Flower Cake

So I finally made my second cake. This was for my cake decorating class and we just had our final class last night. 

If I had more time to work on it then I would have done some things different but we didn't have long to work on it last night. But I am SO happy with how it turned out. I officially know how to make icing flowers now :D

I even attempted my own filing and it turned out great! I made one tall cake then cut it in half and added a jelly filling with butter cream around the edge for a dam.

LOVE these flowers! They are so easy to make!!!

I can't wait to experiment with all the new things I have learned from this class.

 I officially love cake decorating!

Designer's Block

I am having designers block! I have a new website in the works and have been trying to design it. But I have so many options! I can't figure out which direction to go.

The site will be for Young Wive's and that's all I'm gonna say at this point. But I am over the moon about this and have just been waiting to graduate so I have more time to pour into it. Stay tuned for the launch of my new site. I'm so excited!


Anyway, having designers block. And writer's block apparently.

Easter Treats

In November I made my Hubby some cup cake bites from Bakarella to take into his office and since then at every Holiday he asks me to make them. 

So I made some colorful one's for Easter. 

I used pink, purple, and yellow Wilton candy melts for the tops and milk chocolate for the bottoms. 

I also made colorful insides! This was my favorite part!

I actually had three inside colors. I made pink cake as shown above and green and yellow cake. I didn't get a picture of the green and yellow :( Everyone in Hubby's office had a fun time biting into them and being surprised by different colors!

These are perfect to tailor to the season.

At Valentine's Day I made these

These had yummy red velvet cheesecake insides! Yuuuumy!!

And my all time favorite are the ones I made for Thanksgiving

I love chocolate and peanut butter! For these one's I made chocolate cake with chocolate frosting for the inside's and had peanut butter Wilton candy melts and Reese's Peanut Butter Pieces on top. Mmmm!

I need some peanut butter now....

Happy Easter

Up From the Grave He Arose

In talking about Easter the past few days I found this wonderful Hymn that I do not remember coming across before.

It was written by Robert Lowry in 1874 and so perfectly expresses the real meaning of Easter. It reminds us that Christ went to death for us and then he rose again!

Up From the Grave He Arose (Low in the Grave he Lay)

Low in the grave He lay,
Jesus my Savior,

Waiting the coming day,

Jesus my Lord!

Refrain:

Up from the grave He arose,

With a mighty triumph o’er His foes,

He arose a Victor from the dark domain,

And He lives forever, with His saints to reign.

He arose! He arose!

Hallelujah! Christ arose!

Vainly they watch His bed,

Jesus my Savior;

Vainly they seal the dead,

Jesus my Lord!

Death cannot keep it's Prey,

Jesus my Savior;

He tore the bars away,

Jesus my Lord!

He is our hope and our salvation. Praying that you seek the real meaning of Easter this year and that your heart is filled with hope and joy at the saving work He did upon the cross. Enjoy time with your Family this weekend and focus on the Lord!

Happy Ressurection Day!

Christ's Death Promised in the O.T.

If you missed my post yesterday, I talked about Celebrating Easter for the right reason which is Christ's Resurrection and not for Easter Egg hunts or Easter baskets.

One of the beautiful things that I love about the Old Testament is how it points to Christ. I am less than three weeks away from a degree in Biblical Studies and over the course of my education I have tried to take as many Old Testament classes as I can. Seriously, I can't get enough of the Old Testament! So it is such a shame to me that the Old Testament is largely ignored by modern Christians. It is not often a topic of study or discussion.

So today I am going to take us back a little bit to some Old Testament Prophets. In preparing our hearts for Easter it is a beautiful thing to look back to the O.T. and see the promises about Easter. God promised to send His Messiah that would save Israel. They knew and looked forward to this savior to come.

2 Samuel 7:16

"And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me.Your throne shall be established forever.'"

This promise was given to David that his Davidic line would continue on eternally. And as we see later in the Gospels, both Mary and Joseph are in the lineage of David. Therefore Christ's Resurrection is foreshadowed because he will live eternally and carry on this line. Christ died but was raised to new life.

Isaiah 53:1-3

Who has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
For he grew up before him like a young plant,
and like a root out of dry ground;
he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

This passage is about Jesus being rejected by His people. He was the Messiah they had been waiting so long for but because of their sin they did not see or recognize him. Because of this, he was despised and sent to the cross.

These are but two passages where Christ's birth, death, and Resurrection are predicted. God did not choose to have Christ crucified on a whim, but rather this had been planned before time itself. God had a divine plan we should be celebrating this plan.

Matthew 20:18-19

"See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day."

These are the words of Jesus here in the Gospel of Matthew. He knew full well what was going to happen and knew it to be God's plan. He did not stumble into cross but rather walked there knowing full well that he would die but in doing so he would bare the sins of the world and offer a way for our salvation. We should be celebrating his sacrifice!

