And Everything Sweet

3D Ice Cream Cone

2012-02-11T11:40:00.000-08:00

I want an ice cream cone cake!

Pretty please, with a cherry on top....

Welllllll, since you said please...

This one might be one of my new favorites! :)

Is that a foot??

2012-02-10T16:42:00.000-08:00

Just finished this little preggo belly cake for a mommy who apparently has a little kicker on her hands!! (requested a belly cake with a foot) lol This mama needs to have a few words with this little boy come delivery. Or perhaps he'll be a kicker for the NFL and it'll all be worth it one day. ;)

Can you see the little foot???

Cake POP Cupcakes

2012-01-31T07:00:00.000-08:00

Well, this solves the ever present dessert dilemma.
What should we have? Cake or cake pops?

ever have that problem?

Well, the answer is found in this 2fer cupcake.

Done. Check. Move on, Quandary solved. :)

I can't think of any better cupcake topper than a cake pop. Can you?!?!?

I made 24 of these bad boys for Bailey's Kindergarten class. Its Mrs Wilbanks' birthday...(thats her super sweet assistant teacher). I did my best to pack as much sugar into their class of 22 five and six year olds.

(can you hear my evil laugh as I sneak out of the building minutes before the sugar high craze begins)

wa ha ha ha ha

Crayon Box!

2012-01-27T19:01:00.000-08:00

This cake is for little Jaymee who is celebrating her first birthday this weekend with a CRAYON themed birthday party! :)

The theme came from Jaymee's obsession with her big sister's crayons. Her mama says she loves to just hold them, crawl around with them and occassionally eat them. (don't we all)

Happy birthday sweet Jaymee!!!!

Can't wait to see the creations you make one day with your beloved crayons! :)

Now, if you have a little crayon lover on your hands like Jaymee a crayon party is a must! :) I had a little fun putting together a few ideas that I found online to feed the obsession!

First off...a crayon wreath. How clever! LOVE. Check it and the party out here.
Going over to the right...you've seen the idea of melting a bunch of crayons together to make a new shape right? This would make a perfect craft at the party OR a party favor if you don't want to fool with it during the festivities. Source Wouldn't the birthday girl/boy's age make a perfect mold for your crayon? :)
Top right corner...initials made out of crayons. This would make a great centerpiece for a dessert table, food table or greeting table. Source
Balloons Balloons Balloons!! Every color, every size. :)
To the right of the balloons...edible crayons!! (pretzel rods covered in chocolate melts). Free crayon cover here.
Bottom left corner...how cute is this crayon box invitation!?!?! OMG LOVE IT!! FREE printable and instructions on how to make it!!!! SOURCE
Time to hit up the Dollar Tree!!! These cute 24 inch crayon banks make great decorations and/or party favors. $1 piece. DOLLAR TREE
And right below are some adorable crayon party hats found at orientaltrading.com
And last but not least, LOVE that beautiful colorful backdrop!!! Source

Sweetheart Pops

2012-01-22T12:52:00.000-08:00

Hi all!! Where have I been you ask?!?

Ping pong tournament with my husband...one on one...in our basement. Despite a lot of trash talking on my part and several "one last, best two out of three's" I have proved myself NOT the ping pong champion I thought I was. lol

That's right Brian, I said it, you're better than me (at ping pong).

Lets move on...

(nobody really cares about ping pong anyway...)

So, a couple of days ago I shared my tutorial for sweetheart cake pops over at the fabulous Skip To My Lou. In case you missed it over there, here it goes a second time.

These cuties are so easy to make! All you need is cake, icing, lollipop sticks, candy melts and a little heart cookie cutter (mine is about 1.5 inches).

First step, mix cake (a baked cake, not cake batter) and icing. If you have never made cake pops before you'll need to play around with the amount of icing you add to the cake. I wish I had an exact measurement, but I don't. I add my icing, little by little, until I reach the consistency of play doh (meaning you can play with it). ;)

I know mom! I'm stopping...

Ok, on to the next step...

Flatten your play doh work of art into a pancake about 3/4 of an inch thick...

and cut out your hearts...

