Baking Love

  I decided in the midst of all my "free time" that I would make cupcakes for all the teachers at Little School and a birthday cake for my dad.  It seemed like a great idea at Target as I tossed box after box of cake mix in the cart and rounded up a few canisters of frosting.  The cute cupcake liners were calling my name and I knew I wanted to do something for all of the teachers.  I think that sometimes we get so focused on teaching kids compassion or how to include others by making sure everyone gets a Valentine or birthday invites for the whole class, that we forget to take a moment and remember the people that help guide our children all day long.  The ones that chose to foster all these developing young minds.  This Valentine's Day my appreciation came in the form of 50 red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

  My trusted sidekick helped me pour all the ingredients in the bowl and watched carefully to make sure everything was thoroughly blended.  Then he took to the dishes.

  After a few dozen cupcakes, what is a few more, right?!  Although I was frosting cupcakes well until after midnight, I am glad that we were able to do a little something special.  

  Since I had the mix, I decided to make a cake for my dad's birthday.  Perhaps it is the sleep deprivation, but I completely forgot everything I knew about cakes and dumped a whole box worth of batter into an 8 inch round... Oops.  Much to my surprise, I did not end up burning the edges and bottom.  I was convinced I would have to throw the whole thing out, but apparently when you use applesauce instead of oil and sugar it keeps your cake quite moist... even after being forced to over bake it.  

Happy Birthday Dad!

  Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day!  

A little less Instagram and a little more melt down

If you did not know better, the pictures above would paint a cute little portrayal of happy stay at home mom life and cheerful outings.  Do not get me wrong, the joy is genuine.  The lunch dates were delightful and delicious.  W had a blast and there were no tantrums.  So, what's the problem, right?

I think it is safe to say that I have yet to find a happy balance between full time student and full time mom.  Yes it is only a few weeks into the semester, but last week in particular, I just found myself feeling very overwhelmed and guilty.  I felt like I was being pulled in all sorts of different directions, between studying for exams and trying to find the time to keep up with other coursework, and spending time with W (not just physically but actually being present mind and body), and doing any of the other things that need to get done on a regular basis.  When the day came that we were out of clean underwear, I was surviving merely on caffeine, and my test did not go as well as I hoped, I had a bit of a melt down.

I just felt so guilty.  Guilty that I needed my parents to help me with W.  Guilty that I bought lunch instead of made it.  Guilty that I did not make it to the gym.  Guilty that I could not keep up with all my assigned reading.  Guilty I did not put away all the toys.  Guilty that laundry was overflowing.  Guilty, guilty, guilty... that I could not do everything, but not just that I was not completing all these tasks, but that I was not giving 100 percent to everything or anything for that matter.  I started thinking, "What am I doing?  I went back to school to give myself and Little Man a better life and now we do not even have clean underwear."  Then it hit me, I am wildly overreacting!

This is not the end of the world and all my worrying is for nothing.  W is unfazed and enjoying time with Grammy and Pop.  The gym will be there tomorrow, next week, or even next year if it gets that serious, and my Pinterest vision of motherhood is designed to make me feel like a failure if I am not making my own baby wipes, creating hand made Valentine's day crafts from construction paper and cotton balls, and cooking 7 course meals with organic ingredients in my crock pot - in ten minutes of prep or less.

Regardless of whatever misguided notion of supermom I had in my head, I am glad that it drove me to go out on some pretty great Mom and Son dates.  It was nice to focus fully on just one aspect of my life, and if I had to choose one part of my life to devote all of my time to, I could not choose a better one than my little man!

While at the bookstore, I took the opportunity to pick up a little book about motherhood.

It is a collection of essays/stories written by numerous different moms serving as a reminder that no one is perfect and there is no perfect way, or one "right" way for that matter, to be a mom.

Cocktails and Cupcakes

I had the privilege this weekend to take a cupcake decorating class.  I was really excited to learn a few tricks since I have been on a Pinterest baking mission for a little while now and frosting or decorating is really where I have no clue what I am doing.  Not only was I excited at the thought of mastering cupcake art (and then getting to keep the ones I decorated), but my night out came with free cocktails, and the instructor just so happened to be, my oh so talented, girlfriend who makes all of my little man's birthday cakes.    

