Today is Chickadee’s 11th birthday, and she found a letter from Hogwarts waiting for her at the table when she got up this morning!

After the excitement of receiving her invitation to study at the wizarding school wore off, she opened her presents:

We spent most of the day watching Doctor Who…I’m always intrigued by what she chooses! While we watched, I worked on the dinner she requested…pork tenderloin and käsespätzle (plus the pickled beets I added to the menu). She also asked me to make Butterbeer, and that was before she even knew I had planned Harry Potter elements for her birthday!

I asked her if her cake could be a surprise…I really wanted to make the cake Hagrid made for Harry on his 11th birthday. I was really happy with how it turned out!

It’s hard to believe another Markel birthday has already come and gone!