Dip your lollipop stick into melted candy melts and then insert into the heart. (The candy melts help the cake to stay on the stick)

Now pop these suckers into the freezer for about 30 minutes to firm up.

30 minutes later...

(walk upstairs from the basement after losing AGAIN at ping pong and...)

Its showtime!!!!
Add a generous dollop of shortening to your candy melts and microwave your candy in 30 second intervals until melted. (the shortening helps thin the chocolate making it easier to cover)

Once your candy and shortening is melted and mixed together its time to dip that sucker!!!

BEAUTIFUL!!!

Now, set your heart pop on waxed paper to dry. Once dry you can eat them, gift them or just look at them (and even take a few pictures b/c you're so proud of how cute they turned out). :)

These little heart containers (they're found all over the place in the Valentines Day aisle) are the perfect size for these little treats!

Peacock Cake

2012-01-16T11:48:00.000-08:00

My 4am project...puppy cake!

2012-01-13T08:03:00.000-08:00

Ugh, don't you hate it when you can't sleep!?!?! This morning I woke up at 4, restless and ready to create. After about 20 minutes of "yelling" at myself to get back to sleep I gave up. I hopped out of bed, turned on the coffee maker and got to work.

So in the wee morning hours I made this cute little guy....if you're going to be up while its still dark and everyone else is sleeping its nice to have a cute little puppy dog keeping you company.

I also made a little bowl for this sweet puppy to eat her kibble out of. (kibble is Reese's Puff)

The girls about died when they saw this one. They see so many cakes coming in and out of the kitchen that the novelty has warn off. But every now and then they're impressed and this one definitely caught their eye. They wanted to eat it, really bad.

So Hannah, you better hurry over here before your cake gets gone! ;)

Happy puppy party Hannah!!!!!

DIY Magnet Frame!

2012-01-11T11:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, before I get started let me introduce you to my new favorite pen! How great is this guy?! I got him today. Doesn't he just make you want to smile? Everyone needs a pen that makes them giggle while signing all their money away during bill time. :)

Jealous of my new pen? Well, you can have one too! He is at the Dollar Tree where you'll be visiting to get the supplies you need to make my Dollar Tree magnet frame as seen in the tutorial below!!!

Grab your pen (hehe) and take notes!

Ok, so my buddy over at Shindig Parties to Go has a great new Valentines Day Collection out and it is a must have!! The minute I saw her FREEBIE for Hershey kiss covers (check them out) I immediatly thought about bottle caps. Bottle caps are a great embellishment for hair bows, necklaces charms, embellish any craft, magnets...did someone say MAGNETS! I want to make some bottle cap magnets! (I'm such a loser)

So I did....

Then I needed something to do with all these silly magnets. So I made something else. A little magnetic frame/message board. I made it for a little over a couple dollars kids. You still with me?

Step one: Go to the Dollar Tree and get yourself one of these fancy-smancy “silver” serving platters. I chose the square design. They have oval and rectangle. $1 I used Amanda’s Valentines Day collection for the paper background.
(immaturely giggling)

Once the paint has dried (or before you paint) make yourself a template of the inside. It makes cutting the paper you’ll be using so much easier. Then, using your template as a guide, cut out your paper to fit on the inside of the platter. It already looks cute!
If you want to make your frame/message board a hanging one you’ll need to get a hammer and a screw driver and knock two holes in it to tie ribbon through.

And don’t be hatin’ on my hammer y'all! It may not be much to look at, but it does the job!!) ;)
I want mine to be a desktop frame/message board so I let the long ribbon fall to the back (incase I change my mind) and tied a pretty little ribbon for the front (I tied it first and then hot glued it on). Sit it on a little frame easel (another dollar store find). And look how precious. It needs just one more thing…
I added a little “P” to personalize. (I found the P at Hobby Lobby...50 cent). The magnets are bottle caps. I got the bottle caps and covers here on etsy.

OR you can always get your bottle caps the fun, good old fashioned way. ;)

Either way, you need to paint them with spray paint (I used red and pink), used my one inch hole punch to punch out the insides (design from Amanda’s collection), glued them on the inside of the bottle caps and then put a bottle cap cover over the paper. Then I attached magnets (again, found at Hobby Lobby) to the back of the bottle caps. DONE!

