My cake from my last basic Cake decorating class

Last night was my last night in the "Basic Cake Decorating" Class I was taking. We learned how to make ribbon roses, I still need to practice a bit but I got my cake done, and I thought it turned out pretty good.... I should have written 'Think Spring' on it instead of 'Happy Spring' since we woke up to snow this morning and spring seems to not want to be here.


now starting Tues., May 3rd I get to start the 'Fondant and Gum Paste" Class. Woo hooo!! Anyone need a cake?

HAPPY EASTER and I feel spring in the air!

Happy Easter!! What a lovely day today was!! I got to sleep in and when I woke up I ate whopper eggs!! nothing better.
Today was warm and sunny! I think we got up to 60 degrees and no wind!! woo hoo!!! As I was puttering around the house making dinner, and getting ready for church, I looked outside and there was a Robin under our pine tree.....

he's under there... click on the pic and you can see it big.
There are also a few dandilions peeking up out of the grass much to Jim's utter dismay...

He's proud when are yard is dandilion free.
And the willow tree is starting to look green....

But alas..... here comes a cat...

click on the pic and you can see him bigger too. He was looking very hungrily at my poor robin friend....

So I scared the cat away... and stood guard over my robin.. I think he was hurt cuz he didnt' fly away...
and I noticed there were buds on the other trees...

and yes... here is one more little pic of my robin

See.... Spring is here, and on this Easter morning it was showing signs of new life everywhere after a very long winter. And after all, today is all about the Hope of new life after we die isn't it ? and the hope the Resurrection of Jesus Christ brings in our lives... the hope of seeing loved ones again that have gone, and being together with our families forever. I can think of nothing better.
What a lovely day.......

my cake class....

Can I just say I'm having sooooo much fun in my cake class!! Last Thursday, we filled and decorated cupcakes. We learned a few different ways to make icing flowers. Here's my cupcakes... they kind of got smooshed in the tupperware on the way home, they tipped over... but they look okay.

Emily and I are taking the class together... we get the giggles quite a bit. This week the blue cupcake reminded me of a hydrangea flower, and I tried to say it out loud, and totally said it wrong, I think I pronounced it like "hi-dredge-knee-ah" which made the whole class laugh, and I laughed so hard I nearly cried. So fun.....
Saturday I had a tall cake clas, and we learned how to stack cakes by putting dowels in them for more support and how to use pillars and plates. Then we got to just decorate them how we want! It was soo fun, everyone did an Easter themed cake, of course. I like mine. It was definetly fun! Can't wait till I learn how to make fondant and gumpaste flowers!! I'm taking that class in May!


Hopefully we get alot of people to help eat this on Easter Sunday.
Now I just need to figure out how to NOT eat the frosting while decorating the cake... hmmmmmmmmm.

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Today is my 29th birthday........again. :o)
No...it's really my 47th... but I only feel 12. I have had a fun day so far. I had to work but only till noon. My boss gives us the afternoon off with pay on our birthdays. I also got a way cute card signed by all my co-workers! I've gotten lots of cards, and a book (chicken soup for the sister's soul) from my sister Marilyn. My Visiting teacher gave me flowers!!

I love flowers!! And I bought myself a new purse today!! I went with my friends that were in Young Women's to Red Robin in Idaho Falls and got my fave (the Banzai Burger) and then of course Rose had to tell the waitress it was my birthday, so I got sung to, and got an ice cream sunday, and of course the above picture! :o) Then we went to Target and I found a purse...

I needed a new one.
I'm sooooo full right now, I dont' think I will eat the rest of the day....except maybe when I make cupcakes to take to work tomorrow! :o)
Birthdays are good, it's fun to have all the attention for a day!

I did make myself and work some cupcakes!!




They were delicious!!

A little inspiration.....

My boss sent this message around to all of us at work the other day. It motivated me into calling and taking my cake decorating class..... now I'm going to try to do the little exercise at the end...
It was such a good message I thought I would share.


Robbins: Lead Your Life
It's time to push yourself and your life forward.

Do you want to be the leader of your own life? No problem. Just do the things you don’t feel like doing. That’s how you become your own leader. Of course, that’s easier said than done because we’ve all trained ourselves to do only what we feel like doing.

Consider this common morning routine as an example. The alarm goes off. The sound seems to start somewhere behind your eyeballs. You instantly press the snooze button. Silence returns and you consider your options. Today was supposed to be the fifth day of your new exercise program. But it feels awfully early to be getting out of bed and walking across the cold floor in your bare feet.

You think about that calendar on the closet wall where you stuck four gold stars after each run, and it suddenly strikes you as ridiculous, a cheesy strategy to trick yourself into following through on a commitment. You know that it’s important to stick to your goals, but there’s nothing inspiring at all about getting up in the morning. It sucks. Whose dumb idea was it to promise to exercise anyway? One day off won’t matter that much. You close your eyes and feel the welcome lull of sleep come over you.

