Month in Review - April 2011

A friend of mine, Amy, does this monthly recap on her blog every month. I really enjoy reading about what she has accomplished each month, so I thought I'd start doing the same Month in Review myself. :o) And, maybe, just maybe, it'll help me attempt to accomplish more each month so I have more to blog about. Hah.

What books and/or magazines did I read this month?

I read Remember Me, The Return, and The Last Story, all part of the Remember Me series by Christopher Pike. For Magazines, I read Martha Stewart Living, Whole Living, Real Simple, and Lowe's Creative Ideas.

What movies, television shows, plays, etc. did I watch this month?

I kept up with my weekly television shows - Grey's Anatomy, One Tree Hill, Army Wives, and Vampire Diaries. New movies watched... Love and Other Drugs, You Again, and Hoodwinked.

What fun things did I do with my family and/or friends?

April was a tough month for "fun" mostly because work and school was very intense. We celebrated my best friend's 30th birthday at Blue Mesa with a group of friends. We did the MS Walk in Addison for the MS Society. And, I took Level 1 of the Wilton Cake Decorating class at Michael's.

What gifts did I give and/or receive?

This was actually a big gift month, and that's kind of unusual for April. Marcus bought me flowers, a Blu Ray Player, all of the Harry Potter movies, and Hoodwinked. Just because. :o) We got Lindsey flowers, a Michael's gift card, a book, and dinner for her birthday.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?

Nothing really unusual this month. I bought the supplies for my cake class, lots of ingredients to make icing/cakes. I bought a necklace and a pair of earrings from Etsy.

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?

None. This was a very healthy month for me. :o) I did start the visits to the weight loss doctor this month.

What were my accomplishments this month?

I made it through the month! There was so much going on this month, including three trips to Abilene, so I'm glad that I was actually able to successfully make it through the month of April without any major hardships or failures.

What were my disappointments this month?

Luckily the disappointments this month were minor, and at this point, I don't couldn't even tell you what they were.

Anything else noteworthy to include?

It's in the months when things seem to be the most stressful with work and school that I'm reminded of the amazing friendship I have. I haven't always had friendships that were unconditional, and it's taken me this long and these many years to find it. Carie and Lindsey - if you girls are reading this - thank you for being you. Thank you for being a shoulder to cry on (sometimes literally), an ear to listen, and most importantly, a friend. I wouldn't trade our friendship for anything!!

And... I'm beyond thankful for my marriage. We've had some rough spots in our relationship, but I'm constantly reminded of how much I'm loved and appreciated. And that is wonderful.

Month In Review: April 2011

A friend of mine, Amy, does this monthly recap on her blog every month. I really enjoy reading about what she has accomplished each month, so I thought I'd start doing the same Month in Review myself. :o) And, maybe, just maybe, it'll help me attempt to accomplish more each month so I have more to blog about. Hah.

What books and/or magazines did I read this month?

I read Remember Me, The Return, and The Last Story, all part of the Remember Me series by Christopher Pike. For Magazines, I read Martha Stewart Living, Whole Living, Real Simple, and Lowe's Creative Ideas.

What movies, television shows, plays, etc. did I watch this month?

I kept up with my weekly television shows - Grey's Anatomy, One Tree Hill, Army Wives, and Vampire Diaries. New movies watched... Love and Other Drugs, You Again, and Hoodwinked.

What fun things did I do with my family and/or friends?

April was a tough month for "fun" mostly because work and school was very intense. We celebrated my best friend's 30th birthday at Blue Mesa with a group of friends. We did the MS Walk in Addison for the MS Society. And, I took Level 1 of the Wilton Cake Decorating class at Michael's.

What gifts did I give and/or receive?

This was actually a big gift month, and that's kind of unusual for April. Marcus bought me flowers, a Blu Ray Player, all of the Harry Potter movies, and Hoodwinked. Just because. :o) We got Lindsey flowers, a Michael's gift card, a book, and dinner for her birthday.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?

Nothing really unusual this month. I bought the supplies for my cake class, lots of ingredients to make icing/cakes. I bought a necklace and a pair of earrings from Etsy.

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?

None. This was a very healthy month for me. :o) I did start the visits to the weight loss doctor this month.

What were my accomplishments this month?

I made it through the month! There was so much going on this month, including three trips to Abilene, so I'm glad that I was actually able to successfully make it through the month of April without any major hardships or failures.

What were my disappointments this month?

Luckily the disappointments this month were minor, and at this point, I don't couldn't even tell you what they were.

Anything else noteworthy to include?

It's in the months when things seem to be the most stressful with work and school that I'm reminded of the amazing friendship I have. I haven't always had friendships that were unconditional, and it's taken me this long and these many years to find it. Carie and Lindsey - if you girls are reading this - thank you for being you. Thank you for being a shoulder to cry on (sometimes literally), an ear to listen, and most importantly, a friend. I wouldn't trade our friendship for anything!!