Mark 14:27-28

"And Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away, for it is written, 'I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.' But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee."

Leading up to the final week of his life, Christ knew and was talking about his death and Resurrection with his Disciples. Yet, they often missed what he was saying and when they finally realized the full extent of it they did not recognize the joy and promise he was giving them. Jesus was giving his disciples the hope of eternal life and salvation. Let's not miss this beautiful promise like the disciples did. Let's live and celebrate this promise!

John 10:17-18

"For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

Wow! What a beautiful picture of Christ's love for us! We willingly went to the cross to die for our sins!

Christ knew what he came to this Earth to do. He came so that we may have life {John 10:10}
He came to die on a cross so that we may enter into eternal Salvation.

Let's not forget that this Easter and celebrate the joy that we have because he came to die for us!



Celebrating the Right thing on Easter

Oh Easter is almost here!

There are so many things that I love about this Easter time.

1) It is finally starting to look like Spring! Although as I wright this it is rainy outside...
2) I love all the fun pastel girly colors
3)Summer is right around the corner!
4)Easter break means I only have 2 more weeks of school...Then I'm done!
5)Shedding all the big winter layers and pulling out the fun summery dresses
6)Time spent with Family
7)Making cute Easter baskets and Easter egg hunts
8)Making cute and yummy Easter and Spring desserts

I love all this about the Easter/Spring time...but you know what? This is not the meaning of Easter we should be focusing on. I get so wrapped up in the cute decorations and fun things going on that I forget why we celebrate.

No, I do not think having an Easter egg hunt is bad. The same way I do not think that having a Christmas tree is bad. But when they take the place of knowing the real reason for the celebration then they become bad.

Easter's real meaning seems to get lost much more than Christmas's real meaning. We so often forget that it's not all about the Easter bunny and finding eggs.

It's actually about Christ and his death and resurrection.

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened. Luke 42:1-12

It's a great idea to go around as a family and read the Easter story together so that we do not forget why we are celebrating. We are not mourning Christ's death but celebrating new life!
Parts of the Easter story can be found in:

• Matthew 28:1-20
• Mark 16:1-19
• Luke 24:1-53
• John 20:1 – 22:25

Have you read these as a family lately? I know that we haven't. As we look forward to having children we have been thinking about and discussing ways to share Jesus with them and to incorporate meaningful family traditions. A great idea would be every day for the rest of the week reading one of these passages aloud as a family maybe over the dinner table. Sharing with our children the real meaning will {along with the Holy Spirit} write these things on their heart. And we can always do with reading more Scripture ourselves.

I am praying that you have a very Intentional Easter this year full of joy and celebration at what the Lord has done for us. As well as careful study of HIS Scripture.

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My First Decorated Cake

I posted a little while ago that I have started a cake decorating class and so far I am in Love!!!

I am creative but I am not an artist! I cannot draw or paint or even doodle. My stick figures even need some serious help! 

So I was very skeptical if this whole cake decorating thing would be something I could even do. But so far I am have been having so much fun!

Last week we decorated our first cake. And because of time I didn't get to do as much on it as I would have liked. And if I made this one all over again I would make the colors a lot brighter. 

I realize how basic this cake is....but I love it!! :)

This week we are making cupcakes and learning how to make flowers! So excited!!

I'll share the pictures in a few days :)

Baking Fail

I posted a few days ago about some fun Easter crafts and recipes and I have had an idea brewing around my head  for a while now of a fun dessert to bring into my office.

So last night I decided to fnially try it out and hopefully post a fun tutorial for it before Easter.

But last night was just not one of my nights.

First of all I had to bake a cake and two batches of frosting for my 2nd cake decorating class tonight. My cake needs to be flat and smooth. So I make my cake following all the directions so as to make it smooth and flat...and it comes out with like a 2 inch dome on top!!! FAIL

Then I make the frosting which I think I followed all recipe right but it just taste's like eating straight crisco. FAIL

Then I decide to start on my Easter candy idea. 

I am trying to make these cute little easter baskets made out of chocolate. It looks great in my head!

So I use my candy molds to make the chocolate basket bottom {Which I have used this same mold countless times before} and the baskets all turn out ridiculous looking. FAIL

Then I try and make the basket handles. I get my wax paper out and fill my chocolate bottle and being doodinling away. As I finish up I accidently move one of the weights I had keeping the side down {My paper had been rolled up so it didn't want to lie flat} and the paper rolls up destroying all the wet chocolate basket handles! FAIL!!!

THEN I get a fresh piece of paper out, make sure that the weights are in the right place and as I am just finishnig up a good second batch...my chocolate bottle exploded and chocolate went flying all over the wax paper. FAIL!!!!!