Doesn’t this make the cutest frame!?! Wait! Pause! Bring it in a little closer. Look how sweet and precious that little baby is!?!? Whose children are those?! Oh wait, their mine. ;)

Except that sweet little baby is no longer a sweet little baby anymore. She is 2 going on 3 (in two months) and she is mean as a snake now! ;) (ok, not "mean" just really mischevious...the word hellraiser kinda comes to mind) But doesn’t she look so sweet and unassuming in this picture.

Ahhhh, memories.

By the way this is a 5 by 7 picture. Perfect size for this “frame”.

And don’t forget! This can be used as a message board too. Here it is hanging on my pantry door. Its always good to have a nice little reminder...
Wouldn't it make a great Valentines Day present for your kids' teachers?!

Whaaaaaat's up Mrs Phillips!!!?!?!?

I hope you're not reading this right now b/c this one's for you! ;)

(just kidding...it was going to be, but I have since come up with another idea for you)
It may be early, but at least its not late...here goes anyway... Happy Valentines Day!!!!

Feather her nest!!!

2012-01-07T15:44:00.000-08:00

Today was a fun day! My sweet friend Katie is pregnant with ther third child and due any minute now. Myself and four friends who love Katie to pieces put together this darling bird themed shower to celebrate the newest member of her family.

We had a great group of Katie's friends from all over and family over to celebrate Emily and "feather her nest". :)

Lots of pictures here... You ready?

Ok, here we go..

Before you do anything you best be signin' in to wish baby Emily some sweet sentiments. :)

Ok, now that you've signed in we can move forward. ;) Isn't this the cutest dang "E" you've ever seen? I hate to brag, but its not often that I see the letter E and say "awwwwwww", but after I made this I whispered a long one. ;) This was one of many DIY projects from this party. Easy peezy...just get yerself a paper mache letter from the craft store and wrap it in yarn...round and round and round until you're done. I embellished with felt birds and felt roses. I'm sure there is a tutorial online somewhere...I just kinda winged it, but I think it turned out pretty cute. (shower decorations/baby nursery decor afterwards...gotta love those two-fer deals!)

First up, the dessert table (naturally).

The cake...

Mom and Dad above and sister and brother (as little baby chicks) on the bottom tier...

Sugar cookies covered in a layer of buttercream and then topped off with marshmallow fondant. Check out Paula Deen's recpie for Cookie Dough Truffles. Oh my goodness, if you love cookie dough, well, you'll love these!!! (there wasn't a crumb of a truffle left in the house after this party)

These pom pom cupcake toppers were another DIY project. Found the tutorial here. Check it out!

Aren't these butterscotch bird nests the cutest!?! Fellow co-host Allison made them and they were sooo yummy. (anything butterscotch is two thumbs up in my book!)

Another little DIY project (I told you there's a lot of DIY in this party). This wreath was so cute and fun to make and will make a great decoration for Emily's nursery room door. Big thank you to my Cricut machine for cutting out the the letters and thank you to all the wooden doll tutorials I found all over the internet for this one. :)

For drinks we served pink lemonade in mason jars and of course, bottled water. Are you loving the fabric labels? I used left over fabric from the dessert table (which by the way was $1.50/yard at Walmart!!!...these labels practically paid ME to decorate the water). I just love how I justify all these little expenses...hehe

The food was so yummy!!! The other girls hosting were in charge of food and boy did they do a great job!!! The shower was at 2:00 so we decided to stick to a lite menu which included chicken salad (two types...curry and tarragon), fruit kabobs, a couple veggie dips, spinach dip, cucumber sandwiches and the yummiest cowboy caviar dip ever. These friends of mine are some gooooood cooks!!!!! :) I'm literally sitting here eating leftovers (the most delicious chicken salad sandwhich) as I type. (thats right, you should all be super jealous right about now) ;)

Never been a big fan of veggies, but how pretty do these look!?!?!

(almost makes you want to eat them doesn't it) almost

CRAFT TIME!!!

