Pumpkin Cake

Here's a Pumpkin Cake I whipped up this weekend for an auction at our Christian school. It's a Marble Cake covered with a Fudge Frosting and then iced with buttercream frosting. The stem is fondant.

I baked the cake in a bundt pan, then curved the edges to help create the pumpkin shape.

A Candy Cake

I made this cake for my second granddaughter's birthday. She went through all of my books, looked over all the pictures, and finally decided on this one!

The tiers are 6" and 10", covered with fondant. The swags and pieces of "candy" are made of fondant as are the letters. The gumdrops are candy instead of fondant. I ran out of time! I purchased the lollipops at a candy shop.

The book showed the lollipops made out of fondant as well, but Nicole didn't know that and I think that's why she picked this cake. Couldn't dissappoint her, could I?

I added the multi-colored ribbons on top around the candy sticks because it seemed a bit bare.

HOPE, A Candle For A Cure

Mia Bella's Gourmet Candles announces 'HOPE', A Candle For A Cure!

Help Us Find A Cure For Breast Cancer.

Profits will be donated to the Susan G. Komen Foundation For Breast Cancer Awareness.

For every 'HOPE' candle purchase online, Scent-sations, Inc. will contribute $6.00 to the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Scent-sations, Inc. also has announced that they will donate the $4.00 handling fee that they normally charge distributors for each candle sold online. So that means a total of $10.00 will be donated! Wow!!

And as a Mia Bella Gourmet Candle distributor, I personally will donate another $4.00 to the Mid-MO Affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Foundation For Breast Cancer Awareness for every candle sold online.

If you would like to help out with this great cause, click here

Franklin/Pogue Wedding

Congratulations, Paige & Codi!!

I made this wedding cake for a couple from our church this weekend. The frosting was buttercream with almond flavoring - yummmm! The ribbon around the bottom of each layer (which doesn't show up very well in this picture) is fondant. The flowers and petals were provided by the bride and were silk.

Can you tell the groom is really into Ford Racing? I made the emblems from color flow several days ahead to give it time to completely dry.

And the flower girl just happened to be my six year old granddaughter. I told her I wanted to take her picture and she struck the pose! You can definitely tell her mom is a photographer.

My First Canning Experience!

I just had to show you one of my late summer projects. Eleven pints of salsa made from tomatoes and bell peppers from our garden!! My grandma would be so proud!! You, too, Mom! I also did several quarts of just plain tomatoes.

Although I grew up with a grandmother and a mother who canned and froze everything they could get their hands on, it just never "took" with me. I think maybe I had to pick too many strawberries and cherries and elderberries and goose berries and peaches and apricots and apples (just to name a few) when I was a kid. So when I decided to can salsa, I had to call my little sister and my daughter for directions and advice. Sad, I know!!

But it was actually pretty easy and fun! I'll definitely be doing more of it next summer.

I also put some okra and squash in the freezer. I even froze some tomatoes! My grandma and mom always canned tomatoes, but a couple of friends said they freeze them. Ever hear of doing that? We'll see how that turns out when I try them this winter!

I'm one of those strange people who loves winter. But, boy, am I missing my garden!!

A Very Buggy Birthday Party!!

Yesterday was my youngest granddaughter's second birthday. Her mom didn't have any preference as to her cake, so I decided to do the honey bee and ladybug cake which are featured in the Wilton Celebrate With Fondant book.

Sylvia was fascinated!!

These cakes were surprisingly simple to make. To get the round body shape, use the sports ball pan and the mini-sports ball pan for the heads. They are covered with fondant and all the spots, stripes, eyes, eye lashes, etc. are fondant.

To finish out the centerpiece, I purchased a piece of light green fabric to set the cake plates on, then shredded green tissue paper in our paper shredded for the 'grass' around the bugs.

I'll definitely be doing these cakes again!!

A Melancholy Evening At Home

Well, it's finally happened.

Reality has set in.

