happy birthday lana...

Tonight I was able to make a cake for my dear friend, and co-worker, Lana. Her girls gave me complete creative rights with this cake. I know for a FACT that Lana likes the pink and green combo and if you've been anywhere near her classroom this year, you know that the cute little frog was a perfect touch! I hope your birthday is wonderful, Lana...you deserve it...you're the BEST!




I was also very lucky to have good company when I made this cake. Usually, John Paul and the kids stay clear when I'm baking. Partly because they understand there'll be a lot less fighting and yelling if they do, but mainly because they really have ABSOLUTELY NO interest in what I'm doing. Tonight, Lexi joined me in the kitchen. She's the sweetest girl you'll ever meet! She's interested in baking and I'm more than happy to share any tips or techniques that I know...that's how I learned! I can't wait to see what she "cooks up" when she tries her hand at "cake art".
She also got along GREAT with my kids, which is always a plus...I think we may have found our back up babysitter. (Don't worry Miss Kristen, we could never replace you, but for some reason you went and got that "real" job like our $10 an hour wasn't cutting it or something!)

weekend update...

If come to realize something: WEEKENDS ARE TOO SHORT!!! This one was super short and I did not want to wake up this morning and discover that it was Monday!
It was a very busy weekend...On Friday, we celebrated Laken's birthday and I actually got to have a piece of an emiecake. (cute paisley cake) (Bad for the diet, but oh, sooo good!) John Paul and Collin spent the night in Savannah so Emie and I had the house to ourselves. On Saturday morning, I got up with all intentions of getting a head start on the cake orders I had for the weekend. Instead, Emie and I snuggled up on the couch with our blankets and watched Elmo...and then we watched Elmo...and then Elmo...seriously, the girl had a fascination! That's all she wants to watch and she's just so darn cute, you can't tell her "no". (Especially when she brings you the TV remote and oh so sweetly says, "Eemo".) She can even (kind of) sing the theme song and it hasn't left my head in a week! I'm hoping she grows out of it before her next birthday...I've already made one Elmo cake (for Collin's 2nd BD) and I have my heart set on something cute and girly!
I finally did get a start on my cake orders and I did a REALLY cute polka dot cake for Annette and a dirt bike cake for Tami's son, Brent. I didn't get a picture of the polka dot cake, but I really hope that Annette's coworkers enjoyed it. Tami managed to get a quick picture of Brent's cake before the family dug into it so I hope to share that one with you soon. I did manage to get a pic of this cake: I used my mom's camera...it is SO much nicer than my little "point and shoot" and it makes the cake details look SO much better! I think I may have to borrow it more often.




In other news: I didn't run at all last week. I'm really glad I've been sharing my running news on my blog because a few of you have asked me how I'm doing and I feel accountable now! I didn't run last week because I somehow managed to hurt my ankles...yes, both of them! I don't exactly know what I did, but I do know that they were almost unbearable for a few days. Being the graceful creature that I am, I'm sure I just stepped on them funny or something. So, I convinced myself to take a week off to let them rest and heal. I'm glad that I did because they feel 100% better, but getting back on the wagon this week was ROUGH! Teresa and I convinced each other to repeat week 6. That would put us finishing the program one week before our 5K...makes sense to me! It's amazing how one idle week can mess up your routine. I pushed through it, though and I'm back on track! Wish me luck in the weeks ahead...7 through 9 seem brutal!

my new favorite tool...

A few weeks ago, I was in Hobby Lobby and I stocked up on a new fondant cutters. While I picked out flowers, circles, hearts, and stars, I saw a set of leaf shaped cutters. At first I just glanced over them...I was trying to be frugal and practical and I didn't know how much use I would get out of them. But, I decided to go for it and I'm really glad I did!
I still haven't used them to make leaves, but I used them to make birds on two cakes last week and I used them to make this adorable paisley cake tonight. The shapes are perfect and I was excited to use my favorite color combination...pink and green! It's for my cousin, Laken. Tomorrow is her birthday...Happy Birthday, Laken!

chocolate!