Yes, I realize this is an adult party, but whatever, crafts are good for adults too!!!

We set up a clippe making station so that each guest could make a little hair clip for baby Emily.

I created little instructions for each "step" to help guide everyone through the clippe making process. I put out ribbon and clips and each guest covered their own clip w/ their ribbon of choice. Then they chose an embellishement to make it pretty. There were buttons, bows, fabric flowers and more.

Nothing screams baby shower more than a picture of a bunch of ladies making baby bows! ;)

After food and bow making we sat down to play a quick game of memory (baby themed). This game was so much fun to play. I found the idea and instructions to make the game here. Erica and Ashly did a great job putting it all together for us. And of course, the girls made me get my goofy butt up in front of everyone to lead the game.
The basic idea of the game is a matching game...when you get a match you get a candy prize based on the match you made. For example...when you find the match to "contractions" you get a box of Whoppers. Epidural match gets the candy Lifesavers. I think you get the idea. Head over here for more candy ideas if you want to recreate!!!

When all the crafts, games and presents were finished I made the mommy to be (who really wants her baby to be born soon) as well as all her guests do 25 jumping jacks and 4 running laps around the house. (kidding!!...just wanted to get your attention, make sure you're still reading)
Each guest was sent home with a little treat for their birds at home.
These little bird seed ornament favors were not only cute, but totally inexpensive AND useful!! Our poor birds outside need all the food they can get in these harsh winter months (wait, wasn't the high today is in the 60s? Whatever...not everyone lives in Atlanta.). Go here for if you'd like to make some for yourself.

And last but not least, all the hostesses with the mama to be.

Happy baby shower Emily!!!
We can't wait to meet you little lady!!!

Funky 40th!!

2012-01-07T04:53:00.000-08:00

We're back!!!

2012-01-05T05:10:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to stop by and tell everyone that the UNPAID internship has been filled. ;)

(isn't it nice to have a job where you can work in your pjs?!)

My newest assistant, Olivia is a work in progress, but its great to have some company in the kitchen. Her strengths include being funny, an unmatched enthusiasm for dumping the ingredients into the bowl, she thinks I'm awesome and she's free (kind of).

Weaknesses we need to work on include, but are not limited to....spills a lot, wants to eat the inventory, gets upset when I put the batter into the oven and doesn't like the sound of the mixer (she is really gonna have to get over that one!)

My sidekick and I are busy in the kitchen after a nice break from baking. I hope you all had a fabulous holiday season. Stay tuned because we are cookin up some pretty cakes along with an adorable bird themed baby shower for my sweet friend Katie and her little peanut Emily.

Gotta get back to it before the intern gets into more trouble!!!

Happy baking!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Reindeer Party

2011-12-22T14:03:00.000-08:00

Today Bailey had a few of her close buddies over for a little reindeer themed Christmas shindig. I had so much fun with the girls today!!! We had lunch, decorated gingerbread houses, made an ornament and played a fun game to wrap things up.

I need to give a GREAT BIG HUMONGOUS shout out, thank you to my sweet mama for making the girls these ADORABLY adorable shirts for the girls to wear. Mom recently got a new embroidery machine and she has been busy sewing ever since! How lucky am I to have such a handy mama!?!?! I love how they're all matching, but each one is has its own little uniqueness too.

We started out the playdate with a lunch of reindeer pb&js, mac n cheese, pretzels, and juice. :)

And everyone knows, if you eat your lunch you get dessert! Today it was reindeer chocolate covered Oreos.

After lunch it was time to start decorating gingerbread houses.

I used this template to make the mini gingerbread houses. These were waaaay easier to make and assemble than I expected. I was thiiiiiisssss close to lazy-ing out and buying the Wilton mini gingerbread house kits and I'm so glad I didn't!!! Store bought gingerbread mix, (yes nana, store bought, as in packaged...not from scratch. does it really matter if you're not eating them??) some royal icing and a good template is all you need to make these cuties!!

My girls LOVED the marshmallow "snow".

