Two Cakes in Two Days

It's been quite an intense week of baking! I made two cakes in the last two days, one for a friend's bridal shower and the other for a different friend's birthday. They're somewhat similar because flowers are just about the only real decorations I can do! Next week I start my last cake decorating class, Gum Paste & Fondant, so hopefully I'll learn new techniques. I've added pictures of the latest cakes. The first one, the white one, is my friend's bridal shower cake. The second one is my friend's birthday cake, in case you couldn't tell by the bright "Happy Birthday" across it. (Both were given a lomo effect.)

Hot Pockets

So I was playing Rock Band at a friend's house and we watched the "Can I have your numba?" video. Apparently there are still people left that haven't seen it and I thought I would enlighten them by posting it. But "embedding is disabled by request" so no luck, kids. However, a friend sent me a video of this routine by Jim Gaffigan and it was awesome so instead I'm enlightening you to the humor of Hot Pockets. Enjoy :)

The God Who Only Knows Four Words

Today I thought about a poem that I read awhile ago and thought I'd share it with you. It's interesting and I think it speaks on the simplicity of God's love. As if to emphasize that point, it's a very simple poem. Any thoughts on it?

The God Who Only Knows Four Words

by Hafiz

Every
Child
Has known God,
Not the God of names,
Not the God of don'ts,
Not the God who ever does
Anything weird.
But the God who only knows four words
and keeps repeating them, saying:
"Come Dance with Me."
Come
Dance.

Back on Track

I've noticed that keeping up a blog has been good for me. It forces me to think about what's going on in my life and what I want to share with other people. I realized that I haven't posted anything in a while and as I sat down to write about something I realized...I have nothing to write about. I've been stagnant, content, fine. Don't get me wrong, it's good to sometimes be content, otherwise you're always anxious to move on and never enjoy anything. But I think we blur the line between content and complacent. Here's what Webster says:

Content -adjective, noun, verb -satisfied with what one is or has
Complacent -adjective -pleased, especially with oneself or one's merits, advantages, situation, etc., often without awareness of some potential danger or defect

In other words, the two are very similar. The main difference is that ending: "often without awareness of some potential danger or defect." Complacent means that we are content in the face of danger. We sit down and pick flowers in the middle of the battle field. I realize that I've been doing just that and it's time to get up, get back on track. Last week, I watched a Rob Bell video (hold the comments) about anger and he said that some people are just looking for a fight because they're not in one. Wow. This is a great point and I think that same problem can be what leads to complacency. "I'm fine. Things aren't great but they're not bad, either. I don't really have anything to get worked up over."

Now is the time to get worked up! This doesn't mean pick a fight with your neighbor; it means pick a fight with the devil. I'm done waiting for something to happen when I could be doing something now. What is that something? What really ticks you off? What injustice just drives you up the wall whenever you see it? Find it and then find ways, little ways, to eradicate it around you.Here's my example: I hate hearing girls nonchalantly insult themselves, as if it's simply a matter of fact. I hate how much the enemy robs them of their worth. How will I fix it? I'll make a point of complementing the girls around me, make them feel good, show them that someone sees them. This is my baby step. What will yours be? I'd love to hear from you :)

You're Beautiful

I love being a girl so much. One of the things I love about being a girl is that it's perfectly acceptable (and normal, really) to comment on how good other girls look. Do guys do anything like that? Just a side thought. Anywho...

Today I was leaving the supermarket and as I was walking across the parking lot, I saw a woman walking across the lot the other way. I noticed that I really liked her dress and that it looked great on her. Then I was struck by a simple thought, "She's really beautiful." I wanted to tell her how nice her dress looked but she was too far away by then. But I was a bit ashamed that I didn't say anything because it made me wonder if anyone else did or would tell her. How many girls spend their whole days looking and being lovely without being told so? Honestly, most of us probably do unless we have gentlemen to tell us so (and if those gentlemen ever come across this post, know that we appreciate you immensely). So I'm just giving you a friendly reminder that you are beautiful and captivating and if he hasn't already found you, there's a perfect man looking for you. In the meantime, remember that God is telling you that every single day! After all, He made you in His image so you look perfect! Think about that for a second. This isn't just a great guy telling you this. This is the creator of the world, the lord of lords, the king of kings, who can do absolutely anything He wants. And what did he do? He created YOU so that He could hang out with you and tell you how much He adores you. Wow. Think about that when you wake up tomorrow and see how you spend your day then. And tell another girl! No matter who it comes from, being reminded that we're beautiful makes our day. Hope this helps :)

Okay, one more side note: Now you may tell yourself how much your jiggly thighs bother you and that's fine; so do I! There's nothing wrong with wanting to take care of your body. The important part is not to forget that you're already beautiful. A little maintenance is perfectly okay :)

First cake adventure!

This last Saturday I finished my basic cake decorating class! We were told to bring a frosted cake to class and we could spend the whole class decorating it. Since my friend was having her birthday party the next day, I made the cake for her. It was a funfetti cake with a strawberry jam filling and cream cheese frosting. Her favorite color is yellow so I put yellow roses (that eventually turned gold) on it and a beaded border. It turned out great and my friend loved it :)

I learned two lessons: 1) Always level your cakes. This is something I don't normally do because I don't know how and I'm afraid to waste cake. It's worth it. Putting two cakes together that have domed in the oven is a recipe for disaster. 2) Paste dyes are great because they're concentrated and don't thin the frosting. However, the color matures! I would mix it and get a nice color but every time I looked at it, it would get darker and darker and I'm pretty sure at one point I yelled at the frosting, "Stop doing that!" So...yeah, be careful with your coloring.

Cupcakes!

So I've been taking a cake decorating class at Michael's, the local craft store. Tomorrow is my last class and then I will have completed the decorating basics class :) For a basics class, I sure feel like I learned a lot! I can make stars, shell borders, rosettes, basketweaves, roses, and a bunch of other techniques. I can't get a job until summer because I don't have time for it now so I'm hoping to sell some nice cupcakes for a bit of money. Does $10/dozen sound reasonable for customizable cupcakes?

By the way, my final project is to decorate a full cake. Pictures coming soon :)