Painted Dolphin Cake, Holiday Treats

another day in paradise. sigh.

just for once, i wish something would go right. or at least get a little easier. but that's unpossible. (yes, i realize what i said there. i did it on purpose.)

to have things work out and be able to not worry would be another lifetime for me, though.

so let's move on to something nicer, eh? (i feel like i start a lot of my blogs like this. just venting, i guess. i have to sometimes.)

i had a request from a friend for a dolphin cake. i honestly totally forgot until he texted me on monday, but i am glad i was able to get it done. i made a little fondant just to put a round piece on top of the cake to paint it. then, just for fun, i used a little of my silver cake spray to give it a shimmery effect. water shimmers. thats cool, right?

yay glitter!

i always have fun doing this kind of thing. i wish i could make a living on painting. that would be a dream......okay, not gonna go down that road again so...more cake.

see? how neat is that? how many people do you know that hand paint cakes? probably not many. unless you know a lot of people who make cakes and enjoy art, or maybe you look up cake painters specifically on the internet. i don't know. i know that i have never met someone else that does anything like this. like i said, i have fun with it.

i am also about to make some cupcakes for thanksgiving, but i need to buy eggs. i am waiting for this cake to be picked up, and then i will go out for eggs, and make more treats. they are special cupcakes, though. my aunt can't have gluten, so i am making gluten free pumpkin cupcakes. or maybe a small cake. i haven't gotten that far yet. cupcakes are pretty awesome, but i had another neat idea for a mini cake, so we'll see where this takes me.

by the way, here is my pumpkin roll all cut up. it came out pretty nice. i am bringing a few pieces to work at the restaurant, since i am unable to work tomorrow.

have i mentioned the next couple of days are going to be extremely long? not to mention the new stuff that just got added to my list of worries?

i am not gonna lie. i am one of the crazies that you will find out on black friday. no, i am not trampling people for the last $2 waffle iron, or those must have sell out items. i go out on black friday because this is the only time of the year that i can afford anything. clothing, accessories....it's all super cheap, especially if you do your research before hand. i already ordered some things online because some stores started their sales early. sweet!

so yes, i will still go out for a bit, since i could use some new clothes and a couple other things. then i will be working 6am to 9pm. basically. then on saturday, i work 9-9. how fun is that? at least sunday is a normal-non-extended-hour day. i have plans for sunday though. those are a secret.

have i mentioned that it's been snowing most of the day as well? this is from 11am or so, but its starting to pile up pretty good out there. the first (kind of) snow is always pretty because it's all white and new and glittery, not like snow that everyone has driven through 483 times and gets all brown and nasty. i don't mind looking at it. it makes me want to curl up under a blanket, drink cocoa, and watch netflix until i pass out. driving in it is another story. everybody is a dick. i said it. everybody. snow makes people stupid. especially being from upstate new york, where it does this EVERY YEAR....you should be used to it by now. if not, then get the f*ck off the road, you're ruining it for everyone else. you should know what you're capable of, and if its not snow, then go home. oh, and all of you assholes with your suv's and trucks who fly by everyone and blow snow and crap into other cars faces? i am waiting for the day that i find you spun out in a ditch. driving like an asshole is going to make not only you, but other cars go off the road because they can't see.