A BIG thank you to Ashley (Caroline's older sister) who came over to help me with Olivia. Liv is IN LOVE with Ashley so it really helped to have her there to entertain (and assist) my little one while I entertained the other 6 girls. :)
Livie showing Ashley some love. :)

After the gingerbread houses the girls made a baby Jesus in the manger ornament. The final product...

After the ornament I let the girls run wild for a while. 5 year olds have a good way of finding their own fun so I let them go for it. (so much for a clean/organized playroom after about 10 minutes of free play) ;)

To wrap things up I sat the girls down to the table to play a little game of Jack Frost's Not Lost. SO FUN! I found this FREE download here via How Does She. This game really is a lot of fun and a MUST for all those with little ones!!! I also made some little snowman containers (using almond tins) for the girls to put their candy from the game in.

Before all the mommies came to pick up their girls I gathered them together to snap a few pics. Tonight as I tucked Bailey in I asked her what her favorite part of the party was. She thought for a moment then said, "all of it was my favorite, except the picture taking". lol Oh well...at least she is honest. :) I'll take that into consideration for the next party.

Merry Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!

See you next year!!

Grinch Themed Dessert Table

2011-12-19T15:48:00.000-08:00

This weekend I designed a dessert table for a good friend of mine who threw her little boy a fabulous first birthday party. Jenny is a very creative girl with a great party mind, lots of love for her little boy and a sweet husband who will play along. ;)

The theme was The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. I love the premise of the party which is that the Grinch stole Christmas for the greater good...for all those little boys and girls whose birthdays fall at Christmas. Steal Christmas to give them back the spotlight. ;) Jenny definitely succeeded in putting the spotlight on her little boy with all the hardwork she put into the party. This dessert table is just a small part of a great party put on by a even greater mommy!!!

Happy Birthday Rhett!! Welcome to single digits!!!

Recognize the backdrop? Its from the Wrap and Wine. Since I was sticking to the red and green color scheme I thought it would make a perfect backdrop.

All the desserts were things the Grinch stole from the Whos.

First off, their ornaments (cake balls).

The Who's presents...

Pudding from the Whos' feast....

Cookies and milk that the Whos left out for Santa...

Jello from the Whos' feast...

Rhett's smash cake...

The main birthday cake...

Happy 1st Birthday Rhett!!!

Keeping busy....

2011-12-19T10:20:00.000-08:00

Wow. I've been pretty light on the posting lately but these days are getting away from me!!! I'm normally pretty good about not letting myself get overhwelmed during this time of the year, but this Christmas is different. I feel like a crazy lady being pulled in every direction! ;)

I needed some therapy! So I got my girl and we rolled our sleeves up for some good ol' fashion fun in the kitchen. Gingerbread cookie time!!!! Its so refreshing to bake and decorate without the pressure...who cares what it looks like just as long as you're having fun doing it (and it tastes good)!!! :)

Here we are (me no makeup, hair pulled back, messy kitchen... you think I'm scared??) cutting out our cookies, getting them ready for the oven! Nothing makes my girl more excited than decorating cookies!

Wonder where she gets that from??? ;)

Concentration people. I started off the border and then handed it over to B. She did the classic mistake of putting the tip too close to the cookie....you don't want to drag it...I tried to teach her the proper way, but do you THINK she'd listen to me? NOPE! Instead she just said, "Here! You wanna do it?!" (we're going to have such a good time when she hits those teenage years aren't we!)

To which I said, no ma'am...this is your rodeo!!! Her vision/design was much different than mine so it worked out well!!! :) How awesome are these???? I know all you single ladies have your eye on that gingerbread man! He's taken ok. Get yer own man!

All you bakers, crafters, whatever'ers...you know that feeling of pride after you sit back and look at what YOU just created? All by yourself. Your two hands. Great feeling isn't it?

Prideful to sad after I told her she could only eat one. Happy Holidays y'all!!!!

I'll be back after a few hours of resting...got a cute dessert table to show off. :)

Monopoly Cake

2011-12-11T17:15:00.000-08:00

This cake was created for Brennan who is celebrating his 7th birthday. Brennan is obsessed with Monopoly so his mom thought a Monopoly themed cake would be perfect for his big day.

