ugh.

I'm so embarrassed that it's been 3 WHOLE months since I last posted on my blog. I'm not sure what I was doing when I started the blog and thought I would write everyday, at least once or twice! I must have been losing my mind a bit.

The cupcake business is wonderful- I love it. I'm SO busy and orders are coming in just about every day- already have orders through October- but I'm certainly not booked up, I have plenty of space for more orders! Here's the link again. www.facebook.com/karascupcakesandconfections There have been so many new cupcake photos that you need to just go to the facebook page and look at the photos. I'd exceed my blog space limit by adding them all :)

Life has been crazy wonderful in the last three months.. I'm so busy, the hubby is so busy- sometimes we feel like ships passing in the night.. but we love it. Love taking care of our families, eachother and our home.

Today makes 2 years since Tommy asked me to marry him.. how time flies! We'll be married 2 years on January 1st. Each small milestone in our relationship- I tell him that some folks do make it that far (2 months, 6 months, whatever it may be) and we must be good at this marriage thing. There's no room for telling yourself you're bad at marriage.. the world is hard enough on marriage!! Give yourself and your spouse a break!!
It's hot here in Louisville KY... it's super hot. and here's a non-secret.. I hate hot. I don't do hot. I don't do summer, sweating, shorts, sunscreen, mosquitoes, humidity... and the list could go on.. I just don't do heat well.. it must be in the genes.. my family is just not a pool party, bbq'n, enjoy the outdoors in July kind of family... we have get togethers outside in the Spring and Fall.. when God intended us to have get togethers ;) because, surely God did not intend for us to be outside in this horrible heat. I like to think that it's a small taste of Hell that God has sent to us each year, to remind us that Hell is not a place we want to visit. But I guess there is no visiting in Hell.. sort of a one time entry and no return type of place. Thankful for salvation!!!

I promise it won't be another 3 months before I write again.. I really enjoy it- I just forget!


Love and hugs.

Kara

cupcake week!

I have entitled this post, and this week 'cupcake week'...

I have 6 orders through the weekend.. and for a small, one person cupcake business, this is incredible! I have a huge order of mini cupcakes (250) for the end of the week.. followed by birthday parties, mexican fiesta party, sesame street party, and a big bridal shower.. what a great week it's going to be!

Turning my cupcake baking hobby into a small business has been challenging, and I still have several hoops to jump through, but it's been the most empowering, beautiful, wonderful experience! It builds so much self confidence in my talent and in my work.. I think I've finally found my calling.. and I couldn't be happier or more fulfilled!

Pray for my little business! and order some cupcakes!


Kara



My favorite order to date (250 mini cupcakes). More photos to come of this week's creations!

SO excited.

It's 1:30am.. so I'll make this one short..

I'm wide awake because it's been a super exciting day, and I'm SO thrilled.

I secured a commercial kitchen today, I'll be renting it for my cupcake business.. couldn't be happier! Once everything goes through with the health department, I can bake for the public and not just bake for friends. I'll be able to advertise and work with local businesses, heck, hopefully BIG businesses with BIG cupcake orders!

Excited for great things to come, and dreaming big!

Kara

www.facebook.com/karascupcakesandconfections

bam!

Crazy busy weekend, so I'm only updating you with what happened today.

Today. Tommy hosted a 'boom-a-shoot' at his parents house. They live on a great piece of land, so we take advantage of the flat, cleared out portion down by the creek.

A boom-a-shoot is basically where Tommy, and our family and friends bring all the guns and ammo they can find and shoot at targets and clay pigeons all afternoon. Followed by a yummy lunch of course, shooting makes one hungry!

I hadn't ever shot a gun before today, and I did pretty well for a rookie! I think the guys were more impressed with my brownies than my shooting, but that's just how it goes ;)

Since it's super late and I've been up since seemingly dawn, I'll leave you with a few boom-a-shoot photos...

My sister and I- with our super sexy ear muffs :)

Some of the toys! We had a lot more guns than we did people!

Shooting and hitting (a few) clay pigeons!

Battle Wound -supposed to hold shotgun against strong shoulder.. not flabby little arm.

And alas.. returned home and back to my comfort zone.
Bridal shower cupcakes for Sunday!
Now that's my kind of fun!

Seriously. Today was a BLAST!

