wedding day!

It has be a crazy 48 hours!

And I did not get pictures of any of it. 

Can you believe that?!

I completely forgot my camera...BOTH DAYS!

Yesterday we had the:

Bridesmaid's Luncheon

Rehearsal 

Rehearsal Dinner &

Bachelorette Party

Today was:

The Wedding!

WHEW! I am exhausted. 

But the wedding was absolutely GORGEOUS!

J made a beautiful bride!

And even though we had a few hitches

everything went surprisingly smooth.

I do not know if I will ever get all of the hairspray out of my hair;)

I will post pics when I can steal some off of one of the other Bridesmaid's Facebook pages!

It has been a super fun weekend 

but I am ready to sleep ALL DAY tomorrow!

{images}

character

“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.

Watch your words, for they become actions.

Watch your actions, for they become habits.

Watch your habits, for they become character.

Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

One of my FB friends posted this as their status today and it instantly became one of my favorite quotes.

Isn't it amazing how the smallest things we do or not do can become habits.

When I read this I immediately thought of about 5 things I need to stop doing,

but I also thought of a few things that I could start doing.

Small things that will not only make every day better but will impact my character and my legacy!

I can:

smile more

laugh more

stress less

slow down and just enjoy God's creation

do a better job of memorizing scripture

{as a kid I had tons of it memorized...I am slacking just a LITTLE in that department}

make someone else's day brighter by doing small things

sending snail mail to friends & family...just because

{who does not love getting mail that is not bills?!}

just consciously enjoying the madness that is my life everyday

{all in all it is pretty great!}

What small acts would you like to become habits in your life?

images via

time flies...

...and not only when you are having fun!

I have always prided myself on my time management skills.

But, lately, it seems like I am just keeping my head above water.

Working two jobs and taking four grad classes may not have been the smartest idea in the world.

But I have always worked 40 hours a week and gone to school as well.

Part of the problem is that I am in a wedding next weekend and the weekend after that is my sister's baby shower. 

Hopefully, once this month is over this will slow down a bit. fingers-crossed

I have been evaluating why I feel like I am floundering.

I have definitely over-committed myself this month.

But beyond that, I have been treating everything I do lately as urgent.

It is like I am constantly putting out fires.

One thing that has really helped is I have reminded myself that none of my to-do list is life or death. 

And in the grand scheme of things none of this really matters.

One of the most important things is to be organized {I have accomplished this one} and to take that one step further allocate specific time for each task that needs to be accomplished {I have to work on this part.}

One of the things I have been doing is organizing my to-do list everyday instead of weekly.

Another important thing is not to procrastinate. {Now this is where my problem lies}

I am usually a master procrastinator but the stress that is involved is just not healthy.

The problem is that I do some of my best work at the last minute so this is going to be a hard habit to break, but I am working on it.

Also, learning to just say no is something I need to work on. 

It is an honor to be a part of J's big day, but I knew when she asked me that her wedding would be in the middle of the semester and I should have gracefully declined. 

I have also gotten a LITTLE carried away with my sister's baby shower. 

I could have kept it simple but, of course, I have turned it into a complicated EVENT.

There are a few other things I have agreed to for the remainder of the year that I could have said no to but didn't. 

I am working on all of these things and I feel a little better now that I at least have a game plan.

What are some ways you stay on track and keep your time managed??

plans, plans

As I mentioned in my last post, I am planning a baby shower for my sister.

It is in 3 weeks and I feel like I still have about 2,432,198 things to do.

The theme of the shower is Dr. Seuss' One Fish, Two Fish. 

Instead of doing typical finger foods, I am doing a dessert bar and candy table.

I am going to have little Chinese takeout boxes for people to fill with candy and take home as favors.

I had some amazing invitations custom designed by the fab Posh 'n Chic Prints.

 Aren't they just adorable?!

I have also done a lot of crafty stuff for the shower. 

I made a sign the sis can hang above the baby's bed. 

I did not want the girls to feel left out so I made them one too.

I am going to use them as decorations at the shower.

I think they look very Seussian and they were super easy to make. 

I purchased all of the materials from Hobby Lobby.

Love that place!!

And then painted the boards and letters to match my decor.

It only took about 3 hours to do all three. 

The circles took the longest because I had to apply several coats.

I am getting close to having everything ready for the shower. 

The invitations went out last Friday so there is not backing out now;)

Does anyone have any suggestions for shower games that are not super cheesy??

It's a BOY!

Remember this post back in March when I announced that I was going to be an aunt again?

Well after a much anitcipated wait,

it is offical...I am going to have a nephew!!!

Yes, this alien looking thing is my nephew!

I do not get how anybody (even technicians) see anything in these pictures.

My sister is 30 weeks along and we are just finding out that he is a boy.

The little butterbean has definitely inherited the stubborn gene!

It has taken 4 ultrasounds over 10 weeks to get the little bugger to show us his stuff;)

I guess he is just shy!

It is going to be SO. MUCH. FUN. getting to spoil a boy.

My sister has two daughters and they are both excited about having a little brother.

I have been busily planning a baby shower.

I will probably be doing several posts about that in the near future.

I have gone a LITTLE overboard;)

But I love to plan a party, especially when it involves my favorite little people!!

I take my job as an aunt VERY seriously.

cake time!

This cake is buttery tasting and due to the whole eggs, a pretty pale yellow color. 

It goes well with a variety of fillings and frostings.

