Crazy About Cupcakes

I finally placed my order tonight for the Scentsy July Warmer of the Month.  I love it...cupcakes...pink...and green... all of my favorite things.  I cannot wait for it to arrive.  I am also thinking of selling Scentsy... anyone sell it and have any opinions?

I have started to work on my etsy bake shop - Betty Ray's Bakery and hope to have it up and running my mid-August.

I have a super generous giveaway coming soon from an online store that sells the cutest baking mixes for cupcakes and whoopie pies...  You won't want to miss this giveaway.

Insta-Friday & Moving Sucks

I really want to post about the catastrophe our move has been... but will wait until I have calmed down... But I will say this... moving sucks.  Graebel Movers sucks.  I will definitely be sharing more details soon... as I am sure I will have plenty time... as I sit and wait for our stuff to arrive...as I was know told it's coming later than scheduled... augh.....

I love my iPhone.  I love instagram.  I love taking photos with my iPhone and turning them into instagram photos.

As you can probably tell I also like to make some words larger and add lots of these ... when I post.

I am trying to add in a little humor... when I really want to cry... but I am at Panera (because I couldn't sit for one second longer at the house waiting for the movers) ... and it would be weird if I cried in Panera.  I wish Panera served alcohol... I don't usually drink, but if they served alcohol... I sure would have ordered something.

I had this instead... the Bacon Turkey Bravo...minus tomato -

This morning...when we learned the movers would be delayed... we all took a nap.  Here is Maddie... she was at the end of our bed...and her pillow had fallen off -

Here is another photo I took of our house yesterday morning -

Hopefully... now that the moving truck has arrived and my husband is at home dealing with it... the rest of the evening will go smoothly.  The rest of the evening includes a 3.5 hour ride to my parent's house...

I am linking up here -

Packing Day

The moving company sent out two ladies Thursday morning to pack up our house.  I took this photo of our house Thursday morning before heading out to a doctor's appointment.

I will definitely miss this house...our first home together...our neighborhood...the pool...and all of the great shopping and restaurants that are so close by.

It's happening... we are really moving... the boxes are starting to stack up...  I am so thankful the company is packing and moving us...

Erin Condren Weekly Life Planner - includes a CODE

I bit the bullet and ordered my Erin Condren planner.  I am so excited to get it in the mail.  I have been reading on other blogs about them.  With a new move in a few days, a new town, new jobs, new schools, etc... I need this to keep me organized. 

I got a fabulous deal on it using my code from Plum District.  I paid $25 for a $50 credit.  My planner is regularly priced at $50.   * I never would have spent the full $50... simply because I am currently not working and working on budgeting *  I also used code WELCOME10 to save an additional $10... which basically made my shipping free...and I still have a $1.66 credit left on my account.  I sure do love a big deal.  I ordered the multicolored one in the middle that will have our names on it!!

** I am in no way affiliated with Erin Condren.  I've just been reading other blog raves about them and was interested.**

Life is GOOD ~ What I'm Loving Wednesday

I am linking up with This Kind of Love for What I'm Loving Wednesday... and today is a GOOD one.

1. I am loving that today is our last Wednesday in Virginia Beach.  We move on Friday...will be spending 2 days with my parents...and then get to our new house Monday morning.  I will miss my co-workers, friends, our home, and all of the fun places to shop and eat at.  But, I am so open to all of the opportunities moving will provide.

2. I am loving my positive experience at the doctor's today. I posted awhile back about my struggles with having a baby.  Today was finally my appointment.  I have a nurse practitioner I see as my gynecologist and she is amazing.  She's like a girlfriend and she is super easy to talk to and down to Earth.  I shared my issues with her today and she was so positive and amazing.  She said everything appears to be fine.  She told me to relax and to stop peeing on sticks (easier said than done). I have been down in the dumps about this recently...and I left her office today with a renewed sense of faith and hope.  She ran some tests today and I go back for one more test in the morning.  We'll talk via phone once we move about the results and what to do next...if anything.