A few minutes later the alarm sounds, and you hit the snooze again. You’re not feeling up for the exercise. Your knee was bothering you yesterday, so it’s probably better not to push it too hard. You fall asleep again.

The alarm rings, but at this point it’s too late to jog anyway. You hit snooze and drift off again.

No single invention has so perfectly captured the perverse power of the mind to defeat its own best intentions as the snooze button. Every grand resolution, every promise you’ve ever made to yourself, every good intention can be instantly wiped away with a simple press of a button. The snooze button is the perfect symbol of human resistance and the emblem of anyone who feels stuck—stuck in a dead-end job, stuck in a holding pattern, stuck in a stale relationship, stuck with a flabby body, stuck with a bunch of cool ideas that you never find the time to execute … just plain stuck.

Everyone already has a snooze button pre-installed inside them. It’s always there if you want to use it, and use it we do. We come up with every imaginable excuse to delay, avoid and stay stuck right where we are.

The fastest way to become a leader is to start acting like one. Try this variation on an exercise I suggested a few months ago: Set your alarm for 30 minutes earlier than you normally wake up. Tomorrow morning, as soon as the alarm sounds, open your eyes, throw off the covers, sit up, put your feet on the floor and stand up. Your day starts now. No pillow over the head. No snooze. If you lie in bed more than 10 seconds before standing up, you fail the test. If you can do this exercise successfully for fi ve days straight, you’ll see a significant shift in your ability to push yourself and your life forward.

Leaders don’t hit the snooze button in life, and now, neither will you.

my bucket list.....

I don't know if I have posted my bucket list before.... I think it changes every so often anyway. Did you see the movie "The Bucket List"? I liked it, and it makes you think. We're here to learn and grow and experience life. I want to better myself, and accomplish things that I've been dreaming about doing, but never pushed myself to do or been able to do in life yet. So here is my list so far...

1. Re-teach myself how to play the piano
2. Learn to play the harp... (I love harp music and cello music)
3. Take a cake decorating class and learn to make beautiful gum paste flowers
4. Learn to quilt... not just tie a quilt ..but really quilt
5. Hold my newborn grand-babies (that one is out of my control, but I still want to)
6. Own either a bassett hound named 'Rumpledinx' or a french bull dog named 'Newman'
7. Own my own little bakery shop or a catering business
8. Get back into the routine of exercising everyday like I used to.

That's it so far...As for # 2, Jim says I'm really good at harping already ...men! And as for # 6 which do you pick....

or

(I think I like the little French Bull dog... wouldn't he be cute following me around in my kitchen begging for a taste of whatever it is I'm cooking?) but then the bassett hound and I match.... long body, short legs. Hmmmmmmmmm......

Right now I'm accomplishing one of them. I randomly called 'Michael's' a couple of weeks ago because I heard they did "Wilton' cake decorating classes, and guess what?
They had one starting that very week! And for the month of April it was 50% off tuition!! I started taking them, it was a basic cake decorating class, and then next month a 'fondant, and gumpaste' class starts!! That's my dream come true!!! I took my first class on the 7th and mostly just listened that night. Then last night was my second class and we decorated our first cake. I know I kind of knew how to decorate cakes before, but that was just what I taught myself from watching the cake decorator at Albertson's. It's so fun to learn the technical way and learn little tips to help bake your cakes better, and make better frosting so the consistency helps with your decorating. My niece Emily is taking them with me and we have sooo much fun. If you know me, when I get excited about something, I get REALLY excited about it. I tend to blurt things out in class, and laugh when I'm happy things are turning out (kind of like a little evil villan laugh or something), I just seem to forget I'm not at home in my own kitchen!! Anyway... here's a pic of my first decorated cake... I know it's not really professional looking yet, and yes, I got crumbs in my frosting (frosting was too thick and the cake was soft) but I'm learning, and practice makes perfect, right?

The point is... I'm doing one of the things I've been wanting to do for a looonnnng time, and having fun while doing it! AND having a few good giggles with my niece.

Moving Sarah......

Sarah has moved to Provo. She absolutely loves it!!! I've missed her but I'm glad she is happy and content. All this week I couldn't help but think if the wedding wouldn't have been called off, this was the weekend she would have gotten married. Goodness that came up quick. Instead, she is living in a house with 2 other girls, and in Provo.
Sarah and her roomie Jamie...

Sarah and her roomie Jessica....

all 3 eating at Cheesecake factory.


Her backyard view is one of the beautiful Utah mountains, she's in a quiet neighborhood, only 15 minutes from BYU or UVU, and that's going down University Avenue instead of the Freeway. She's currently looking for a job, but has filled out lots of applications... wonder where she'll end up (please not a clothing store!! I know she would do good there, but the temptation would be too great to spend her paycheck!) Her roomies are way nice, Jessica, who's grandparents owned the house they are all renting, is 25, and she works at a scrapbook store?? I just remember she sold cricut accessories too, woo hoo!!! and Jamie, who is 26, and works at the hospital and is a CNA and going to school. I wonder if she knows some eligible doctors?? Hmmm......
Anyway, I need to back up. Last Thursday, we rented a U-haul trailer and loaded the many boxes, Sarah's bed, dresser's and new vintage vanity table into.