So I threw all the chocolate in the sink, left my kitchen a mess and went to bed! Haha. Last night was not my nights. Hopefully my cake class goes better tonight...if I can get a proper cake baked before then that is.

I am now a Couponer

I have stepped into the wide wide world of couponing. Yup, I'm taking the plunge. 

I was one of those that thought coupons were a waste of time and money because really the generic brands seem cheaper. But from some wonderful Blogs that I have found, my mind has been changed. 

Before starting all of this I didn't really know anything about coupons. 

I mean sure, I knew to bring one in and get $1 off. 

But I didn't know about stacking coupons or CVS Extrabucks or anything!

Well this week I have begun my journey into the coupon world. 

I know that I am going to learn a lot. 

My goal throughout this is to save money!!

And in saving money my ultimate goal is so that when we have kids I can stay home with them! We are planning now and I can't wait to slash our grocery bill!

Along the way I will hopefully be sharing great sites and things that I find. 

And after reading a ton of couponing sites, I am ready to begin my process. 

1) First thing I needed was a Sunday paper. 

We live outside LA and knew that the biggest paper I could get {the bigger the paper the better the coupons *usually*} would be the LA Times. 

So I googled "LA Times Coupon Codes" and found a code for a year's worth {52 issues!!} for $9.95. Yeah...did you just do the math? That's just over 5 cents an ISSUE!

Wow! So I subscribed to get two papers a week {Maybe I should have gone for three?!}

I got my first paper yesterday and started clipping away. 

There were a ton of great looking coupons this week and now I have to be patient and wait for things to go on sale. The hard part is coming still, which is knowing when and where to use your coupons to get things for free or almost free! 

I also decided to dive into the CVS world as well. From what I could tell, CVS is the easiest drug store to start with. I'm hoping to add Wall-greens and Right Aid later on. 

I decided to spend a little more today so that I could have a nice amount of CVS extrabucks to begin with. 

So after class I headed to CVS and got:

Spent $20 got $10 EB

Got a 2 pack of tooth brushes and 2 pack of Hubby's favorite tooth paste and got $4 EB

So all in all I walked away with $14 EB! 

Now I need to get the sale for next week and then use my $14 and get more EB with it.

 My plan is to keep them rolling as long as possible :)

If you are utterly confused by the language or anything in here then check out these great sites that have helped me out so much.

Coupon Teacher's Savvy Shopper Course

Money Saving Mom's 31 Days to a Better Grocery Budget

And a recent gem I found is Grocery University

This series includes 18 MP3 Audio files, a workbook and a price list. 

It's normally $24.95 but I found a coupon code on MoneySavingMom.com to take $15 off!

So I was able to get the complete Grocery University for $9.95. 

Get the coupon code HERE

Now I haven't tried out the Grocery University yet but it sounds promising. I'll let you know as I get into it.

Can't wait to get into this whole crazy couponing world :)

Any other crazy couponers out there?

Any advice for a newbie?

Easter Crafts and Desserts

I'm a little late but today I began thinking about decorating for Easter and some fun things I want to make before then. 

So I thought I would share a few fun crafts and recipes I have come across the last few days. 

I hope this inspires you a little!

Crafts

1. Hosting an Easter party?

Check out these adorable printable

2. Bunny Brownies in a Jar

So I adore gifts in a jar like this and these are oh.so.cute! What an adorable idea...I'm really thinking about making these are the people in my office. Adorable!

Find HERE

3. A Peep Wreath

How wonderfully charming! I love the colors. Adorable!

4. Beautiful Easter Basket

Wow..how elegant! These would be such a beautiful Mother's Day or Birthday present as well!

Find HERE

Recipes

1. Cute Bunny Pancakes

What a fun breakfast that the kids can help make!

Find HERE

2. Marshmellow Sheep

Oh how fun are these! This would be so cute as table pieces or to bring to a party!

Find HERE

3. Rice Crispy Treat Eggs

Okay...call me a little kid but I LOVE Rice Crispy treats and these are adorable!!

Find HERE

4. Carrot Cupcakes

So cute!

Find HERE

I have a dessert idea running round in my head but haven't finalized the thought process yet haha

So as soon as I realize the perfect idea I will post a tutorial. 

Custom Vector/Illustrations *HELP*

Okay ladies I need some help!

I have a new website in the works and I need a graphic artist who does custom vector pictures or illustrations.

I have not been able to find anyone let alone an affordable one! 

So please please please send me a link to anyone you know!

Here are a few styles I like but I am open to other ideas :)

I am looking for a younger women

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But I would like her to be doing some sort of homemaking, cleaning, cooking, entertaining, ect. 

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So can anyone help me out? 

Please direct me toward anything you have found!

Thanks so much!!!! :)

Hamilton Beach Slow Cooker *And Recipes*

For months now I have been really wanting a crock pot...one large enough to cook roasts and make lots of extra food for left overs. But we have been really trying to save money and this was a non-essential. 

