The Beauty Within (a cupcake)

I suppose when you are two years old and your Mommy tries really hard to keep sweets at a minimum, the occasional sugary pink-frosted cupcake is a finger-licking good treat.

We drove into the city to have a family dinner with the kids. It was chaotic mostly, with eight adults and four children in attendance. It's a good thing we get together periodically so that my tax man and I can keep up on the latest Wii games. There was Wii karoake and race car driving this evening. It was quite entertaining, with the animated American Idol judges giving their opinions about the performances. The room was filled with the laughter of three generations and the food was delicious too. The kids had cupcakes for dessert. My opinion of cupcakes (especially those with thick brightly colored frosting on top) is that they are poison to a child's system (adults too, for that matter). The five year old girl licked off the icing and didn't touch the 'cake,' while her four year old brother wiped off the icing and ate only the cake. But my grandson devoured the entire thing and he had the room laughing in hysterics with his eyes glazed over in pure joy and his mouth stuffed as full as he could get it. He seemed to temporarily block everything else out...in a cupcake frenzy, until every bit was licked off his fingers. My daughter was trying to get a picture, as was I, but we couldn't keep our cameras still due to our laughter. I did manage to get these, one of her and one of her subject.

The cupcake is now history and so is the evening, but as you can see there is deep beauty within both the cupcake and my daughter.

The Chicago skyline was snapped from the offramp in my daughter's Chicago neighborhood. It's not bad considering it includes the two famous skyscrapers, John Hancock and Sears Tower buildings, respectively, from left to right (in the middle is the brand new Trump Towers).

Today I am thankful for sugary sweets, the delights they bring, and for another day to make memories with family.

Edit: Today is my 50th blip birthday - I know that's not officially significant, but it is an accomplishment that I'm pleased with. Thanks to all in the blip world for this place that is virtually wonderful.