AAHH. /endrant

~~~~~~~

alright. so cake is picked up, cupcakes are in the oven, now i just wait to leave. that thing that was wrong earlier? we are down a car until friday, so i am picking ron up from work shortly. there was a factory recall for airbags or something, and now instead of two hours, it's taking all day. what the hell. blah. so after this at least it will be inspected, the wheel bearing done, oil changed.....good. for now. not including other stuff i can't afford. but we aren't going to get into that now.

cupcakes make everything better. so does thanksgiving. pretty much any kind of food anywhere will make me happy.

that and this face.

(this is what happens when i put my phone down. i also have some close ups of eyes, a nose, more faces...)

pretty sure this was sunday night while we were watching big bang theory and eating that awesome dinner i made. because that's what we do.

that, and if i can ever afford it to keep, play diablo. i still need to actually buy it. it's sitting in my cabinet at work. waiting. waiting. probably forever. #nomoney

no money, and yet i am going black friday shopping. i managed to save a little, so at least if i get a couple new shirts it's something to work with.

i mean, i know noone reads this, but just in case anyone out there loves me enough to gift me an item for christmas, i am looking for a cast iron skillet, some new regular sized silicone spatulas (the cats ate the old ones), a cake stand, a second oven mitt, some random sized canvases, fancy chocolate from lune (in manlius), guardians of the galaxy, a candy thermometer, a new silpat for rolling stuff (the cats ate the old one), and an iron. mostly cheap stuff. i am a cheap date. in return, here is list of holiday treats this year! going with a no-bake theme, so i can start early!

Holiday Treat List 2014

Muddy Buddies (Puppy Chow)

Peppermint Patties

Dark Chocolate Coconut Bon Bons

Vanilla Bean Salted Caramel Fudge

Peppermint Oreo Truffles

Salted Caramel Truffles

aww yeah. might as well go all out if i'm gonna do this. i have a few weeks to gather my supplies, and will probably start everything in the next week or two. i need to make halfmoons, but i am keeping those all to myself. maybe some chocolate chip cookies. i dont know. but for my gifts this year, it will be all those tasty delights i just listed. like i said, if anyone ever wants to repay the favor, you can totally get me something off of my little list above that. it would be greatly appreciated. ☺

i am so ready for a nap. seriously. maybe i can sleep in tomorrow or something, but who does that. (not this guy). anyway, come back for those cupcakes. i'll post them probably sunday (or monday?) after they're long gone. .who knows what else i will have time for. thanks for reading! have a nice holiday! ☺

Pumpkin Rolls, Etc

so this happened today.

i know, i am a day late, but come on. it's not like i am getting a ton of views. besides, i needed something to share, and i spent last night making dinner and being all fancy. we will come back to the pumpkin rolls in a minute, though.

see that? eh? eh? that's like stuff you buy at the grocery store. did some stuffed pork chops, some mashed and gravy, and i even made home made cornbread....in muffin tins. corn muffins? sure. that works.

i really like this recipe for my cornbread. it is so buttery and sweet and awesome. i found it forever ago at allrecipes. it has not failed me yet. it is really easy too. it calls to stir everything together in a hot skillet, but i use whatever i have on hand.

okay, i took a few short cuts with the stuffing and whatnot, but hey, what better way to spend the evening than with a nice dinner, the husband, some big bang theory and relaxing bath night? ♥

so much needed after work and all of the other stress all week long.

so anyway, let's get back to this pumpkin roll now. rolls? technically there are two of them. i have more baking plans between now and wednesday, too, but i will post them later. i have to have something to talk about on wednesday. or maybe thursday. i also still have to make them.

i got the recipe for these from my little nestle cookbook for libby's famous pumpkin roll. i doubled it, of course, since i had a whole can of pumpkin to use.

 

someday, i want to make a regular chocolate roll, so i can actually eat it. why? because chocolate is better than pumpkin. i said it. so shoot me. it's a personal preference. i don't mind the way pumpkin (spice?) smells, but i've said it before, it's not really my thing.

ta-daaa!! how cool is that? they look all fancy, but they are not incredibly difficult to make. they do take a little patience, and love of heat. you have to roll them up quickly once they come out of the oven, into a towel. that way when they cool, they stay in the roll shape and won't crack and fall apart when you fill them.

i will probably bring some of one of them to work, and the other one/part of one i will leave home or bring for thanksgiving. i can't believe it's the end of november already. holy crap. i was totally bad and ordered some stuff online tonight, as some places are offering their black friday specials online ahead of time. seeeecrets.

