Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birthday. Show all posts
Monday, August 14, 2017
Birthday Weekend
Birthday Weekend
To celebrate the birth of my gorgeous sister, our fabulous group of friends rose through the clouds and descended on Maleny over the weekend.
The weather was cold and foggy.
The food was yum.
The wine was consumed. (oh, yes. It was.)
The laughter was loud.
The children were beautiful and well behaved.
The house was full.
Of awesomeness.
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Friday, August 11, 2017
Birthday Mothers Day and Citrus All In One
Birthday Mothers Day and Citrus All In One
So this is my attempt at digital painting. I decided a while back that I would do a series of paintings for my mom for her birthday/Mothers day (which are only two weeks apart). The theme of the series is her with our dog (Maui) going about their daily activities at our lake house. That seems to be where they both are happiest and that is how I like to think of them. I initially started painting them on watercolor paper, but I got so frustrated with the results that I decided I needed to try something new. And here is the first completed piece created completely in photoshop.... enjoy! I will post the rest of them as I finish them.
For those of you who know my mother (ahem, Lainey) please dont say anything to her about what Im up to. I am getting this one printed and will be taking it home to her next week, so until then keep this hush hush. I am fairly certain that my mom doesnt get online for anything uless it is completely necessary, so Im hopefully safe there. If not, Happy Birthday/Mothers Day, Mom!
And finally, since I havent posted to Illustration Friday in FOREVER, I thought that I would make this fit into this weeks topic: citrus. The palette is "citrusy" right? And also, this is a painting of morning at the lake, and I gaurantee that later on this particular afternoon my mom will make margaritas, which are made with lime juice, which is a citrus fruit. So there.
Happy Wednesday!
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Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Birthday
Birthday
The Birthday Countdown Board
Birthday Countdown Board~Tutorial
The Birthday WISH letters and Photo Display Tradition
The Birthday Pillowcase Tradition
The Present Game
The "I am thankful for you" Birthday Treat
Birthdays~Celebrate Your Super Mommy Friends
The Birthday Book
The Birthday Banner
The Birthday Chair Cover
The Birthday Tablecloth
The Birthday "We love you because..."
The BirthDAY~Fun things to do on the REAL birthday
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Wednesday, June 28, 2017
Black sands Happy birthday Gorilla Artfare
Black sands Happy birthday Gorilla Artfare
Gorilla Artfare turned 3 years old!
For the occasion we did some pics!
The theme was "A song that inspires you". We each chose a song and made something based on it. Check out the awesome results on the blog,
and happy birthday GA!
Some great news are coming regarding Gorilla Artfare...
Here is my contribution, I chose a Bonobos song called Black sands, its a melancholic one without lyrics.
Bonobo - Black sands (clic to listen)
Clic
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Monday, June 26, 2017
Birthday Donut Party
Birthday Donut Party
I cant believe my little baby boy is 2. I know one day Ill look back on these pictures and think that he looked so young. But right now it feels like he became a 2 year old overnight. Theres no perfect phrase or set of words to describe how much Jake has changed my life, but my favorite quote comes pretty close:
"No one else will ever know the strength of my love for you. After all, youre the only one who knows what my heart sounds like from the inside."
While Ive always loved creative things (hence why I became a marketer), I use to feel a little lost when it came to executing my artistic vision because Im not a very good drawer or painter. Turns out I just needed Jake (and Pinterest) to inspire me. Now I love to create things that make him smile or squeal with delight. My ideas dont have to be perfect or fancy, they just need to be fun. When he came out of his room this morning he was so excited to see his birthday surprise. And then he immediately proceeded to tear down his birthday banner and grab a handful of donut holes!
We couldnt have asked for better weather this morning, a perfect way to celebrate and start the day.
Turns out 4 dozen donuts and 3 dozen donut holes was just the right amount (who knew our friends could eat so much).
The backdrop was clear balloons filled with paper confetti. Each balloon was tied to a party favor can. The sprinkled picture frame was actually much harder to make then I imagined. I used a spray adhesive, but I probably should have tried one that was a bit stronger. Im still finding sprinkles all over my house.
Making sprinkled cups for milk was much easier! You just roll the top in frosting and then roll again in sprinkles. (Note to self - next time dont put the milk glasses at the front of the table even though it looks pretty because clumsy toddler hands will just want to yank them down.)
Sadly since Jake will have no recollection of this birthday since hes only 2, I wanted to make a little keepsake as a reminder. Above you will see my attempt at drawing a donut (good thing we didnt have a dinosaur party). The idea was for everyone to leave a fingerprint on the donut so that it looked covered in sprinkles. We call it our "Donut Finger Print Guest Book". The size is 11" x 14" so it can easily be framed and hung in Jakes room.