And... I'm beyond thankful for my marriage. We've had some rough spots in our relationship, but I'm constantly reminded of how much I'm loved and appreciated. And that is wonderful.

>May Goals

>Since May 1st, is um, SUNDAY, I'm going to go ahead and get this blog post out there! :o) All I can say is that I'm having a really hard time grasping the fact that this year is already 1/3rd of the way over. Where has it gone? Seriously.

Anyways... on to the May goals. The good news... school will be complete on May 8th (maybe even before then, if I can get my final research paper finished) and there are no planned trips to Abilene this month! Woo hoo! A month of FREEDOM. You can't possibly tell how excited I am!

Health:

* One 10K (or a 5K if I can't make the race this weekend due to homework. BOO!)

* Make it to the gym at least 3 days a week!

* Try one new, super HEALTHY meal each week.

* Lose 5 more lbs!

School:

* Finish and turn in TWO research papers for ACCT 530.

* Finish and turn in final research paper for ACCT 595.

Personal:

* Get my car cleaned up - oil change, etc.

* Pack up sweaters, and ship to Kelly.

* Organize the apartment, since we're staying here another 5 months.

* Consolidate student loans from BS/MBA.

* Post pictures each week of Level 2 cake decorating!

Crafty:

* Get to work on Carie's project! (Can't tell you what it is, because of course, it's a SECRET!)

May Goals

Since May 1st, is um, SUNDAY, I'm going to go ahead and get this blog post out there! :o) All I can say is that I'm having a really hard time grasping the fact that this year is already 1/3rd of the way over. Where has it gone? Seriously.

Anyways... on to the May goals. The good news... school will be complete on May 8th (maybe even before then, if I can get my final research paper finished) and there are no planned trips to Abilene this month! Woo hoo! A month of FREEDOM. You can't possibly tell how excited I am!

Health:

* One 10K (or a 5K if I can't make the race this weekend due to homework. BOO!)

* Make it to the gym at least 3 days a week!

* Try one new, super HEALTHY meal each week.

* Lose 5 more lbs!

School:

* Finish and turn in TWO research papers for ACCT 530.

* Finish and turn in final research paper for ACCT 595.

Personal:

* Get my car cleaned up - oil change, etc.

* Pack up sweaters, and ship to Kelly.

* Organize the apartment, since we're staying here another 5 months.

* Consolidate student loans from BS/MBA.

* Post pictures each week of Level 2 cake decorating!

Crafty:

* Get to work on Carie's project! (Can't tell you what it is, because of course, it's a SECRET!)

>April Recap

>Whew. Well, I know it's only April 26th, but I can pretty much recap this month already. I didn't accomplish half of my "goals." I feel like a slacker. Hah.

Let's recap...

These were my goals. I'm crossing off what actually happened. LOL. In looking back at this, I failed to realize that we'd be gone to Abilene helping my father-in-law build fences for three of the five weekends in this month. My focus stayed on my cake decorating class and school. Pray that next month will be better!

Health:

* Two walks this month. Yeah, only did one.

* Make it to the gym at least 3 days a week! Psht. Didn't even make it once.

* Try one new, super HEALTHY meal each week. Ha! We've only cooked at home one time this month.

* Lose 5 more lbs! Is it sad that I don't even know/remember where I started? I think I've lost three lbs this month.

* Schedule follow up appointment with Dr B. Decided against this, because I'm going to a weight loss doctor now, who will track all of the stuff Dr B was going to track anyways. And who really wants to pay two co-pays when you don't have to?

School:

* Finish and turn in rough draft for ACCT 595 - Research Paper.

* Finish and turn in TWO research papers for ACCT 530. Nope. Not finished.

* Study for FINALS! :-)

* Make sure to stay caught up on each chapter assignment, so I don't fall behind and end up in a world of misery.

Personal:

* Attempt to plan our days at Disney. We canceled our trip, altogether! So I guess I can cross this one out.

* Get my car cleaned up - oil change, etc. Nope.

* Pack up sweaters, and ship to Kelly. No.

* Organize the apartment, since we're staying here another 5 months. Ha!

* Consolidate student loans from BS/MBA.

* Post pictures each week of my cake decorating!

I'll check back and recap my April after this month is over. Wish me luck. It's going to be a BUSY ONE!

April Recap

Whew. Well, I know it's only April 26th, but I can pretty much recap this month already. I didn't accomplish half of my "goals." I feel like a slacker. Hah.

Let's recap...

These were my goals. I'm crossing off what actually happened. LOL. In looking back at this, I failed to realize that we'd be gone to Abilene helping my father-in-law build fences for three of the five weekends in this month. My focus stayed on my cake decorating class and school. Pray that next month will be better!