speaking of holiday things, kris came to visit me and brought me peppermint hot chocolate on...tuesday? something like that. all the days blend together now. she also bought me some awesome zelda socks. i love socks. and zelda. two of the best things ever, as long as the socks do not get wet. wet socks are the absolute worst.

i am both excited and worried for this weekend. while i did manage thanksgiving off for once, i will then be abusing myself for the following 48 hours to make up for it. going out for some black friday shopping since it's the only time of the year i can afford anything, and then working all day friday, and then all day saturday. blah. oh well. i asked for it. i got to pay rent somehow.

i almost forgot from dinner as well....i tried making a mega chocolate chip cookie.

which was then smothered with peanut butter caramel brownie ice cream and whipped cream. oh my goodness. i have to try it again sometime though. the website called to bake it for a half an hour, but it was definitely overdone. still delicious though. i also didn't have chocolate chips, so i swirled nutella into it, and threw some mini marshmallows on it.

dessertfortwo is my new other favorite real website, which is where i got the recipe for the mega cookie from. there are a lot of neat things on there that i want to try. not even just desserts, but dinners and things. yay!

 hmm. well i guess i'll stop here for tonight. hopefully i'll be on time on wednesday. maybe i'll even post my holiday treat list....but i'll think about it. have a good week and holiday! thanks for reading!

Short Update Today

well, today's blog really is just a quick post. not much has happened since sunday. i did have monday off, but i haven't been sleeping much, so i cleaned a whole bunch, and then spent the day working on my driving course online (insurance reductions!) until i fell asleep.

later that night ron and i went to his dads house to get our last things from the basement, as he is selling the house in the next couple weeks. i have a few cake things and candy molds to play with at some point. it is getting too cold out to function properly, though.

snow? come on. get out of here. go to canada or something.

we also stopped out at the midnight sale at my work to pick up grand theft auto for the ps4. now we have two ps4 games! yay! at least until i pick up my little big planet. hopefully i can get that on friday. then i should actually finish the second one, THEN play the third one. or just buy diablo and play that until my eyes bleed. yay!

work? it's still a little overwhelming. i wish there was some way we could get payroll to actually get help to get things done. i mean, my hand being crippled isn't really helping and is making me slow, but the extra coverage would be nice. i am pretty sure i posted about that last time, though, sooo i don't know. i just hope i don't either break down or break someones face by the end of the season.

at the same time, all the decorations and stuff are going up. that smile is getting forced onto my face, and happy feelings keep coming. maybe i should just have someone follow me around with a bunch of glitter, fake snow and christmas lights to keep me from going insane.

blah. well, sorry i didn't have anything exciting to share today. i have friday morning off, and saturday morning. maybe i can do something cool then. who knows. have a good week. thanks for reading!

Art, Cake, and Other Musings

I spent a little time doing some art this week. It was not the greatest situation, but i wanted to do something to celebrate a dear friend. I have been feeling pretty useless lately, both at work and at home/etc, so i felt like it was the least i could do. I have wanted to get back i to drawing for some time now, so i guess it worked out. Everyone there seemed to like it a lot. 

These were some in progress pictures. I spent about 5 hours total so far. I would like to add a ribbon to the bottom, since she had cancer. I will probably finish that this week. 

I can honestly say that i miss the feeling if being covered in charcoal dust. It is one of the few things i dont mind being on my hands. Maybe just because its not sticky, i dunno. Either way, it is quite satisfying. I hope i am able to draw more in the future. 

In the mean time, the sun has set for another beautiful day. All that remains are the memories and the past. You were much loved, momma Ree. 

 of course, things can't always be handled one at a time. my job brings out the sarcasm in me. hardcore. especially as of lately. there are so many things that need to be done, and it is impossible with it getting busier for the holidays. top it off with not being there for three days in a row when noone takes care of anything? yep. almost had a meltdown saturday from being overwhelmed. it really sucks. i don't even know what to do when it gets like this, like i just want to sit down and not do anything. ron keeps telling me i have to keep reminding myself, it is not up to me to do everything. it feels like it is, because nothing gets done. i have to try and stop feeling that way. especially with my hand being all crippled (yes, it is still pretty swollen and hurting). it makes it more difficult to work fast and get anything done.

