe), then the crust (Eric crushed the teddy grahams), then the cheesecake filling, and lastly the ganache topping. We don't have an electric mixer, so this cake took some muscle. Eric took a picture of me stirring the cream cheese - 3 whole packages - until it was fluffy.

We met a bunch of friends at Boston Beer Works for dinner, and I brought the cake for dessert. Not only was it the first cheesecake I ever made, it was my first cake of any sort. And wow, it came out well. If you like chocolate, that is. And I don't. So I didn't like it that much. But everybody else seemed to enjoy it.

We had such a good time that I only took 1 picture of the cake and a few terrible photos of our group (so bad that I will not be sharing them). Anyway, I think Eric enjoyed his birthday and I know he enjoyed dessert. ★

*In other news, you can check out my homemade chalkboard here.

Slide Shows

As promised, here are more photos of our San Francisco trip and my Grandparents' 80 surprise birthday party.

Most of the photos in the slide shows haven't appeared on this blog and aren't edited. Click here to see them on my flickr page.

First Blog Birthday

We started Objects of Communication one year ago today! Here's a little slide show of some of my favorite photos we've featued this year.

We've truly appreciated your encouragement and sweet comments. Thank you so much for following along!

A NJ Surprise Party

My grandparents (on my mom's side) turn 80 this summer. Their 5 kids threw a surprise part for them this past Saturday, and quite a few people showed up!

The party was in New Jersey, so Eric and I drove down Friday morning. We arrived at my other gramma's house around 2:30, and spent some time with her before heading to a friend's apartment in Weehawken for the night. When spent a wonderful evening (into the early morning) just chatting with our friends and eating homemade pizza and brownies. At one point we walked a couple of blocks to Hamilton Park to see the grogeous view of New York City (click the picture for a larger view, as always).

Saturday was party day, and my parents and brother arrived in NJ around lunchtime. We went to the restaurant early to decorate and prepare for the big surprise.

I didn't get pictures of every guest, but as you can see it was well attended! The birthday boy and girl are in the top left corner (click for larger view). A delicious dinner was served, and then my family broke out the musical instuments and microphone for a little entertainment. What happened next brings these R. Kelly lyrics to mind:

Crystall poppin in the stretch Navigator
We got food every where
As if the party was catored
We got fellas to my left
Hunnies on my right
We bring em both together we got junkin all night
Then after the show its the (after party)
And after the party its the (hotel lobby)
And round about 4 you gotta (clear the lobby)

The party was supposed to end at 7:30. After 8:00, it was announed that it had been extended to 9:00. Good thing, since cake was just being served! Then there was an announcement that we had the restaurant until 10:00. We didn't leave the parking lot until 10:45, when a bunch of us headed over to the hotel to continue the fun. We stayed there until well after 1:00. Hahaha. We didn't get back to my Gramma Horty's until after 2:00.

So we had 2 very late nights after a crazy-busy week in San Francisco and a red-eye flight, but it was worth it! Eric got to meet my cousins and some uncles he'd never met before, and I got to see people that I usually only see at Thanksgiving. I only wish my sister had been there.

Sunday, it took us 6 1/2 hours to get back to Boston. Ugh. That was the worst, and it was completely draining. But we made it, and I think we've finally recovered from all of the activity.

Today is Thursday, and Lost In Thoughts is inspired by black & white this week. I've also featured a photo of my cousin Rachel singing at the party, so check it out here.

21

Posting has been light this week. My life revolves around job applications and Everything Little Miss. Job applications aren't that interesting, and you can read about Everything Little Miss over on that blog. So, I haven't had much to say.

But today is different. Today is my little sister's 21st birthday! Maybe little isn't the right word. I have her gifts (yeah, that's plural) all ready for her, and I'll give them to her when I see her next. Yay. Happy birthday Emma! I hope it's a wonderful day. And don't forget to make a birthday wish!

Here's a picture of us circa 1990. I'm guessing my dad took it.

I'm wearing my favorite paint-splattered jeans (left).
Emma's wearing a shirt our mom made (right).

Here's one of us (and our brother, Max) from this past Thanksgiving. Our dad took it while we were waiting for dessert.

Max, me, & Emma

Isn't she beautiful? Her hair's not as curly as it used to be, and she has a nose ring now, but her laugh hasn't changed. She's busy working (3 jobs!) and having fun during her summer vacation. (Aside: You may remember that Max recently had a birthday, too. And I think today is his last day of his freshman year!)

On another note, don't forget to check out today's Lost In Thoughts! There are a few more pictures of my sister and some fun finds.

Make A Wish

I posted a new card on Etsy today.

I made this one because I always tell people to make a wish when their birthday rolls around. I'm a big wish-maker. I believe they come true. You just have to know what to wish for, that's all.

When you're not blowing out birthday candles, there are still a few occassions fitting for wish making. When all of the numbers on the clock are the same (ex: 3:33), make a wish. If you see a shooting star, wish away. Should an eyelash fall out, place it on your finger and wish as blow it it away.

There's also a famous poem about wishing.

Star light,
Star bright,
First star
I see tonight

Wish I may,
Wish I might,
Have this wish
I wish tonight.

★Happy wishing! ★

Max Is 15!

Yesterday was Max's 15th birthday. My friends are always shocked when they hear his age. They generally think about him as they last saw him - sometimes they remember him as a toddler, other times as an elementary school student. In reality, his freshman year of high school is coming to an end, and he's almost old enough to get behind the wheel.

Thinking about Max growing up doesn't make me feel old. No matter his age, I'll always be 11 years older than he is. It's just a fact. Our age difference never matters when we're together.

Happy birthday Max. I hope it was fabulous! Wish I could have been there to celebrate with you. xoxo

Letters From Gramma

click images for larger views

Early last week I mentioned that I was working a top secret project that I'd reveal on May 7. Today is my gramma's birthday, and I wanted the book I made for her to be a surprise. It totally was too! She wrote me the sweetest email after she received the gift. 

When I was in college, I asked my gramma to write to me about her life as a child and as a young woman. She sent me a series of emails that are very special to both of us. Since the first one, I've wanted to make some sort of book to preserve them, and this year I did it. Thanks to blurb, it's easy to make a professional book! 

I added photos (many of which my Uncle snuck out of the house and scanned for me) of family members to the letters, and now the stories have faces to go along with the names. I really love the book, and I know my gramma does too. 

Pictured (top to bottom): I wrapped the gift in pretty paper and attached a small hand drawn birthday card, the cover of the book shows my gramma on her wedding day (the dress is gorgeous and a lovely shade of brown), and the dedication page has my favorite picture of my gramma and me (as a baby, obviously).  

Happy birthday gramma. xoxo.