It does have a tendency to be a little dry so I add a simple moistening syrup just before I frost the cakes.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

YELLOW CAKE

Makes two 8x2 inch round cake layers:

2 1/4 cups cake flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp cut into tablespoon sized pieces

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs, at room temp

3/4 cup whole milk, at room temp

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray two 8x2 inch round pans with nonstick spray, line with parchment, then give the parchment a quick spray as well.

2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

3. Beat the butter using the flat beater attachment until soft and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the sugar gradually and beat until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl once or twice, and then beat in the vanilla.

4. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down after each addition, allowing each egg to be absorbed before continuing. Add the flour mixture in 4 additions, alternately with the milk. Begin and end with the flour mixture and beat briefly until smooth on low-medium speed after each addition.

5. Divide batter evenly between the pans and smooth the tops with an offset spatula. Bake for about 23 minutes, or until a toothpick shows a few moist crumbs. The cake will be tinged with light golden brown around the edges and top and will have begun to come away from the sides of the pan.

6. Cool on racks in pans for 8 minutes. Unmold directly onto racks, peel off parchment, and allow cakes to cool completely. 

MOISTENING SYRUP

2 cups sugar

2 cups water

1 vanilla bean, split and scraped, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Place the sugar and water in a saucepan and stir to wet the sugar. Add the split vanilla bean and all the seeds, if using. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

2. Turn the heat down to medium and simmer for 1 minute. Make sure all sugar is dissolved.

3. remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. (Whisk in vanilla extract, if using, at this point.) Remove the vanilla bean and seeds and refrigerate in an airtight container.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And here is the final product.

I used hydrangeas to decorate the cake because that is what J will be carrying in her bridal bouquet.

It was a big hit at the shower! 

It was a labor of love and took me a few late nights to finish it.

But J loved it and that was my goal!

yummy butter cream frosting!

One of my close friends, J, is getting married in September and I am one of her bridesmaids!

We threw her a bridal shower last Saturday and I baked the cake for it. 

This is the frosting that I used and I always get great compliments on the taste. 

It is not as sweet as a traditional buttercream and it has a great texture especially for decorating.

I know the recipe can look a little daunting but it is not as complicated as it seems.

 

ESSENTIAL BUTTER CREAM

Makes 7 cups
1 & 1/4 cups plus 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
8 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 & 1/2 pounds(6 sticks) unsalted butter, at room
temp, cut into small pieces

1.  Place the 1&1/4 cups of sugar and water in a small
saucepan. Stir to wet all of the sugar. Bring to a
boil over medium-high heat, swirling the pan
occasionally to help dissolve sugar. Dip a pastry
brush in cold water and wash down sugar crystals from
the sides of the pot once or twice. Turn down the heat
so the mixture simmers gently. You want to be able to
bring the syrup to a rapid boil when needed. 

 
2.  Meanwhile, place the whites in your clean,
grease-free mixing bowl and whip until frothy on low
speed using the wire whip attachment. Add the cream of
tartar and turn the speed up to medium-high. When soft
peaks form, add the 1/3 cup sugar gradually.  Continue
whipping until stiff, glossy peaks form. This is the
meringue part of the butter cream.

  3.  Return the sugar/water mixture to a rapid boil and
cook until it reaches 248-250 degrees. The trick here
is to have to syrup ready at the same time as the
glossy meringue. If the meringue is done before the
syrup, turn the mixer speed down to the lowest setting
so that the whites are continuously moving, but not
highly agitated. If the syrup is done first add a bit
of hot water to lower the temperature and continue to
cook until meringue is ready.

4.  While the syrup is cooking at a rapid boil, there
are many visual clues to use to see how it is
progressing. It starts out thin with many small
bubbles over the entire surface. As it cooks, the
water evaporates and the mixture will become thicker.
The bubbles get larger and do not rise to the surface
so rapidly. The bubbles will become thick and sticky
and pop open more slowly as well. At this point, the
syrup definitely looks thickened, but it has not begun
to color, which would mean it is about to turn into
caramel. The stage you want, called the firm ball
stage, is right before the sugar starts to color. If
you drop a bit of the syrup into a glass of cold water
it will harden into a ball. When you squeeze the ball
between your fingertips, it will feel firm.

5.  When the syrup is ready, with the mixer running on
medium-high speed, pour in the syrup in a steady
stream, without getting any on the rotating whip or
the sides of the bowl. If it does, the syrup will
harden and cling and not make it down into the
meringue mixture. Turn off the machine to add the
syrup if you find it easier. You just do not want to
let the meringue sit still for longer than a few
seconds.

6.  The meringue must be whipped until it cools, which
may take as long as 15 minutes, depending on the
ambient temperature. At this point, beat the meringue
on high speed. Occasionally touch the outside bottom
of the bowl; you should be able to feel it cooling
down. When the bowl is no longer warm, stop the
machine and touch the surface of the meringue with
your finger to double-check that it is indeed cooled.
If you add the butter while the meringue is warm, the
butter will melt and ruin the texture of the
butter cream by turning it liquidy. It will also
decrease the volume of the final product.

7.  When the meringue is cool, turn the machine down
to a medium speed and begin to add the butter, a
couple tablespoons at a time. The meringue will
change the moment the butter becomes incorporated; the
texture becomes thicker, creamy, and smooth as it
turns into butter cream. Continue to whip the
butter cream, adding the remaining butter. Keep beating
until the butter cream is completely smooth.  If at any
time the mixture looks lumpy or separated, just
continue to beat; it will come together.

8.  After butter cream is completely smooth you can add
1 tablespoon of flavoring (ex. vanilla), if desired.