Kai is excited, because today is his birthday. The evening before, he had wanted to help me bake muffins or ‘ little cakes’ as he calls them, 36 to be precise, to pass around at school.

His instructions were quite specific: Little cakes, with topping and m&m’s on top, and a little cocktail umbrella. I did the shopping, and added some stuff to bake a caramel apple pie too. Of course I couldn’t find the little cocktail umbrella’s, and shops were closing. There’s always something. Fortunately I had a bunch of little cocktail flags in the house. It didn’t take much convincing for Kai to accept these.

I’m starting work on the muffins, I called out after I had put the apple pie into the oven. I’m playing, Kai called back, I’ll help in a minute. A minute became ten, half an hour ,,, despite my going into the living room repeatedly  to tell Kai we really should start on the little cakes. I’m pouring the flour now ... yeap, I’ll be there in a minute. All in all, it took me more than an hour to get the pastry going. And by that time, dinnertime had arrived.

Evening time in my house is just like every house on the planet: chaotic, no time for anything else until the kids are in bed. So the muffins had to wait.

Because my oven is so small, I had to bake the muffins in small batches, taking more time. By midnight, the last batch was done, as was I. I keeled over into bed and fell asleep instantaneously.

March 16, 6am. I wake up and start decorating the house, balloons, wrappers around Kai’s chair, nice napkins, and then I wake up Kai, who jumps out of bed. I barely have a moment to kiss him and wish him a happy birthday. He storms downstairs, Sam following in his footsteps, racing into the living room and attacking his presents ... kids!

Kai, we still have to decorate the muffins before we go to school! Kai helps out, finally, sticking m&m’s onto the topping, and putting little flags into the spongy muffins.

The bike ride to school was a challenge, with a large tray of muffins in one hand, and the other hand on the steering wheel and brake. At school, Kai’s friends are all exited about his birthday and flock around the tray with goodies. Kai has a big smile on his face. So have I. My hands still hurt and I’m already exhausted, but this is what we do for our children ... take care of them and smile.