The new addition!!!!

Stationery card

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This is why I've been so busy lately and haven't blogged in a bit.  I've been busy cooking a baby! 

Baby Shower Time....Tullah Mae!

Such a long time...no excuses.  In March I assisted in planning a baby shower for my good friend Crystal.  Super successful and Mommy was definitely showered with plenty of gifts to get her on her way. Here are a few pictures of some of the "crafts" I made for her big day.  

The invitation....I can't say this is a design from my own head, but it's a tweaked version of something I saw online.

This is called a yummy cream puff afghan baby blanket.  Super easy and lots of fun to make.  I followed this tutorial if you are interested in making one of your own, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmz61NCjvi0.

Butterfly sugar cookies.  I made several different designs.  These are my 3 favorite.  I kept the cookies all white and added pastel pink sugar beads for a little bit of color.  We had so much pink I thought the all white cookies would keep things looking simple and classic.  Loved the way they turned out.  

Butterfly tree!!!  Again, another project I saw online while researching butterfly baby showers.  I had the vase at home and the branches in the back yard.  Cut out the butterflies from card stock, spray painted the branches and voila, a butterfly tree.  A perfect center piece.

My Mom and I cut out about 50-60 butterflies, 3 different shapes and colors, and I put them all over the posts outside.  This isn't a great picture of that, but it's the full outside view of the party.

Finally, the cupcakes!!!  Keeping it simple, I made gum paste butterflies and used them as a topper.  The cupcakes themselves are a white cake, white chocolate strawberry ganache filling, homemade whip cream icing = one of my favorite cupcakes of all time.  I call it my strawberry shortcake cupcake.

I had a great time planning this party for Crystal, but no way could I have done it without her mom, JoAnn, she ROCKS!!!!  I am blessed to have been a part of this special day and am also pleased to say that baby Tullah made her entry into the world on May 2, 2012!!!  Mommy and baby are doing wonderful.  

Happy May!!!!!!  

Birchbox

Hey y'all, it's been quite some time.  Admittedly it's because I was in my first trimester of pregnancy!  Yep, this girl is pregnant and we are so excited.  Hopefully now that I'm coming out of the weeds I'll be blogging more regularly.

So, what is Birchbox? From their website.... "Every month, you'll receive a box filled with 4-5 beauty samples from luxury brands. Each month will include a different mix of product types, including makeup, skincare, fragrance, body, and hair care. All samples are generously sized, with enough product to allow you to figure out if they're right for you. You'll also want to take advantage of Birchbox.com, which is packed with all the beauty information and tips you need, including expert interviews, helpful tutorials, and fun videos."   http://www.birchbox.com?raf=wgd9s

Okay, so, this is my splurge.  I don't go to the spa, I rarely get a pedicure and almost never get a manicure, I don't buy beauty products very often.  You get the idea.  This cost $10 a month and this is my forth month and I'm so excited about this month that I wanted to share with you.  I like to try different things all the time and they send large samples if not the actual size beauty tools and it's a surprise each month, so, this is perfect for me.  

I was super pleased this month to find a full sized bottle of Essie nail polish ($8), full sized tube of tarte lip tint ($24), A sample perfume of Annick Goutal, a twistband hair tie and 10 sheets Shiseido-purness oil-control blotting papers all for 10 bucks.  This month I opted for the special Teen Vogue addition, you don't get this option every month. 

Here's my box!

I hope I didn't bore you to death with this blog, however, I may share my Birchbox with you every month.  So much fun!  If you are interested in this program, check it out at http://www.birchbox.com?raf=wgd9s

See y'all later!!!

Initial Sugar Cookies in Pink....

Hello all!  How has your new year began?  Mine has been filled with excitement and a few orders for various things and, of course, I will share them with you.  This particular project was kind of last minute, but it was great practice for me.  As always I looked to www.sweetsugarbelle.com for some clarity and wonderful and practical ideas and techniques.  I didn't want to just throw a "G" onto the cookies.  I wanted to give it dimension and depth.  So, here is the three picture story, so sad, of what I ended up with.  

Baked.  I tried marking the cookies with an edible marker to get a perfect circle, but ended up giving up on this b/c it was taking toooooo long and it was unnecessary.  

Here I am almost done.  Some "G's" are filled in others are not.  

A close up.  I would like to say this was the finished product, but in true Cara form, at the last minute I added a single edible pearl to each "G" and forgot to take more pictures.  

I have more cake projects coming up and still a few other projects just waiting to be blogged about.  I hope you enjoyed today's blog.  

Be still and know,

Cara

Christmas desserts. Too late?

I really hope your holidays were not too stressful and full of family and celebrating Jesus' birth.  I know it's late and maybe you are sick of looking at or thinking about sweets and desserts, but I still wanted to share these desserts before I completely forget about them.  I hope you enjoy!

Here it is, two of my Christmas desserts.  I normally make a banana pudding trifle, but decided to add a chocolate peppermint trifle to the mix this year along with a pumpkin and pecan pie.  I only took pictures of the trifles.  They just turned out so pretty.  LOL  Of course with a ton of poor lighting, here they are...

Banana Pudding Trifle

Side view

Chocolate Peppermint Trifle

Finally, this year, I made just enough.  Usually I make waaaaaay to much and have leftovers for days.  These were gone in about 2 days.  I think these will stay on the dessert menu for years to come.  

Here's to a year of clarity and purpose!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

MMmmmmMmmmm!  I had an extra special helper in the kitchen!  Reagan is really enjoying being a helper in the kitchen these days and I am cherishing these moments.  

Here she is putting the pumpkin puree in the mixer.

And here is what she does best.

 Batter in the cupcake liners.

All baked.

And ready to eat....nom, nom, nom.

These were YUMMY and even better with a nice fresh pot of Gumbo, you Louisianians know what I'm talking about.

Here is a link to the recipe if you want to give it a try.  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pumpkin-spice-cupcakes/  I took the recommendations to tweak the batter, which included mounding the spices, using 1 1/4c of puree and use oil not butter.  It really helped.

I hope you all are enjoying your holidays as much as I am enjoying mine.  My desire would be that we all focus on the TRUE reason for the season, Jesus, our families and friends.

On my heart....(The battles of the adoption process)

About 10 years ago I meant a very special and precious person.  Her name is Jenny and we met at Gulf States Bible College (Which, unfortunately has shut down.).  She truly is one of the sweetest, kindest, most generous person you would ever meet.  I've just learned recently that she and her husband, Matt, have been going through the process of adopting a baby.  If you would like to read about their journey, you can do so here, http://theelianaproject.blogspot.com/.  They have already been through two failed adoptions and are pushing forward to the goal of being parents.  Jenny wrote a blog titled "Love is a Risk" on October 4, 2011 and through the quote that blog is based off God laid it on my heart to make something for her.  It's not perfect, it's not even professional looking, but I wanted to bring a bit more attention to Jenny and her journey by sharing it with you.

Here it is...a decorative plate for her to display, hide or trash.  lol

I truly am inspired by Jenny and Matt and I really believe that God has called them to love big and in some ways bigger than any of us have ever loved.  The risk that comes with this big love for them has been heartbreaking at times, but join me in believing that God would deliver that precious child right into their arms.