Happy Birthday Dave!

Today is Dave's birthday, and we had a lovely evening. Of course he had to work, but he got off early and took the boys to their swimming lessons while I got dinner and dessert ready.

Dave is not much of a cake person. Plus he already had a cake at work, so he requested chocolate mousse instead. While looking online for a good raspberry sauce to put on it, I came upon an amazing idea: shell-shaped chocolate bowls. Luckily Spencer has a million shells of all sizes, so I wrapped them in plastic wrap, dipped the backs in melted chocolate and put them in the freezer to harden. I used big shells for the adults (Ellen and Jason came over), medium shells for the big kids and little ones for Brennan and Anna. To my delight they popped right off and held their shape really well. Aren't they dang cute? And much easier than you'd think.

I also made the mousse and raspberry sauce ahead of time. To assemble: I filled the shells with mousse,

Added a dollop of whipped cream, (don't you just love the word dollop? I feel like Martha Stewart when I say it),

And drizzled raspberry sauce on top. The sauce was super easy to make: I defrosted frozen raspberries, pureed them in the blender, removed the seeds with a strainer, and cooked it over the stove with a little bit of sugar. The whole thing was on the rich side, of course, but beautiful, decadent and delicious.

I had already given Dave his birthday present early (the GPS, which came in very handy on our Utah trip), but we still wanted to give him a little something to unwrap. Spencer and Tyler chose it, and they were so excited to give it to him.

An air soft BB gun! I'm not sure if it's more for Dave or the boys, but it'll be something fun they can do together. Don't forget to answer my poll on the right about Dave's age. The ladies at work asked him today, and when he told them they said his patients would never believe it. Happy Birthday Dave! I love you!!