Saint David's Day

St. David's Day is celebrated on the 1st of March. St. David of course being the patron saint of Wales. If you wish to know more about St. David you can either google him or do as I did and ask Quinn. To celebrate the children are allowed to forgo their uniforms for the day and Dress in some kind of costume that has something to do with Wales.

In the weeks building up to this, Ava was convinced that she wanted to go to school dressed as a dragon; however, after much persuasion and a lack of mask (my fault), she settled on dressing as a daffodil. Quinn broke out his new Wales Rugby shirt and went as a rugby player -- as did half the boys in his class (the other half went as Wales' football team).

The school was split into 4 different "houses," reminiscent of Harry Potter. Red, yellow, blue and our kids house, green. Wisely, they made sure that siblings were in the same houses (thank you!). On the day itself, the kids entered into various competitions to gain points for their house. Categories included: costume, baking, writing, art, models, and talent. Ava jumped in with both feet, per usual. She tried out for the talent (but was not chosen), made a model, wrote a written piece, dressed in the aforementioned daffodil costume, and decided to bake.

Quinn, who is of course older and a little more subtle in his enthusiasm, contributed a fine drawing of a dragon head and went in costume.

When I asked Ava what she wanted to bake her immediate response was "Welsh Cakes!" Welsh cakes are a bit like a scones except sweeter and grilled instead of baked (and they're also not French). They are delicious! I tried to think of other things to offer but Ava's mind was made up. I could just imagine causing another international incident (we don't talk of the first one) after I ruined a national treasure. I found a recipe online and it actually did not look too difficult, but I was still wary.

The night before St. David's Day I gathered ingredients and a very excited Ava, who insisted that these be made by her. And I have to say she did 95% of the work, I did the cooking just for my own sanity.

The next twist was that she wanted to make the Welsh cakes "American" by splitting them and putting peanut butter inside. Unlike in the U.S., peanut butter is not a staple here. In fact, it is not really enjoyed by many all! Considering that Quinn was eating them as fast as we could make them I was surprised we had any to send in at all. In the end we did make them "American" and, to Ava's delight, her teacher had 2.

I have to say that the kids really got into it and enjoyed their St. David's Day. Oh, and green house won!