3. I am loving lots of visits with friends before we move.  We've had lots of fun lunches, little shopping trips, and even a trip last night to Chuck E Cheese. We went earlier this week to visit Madison's French teacher who just had a baby.  We brought them glazed spice apple muffins.  Madison was thrilled to hold baby Joseph.  He was crying.  Madison held him and rocked him and soon he was fast asleep.

4. I am loving having my husband home.  After 6 weeks of being apart (even though we saw one another twice during the separation) because he was working in Rhode Island my husband flew home this afternoon to help with the move.  It is so nice to have him back home.  We had dinner tonight at Buffalo Wild Wings with two sets of friends and their boys, Austin and Connor {seen below}.  Then we went out for frozen yogurt.  Our family will sure miss these families and their sweet boys.

5. I am loving that I got an awesome email today in regards to my little etsy shop about designing some wedding invitations for a customer.  I cannot wait to get started.

A Super Sunday

Today was our last Sunday in Virginia Beach.

We met Kara and Connor from Happy Go Lucky at California Pizza Kitchen for a super tasty lunch.

Then we wandered around the fabric store.

Then I took Madison to the mall.  We stopped first at Barnes & Noble... $53.00 later she picked up two books, I picked up two books for my nephew, and this book I have been wanting to read since I read an excerpt in People magazine.

Then we headed to Old Navy to use up a Groupon.  Madison ended up with two pairs of denim capris and a shirt - and I only paid about $7.00.

Then we went to Macy's...where we found this in the juniors department... so INAPPROPRIATE!! Who would buy this for their teenager anyways?

Then on our way out...because it is soooo hot here we stopped and each got a shaken passion fruit tea lemonade at Starbucks.

In a little bit I am going to bake pineapple carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.  Madison's French teacher had a baby who we are going to visit tomorrow and we are going to bring them a half dozen.

Then I am going to read and work on a few things around the house.

All and all it has been a great final Sunday here.

Guess WHOOO Moved?

I created these announcements to announce our move.  Today when I got a coupon code from Shutterfly for 50 FREE prints... I uploaded the JPEG file and placed my order.  It ended up costing me about $3.20 for just the shipping.  I am so excited for them to come so I can share them with our family and friends.  If you are moving soon...and you are interested in a personalized digital file, leave a comment and let me know and I will contact you to create one for you.  I can even add more or less owls for you...and change the color of the leaves on the tree.

{This...obviously is not our personal information...I changed it so I could share the design with you}

Insta Friday

I am linking up today for Insta Friday.  I really should be working on cleaning, organizing, and packing for my move...sigh.  Instead here I am sharing my Instagram photos...and reading blogs, which is pretty much why I have accomplished nothing all summer.

I recently discovered a cool new way to print Instagram photos... It's is a an app called Postagram which is a free app.  It makes a post card style 3x3 print for just 99 cents!!  I cannot wait to place my first order.

Do you print your Instagram photos? If so, which service do you use?

The Oreo cupcakes I made the other night ... recipe to come soon.

A Prickly Pear Margarita I ordered at our anniversary lunch..having no idea it would come out pink with a lime in it.  Pink and green were our wedding colors.

A favorite photo I took of the cupcakes I did for the recent wedding.

The Details of my First Baking Job w/ Lots of Photos

Back in late June I was a little surprised/flattered when I received a text from my friend Amy asking me if I would be willing to do her cupcakes for her July 16th wedding.  Amy and I were roommates our sophomore/junior years in college and have kept in touch ever since.  She actually attended my wedding last summer with her then fiance.

Amy and I planned a time in early July to meet for a taste test.  She really enjoyed the samples and she decided on 3 flavors for the cupcakes and for her cut cake.

My mom's kitchen table set up for the taste test.

I then set out to get everything together.  I had to shop for all of the ingredients, purchase the cupcake liners, purchase ribbon to decorate the cupcake display boxes, and order boxes to transport the cupcakes.  See... I currently live about 3.5 hours from the wedding site.

I baked all day Thursday.  I ended up making 2 batches of pineapple carrot cupcakes (which later would be covered with cream cheese frosting), 1 batch of almond coconut cupcakes (which later would be covered with butter cream and coconut) and 3 batches of chocolate buttermilk cupcakes and a 3 layer 6 inch wedding cake (to later be covered with cream cheese frosting).