Health:

* Two walks this month. Yeah, only did one.

* Make it to the gym at least 3 days a week! Psht. Didn't even make it once.

* Try one new, super HEALTHY meal each week. Ha! We've only cooked at home one time this month.

* Lose 5 more lbs! Is it sad that I don't even know/remember where I started? I think I've lost three lbs this month.

* Schedule follow up appointment with Dr B. Decided against this, because I'm going to a weight loss doctor now, who will track all of the stuff Dr B was going to track anyways. And who really wants to pay two co-pays when you don't have to?

School:

* Finish and turn in rough draft for ACCT 595 - Research Paper.

* Finish and turn in TWO research papers for ACCT 530. Nope. Not finished.

* Study for FINALS! :-)

* Make sure to stay caught up on each chapter assignment, so I don't fall behind and end up in a world of misery.

Personal:

* Attempt to plan our days at Disney. We canceled our trip, altogether! So I guess I can cross this one out.

* Get my car cleaned up - oil change, etc. Nope.

* Pack up sweaters, and ship to Kelly. No.

* Organize the apartment, since we're staying here another 5 months. Ha!

* Consolidate student loans from BS/MBA.

* Post pictures each week of my cake decorating!

I'll check back and recap my April after this month is over. Wish me luck. It's going to be a BUSY ONE!

Cake Decorating - Week Four

>

This week concluded Level 1 of the Wilton Cake Decorating Class at Michael's. I really had a lot of fun in this level, and I'm looking forward to start Level 2 next Monday, May 2nd! :o)

In this class, we learned ribbon roses and petal roses. I didn't love the ribbon roses, they don't look as real to me, so I focused more on petal roses, because that's what I wanted for my cake. Since we spent a great deal of time learning the art of rose making, my cake seems pretty lame this week, compared to the others. I'm hoping I'll have enough time to make a "practice cake" this week using my new rose making skills.

Cake Decorating - Week Four

This week concluded Level 1 of the Wilton Cake Decorating Class at Michael's. I really had a lot of fun in this level, and I'm looking forward to start Level 2 next Monday, May 2nd! :o)

In this class, we learned ribbon roses and petal roses. I didn't love the ribbon roses, they don't look as real to me, so I focused more on petal roses, because that's what I wanted for my cake. Since we spent a great deal of time learning the art of rose making, my cake seems pretty lame this week, compared to the others. I'm hoping I'll have enough time to make a "practice cake" this week using my new rose making skills.

>Practice Cake - Week Three

>

After being a little frustrated to say the least, with my class cake from week three, I decided I was going to attempt it again at home. At home, I'm a little less rushed, a little more organized, and I'm able to think through my cake design a little easier. I'm pretty pleased with this one.

Practice Cake - Week Three

After being a little frustrated to say the least, with my class cake from week three, I decided I was going to attempt it again at home. At home, I'm a little less rushed, a little more organized, and I'm able to think through my cake design a little easier. I'm pretty pleased with this one.

>Cake Decorating - Week Three

>

This week was another exciting and fun cake decorating class. We learned lots of new techniques to make flowers as well as used techniques we learned from week two. We did an "Easter" inspired cake this week.

To start off, we did a basket weave along the bottom half of the top of the cake. The "handle" of the Easter basket is made using a "S" chain and a 18 star tip.

We then put star flowers using the 1D tip, swirl flowers using the 1D tip, and "grass" using tip 233. My grass started to look more like hair since it was all too uniform, so I added more and then it looked weird.

I really want to go back and practice using tip 233. I hate the way the grass looks. But then part of it has to do with the fact that it doesn't really look like grass, since I colored my cake green to begin with. I definitely want to start over again with this one.

Cake Decorating - Week Three

This week was another exciting and fun cake decorating class. We learned lots of new techniques to make flowers as well as used techniques we learned from week two. We did an "Easter" inspired cake this week.

To start off, we did a basket weave along the bottom half of the top of the cake. The "handle" of the Easter basket is made using a "S" chain and a 18 star tip.

We then put star flowers using the 1D tip, swirl flowers using the 1D tip, and "grass" using tip 233. My grass started to look more like hair since it was all too uniform, so I added more and then it looked weird.

I really want to go back and practice using tip 233. I hate the way the grass looks. But then part of it has to do with the fact that it doesn't really look like grass, since I colored my cake green to begin with. I definitely want to start over again with this one.

>Cake Decorating - Week 2

>

Week Two was a lot of fun! We were supposed to bring an un-iced cake to class, so I brought a chocolate cake. YUM.

My first basketweave. :o) I love this technique. Seriously, one of my favorites so far!