A very wise 10 year old recently said: "There just aren't enough chocolate cakes in the world". Add that to the list of reasons I love you, Em!
Kandiss ordered this cake for her mom's birthday. This chocolate icing is definitely one of my favorites. Not only is it chocolate (where a great deal of the appeal lies), but it holds up well to piping.

sweet 'lil bird...

Tonight I made a cake for a very special little girl. Her mom ordered the cake and said that she wanted it to have birds and flowers on it. I, thankfully, have the privilege of knowing the birthday girl and two words that immediately come to mind are "cute" and "sweet" so I knew the cake had to match! I was able to use some of my favorite colors and techniques and I LOVE how it turned out!

gentlemen, start your engines...

Earlier this week, Andrea called to order a cake for her husband's birthday. She was very laid back about what she wanted and named several things that he was interested in: power tools, boats, and Nascar. We decided to go with a Nascar theme. I'm not a huge Nascar fan so I had to do a little research. (My dad IS a huge fan, but growing up, Sunday races were just a perfect excuse for my mom and I to take a three hour nap!)
I immediately knew that I wanted to decorate the sides of the cake with the infamous racing checkerboard. I used black fondant and a mini-square fondant cutter. Yes, it took a LONG time, but it was perfect! I tossed around the idea of putting a model car on the top of the cake, but I couldn't decide on a specific car. Andrea said that her hubby didn't really have a favorite, but I know my fair share of Nascar fans and while they might not always have a favorite, they ALWAYS have drivers that they don't care for. (I couldn't imagine putting a Jeff Gordon car on a cake for my dad!) So, I played it safe and tried to mimic the Nascar logo in the design.
You'll have to excuse the poor photo...I can't ALWAYS have a professional photographer for my personal use! :)

fabulous 50...

I know I haven't posted in a while, but that's not because we haven't been doing anything...quite the contrary...it has been VERY busy 'round here!
Collin is adjusting to his life as a preschooler. He still cries when we take him in to school, but his teachers have reported the last two days that he hasn't been crying throughout the day. He also has lots to tell me when I pick him up so I know he's having a good time.
Emie is thoroughly enjoying staying with "Doo Mama" (that's what the kids call my mom...I have no clue where they got it from) without her big brother. I was a little worried that she would get bored and miss him, but she seems to like not having to fight over toys or fight for attention.
School is well underway. I have a brand new group of fifth graders and I can tell that its going to be a good year. The classroom is super cute (pics to come in a few days) and we are getting settled into a much needed routine. It has been hard to adjust to being up so early, but we're getting there. I think I'm going to ask Santa for a Keurig coffee maker for Christmas to help in that process.
You will also be proud to hear that I am well on my way to reaching my 5K running goal! Last night I finished Week 6, Day 1! I made it through week five and that ever so scary 20 minute run last weekend. I actually did the run twice. I did it once on Friday, but nine minutes into the run a breaker tripped and I: 1) almost face planted the front of the treadmill and 2) lost my concentration and determination. I finished the run, but it was MISERABLE! I spent the whole time watching the timer. Overall, I give it a C-. So, on Saturday I tried the run again...I unplugged everything in the room to make sure the breaker behaved, filled my headphones with Black Eyed Peas and I DID IT!!! I was so proud!
While everything else has been busy, I'm proud to say that emiecakes has been busy, too. A few weeks ago, I got a phone call from Kristin L. Kristen's mom is turning 50 and she and her sister have been planning a party to celebrate the occasion. She sent me a few pictures of cakes that she liked and I drew up a sketch, taking all the best features from each cake.
When I dropped off the sketch to her sister, Kaitlin, she showed me the plates that they found for the party. They were the cutest things ever! They were bright and colorful and fun. I immediately wanted to change the design of the cake to compliment the plates. Thankfully, the girls agreed and it turned out to be ADORABLE!