So I was thrilled when CSN Stores asked me to do a review!

I picked out this lovely Hamilton Beach 6 Quart Slow Cooker

 

When I was contacted my CSN Stores I hurried onto their website and picked out my slow cooker. 

It came very quickly which was great since the minute I ordered it I was searching for wonderful new recipes. 

When I made my first recipe, the thing I noticed first was how sturdy this slow cooker is. The handles are great and allows for easy carrying and the size was perfect for my little apartment kitchen. 

Something my Mom suggested to me when searching for a crock pot was that it must have a separate inside that pulls out and makes for easy washing. 

And boy was she right! This model allows the inside part to pull right now. This makes for such an easy clean up. I also really liked that it came with a spoon on top. A perfect place for the spoon so I will never lose it! 

Overall I was very impressed with both CSN Stores and Hamilton Beach. 

I had never ordered from CSN Stores before but was pleasantly surprised by their selection, prices, and fast shipping!

And as for my new Hamilton beach slow cooker....I don't know how I went so long without it. 

My husband is already clamoring for more dinners made in my slow cooker. 

And because I spent so long looking for new recipes I thought I would share some of the yummy looking recipes I stumbled across:

1. Classic Beef Stew

I made a similar beef stew for my first recipe and it was delicious!!

Find the recipe HERE.

2. Cheesy Spinach-Artichoke Dip

We love spinach artichoke dip in our househld! This recipe is a must try!

Find the recipe HERE

3. Chili

Chili is a must for any slow cooker!

Find the recipe HERE

4. Creme Brulee

Oooh Creme Brulee is one of my all time favorite desserts!!Trying it in the slow cooker sounds wonderful!

Find the recipe HERE

5. Spicy Chicken Stew

Hubby would love this one!

Find the recipe HERE

Do you have any favorite sow cooker recipes? Please send them my way!!

*I received this slow cooker from CSN Stores in return for a review of the item. PLEASE NOTE that the opinions are 100% mine*

Basic Cake Design

I am starting a 4 week cake decorating class tonight and I am so excited! I have been wanting to do this for years now and now I'm acutally doing it :)

I will be learning the basics for now and will hopefully learn some more advanced stuff this summer. But in the following few weeks I hope to make all kinds of new cakes...and hopefully some tutorals as well!

So on my to do list of things to learn and make are some of these sweet cakes I've found around the blosphere.

1. Rose Cake

Wow. This is so beautiful and according to her tutorial it's easy to make...Hmm not so sure about that but I definitly need to try this cake!

And look at the inside.

Find the turorial for this cake HERE

2. Ruffeled Cake

I must really like the white look right now. Another simple and yet very elegant cake.

Find the tutorial HERE

3. Basket Weave

Wow. This cake is so smooth, I can't believe it's just buttercream!

AND I am blown away by how simple this basket weave is to make.

Check out the tutorial HERE.

4. Circle Design

Wow! Yet again another tutorial that seems so easy to make and yet makes a beautiful cake!

I never actually thought I could make any of these great cakes...but maybe I can!

Find the tutorial HERE.

5. Cars Cake

I have a little brother in law who just turned 5 who would love love love this cake!

I will have to learn how to make it for his 6th birthday.

Find the tutorial HERE.

Do you have any cake tutorials that you love? Please do share!

I can't wait to start leaning how to make cakes. My goal one day is to make some wedding cakes. Hopefully in a couple years I can look back on this and have learned a lot.

Since I'm going to actual classes and learning how to do things I was thinking about {once I am more skilled} doing a series on here walking you step by step through cake design.

The series would be from the very beginning.

So how to cake a perfect cake, homemade cake and icing recipes, buttercream basics and then move on to some more advanced things like fondant later.

Would anyone be interested in this?! Let me know!

Ultimate Blog Party 2011

I have been so out of the blogging loop the past little while. I am graduating in may with my bachelor's degree and the workload this last little stretch has been overwhelming. 

But, I'm back and ready to meet some new people and jump back into my blogging. 

So today I am participating in the Ultimate Blog Party 2011.

Welcome if this is your first time on my blog.

A Little Bit About Me:

The most important thing about me is that I am a Christ follower. He is my life and I am trying harder each day to actually make my life reflect that!

I am a young wife and our two year anniversary is almost here! My husband is an amazing godly man and I love him SO much!

I LOVE crafting of all kinds. I love to sew, scrapbook, play with my NEW cricut, make cards, cook, bake, decorate and so much more!

I am starting a cake decorating class this week and can't wait to share with you all my new creations and tips. 

If you want to know even more about me then check out:

About Me

How I'm Living Intentionally

and my very popular

Homemaker's Month of Helpful How To's

I can't wait to meet some new friends this week :)

In Christ,