why is it so difficult? why do i need to do everything? satisfaction in knowing it is done? maybe. knowing it is done properly and on time? thats a possibility too. i do give myself some credit. i asked one of the other guys to take out trash yesterday, and then asked someone to help me do marketing today. little steps. little steps. i'll still be getting fired because i couldn't get any credit applications today though. i can't give them away, even with no fees and basically $20-$30 for getting approved. it's free money. nobody wants it. i dont know.

i am going to be done with venting about work for now though. just thinking about it makes my head hurt.

 so i made a birthday cake. just a basic one, yes, but i thought it came out pretty nice. i had made more cookies for cancer, and had some leftover purple, then was told decorate it however i want, so....ta-daa! it was supposed to be a completely different cake, but then was cancelled last minute, and then i was told since i already made it they were going to sub it for another birthday, so it worked out in the end.

have i mentioned i love to pipe flowers?

i made a really fancy flower cake, all piped, in march for my aunt's birthday. it came out pretty cool. that was a red velvet cake, the only best cake ever. this one was half chocolate and half vanilla. i will not deny any kind of cake though. i love it all.

with the holidays coming, i will need some chocolate peppermint though at some point. most delicious. i made this awesome dark chocolate peppermint cake last year, complete with lindt balls on top. awww yeahh. i will probably make it again for christmas dinner.

getting a litttle ahead of myself there. i would like to try to make these pumpkin bread truffles for thanksgiving, and maybe something a little chocolate or otherwise specified. i am not crazy for pumpkin. i know, it's blasphemy, and i will probably be shot in my sleep or something by all the pumpkin crazed fanatics out there. it smells good, but it's not my thing. i dunno.

well, i have tomorrow off, i will see what that brings me. hopefully won't be fired by tuesday. this week is so messed up. i have to get back into things fast. it would be nice if my hand functioned properly as well, but that will take some time. anyway, sorry for the rant. enjoy the week, and hopefully i will have something to share with you wednesday! thanks for reading!

Apple Bread, Take Two

so, i promised a picture of that apple streusel bread over a month ago, but then i was on a mini vacation, and then i ate it all.

true story.

so i made it again, since i was busy torturing my hand all morning, making more applesauce, and then this bread. the apples are super chunky this time because i got lazy...and my hand hurt. i am a little nervous, since i don't care for chunky, but i'll probably eat it anyway. it was delicious the first time, so why not the second time?

here is the recipe, courtesy of julie's eats and treats. it is fairly simple. so go and make it.

yes, i totally made some tea and was drinking it all day long. like i've said before recently, it's cold outside, so it's definitely that time of the year for it.

so let's see....has anything happened since sunday? i can't even tell you what day of the week it is. i feel so confused. all of my work days are off. at least that's how i feel. friday's events did not help. the services are this friday, so i have called out of work at the restaurant to be there. if i did not mention, i am making more ribbon cookies.

i am also working on a little side project, but i will share and post pictures when it is completed. i am excited, i don't get motivated to do art often.

i even went out and bought charcoals and big paper. i miss big paper.

that is even more unusual in itself since pre college, i only worked on notebook size paper or smaller. i guess i got accustomed to using big paper and working on a larger scale over time. i can't really explain it.

anyway. i don't have much time to work. i hope i am able to get everything done by friday. i did get quite a bit accomplished today, so i hope it won't be an issue tomorrow before work.

work. ohhh work. not the restaurant, even. other main work. have i mentioned how much i want to punch it in the face lately, and not even care if i cripple myself further? like seriously.

i am pretty sure corporate forgot that tuesday was veterans day, and failed to give our store any hours to accommodate for the amount of business we did, meaning single person coverage all day long. this time of the year, especially on new release days, i'm pretty sure we could use more than one person on at a time. that, and the store is trashed since noone likes to take any trash out either. i am pretty sure i am the only one that does it. unless i complain enough about it, once in a while someone else will do work. then , to top off my busy day (already wanting to go home for 3/4 of the day), even worse stuff happened, so by the end of my shift, i was so done. ron and i ate mac and cheese and chocolate pie that we bought from wegmans. super chocolate pie. the end.

