Novice?

Some people may ask what makes me a novice. Especially those that have known me since I was little.

When I was a kid, I LOVED to bake with my mom. Of course, decorating Christmas cookies was my favorite time, but my mom had cookie cutters for every holiday, for every season... She also had chocolate molds... and she's become known over the years for having THE BEST Rice Krispie treats (it's all about finding the perfect blend of Rice Krispies and marshmallows!). And, everything was made from scratch. She'd pull out the mixer, make all of the doughs, and I'd get to lick the beaters... It was all good!!

I am just now trying to adapt her love of starting from scratch. Well...ok... Let's be honest here. I'm not. I make my buttercream frosting from scratch. Other than that, the cake is usually compliments of Betty Crocker or Pillsbury! I'm lazy. I'm hoping to change that with this blog. Slowly reach out of my comfort zone...which currently, mainly consists of going to the grocery store and getting some premade cake. (Yes... Sometimes, a girl's just gotta have her cake and have it now!) My goals are to spread my wings a bit. Yes, some recipes may use a cake mix...but the question is: how can I bring my creativity to that mix?

This blog also won't just be about food, although that IS planned on being the main premise. I also craft. Again, I think I lost some crafting skills as I grew up (ahhh...for the innocence of childhood!). Since a kid, I've done ceramics (still a fave!), pottery in school (I know-you do a lot in school art, but this is a craft I especially enjoyed!), latchhook, cross-stitch, beading (even have a business! Although some of that may have been more of the drive to get the items out of the house, than for a true love of beading)... But there is so much I want to learn!!

I will warn you of a few things:

1. While I don't believe in horoscopes, I will tell you that oftentimes, I live true to my sign of Gemini - I can't stay focused on anything and I get bored quickly. This could make this blog get very interesting. LOL

2. I may not always come up with the idea on my own (in fact, I may not come out with a lot on my own... but I WILL try to do a spin of it to make it more my own). I will do my best to give credit where credit is due... But sometimes, I just forgot where I saw something. I'm sorry. I'm not trying to short anyone credit... I just have a horrible memory.

3. In my life, I have come to accept one big thing... "There is always an easier way to do what I'm doing." I tend to do things the more difficult way. I have been known to break nails trying to open something - and then find the "pull tab" on the other side. I've also been known to not FULLY read directions... I THINK I read them... Become CONVINCED I read them correctly... And then as I'm venting to someone that something didn't turn out, I realize I missed a crucial step. Ah well... Keeps life interesting! LOL

4. I talk a lot. This blog will not only be to share various baking and crafting projects, but thoughts on the topics as well...

I look forward to sharing my crazy ways as I go from "Novice" to "Expert".

Hi There!

Hey there, everyone!!

So here I am... Attempting another blog! :-)

I'm hoping to use this blog to bring all of you into my baking world (although we may have another crafty-and-such-blog-posts in there too!), as I try new things and try to spread my wings out from under others.

I've just recently gotten into cake decorating. However, I am also trying to lose weight. This is the baker's nightmare! LOL So I have all of the fun gadgets and just want to put them to use!

I'm married to a great man, Jonathan. He cooks FANTASTIC meals. However, he doesn't do the baking thing. He tries - hard... But the flexibility that can make a great cook (a little of this...a little of that... change the temperature... etc), doesn't always make a great baker. This was made evident the other night when he tried to make refrigerator dough chocolate chip cookies...but put them in at 440 with the roast he was making... While he cut down the cook time, the extra 75-degrees burnt the bottom of the cookies! I always say that with him cooking and me baking, we are able to take care of all of the food categories! LOL

I also have 2 cats, Meira & Mycella. They definitely make life interesting. One of my baking endeavors 2 Christmases ago was to bake kitty treats for all of our friends and family with cats...complete with a handpainted Michaels book-shape box that we put all of them in. Our cats loved the raw dough (mainly of the tuna & something else balls). None of the cats loved anything once they were baked.

Well... I hope to be back here often posting all the nifty things I can come up with!!

Have a great day, everyone!