We started with a little tutorial on the different types of designs you can make and what tools are needed to craft the desired effect.  I personally enjoyed the star tip.  (It is quite difficult to make an ugly cupcake and even if you do, then you have a perfect opportunity to go buck wild with sprinkles).  I will say that the smooth iced cupcakes did get easier the more the I practiced.

We practiced a few different flowers, each deceivingly difficult in their own way, but just as with anything practice makes perfect.  If I ever find myself with some free time and a craving for butter cream I will practice some more hydrangeas.

I am not sure if it was all the flowers, the pretty pastels, the glass of wine, or just wishful thinking, but it was beginning to feel like spring may be nearing while decorating all my cupcakes.  The feeling quickly left after I stepped outside and into about a foot of snow.

This one is my favorite!

I think the combination of the rose and the fondant petals.  

It just looks so classy I do not want to eat it.

I would say the evening was a success.  If I am feeling really ambitious I will make a batch of cupcakes with all my new skills for the upcoming preschool Valentine's Day parties.  Thanks again Robbyn for the opportunity!  Check out other classes at Creative Cakes or just stop in for a delicious treat!

What do you mean school is not cancelled?

One of the major perks of being a student: Snow Days!  I personally would not know, as my teachers believe in preparing us for the real world (thanks), but W has had a few.  I would love to say that we have taken this opportunity to build a snow fort, bake delicious treats, or complete one of the oh so many toddler friendly Pinterest crafts, but alas we have not.

We have, however, listened to the Frozen soundtrack on repeat and devoured a lot of chicken noodle soup.  So that is the close, right?!

Hope everyone is staying warm!

More to come soon, perhaps during spring thaw, or even after my first round of exams when I am back to sleeping at night instead of studying.


After publishing this post, my class was cancelled due to bad weather... FINALLY!

Come inside, it's fun inside!

Meeska Mouska, W's 3!

Another party has come and gone, and as promised it was a Mickey spectacular!  You know what they say, "Go Big or Go Home," and we were already home, so...  

We knew that space was going to be limited this year, so we chose to have a small get together with some Grandparents, Godparents, and W's "Aunts."  Thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to come and celebrate our Little Man with us!  It is such a treat to have so many WONDERFUL people in our lives!  We had a blast and I think everyone else did too!

Well, everyone except this stinker!

Decor courtesy of Party City, Etsy (stubbornly crafty, paper party girls, Creative star designs,  fun cake studios,  and 21 creations), cake Robbyn Yuen via Creative Cakes, and photography Rachel Yuen and myself.

ABC 123

"A Child without education is like a bird without wings" -  Tibetan Proverb

I made a somewhat impromptu decision to go back to school this semester in the hopes of completing my psychology degree.  Luckily, I was able to find a preschool that had open enrollment.  A few days after W's birthday, we headed on over to check it out.  It is a stimulation overload for sure, but also a really great environment for little man's first experience the with school system.  He still goes back and forth on whether or not he likes school, but if I had to venture a guess, I would say school has been a big hit!  

Along with a new back pack and rocking some new school fashion, W's first week at school also means mini photo shoot!  

I am so proud of my little man.  He is off on a new adventure and taking preschool by storm.  Now just 20 more years and he will be done.  That is a little secret I am saving for later.

Happy Birthday Little Man

I do not know how it happened exactly, but somewhere between the holiday's wrappings and the tundra like temperatures, my sweet man turned 3!  In an effort to put more of my Pinterest pins in action, I lined the halls with balloons and decorated the mirror with birthday banner galore.  When the birthday boy woke up, he was greeted with a swarm of colorful 3 balloons.  

He spent the day jumping away in his new bouncer and somehow never tired.

We ended the day with a homemade Mickey birthday cake... although W claims that it was not a Mickey cake, because it was not in the shape of Mickey.  I put my pride aside, instead of trying to make my toddler appreciate all the handwork that went into crafting a cake in the shape of 3.

It has been such an incredible journey so far watching W grow and learn.  He definitely has developed his own personality and is becoming quite the character.  I cannot wait to watch all his dreams come true this year.  Nothing has made me prouder than being your Mama, Happy Birthday Boo Bear!