Lilly's Special Birthday Dinner

Lillian turned six a few weeks ago. I CANNOT BELIEVE IT.

Time flies when you're having fun, eh?

The difference between being a PARENT and being a GRANDPARENT is huge. This is so much more fun, I can't even put it into words.

Of course I love my boys, and I look back on raising them as some of the best years of my life. But that's the thing -- I was RAISING THEM. It's a big job. I had to worry about so many different things. How they behave, what they learn, getting them to school, taking care of them when they're sick, meeting with the Principal because one of them took a lighter to his fart...

But -- being a grandparent doesn't have that you-are-responsible-for-how-this-human-turns-out aspect. You get to do JUST THE LOVE part. And -- who are we kidding? By the time you get grandchildren, you are OLD. And, therefore, you KNOW MORE...

What I know for sure is that these years are F.L.E.E.T.I.N.G....

And I'm all about making the memories....because you just never know what's gonna stick.

As it happened this year, Lillian had a big birthday party on Sunday afternoon. Her birthday was on Monday, and I invited her family down for a special meal.

A child should always eat their favorite food on their birthday. When Elliott was a kid, he loved the perch and macaroni and cheese at the Family Square Restaurant. Going to a restaurant was a very special occasion for us back in those days

Nowadays -- we frequently eat at restaurants. Lilly's favorite place is Steak and Shake. So, to make it special -- we'll eat at home. And her favorite food actually is STEAK.....

So, I made her her first Porterhouse steak...

SHE LOVED IT...

We didn't even pretend she was going to eat anything else...like green beans or a salad. Nope. It was just the steak...and nothing but the steak.

Oh, of course, there was also the Farro Family Birthday cake. Chocolate cake with peanut butter icing...

My special plastic pedestal cake pan lights up and SINGS Happy Birthday!!

Hey -- come to think of it -- we had a STEAK AND CAKE party!!

Happy Birthday, Lillian.  You are going to love being six.  This is the year you learn to read....