Brennan's favorite spaces are Park Place and Broadway so I made sure to put those front and center. And he also loves counting the money so I made sure to have plenty of that on the cake as well (thanks to my edible ink printer).

Yo Gabba Gabba!

2011-12-10T06:13:00.000-08:00

Wine and Wrap!!!

2011-12-08T05:49:00.000-08:00

Last night I had a few girlfriends over for a Wine and Wrap party. It was such a fun (and productive) time!! We try to schedule a Girls Night Out each month and what better get together for December than a Wrap and Wine. I made a big pot of soup, turned on the Christmas music, the girls brought over their presents and some wrapping paper, we drank some adult beverages, chit chatted and WRAPPED!

I set up a table full of "wrapping treats". I actually got everything last year during the after Christmas clearance sales so all the wrapping treats were basically free. ;)

From scissors to tape, ribbons to bows, everything you needed to wrap up your gifts was neatly organized on a wrapping treats table.
As always, printables from Amanda's Christmas Collection. Find them at Shindig Parties TO GO!

I wanted to have plenty of tape on hand...didn't want any ladies fighting and tables flipping over the last piece of tape! ;) hehe

I love how fun and PRODUCTIVE this party was! All my girlfriends left with all their gifts wrapped and such a weight lifted off their shoulders.

Merry Christmas and Happy Wrapping!!!!

Christmas Tree Cupcake Tutorial

2011-12-05T08:59:00.000-08:00

Don’t you just love the holiday season!?!?

Every time I turn around there is something special going on, some kind of celebration.

And where there is a celebration there is a need for sweets!

Aren't these cupcakes adorable?!? A tall swirl of icing covered in chocolate. Stick some M&Ms on and dang, you got yourself a cupcake!! :)

As my girls said in the morning when they awoke to these bad boys as their advent surprise, "Are they real!?!? Can we eat them?"

Too good to be true I suppose. ;)

Wanna learn how to make them? :) They're not as difficult as they may look. Head over to Shindig Parties TO GO. Amanda invited me to do a guest post on her fabulous blog. I created a fun tutorial to show you just how easy they are.

Cupcake 1st Birthday Cake

2011-12-03T15:43:00.000-08:00

I just love how sweet and simple this little smash cake is...

Dump Truck for Blake!

2011-12-01T15:49:00.000-08:00

This cake was created for a very special little 3 year old (to be).

Blake.

Blake is kind of a big deal around here. He is Olivia's best little buddy and my potential son in law (theres a chance people!)

This is a very important cake. :)

Like most 3 year olds Blake is into a lot of things, but top on his list includes his mama and cars (or anything with wheels). Although a "mommy" themed party would have been sweet they stuck with his second passion and planned a truck themed party to celebrate his three years of bein' Blake. ;)

Happy 3rd Birthday "Blakey"!!!

We love you!

Smart Owl

2011-11-26T16:36:00.000-08:00

This cake was created for a little man turning one. His mom wanted a cake to using the same color scheme from the Smart Owl invitation she ordered from Tiny Prints (see below). What is it about owls that makes them so cute and loveable!!!?!?!

Don't you just want to eat him up???

(btw, you can... he is made of rice krispie treat) ;)

The smash cake....

No more monkeys jumpin' on the bed!!

2011-11-17T17:26:00.000-08:00

This sweet cake was created for Sienna's 2nd birthday. Sienna is one of my daughter Olivia's buddies and according to her mommy she LOVES jumping! :) Mama Amy decided to have a "No more monkeys jumping on the bed" theme for Sienna's 2nd birthday party which was held at a local inflatable jump place. Perfect fit for Sienna's personality. :)

Happy Birthday Sweet Sienna!!!!

One fell off and bumped her head. ;)

Yo Gabba Gabba

2011-11-11T15:50:00.000-08:00

When I look at his eyes I can't help but imagine him whispering,

"Please...please don't eat me."

Sorry little guy. Its your destiny...

Rainbow Cake

2011-11-07T06:05:00.000-08:00

Love this cake! Simple, but so adorable.

The inside will look a little something like this...what fun surprise for all the kiddos.

Pink and Orange Baby Shower

2011-11-05T17:38:00.000-07:00