Happy Birthday Charlie!

It was a bit of a quandary - how to celebrate Charlie's first birthday? Big parties didn't seem like a good idea, being so close to Christmas. A quiet dinner at home didn't seem festive enough. Family and friends are spread over the country - where should we celebrate? He's allergic to eggs, what about the cake?

In the end, I think it all turned out okay. We started Charlie's big day with a festive little breakfast in Michigan with some family, a few balloons, and different colored pancakes to go along with our "Gumball" theme. Sadly, he didn't get to eat any of the egg-laden pancakes...but I like to think he appreciated the concept. To set the atmosphere, we were serenaded with harp and cello music courtesy of our very talented cousins.

After a nap, it was off to Frankenmuth...land of lederhosen, fine beer, amazing German food and home to the world's largest Christmas store. It was there in Bronner's, at 4:26pm by the red and gold Christmas tree display that Charlie turned one year old. So of course, we had to sing to him in the store.

Eventually we made our way to the Bavarian Inn where we all had a feast. (On a side note, I just noticed their tag line is "Gather under the glockenspiel" - catchy.) Charlie ate endless amounts of their famous chicken, along with tastes of their many other side dishes. For dessert, he got something from home...a panna cotta made with local cream and topped with wild blueberries. He wasn't sure what to make of it at first, but eventually got going.

Let me sum of the rest: sugar rush! Sitting there in his little red party hat, he really worked the crowd. At the end of the night my mom said "I haven't laughed that hard in a long time!". So true...we all had a great time.

Happy Birthday Gumball!