Madison was a great help and was in charge of the cupcake liners and assembling the boxes I ordered from Bake a Box.  Let me just say... I totally forget where I heard about this NC based company, but their customer service was top-notch, the boxes were so high quality, and the shipping was super fast.  I will definitely be ordering again.

My little helper... who incidently had on a cupcake shirt.

Friday we loaded up the car with 150 cupcakes and the cake to travel to my mom's where I would make the frosting and frost and decorate everything.  The ride was supposed to take 3.5-4 hours.  It took 6.  The highway shut down at one point after we had been sitting there for 2 hours.  I wanted to scream.

My car packed and ready to go.

We got to my mom's.  After I rested for a bit I dove into frosting and decorating.

I opened up a tutorial on frosting a layer cake that I had pinned on Pinterest to follow.

The chocolate buttermilk cupcakes packed up for delivery.

One of the chocolate buttermilk cupcakes

Saturday afternoon my husband and I delivered everything to the country club the wedding was being held at and started to set up.  We were lucky in that we got to return a few hours later to attend the wedding.

The three of us about to leave for the wedding.

I made this sign to let the guests know the different flavor choices

A close up of the coconut cupcakes.

The bride and groom about to cut the cake.

The cake after the cut a little piece to feed to one another.

It was an amazing success.  The bride and the groom loved the display and the taste of their cake and the cupcakes.  It was nice to see other guests reactions to the display and to see how much the enjoyed the cupcakes.  I am so thankful for the opportunity Amy and Scotty gave me to do this.  I wish them a lifetime of happiness.







SO WHAT! Wednesday!

I am linking up today for So What! Wednesday at Life After I Dew.

So what if we have eaten at Moes more time since my husband has been working out of town than we have in the past two years... we like it, it's somewhat good for you {well minus the cup of queso we get every time we go}, and it's affordable.  We went there today for lunch - they were giving away free cups of queso.

So what if after Moe's we went to Michael's Arts & Crafts...and I bought more stuff... that I don't need, but it was on sale, or on clearance, I had a coupon, and I wanted it.  I do have some fun crafty ideas in mind for my purchases.

So what if our movers come in 8 days...and I have done NOTHING to prepare.  Meaning... my bedroom closet still looks like a mild episode of Hoarders.  The positive is once they come... the movers will pack up the entire house.  Thank god.

So what if today when I called to get our gas shut off next week... the old man helping me couldn't hear worth a shit.  So when he read back my email address...and it was totally effed up, I just said, "yep...that's it", because I did not have the patience to repeat myself for the 25th time.

So what if I am slightly addicted to a new show my husband and I discovered when I visited Rhode Island earlier this month called Hard Time.  It's a reality show about prison life and I love watching it.

So what if I still have no definite clue as to how I will be bringing in some sort of income once we move... I've got lots of leads...and a really great one that sorta fell into my lap last night... but nothing definite.  I am trusting that everything will work out the way it is supposed to.

So what if the 4 out of the 5 books I bought to read this summer have not been read.  I must work on this.

So what if I am too lazy to look for fun photos to go along with today's post...

My First Wedding {Baking} Job = Success

This past weekend I had the amazing opportunity to make the wedding cake and cupcakes for my friend Amy's wedding.  It was my first major paid baking job to help launch my baking business and it was a huge success.  I will be sharing more about the process...the recipes...and the fabulous comments I overheard (because we were also guests).  But here is a sneak peek of what I created -

Would You Let Casey Anthony Babysit for You?

They showed this clip on The View Thursday morning.  Did anyone else see it? Very interesing.  What are your thoughts?

She definitely would never be babysitting for my children!!

A Baking Frenzy

Today I am a crazy baking lady.

I am doing a wedding this weekend.

Yesterday I picked up of these jumbo sizes baking items at BJ's.

I still had to go to the regular grocery store for some other items I needed in small quantities.  On Tuesday, Kara, from Happy Go Lucky, came over and helped me re-decorate the cupcake tower I am going to display them on.

