Tuesday, May 13, 2014

DICEcapades with the fam


The source of these smiles you ask? 

A game called DICEcapades... buy it on Amazon if ya want to

My brother and his fam are allll about some games. Me too! 

When we hung out with them recently we tried out their new game, DICEcapades. Loads of fun is what it oughta be called. 

We laughed and had a really good time playin it. 

Ok, so once in a while it was a little tough with a trivia question 

And then there was the card that made my beloved do two push ups. 

We almost had to call 911.

Ok, not really. 
But he was grunting and groaning like he had done 200 ... It was hilarious. 

Anyway, if you're in the market for a new game for friends or fam I give this one two thumbs up! 

Sunday, May 11, 2014

my first layer cake

If you know me, you know I'm kinda a perfectionist about certain things. Or OCD. Whatev.

And if you know me, you know I'm not known for my superb baking skills. I make a mean batch of Oreo balls but let's be honest, anybody can mix up crushed Oreos and a block of cream cheese and dip em in some white chocolate. 

For a few months I had been dying to bake something. 

A cake. Some homemade biscuits. Anything sweet & yummy. I don't even know why. The dude I'm married to doesn't even have a sweet tooth and I'm on this little journey with Weight Watchers... so.... 

But when I got the April issue of Southern Living I read through the recipe that was featured on the cover for Strawberry Lemonade Layer Cake and thought to myself, hmm I think I could make that. And strawberries just happen to be muh fave.

Well, being the novice I am, I of course had to make a list of ingredients I needed that was as long as my arm. EEK! What the heck is cake flour??? I barely understand the difference between self-rising and the other kind... what's it called? 

Anyway... I came, I conquered, I baked! 


Everybody takes a picture with their cake, right? 
It's a thing.

So you may be wondering if I took this cake to a party or over to a friend's house or somethin. 

Nope. Just wanted to see if I could do it. 



Anthony accused me of shutting down the kitchen for the weekend but that wasn't the case at all

It kinda did take me most of the day, but it was mostly because I was OCD about reading the recipe 413 times and measuring everything exactly and trying to make it as perfect as the picture on the cover of the magazine. I really don't know why I don't bake these kinds of cakes more often. ;-) 

My coworkers loved it.  And I did, too. With a cold glass of milk.  mmm

 Eh, I think I'll hang up my apron though. 
Probably just gonna stick to Oreo balls. 

guitar diaper cake for baby Jack

Sometimes I get a wild hair to do something crafty I've seen on Pinterest.  Like making a guitar out of diapers and blankets. :o) 

I looove doing creative stuff for the really special people in my life. 

When I came across this one, I knew it'd be great for my friend Lindsay's baby shower that was comin up. 

She's actually birthing her baby today, on Mother's Day, which is extra cool since this is her first kid and her first Mother's Day as a mom. 

Anyway, like I said, I saw it on Pinterest and of course went to Google to search for the instructions. Came across a detailed vid on youtube that hooked me up. diaper cake DIY vid

I saw another one somewhere so I jazzed mine up a bit differently than the youtuber. 


I decided the strings were a must. I mean, really. Cmon now.




I ended up having to wrap the dark brown fabric around a piece of cardboard to make it sturdy enough to hold the gold brads. A little more work, but worth it. 

By the way, the brown fabric was like $1 in the clearance bin in the fabric department at Walmart. 

The polka dot ribbon had a dual purpose - flipped over it was perfect for going around the side of the guitar. . . sans the dotty beauty

And then it finished off the neck of the guitar perfectly with the polka dots showing in all their dotty splendor! 

And that, my friends, is a little DIY baby gift that I enjoyed giving away. 

I hope Lindsay unwraps it all and keeps Jack warm and cozy in those little blankets. And uses the diapers for... well, you know.