Cute Kid Pix February 2026

More pictures that didn't get their own posts...

Scout Sunday was early in February and our scout carried the troop flag in the Presentation of the Colors just before Mass started.

Scout Sunday

We joined a local indoor pool which has "Wibit Sundays" with inflatables in the pool to make it more exciting.

Very exciting

For Mardi Gras, we made our own King Cake. It was very tasty and fun to make!

Decorating the cake

I went over to Virginia for a board game swap. On the way back I stopped off for some geocaches. One was at Lock 8 on the C & O Canal. The canal connects Georgetown in the District of Columbia with "way out west" Ohio as an early form of cheap transportation before railroads went in. It's not in use anymore but has been turned into a national park with hiking and biking trails along with historical locations. This lock has seen better days but it was fun to visit and the cache was easy to find.

Lock 8 and me

Another geocache is on the grounds of Glen Echo Park, though it is a virtual cache, so no actual container to find. The park was an amusement park back in the day, with bumper cars, a carousel, a ballroom, and other attractions. The carousel still runs on weekends in good weather and the ballroom hosts dance lessons and social dances. People would take the trolly from downtown DC for a fun afternoon in the country.

By the defunct pool

I was surprised to see some art literally on the ground. Complacency is a depiction how people are sinking into the ground since they don't care about climate change. A bit preachy, and maybe not entirely accurate.

Art with a message

We went for another hike along the Savage Mill Trail, which has plenty of scenic view of the Patuxent River.

Hiking along

No picture, please!

The river

Cute Kid Pix March 2019

More pictures that didn't make their own blog post...

We made a King Cake the weekend before Ash Wednesday, adding the trendy new ingredient coconuts. It was yummy.

Home-made King Cake

My prescholar's class celebrated Dr. Seuss's birthday, including a Cat in the Hat craft!

The Cat in the Hat!

I went for a walk and saw a cool restaurant sign and two almost twin houses.

Rhyming makes cheating okay?!?

I love a front porch!

Our youngest child has taken to reading the newspaper, though apparently he doesn't want to proof of it.

Maybe it's just bigger than he is?

Hiding or napping?

Somehow a die wound up in a cup. I know this because the picture wound up on the camera. Otherwise I have no information to share.

Oh yeah, there's water in the cup too

My son went on his first BSA Scouting trip, i.e. without any family members along. He was happy and we parents were nervous. The main activity was exploring a cave in western Maryland. We have no photographic evidence other than he took camping equipment.

Packed up and ready to go

Waiting to depart

At the library, the Spring into Science program had "metamorphosis" as the word of the week. So we studied frogs and butterflies, since they go through some big changes as they go from egg to adult.

Making a book of the caterpillar/butterfly life cycle

Putting together a butterfly

Finished product

My eldest participated in the Howard County Elementary Solo and Ensemble Festival with his best friend playing a saxophone duet.

One Ingredient Challenge: King Cake

Part of an ongoing series of cooking from scratch. That is, we cook something from basic items that don't have multiple ingredients (e.g. store-bought spaghetti sauce includes all sorts of spices and maybe other stuff too; we'd start with tomatoes and individual spices and add them together to make our own sauce). See other challenges here.

For Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras/Shrove Tuesday/Pancake Day we tried our hand at making a King cake. King cakes are most popular in New Orleans and celebrate the arrival of the three kings to worship the baby Jesus. So the earliest cakes are available around Epiphany (the twelfth day of Christmas/December 6) and the festivities last all the way up to Ash Wednesday.

This recipe is from Southern Living. We also carefully watched their video several times to make sure it would come out right.

We also sought inspiration from others!

In a saucepan over low heat stir together the following ingredients until the butter melts:

• 1 (16-ounce) container sour cream
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon salt

Set the mixture aside to cool to no more than 110 Fahrenheit.

Adding sour cream

Mix together the following ingredients until smooth:

• 2 (1/4-ounce) envelopes active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water (100 to 110 Fahrenheit)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 cups bread flour

Mixing

Gradually add 4 to 4 1/2 cups more bread flour (or all purpose flour) until a soft dough forms.

Our mixers experienced a breakdown so we switched to the bread machine for mixing and kneading at this point. Knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.

Handy robot slave

Stretching it out

Let rise about 1 hour.

Punch down dough, and divide in half. Roll each portion into a 22 by 12 inch rectangle.

Spread 1/3 cup softened butter evenly on each rectangle, leaving an inch border.

Big, buttery rectangle

Stir together 1/2 cup sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over butter on each rectangle.

Adding cinnamon

Roll up each dough rectangle, jelly-roll fashion, starting from one long side. Insert plastic baby (read on to find out why). Place one dough roll seam side down on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bring ends of roll together to form an oval ring, moistening and pinching edges together to seal. Repeat with second dough roll.

Rolling

The baby!

Cover and let rise in a warm place (85 Fahrenheit), free from drafts, 20 to 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Any covering will do

Bake at 375 Fahrenheit for 14 to 16 minutes or until golden. Slightly cool cakes on pans on wire racks (about 10 minutes).

Baked cake

Baby sticking his foot out

To make the glaze, mix these four ingredients together:

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mixers are back on line!

Add two tablespoons of milk. Mix, adding more milk one teaspoon at a time until the desired consistency is achieved.

Milk mid-drop

Drizzle the glaze evenly over warm cakes; sprinkle with colored sugars, alternating colors and forming bands. Let cool completely.

Icing the cake

Adding gold/yellow sugar

Making the last touches

Finished product

Traditionally, throw a party and whoever gets the slice with the baby in it has to make the next cake, or throw the next party.

Slicing the cake