When Kristin picked up the cake today, I asked her if it was a surprise. She admitted that her mom was "nosy" :) and that she thought she had an idea that something was up...
I know she is very lucky to have such sweet and thoughtful daughters and I hope that she had a wonderful time at her party.

collin's first day of preschool (in 2009)...

Some of you may remember that last year, we tried our hand at daycare. Well, we're putting the past behind us and we're starting over!

Today was Collin's first day of 3 year old preschool! There were tears, but we survived it. His teacher said he cried off and on throughout the day and he was very teary when I picked him up, but he also told me about all the fun things he did and the friends he made. When I asked him why he cried, he told me that he was a little "nerbous".

I don't want to talk about it anymore because I have to leave him again tomorrow and I'm already "nerbous", but I'll share these pics from this morning:

We got up a lot earlier than usual...everyone wasn't this happy:


Here's Collin with his new "book pack". Teresa looked EVERYWHERE to find the perfect orange one. (Orange was Collin's request...still trying to figure that one out.) (BTW: Collin's hair is wet from his morning bath.)



While we were taking pictures, Collin kept saying, "Hurry up...I don't want to be late. My teacher will be so worried about me."




And now we're in the car...notice that Collin has his "bank bank"...I'm wondering if he'll let it go by the time he goes off to college?


I love you Collin and I am SO proud of you!!!

update...

The best advice I can give anyone who is interested in any kind of fitness goal is this: GET A BUDDY! Last night after the kids went to bed, I did the final run for week 4 of my 9 week program (couch to 5K). I'm not gonna lie...it was HARD!!! All in all, it was a miserable run. I was seriously doubting myself and I thought that I might have to extend week 4 before moving on. The fact that there is a 20 minute run at the end of week 5 didn't help my outlook.
Today was a pretty busy day...it was Collin's first day of preschool (I'll post pics later tonight.) so I took my mind off things by working in my classroom. (Thanks for your help, Laken.) To get back to the story, I was EXHAUSTED and looking forward to getting home and relaxing while I caught up on some DVR'd shows. I grabbed my phone and checked my Facebook page and what did I see? Little Miss Teresa had already finished Day 1 of Week 5!!! After I called her an ugly name...right out loud, I decided that I couldn't let her beat me. So, I laced up my running shoes, grabbed my ipod and hit the road! (Actually the treadmill, but whatev.)
It was definitely hard, but I cannot tell you how proud I am of myself every time I finish a run. I'm still dreading Day 3 (20 minute run) and I'm too exhausted to even get off the couch right now and eat dinner with JP and the kids (thanks for taking over tonight, babe), but I did it!!! If I didn't have my running buddy to push me along and keep me accountable, I'd be halfway through a back episode of Rachel Ray right now. I still plan to squeeze that in after the kids go to bed, but now I'll be able to enjoy it without guilt. Thanks, Teresa for the motivation...we're gonna rock that 5K!!!

happy birthday mykelyn

I've had the pleasure of meeting little Miss Mykelyn many times. She is a petite, sweet little girl who will be turning three very soon. She's having a birthday party tomorrow and when her Daddy asked me to make her cake, I knew that it had to be extra special.
Just like her cousin, Madelyn, she is a "princess" so a crown was definitely in order. The soft colors and piping details make this the perfect cake for sweet Mykelyn. Happy Birthday!




Photos courtesy of memoriesnmore.

down...set...hike...

It's almost that time, friends...my husband's favorite time of the year...Christmas? No. Football season...yes! Before you know it, it will be time for tailgating and cheering on your favorite team. (Go Dawgs!) This is a cake that I made for Toby's 34th birthday...he's as big a football fan as my husband. (Even though his game day attire is generally crimson, not red.)
Here's a pic of the cake before I personalized it.

And now a proper birthday cake for an Alabama fan...

One of the best things about this cake was that we got to help eat it! Collin could hardly wait...he'd been patient all day long!

Emie ate a little too much and eventually crashed from her sugar high...

This cake was a lot of fun to make and it was extra special because I made it for a very special friend. Happy Birthday "Mr. Toby".

All pics courtesy of memoriesnmore