Bullets, Bruises and Bridal Showers,

Kara

A photo blog..

I'm super tired, but apparently not sleepy (dumb time change).. so I thought I would post a few photos from 2011 thus far and write a bit about them. This blog will be entitled 'a photo blog' for obvious reasons.

And now. Introducing.... the most random assortment of photos ever. amen.

This is from my surprise Valentine's Day picnic at McNeely lake.. It was completely Tommy's doing.. he packed subway, chips and drinks, a mini cheesecake, welchs white grape juice and glass champagne flutes.. It was adorable. 























This is from our weekend selling puppets for Tommy's mom at the seminary.
























Here's a baby shower cake and cupcakes I did for a little boy named Bo, who will be entering the world later this spring :)

Here's a photo of why our children will have to pay for their own college ;)

I made fondant for the first time tonight.. I'm not a fondant fan..Certainly not a bought fondant fan.. so I made it from scratch.. I'm still not all about covering cakes in it.. cakes should be covered in buttercream, my buttercream.. my yummy in my tummy buttercream.. but anyway.. I'm going to start using fondant once in a while for fondant figures and toppers for my cakes and cupcakes.. but I promise, they will never, ever take the place of my frosting. ever.

Well, anyway.. I was practing for a Jurassic Park cake I'm doing in April- these are fondant rocks.. they are edible! and they are actually pretty good.. taste like super sweet marshmallows :)

Love, hugs and random photos.
Kara

I'm in love...

Today... around lunch time, when I arrived home from running errands.. I frantically checked the front porch for my expected packages.. and for once, they were on time, and they were sitting there waiting for me to adore them!!

So, I drug them into the house.. made myself do some more laundry before I let myself open the packages (because I needed incentive to tackle that laundry mountain).. but. finally. I let myself grab some scissors and open the beautiful boxes!

So. What was in there?

NEW CUPCAKE STANDS!

 Two different sizes/shapes. Here are some photos from the website where I bought them. They are both made from clear acrylic.. so it won't take away from the detail of my beautiful cupcakes!

      Here's the lovely- 9 tier round stand, holds up to 190 cupcakes!

Here's the smaller one, square, 7 tier- holds up to 120 cupcakes!

Each tier, and tiny post that goes in between was wrapped with protective plastic on each side.. it took forever for me to get it all off! however.. I'm not complaining.. they made it here all the way from the UK and I didn't have one single broken piece! horray!

I'm now ready to handle larger orders! I can easily do weddings or big parties with these stands! The sky is really the limit now, so I can get more creative, and serve more customers!

So excited!
kara

Coffee Cake. Oh no!

I've been doing so well on WW, down 12.8 pounds since the end of January... but tonight, I baked a coffee cake. Well, I'm baking a coffee cake. right now. 10 minutes left in the oven. smells like heaven. oh my word.

My mother in law owns a puppet ministry business and attended a Creative Ministry festival in Louisville this weekend. While they taught classes last night and all day today, we manned the vendor booth and sold puppets for them. It was really fun. Had a good time talking to people, spending time together and playing games on our iphones ;)

We didn't get home until the early hours this morning, and went back at 8am, so by the time we arrived home around 6pm tonight.. I literally put my jammies on and went to bed. Woke up at 10pm, disoriented, sneezy, snotty and starving. My sinus infection from this week somehow resurfaced during my nap and I woke up a mess.

Instead of getting a banana and going back to bed.. I decided to stay up, see what was happening on facebook and watch SNL with Tommy (which is on right now, but I'm less than impressed with tonight's host) so I'm blogging instead.. and then. it happened.. I came across the Pioneer Woman's 'best coffee cake ever' recipe I've been avoiding for so long.. including 3 sticks of butter in one cake! So..I went to my baking cupboard and checked for the ingredients. I just knew I didn't have any pecans, so I might have to eat that banana afterall.. but Satan was really working against my weight watchering goals and alas, a bag of devilish pecans stashed in the back, and I was out of excuses.

It's nearly out of the oven, and I must go find my stretchy pants. I thought I would share the recipe with you, then I won't feel so bad about eating coffee cake at midnight like a wild banshee.


PioneerWoman's 'Best Coffee Cake. Ever'


Love, hugs and huge slices of coffee cake. yum.

Kara