have i mentioned that gingerbread poptarts are the best ever? i am still standing firm that i love the holidays, i am so done with seeing pumpkin everything, and holidays make me happy, aside from the whole retail factor.

if you bring me gingerbread poptarts, we will be best friends forever. or any of the other hints that i have dropped in the last two posts. i really want to make a gingerbread house or cookies this year. we will see what happens. i started my treat list for this year, but it's a secret for now.

le sigh. let's see if i can manage without wanting to curl up and cry in the corner every day after work. wish me luck, i feel like i am going to need it. that, and someone keep yelling at me to sleep more. see you sunday, hopefully with more good things to share. thanks for reading!

Speaking of Angels....

have i ever mentioned that cancer sucks balls? we had a discussion in the last day or so that cancer should get cancer and suck a nut. for seriously.

do you recall how i made the cancer cookies a couple months ago? yeah, friday night was it. it has been a sad week and weekend for my friends/family. i want to help, but feel like i can't really do much. i am told that i am helping in ways though, so i suppose its something. all i know is that the world lost a beautiful person on friday night, but i am glad to have had the opportunity to have gotten to know her and basically gain a sister through her daughter. (if you are reading this, i'll say it a million times, i love you, and i'll always be here for you.) ♥

yeah, i don't really have any pictures or fun stories for this week. this was from tonight at work though. the sky was really weird all day, and then turned out kind of pretty at the end of the night.

i am still trying to work on using all of those apples. i hope i can make the time to use them this week. i feel like i am constantly out of time. even at work, it's like there aren't enough hours in the day to get things done anywhere. (and yet here i am getting ready to watch the last half hour of a movie (snow white and the huntsman) and eat pizza. go me.) that aside, i bought some charcoals and a giant sketch pad because i want to draw. i have to use up the apples, finish my online i-drive-safely 5 hour course (insurance reduction!), begin prepping my cookie list, make sure work is in order (since it's like a damn twister has been through there every day)......call stupid verizon- i am being charged a whole month when i had their service for 5 days before we switched to at&t- how does that work? bunch of assholes.

happy thoughts! check out this sexy ass pizza. have i mentioned i love garlic pizza? and would also love guardians of the galaxy and a candy thermometer? (hint hint).

anyway, i will see what i have on wednesday. hopefully some kind of better news or treats to share. sorry for not having much today, but thanks for reading!

Apples, Apples, Everywhere

kind of.

i mean, i am still working on the half of my weight in apples that i picked a couple weeks ago, considering i crippled my hand at work it hasn't exactly been easy to do anything, you know, like peel, cut, roll, knead.....

but i did it anyway. my hand kind of hates me right now. i am getting ready to take a drive too, so i can't see this going too well.

i have only got a quick few minutes to type. i know, i am a slacker too, since it's thursday and NOT wednesday. i have had a lot of things going on. mostly work. i don't really care to close much, but what can i do. i can't even get my 32 hours so i'll take what i can get.

aren't these cute? at least the little ones. i've been dying to use these little loaf pans for something since they are tiny, and tiny is win all the way around. i am bringing the mini pie to kristen. the two crisps are staying home (i cut too many apples, so the extras i threw into a loaf pan with some rasperries and blueberries with the rest of the crisp topping).

my apartment smells amazing right now.

like, i wish it would smell like this every day.

i didn't have any special recipe for these, surprisingly. i chopped up the apples, added a 3 tbsp sugar, probably 1/4c flour, a couple shakes of nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and 1/4tsp cinnamon to the apples. oh, and a couple capfuls of lemon juice. stir the f*ck outta that til its covered. the crisp? brown sugar, flour, a packet of maple oatmeal, and some maple syrup. mix the f*ck outta that til it's clumpy and sticks to your hands!! smush it on top of your apples and blast that sh*t with your laser vision!! i mean, bake at 375 for about 45 minutes. yep. deliciousness.

 

i love my little leaf cutout too. yay fall!