We also learned how to use piping gel and transfer a pattern from parchment paper to your cake. I choose to outline a cupcake in piping gel. Basically, you trace a pattern onto parchment paper using a pen. Then you take a disposal decorating bag, put a small amount of piping gel in the bag, and cut a very small hole. Re-trace your pattern using the piping gel. Put your parchment paper down on your cake, and trace again with a small brush (paint brush).

A tip: Make sure that your parchment paper is curling up - not down - if it curls at all. If the parchment paper is curling down, it won't pull off your cake easily and it will ruin the icing.

I really need to spend some time working on crumb coating my cakes BEFORE I do the final icing job, but in a class room without a fridge and a two hour time limit, that just wasn't an option. I also need to spend some time on my borders. These look horrible.

Overall - I'm pretty happy with my cake, since it is my first time to try some new techniques. I like taking pictures and looking back at them over time, because it'll be nice to see where I started from, and where I'm going! :o) Plus... I can really determine what areas I need work in for the next week.

P.S. Look forward to a basketweave cake coming from me hopefully soon! I'm going to attempt to bake the cake tonight after class, and decorate tomorrow after work.

Cake Decorating - Week 2

Week Two was a lot of fun! We were supposed to bring an un-iced cake to class, so I brought a chocolate cake. YUM.

My first basketweave. :o) I love this technique. Seriously, one of my favorites so far!

We also learned how to use piping gel and transfer a pattern from parchment paper to your cake. I choose to outline a cupcake in piping gel. Basically, you trace a pattern onto parchment paper using a pen. Then you take a disposal decorating bag, put a small amount of piping gel in the bag, and cut a very small hole. Re-trace your pattern using the piping gel. Put your parchment paper down on your cake, and trace again with a small brush (paint brush).

A tip: Make sure that your parchment paper is curling up - not down - if it curls at all. If the parchment paper is curling down, it won't pull off your cake easily and it will ruin the icing.

I really need to spend some time working on crumb coating my cakes BEFORE I do the final icing job, but in a class room without a fridge and a two hour time limit, that just wasn't an option. I also need to spend some time on my borders. These look horrible.

Overall - I'm pretty happy with my cake, since it is my first time to try some new techniques. I like taking pictures and looking back at them over time, because it'll be nice to see where I started from, and where I'm going! :o) Plus... I can really determine what areas I need work in for the next week.

P.S. Look forward to a basketweave cake coming from me hopefully soon! I'm going to attempt to bake the cake tonight after class, and decorate tomorrow after work.

>Practice Cake #1

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I haven't been able to spend as much time practicing my "cake decorating" as I'd like, but I did manage to squeeze in one practice cake last week. It turned out pretty good, for my first time, that is. :-) The picture quality definitely leaves something to be desired, but when I'm out and about with my cake, iPhone quality is better than nothing! Right? Right! :-)

Cake Details:

Yellow Cake with Buttercream Icing

Icing Colors: Purple base with pink details

Tips Used: Star Tip (#26) and Round Tip (#12)

Practice Cake #1

I haven't been able to spend as much time practicing my "cake decorating" as I'd like, but I did manage to squeeze in one practice cake last week. It turned out pretty good, for my first time, that is. :-) The picture quality definitely leaves something to be desired, but when I'm out and about with my cake, iPhone quality is better than nothing! Right? Right! :-)

Cake Details:

Yellow Cake with Buttercream Icing

Icing Colors: Purple base with pink details

Tips Used: Star Tip (#26) and Round Tip (#12)

>Cake Decorating - Week 1

>

Tonight was my first cake decorating class at Michael's. Lindsey and I loaded up in the car, with all our "tools" and our cookies to decorate, and headed to class. :o) I was kind of surprised at the number of ladies in our class. We started this course with 7.

What we learned...

- How to bake the perfect cake

- How to make the classic buttercream icing

- How to check for the proper consistency of our buttercream icing

- Preparing decorating bags with couplers, tips, and filling the bag with icing

- How to make a star using the star tip

- How to make a curving line and a tight zigzag

- How to make shells

- How to make a dot, elongated shape, and heart

Overall, I felt pretty good with my decorated cookies but I really could use additional practice. We definitely learned a lot for our first class, and we skipped around in our "book" a bit - but I'm pretty confident in my future abilities and what we've learned so far...

Now on to the pictures.

The first cookie was supposed to be a flower... um, yeah, with 5 petals. Looks more like an octopus to me. :o) Using tip #12.

This is a heart, using tip #12. With dots around the edges.

This is a spiral design using a star tip. I think it was #21.

I pulled this one out of a design in our book. Using a round tip #12. If it had been finished, the icing would have been another color, and the "biggest" dot would have eyes, a nose, and a mouth to resemble a caterpillar.

Another cookie design (a star) using a star tip.