Birthday partys and pleasant walks

Today was J's birthday party (another lovely local kid who frequents our home and heart)- sensibly held at the Marina. All parents know the horror of hosting them in our own homes. I offered to make the cake. Well - actually I have made J's cakes for the past couple of years (barring last year) and he doesn't let me forget when his cake is due.

That cake is meant to be a dinasaur. You just have to use your imagination. Sometimes things dont end up looking as wonderful as I originally planned them. J didn't seem disappointed at all though.

While the party was being held Christian, Anna, myself and Dotti the wonderdog (who you may recall is completely deaf and somewhat...... difficult to train) decided to walk from the first set of swings around the entire marina to Spinniker park and enjoy the sights. It is not easy to walk Dotti. Really not easy. This photo of Anna and Dotti is kinda how the whole walk goes. She doesnt know whether she wants to a) walk b)run (she is very strong) or c) attack the lead. She desperately wants to say hello to every other dog and will crouch down and pull so hard to get to them.
The marina makes for a lovely pleasant walk. We strolled and spent a few minutes in a new store that sells jetski's. I managed to drag Christian out with only a small glint in his eye. The store owner was actually very congenial, full of very interesting information - something I find rarely here. A pleasant experience.

By the time we got back to the first set of swings at the marina the party was ready to be packed up and the last of the kids waiting to be picked up.