Weston's 7th Birthday!

What does every 7 year old boy in Spain want for their birthday... just days after the World Cup?  Yes, you guessed it.  A Spain jersey.  My parents had asked Weston what he wanted for his birthday, and that was the ONLY thing he said... well, the jersey with the shorts and the socks and the shoes and the ball!  (I can't believe how 'futbol' crazy my boys have become.)  Of course, Mom and Dad couldn't find Spain stuff in the States, so we decided we would look here.

We looked everywhere in Cáceres, trying to find one, but couldn't.  Cáceres is so small... there are SO many things we can't find here that I'm sure we could in a larger city.  So, when we went to Madrid, we made it a point of finding one for him.   He was thrilled.  I think it was the highlight of his week!... and of course, he got to wear it the day of his birthday. :)  (It's a bit too warm to wear the socks, but the rest works!)

We have several traditions for birthdays around here, and one of them is that the birthday boy gets to choose whatever he wants for dinner.  Weston chose hamburgers and fries... a good ole American dinner! ... at least he hasn't become TOO European! ;)  Anyway, that was totally a 'Wes' meal, so Wes made Weston's birthday dinner!  The burgers were incredible, and he cut potatoes and fried them and everything.  It was scrumptious! (and I didn't have to make it!!!!) :)  The kids all loved it.

Of course, continuing Weston's latest obsession, we also had to have a soccer ball birthday cake.  Ok, now I'm so hesitant to even put this picture on here.  It doesn't even compare to the cakes I've seen some of my friend's make in the States!... that whole new marshmallow fondant thing being the new craze. :)  I think y'all are just way better than I am.  We don't have cake mixes here... we don't have canned frosting here... we don't even have marshmallows!!!! :) (So that's my excuse :) ) haha. :)

At Nathan's birthday, I couldn't find powdered sugar, so I couldn't figure out how to make frosting.  I improvised there and made a brownie cake with just candy on top.  But, I knew I couldn't do that for Weston's.  I was so thankful for a friend who showed me where I could find powdered sugar and what it was called!!  We had to buy tons of cans of it, though, b/c it doesn't come like we get it in the States.  It's so funny how the most basic things are just different here!  Anyway, I found an amazing recipe for vanilla and chocolate frosting on the internet, and it turned out pretty good!... it tasted good, anyway. :)  I'm sure I'll get better at all this stuff with each passing birthday. :)  It's a good thing we have a large family... I'll get lots of practice. :)

The other thing that has kind of become a tradition is that we skype my mom and dad, so they can be part of the "party" as well.  Thank the Lord for technology!  It's never quite the same, but at least we all feel a tad bit "less far away," if that makes any sense. :)  I still can't believe my Weston is SEVEN!  All in all, it was a special day for Weston!! :)