I am baking 48 Chocolate Buttermilk cupcakes, 48 Carrot Pineapple cupcakes, and 24 Coconut Almond cupcakes, as well as a 6 inch Chocolate Buttermilk cut cake for the bride and the groom.  I am also going to do a seperate 6-pack of cupcakes for the bride and groom to enjoy when they leave the wedding or the next day since they are not leaving for a week for their honeymoon. 

I am honored they selected me to do the baking for their wedding.  I am also fortunate enough to attend the wedding.  My former college roommate, Amy, is getting married.  I hope I hear only positive remarks from the other guests about my cupcakes...

MTV's 16 & Pregnant Adoption Special

I will admit it.  I am 33.  I watch 16 & Pregnant and Teen Mom.  I watch it every single week.

I guess in some ways its like watching a train wreck.

Sometimes there are story lines which I really think are amazing.

Such as the story of Catelynn and Tyler.

{Source}

Now I mean this in the nicest possible way... Catelynn and Tyler...well they don't come from the best families.  Tyler's dad is remarried to Catelynn's mom.  His dad is now in jail.  Catelynn's mom is a poster child for poor parenting.  It is amazing that out of all of the episodes of this I have watched... I think Catelynn and Tyler are the smartest out of all of them.

Catelynn and Tyler chose to give their baby up for adoption make a life plan for their baby.   On last night's adoption special they had a guest on there who said it is best to refer to adoption in this way.  It makes sense.  Catelynn and Tyler knew their baby would have a much better life with a more established family.  They placed Carly with Brandon and Teresa.

{Source}

On last night's episode Brandon and Teresa were on there talking about their life with Carly.  They even showed a video of her.  Their story is such a fabulous example of everything wonderful about adoption.

While watching it I was sobbing... like a hysterical sobbing mess.  I just think it is such a great story.  I wish adoption was more affordable for average-middle class people who want babies.  I wouldn't mind adopting a baby... I just think it is so expensive.

Did you watch? What were your thoughts on the special?

Tuesday Randoms

Here are some things going on in our lives...

I painted this monogrammed canvas this weekend to match with the new fabric I bought for our new living room. I love how it turned out -

I also painted these blocks and stamped letters on them to spell out words.  These will also end up in the new living room -

 

I have my first real baking job this weekend.  I am going the wedding cake and cupcakes for my former college roommate's wedding.  I am so thankful for the opportunity she has given me and feel honored to be baking for her wedding.  They chose to go with a chocolate buttermilk cake with cream cheese icing for their cake to cut.  Guests will be served a choice of three cupcake flavors - chocolate buttermilk with cream cheese frosting, coconut cake with butter cream frosting, or pineapple carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.  I have a lot of grocery shopping and baking ahead of me in the upcoming days.

 



I am trying to get as much time in as possible at our neighborhood pool before we move.  It is never crowded and we are usually the only guests there...like today.  Madison and I went for a few hours yesterday with her friend Nikayla.

 

Can I once again proclaim my un-affiliated love for Groupon.  I had a not so hot experience with a recent Groupon I purchased from a place that turns photos into canvas (Picture it on Canvas).  It was my second time ordering from them.  The first time I had a great experience...this time not so much.  Think unanswered emails, false promises, and a super long time to receive my canvas...  I emailed Groupon and within a few hours I had a full refund for the price of the Groupon.  They have fabulous customer service at Groupon and therefore I will continue my obsession with buying Groupons.  All I wanted was to get this photo put on canvas in a timely manner --

 

I cannot even count how many times Madison and I have dined at Moe's since my husband has been working out of town...probably way more times than we ate there when he was here.  Back when I was a single mom...we ate there all of the time.  It is one of her favorite places.  It is affordable and we like the food...plus I don't have to cook.  I am trying to get my fridge cleaned out so I can store cupcakes for this wedding.  Tonight the burritos were only $5...so I had mine in a bowl.  They had a sign up today that said on July 20th...you get a free cup of queso with your purchase.  I texted my husband to share and he said "I guess I know where you all will be on the 20th".  Ummm...yep.