We packed our overnight bags, opened a new checking account for Sarah, in a bank that was both here and in Provo. Then after a good nights sleep we got up and hit the road!! It was a BEAUTIFUL day for a change, a little windy but not bad, and warm! Jim and Andy were in the truck pulling the trailer,

and Sarah and I were in her little car which was loaded with wall decor, and last minute things.

We had a good drive chatting, and visiting. We found her house when we got to Provo and got out to almost 80 degree weather!! I couldn't believe it!! She actually had tulips coming up in the flower beds at her house, and across the street she had a blossoming tree, (which made us both start singing, "I looked out the window and what did I see?") Oh she was so happy and excited!! We got the trailer unpacked, so JIm and Andy took it back to the U-haul place, while Sarah and I made her room liveable.
Then we went to our Motel, which was 20 minutes away in Orem, but nice, it was the Marriot townsuites, and you might as well just move in there for good!



Free continental breakfast, and it had a kitchen, tv, beds, bathroom, what more do you need? Anyway, after we got the suitcases out of the car and into our room,


we decided to go eat at the "Spaghetti Factory" Yummo!!!


We got our food, and Andrew had the meat lover's spaghetti which had meatballs, and italian sausage in a rich spaghetti sauce..... well it came to the table with 2 huge meatballs and a whole italian sausage.... think about what that must have looked like for a minute.....
As soon as the waiter put the plate down and left, we all looked at each other and burst out laughing....LOL
When we were done, we got up to leave and were by the door, when 30 uniform clad Navy men walked in, in single file... Sarah was in front of us, I was right behind her, and yes, she looked at each and everyone, the whole time saying.. "Oh my,..Oh my goodness... if I would have know this I would have dressed up!" "and Mom... did you plan this? is it a late birthday present?" She was in awe!!! I couldn't help but laugh....quite a few of the guys eyed her too. If this is any indication of what's in Provo... well she was happy.
Then Sarah and I got groceries for her house, and went back to unpack clothes. JIm and Andy relaxed in the motel. We had tickets for Conference on Sat. for the afternoon session. So after unpacking a few boxes and chatting with the new roomies, we decided to call it a night.
We got up and got ready for conference.

Andy and Jim had never been,


Sarah and I went last Fall, but she was in the media room. We left at 12:00 and parked in the Plaza motel parking garage, made it over for our session in plenty of time, we were even on the front row of our section!!

We got excellent seats!! We even saw a 'ghost'!!! (actually someone walked right in front of my camera while I took a pic, this is what it looked like)!



And visited with the little ladie missionaries that were ushers. Before you knew it it was time for the prophet to walk in. My goodness, that is a neat thing to experience!! imagine how it is right before sacrament meeting starts, with the talking only multiply that by 100, then all of a sudden in walks the prophet and his couselors, and the whole place is suddenly dead silent..... it makes your heart swell, and I think we all got tears in our eyes!! It was awesome. We enjoyed our session and the talks, and then made our way out of the conference center and back to the car.
We went to the Gateway mall, Jim needed a new holder for is I-phone. We ate at Thaiphoons, they have the best fried calimari ever, and then we went back to Provo. We changed and Sarah and I went to her place for more unpacking. We got a lot done, and then called it a night.
Sunday, we got up and went to Sarah's and got more of her things settled. This is her room, we had it mostly done, except she hung pictures up after we left.

I am glad I got to see her house and help unpack....Love her room!
We felt we needed to get going, so we ate at Texas Roadhouse before saying goodbye. That was hard for me. I cried. Sarah was excited, she felt like "I don't want to go home" and then realized, "wait, I live here now, I dont' have to go back" . This is the farthest from home Sarah has ever been. I guess it's time to cut the apron strings, but hard. I don't think she will ever move back home. I am just happy she is happy. Jim, Andy and I had a good, but long drive home. I cried off and on all the way back home. Sarah and I have been really close, and able to share a lot in this old world. I know if I keep praying for her to be safe, she will be.
Then it was time to unpack and get ready to start back in the real world of work and school.
I just hope and pray things will work out for Sarah, she can work, and finish school, and I pray she will meet the man of her dreams there, who will be the man she needs him to be.
I know if she prays, and goes to church and does what she's supposed to, the right guy will come along.
But for now, I think she's enjoying spreading her wings, and finding out what the world is like, outside of Blackfoot and Rexburg.(And after Andy saw what it was like, I think he will soon follow!)
We love you Sarah and Andy! and will support you with what ever you do and where ever you go! And you are always welcome back home. :o)