I can tell this empty nest is going to take some getting used to. So much for hoping to get past it without feeling any pain.

My in-laws left for California today, the last of our family who came out for our son Nathan's wedding, to leave. That was bad for my delicate mood. I've been on the verge of tears all evening.

I kept busy most of the evening framing a picture of one of the granddaughters - I found a really good deal on a custom frame at Michaels. But that's another post.

And Nathan even stopped by for a few minutes to visit, which helped, temporarily.

But then he started telling about what all he and Jen did today, getting ready to leave for Vanuatu. And how anxious he is to be gone. And how they hope to be gone by November. Not what I needed to hear!

Did I mention that I hate empty nests?

It's all part of the process of life, I know, but I really dislike this stage!

On a brighter note, we did find out today that we're going to be the grandparents of a grandSON come January!!!

Nate & Jen's Wedding

Here are a few pictures of my son's wedding. My niece, who flew in from California, was the photographer. The pictures are unedited, so she's probably going to clobber me when she finds out that I already posted them! Oh, well. Several of them are candid shots.

The bride before the ceremony. Her bouquet was white roses surrounded with yellow tulips:


My granddaughter, Nicole, was one of the flower girls:


My oldest granddaughter, Natalie, served as the minature bride:


My daughters, who served as bridesmaids, with the bride. Her colors were Tiffany blue and yellow:


My husband and I with our four children:


Our entire family, including grandchild #5! We find our next week if it's a boy or a girl!!


Nate & Jen:


Nate and I:


My four children acting normal:


Nate and his brother, who also served as one of his best men:


A Sonic commercial!


And a McDonald's commercial!


My three year old granddaughter, Nicole, being carried down the aisle by her daddy. She spent most of the ceremony on my lap:


Communion during the ceremony:


Signing the marriage license. My oldest son looks like he's losing it!


A bubbly departure!


You can see pictures of the cakes I made for the reception here.

Nate & Jen's Wedding

Here are some pictures of Nathan & Jennifer's wedding cakes.



Jennifer wanted her cake to resemble a stack of gifts. Here's a more close up view:



Nathan's groom's cake is a depiction of an island. The couple will be living on the island of Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu, for two years after they raise their support. They hope to leave by October, or at the latest January 2010.



The bottom layer is the ocean and sky. The middle layer is the beach and the top layer is the island, complete with coconut trees and a grass hut. Hopefully, their living conditions won't be quite so rustic!

On the groom's cake, I used craft foam instead of fondant since I didn't know what kind of kitchen facilities I would be working in. Smart move!!

I used pre-made whipped frosting on both cakes. This was the first time I used it on such a large scale, and again, I used it because I didn't know what my working conditions would be. If I had it to do over again, I would probably use the traditional buttercream since I had some problems working with the pre-made frosting, mainly because I'm not accustomed to it.

But the bride and groom were happy, and that's what matters most to me.

Congratulations, Nathan & Jennifer!!

And Then There Were Two

We arrived back home this evening after a very busy wedding weekend. The wedding was beautiful and went of without a hitch. Well, my three year old granddaughter, Nicole, refused to walk down the isle in front of all those people, so I guess that was a bit of a hitch. But her daddy stepped in and carried her, so all was well.

And somewhere in all the traveling I lost my camera, so I don't have a single picture of the wedding to post. My niece was the photographer, so I'll get her to download some shots to my computer when I see her later this week.

The house seemed so quiet when we arrived home. And Nate's room already has that un-lived in (is that even a word?) feeling. How is that possible after only four days? I think it's all in my head.

But I won't have to deal with the empty nest thing for at least a few more days since my in-laws are here from California. And I'll be busy the next few days unpacking and putting away, so I can avoid it even longer. And then I'll have to catch up on work next week, so before I know it I'll be weeks into my empty nest and won't even realize it!!

Okay, I'm suffering from severe exhaustion, so I'm going to bed now.

Oh, by the way, I found my camera in the truck on the way home.