Bon Appetit!

With Kolbe’s two birthday celebrations, we’ve been keeping the new oven busy with chocolate confections and lots of them.

I am no great chef, but I can whip up a few snazzy desserts. The older boys, however, have recently come clean with me – they prefer box cakes to my chocolate torte.

“That frosting that comes in a can - it’s awesome,” they tell me. I’ve learned to swallow my pride and embrace a cheaper and quicker way to celebrate birthdays.

This morning cupcakes are on the menu. John is offering his assistance. Alone, this job is quick and clean. With assistance of the toddler variety, it is slow and sloppy. But one look into those gorgeous brown eyes, and who can say no? They are darker than Duncan Hines chocolate fudge frosting and just as irresistible.

So we begin. Step 1 – rip open the bag and promptly spill it all over.

“Look at this mess!” John says with dismay. “Cwean it up, Mama!”

Did I mention that my pint-sized sous-chef is also bossy? We dump and stir and taste until John’s entire face is the color of his eyes.

“Wooo whee!” he yells. “This is so much fun!”

And it was.