so aside from work being a pain, (you know, the usual, no hours to do anything or have any help) i got sent to the doctors on tuesday because my hand was a work accident. i got a new brace to keep it steady, and some anti-inflammatory meds that i have not picked up yet. the brace makes it hard to do any kind of work, like i mentioned earlier. cleaning and stuff is included.

 

my doctors office selfie. yeah buddy. oh, but i took the brace off and have been cleaning since about 7:00 this morning. why? didnt much feel like going back to sleep after i woke up with ron to make him his lunch and tea. i probably wouldn't have been able to sleep anyway. so here i am. cleaning and baking, and making my hand that much worse.

its what i do. like a boss.

 

and because i know you all can't get enough of crazy bird lady time. this was last night as i was trying to put them to bed. i can't pay attention to one and not the other, so cosmo was vibrating on my shoulder, and satch was preening my arm and brace, while snuggling in my arm. as much of a pain that they are, i love them both.

so anyway, my pie and crisps are done!

 

yeah, the crisp isn't as pretty looking as the pie, but add some vanilla ice cream and you will be all set. yeahhh buddy.

well, work aside, i will try to post again sunday, hopefully with more things. thanks for reading!

Banana Muffins and Stuff

just going to start out saying that i am a complete idiot. just throwing that out there.

lets try to make things better with muffins though, shall we?

i got this recipe from pinterest via katrina's kitchen, for "coffee shop banana streusel muffins."

they look pretty good. they smell good. but to me, at the same time they smell weird, because i don't really like bananas. i made them for ron because we had a few bananas that were going brown.

is it weird for me to make things that i don't even eat? i would imagine people do that, but i don't know. i do it for love. that's all that matters to me.

they were pretty easy to make, at least. not too many ingredients, and the streusel actually has powdered sugar in it. seemed a little weird at first, but it turned out somewhat crispy like a streusel should.

it's something.

i still have about 26 pounds of apples to use up in my fridge. it really sucks. i want to make all of these things, and i crippled myself at work on monday. yep. it's been almost a week and my thumb, and now index finger and wrist, get all tingly feeling if i do too much work, or even brush my arm the wrong way.

i kind of forgot what day it was, and for a few minutes i was thinking that i was posting late. nope. it's actually sunday. it is very early though, i couldn't sleep, so i am blogging before work. it has been a pretty blah week. "blah" is the nicest word i could think of to put there. i don't like when things build up to a breaking point. it makes me unable to function properly on too many levels.

it makes me want to stay home and either, a: become a human burrito and stay with my blankets and never come out, or b: blanket nest and snuggles all day long. i can't even say how much i would prefer b right now, but i might live if i have to be a burrito for a day. just one day.

at least i only have a short shift today. i've been up since like 7:15. i already feel like 2pm can't get here fast enough. i won't even lie. i debated on calling in. we also have no employees, so despite the fact that the company is, uh, "mean," to its employees (nice terms there again, if you didn't catch), i will continue to work hard. it's all i can do.

i can look forward to later, since we are going to visit kristen and her mom. i posted about that a while ago, i made some special cookies. i am not going to repeat, but just know that i will be wearing purple this month. i need a purple hair bow. light purple, specifically.

since it is halloween weekend, we did go out for a bit. i thought these would be fun to share. ron made these swollen "bloody fingers," they are just hot dogs with some ketchup and a piece of onion. but pretty gross looking, right?

we did a kitty litter cake a while ago that went over awesome. there are so many things that people can get creative with food. i almost wish that i had time to do things like that. art with food. i suppose i probably could. that will have to be another experiment though. probably some research involved. i feel like it might be a little more than when i do cakes and cupcakes, but i could be completely wrong.

 

speaking of cupcakes....mini! because that's why. i made apple cider cupcakes, with candy corn, or caramel apple frosting (leftovers from the donut party). they were cute. i took my go-to cupcake recipe, added a little cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice (like one shake of each), and subbed apple cider in place of the water. i love that this recipe is so universal, or at least easy to substitute things.

alright. i have typed your face off enough, my hand is barely functioning (so many typos), and i should get ready to bravely (?) face the day at work, and wish for some happiness and good things to come my way.


(to my someone just for me: i love you no matter what.)
just throwing that out there too.♥