The Buttercream Kitten

Know what that is? Not shredded cheese or shag carpet. That's a picture of my peanut butter buttercream frosting from my most recent cake, a kitten. I just want to lick my screen. I've loved frosting since I was a wee tot. My mom always made homemade birthday cakes with delicious homemade icing for as long as I can remember. I grew up thinking everyone's mom made their own birthday cakes and all frosting was delicious buttercream. The first time I tasted store bought birthday cake with its whipped, sweet frosting the notion I would make my own cakes was sealed. I've never taken a class to do cakes. Instead the first time I wanted to try my hand at cake baking and decorating I just called my mom. She came over to my house and walked me through her recipe for frosting, baking a cake and then how to pipe on frosting...all for a Darth Vader cake for my coworkers on the eve of the first Star Wars prequel being released. My first cake was so much better than Jar Jar Binks.

My mom gave me her old few Wilton cake pans and I've added to them through the years; I now have over 50 shaped pans. This is just a portion of my stash hanging in the basement.

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April Fools' Faked Potatoes

Need a quick prank for your kids tomorrow? I whipped this one up last year after the kids went to bed thanks to Family Fun magazine. You may have all the materials already if you're crafty. All you need are nude color knee highs or old pantyhose, batting, needle and thread. If you're anti-nylons like myself you can grab a cheap pair of knee highs at the dollar store.

Here are the fast how to steps:

1. Trim the knee highs/hose to an 8" length.
2. Stuff the center of the hose to your preferred potato size.
3. Twist ends and fold underneath, stitch in place.
4. Sew eyes by coming up from the bottom of the "potato" out the top then back in beside the same spot to the bottom, pull to dimple then knot.

I placed these on a baking sheet in the oven and called the kids for baked potatoes for lunch. They giggled like mad when I pulled them out of the oven. We then cut open the tops and I added a small square of craft foam butter. Thing Two still has his potato in his room a year later.

Now I need a prank for tomorrow...

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Marbelized Easter Eggs

Last year was the first year I attempted dying eggs with my kidlets. I remember dying eggs when I was a kid but for some unspecific reason I'd not done it with my own. I think it was a combination of the mess potential and the what do you do with them now issue. But last year I cleared the table, boiled a dozen eggs and prepared to relax my uptight ways and let creativity happen. 

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Rainbow Pots of Gold

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Earlier this month for Dr. Seuss's birthday I made the kids green eggs in a basket for lunch but did them in the shape of a clover to hit two holidays at once. Instead of repeating green clover eggs this morning I decided to play Leprechaun. I bought small terracotta pots for 69¢ at Hobby Lobby for the kids to paint their versions of a rainbow. We talked about the colors of a rainbow and I told them my inspiration painted the colors of a rainbow in order around the pot. However, I encouraged them to create with the colors of a rainbow as they wanted. And then I promised that on St. Patrick's Day I would fill their rainbow pots with GOLD!

All the colors of the rainbow ready. Best dollar I ever spent in the Target dollar section was for ice trays to hold different paint colors

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Star Wars Rice Crispy Treats

Thing One had Rice Krispies for breakfast this morning. The sight of the box made Thing Two about bounce off the floor with the idea to make rice crispy treats...shaped like the Millennium Falcon and TIE Fighter. Thing Two would be the one with the Star Wars bedroom and Death Star birthday cake, in case you hadn't connected the dots.

He then promptly ran to the cabinet and retrieved this lovely box my man gave me for Christmas.

Inside it has Millennium Falcon and TIE Fighter sandwich cutters. I heart it but...

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Nature Heart Scavenger Hunt

Inspired by the tree above that sits in our own front yard, I grabbed the kids and our point and shoot camera and we explored our neighborhood last February to see if we could find even more heart shapes in the great outdoors. We were pleasantly surprised with how many we could find when we opened up our minds to new perspectives. I realize Valentine's Day has already come and gone this year but I still think the entire month of love can be used for this outdoor adventure. Especially if the month deals you an early Spring-like day.

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Chocolate-Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Hearts

I love frosting. I can't throw out leftover icing from a delicious cake I made. Currently there was a container of scrumptious chocolate-peanut butter butter cream from my man's birthday cake in the refrigerator begging for new life.

It was reborn inside Valentine chocolates!

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The Best Steak I Never Ate

Tuesday was my man's birthday. A nice dinner date out plus a babysitter for three kids over multiple hours ran a little steep. Especially when my man knows I'm a vegetarian that can cook a mean steak. This was more affordable option plus it allowed him to eat steak in pajama pants and enjoy a fat slice of the homemade cake...win all around.

Do you want to see the steak? Prepare to drool, carnivores...

That's her, the steak I served my man alongside spicy sweet potato fries and steamed brocolli. This is one of his top ways he likes me to make his filet. It's drizzled with chimichurri and topped with avocado-tomatillo salsa. The sauce and salsa are fabulous. I put them over my fake vegetarian meat and want to lick the plate. I doubled the salsa recipe so there's a heaping bowl left to be scooped up on tortilla chips during the Super Bowl on Sunday.

Here's how you can make the same beautiful steak, the hunky Tyler Florence taught this vegetarian straight off the telly.

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I'm On a Boat with my Nautical Themed Pashmina

In order to understand this post you have to know a couple of things.

First you must know about one of my man's absolute favorite SNL Digital Shorts: "I'm On a Boat."

Explicit language warning: to see the cleaner, dubbed version click here.

When we went to Legoland last year my man flipped that Lego thought to include this shout out in their Miniland USA portion of the park. Almost made stepping on Legos at 2am forgivable. Almost, that really hurts!

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Mini Nutter Butter Cupcakes

Yesterday was my man's birthday. I had leftover cake batter after putting his birthday cake in the oven. Not enough to make cupcakes but just enough to make a few mini cupcakes.

I also had a bag of mini Nutter Butters in the pantry.

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