All of the play sock donuts I made were put to good use at the donut toss.
And the giant inflatable donut I bought on Amazon has now become Jakes favorite new seat.
For party favors, all of the kids got to take home a tin can filled with all of Jakes favorites: M&Ms, matchbox cars, Play-Doh, bubbles and of course my DIY play donuts. The cans also served as part of the table decoration with a balloon tied to each.
And finally, here is the birthday boy with daddy (his twin) and me (this was one of the only pictures I got of him looking at the camera and not squirming).
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Monday, June 19, 2017
Birthday Vibes
Birthday Vibes
I turned 24 this weekend. (Remember?) B took me to dinner at one of my favorite joints, I spent Saturday with my family in Bucks County, and I had lots and lots of puppy cuddles. It was a dream come true. I didnt realize this until I was putting on this dress before we left for dinner Friday night but I havent had a good reason to dress up in so long! Its a lot of fun... and I think I need to do it more often. (Even if I dont have a good reason.)
Since I already had that long, heartfelt post last week, I wont get too sentimental with you guys but I will say this: I cant wait to see what 24 holds. I would say that I dont think Ive ever felt so unsure of the future... but I know thats not true. This whole blog is undoubtedly full of "transition periods" and plethoras of instances of me desperately asking, "whats next?" Wherever I end up, I know this is going to be my best year yet. Twenty-four, here I come.
xo,
e.m.
dress (I also love it in white), shoes (similar), bag (similar), watch
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Tuesday, June 13, 2017
Birthday Outfit Post
Birthday Outfit Post
Today its my 21st birthday! Woah, over two decades of life. When did that happen?
Im wearing some old favorites, my Fanplusfriend velvet oversight and ruffled undershirt and a black sweater. You cant see my bat shoes but Im wearing them when I go out today. Necklace is from Torrid and bat choker was a gift. Septum piece is from my last review for Karma Se7en.
I hope youre all having a great weekend!
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Monday, June 5, 2017
Birthday Week and Cinco De Mayo!
Birthday Week and Cinco De Mayo!
This past Tuesday was my birthday!! Yay!! It was such a great week, I felt like I celebrated all week.
I wanted to do a recap of my week because I know I havent blogged. This is what was keeping me busy!
On Tuesday my love and I took off of work to celebrate my day of birth! LoL We went to the city and had lunch. We went to an awesome Mexican restaurant called Dos Caminos If you live near the city....I suggest you definitely try this place!! It has amazing Mexican food!
Its a tad dark but this is me and my honey having dessert...yummmmm
Moving on, I want to share my fabulous favorite gifts I got this week! I cant share allll but I wanted to show my absolute faves! My class this year was amazing. They really went all out for my birthday. It def made me feel loved. Around here there is a very famous bakery store called Carlos Bakery. He has his own show on Bravo named "Cake Boss".
One of my students got me a seriously amazing cake from there!!
My amazing teacher friend and a bridesmaid got me this! She knows me so well! LoL
She always gets me leopard things because I am OBSESSED!
My sweet fiancé got me a bunch of sweet things....oh but these were my favorite! Ugh .... I just love these!!
This is me putting them to good use yesterday when my friends and I went to celebrate my Birthday New York Yankee style!
Best birthday week !!
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Moving on to teaching!!
This week is Cinco De Mayo!!
Ive never actually celebrated it with my class...so Im happy to introduce it to my little ones this week.
I will be doing this cute Freebie from the Cutest Crafty Teacher.
It has such a cute craft and a fun poem to go with it! This would be a great way to start off the week.
You can grab this freebie by clicking HERE to take you to her shop!
What are you all doing for Cinco de Mayo?
Id love to see what you do with your little ones. =)
I recently said I had a very SWEET freebie coming up!
With my birthday festivities I was too busy to create but stay tuned for that!!
Happy Sunday.
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Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Birthday Wishlist For a One Year Old
Birthday Wishlist For a One Year Old
In many ways, I feel like we have city living down to a science. We have found ways to expertly store baby gear, and Ive worked hard on self-restraint when it comes to spending. Most of baby Fix-Its toys are small and portable. We rotate the toys we bring along in the stroller, car, on trips, and in the living room and nursery. So why are there three obviously large items on this list? Its a wishlist. Lets have fun.
1. Little Blue Truck. Two of my best friends who have little boys simply could not believe that we dont have a copy of this book. Supposedly its adorable and has a good moral.
2. Baby Einstein Count and Discover Treasure Chest. Baby Fix-It has just entered the stage of "put it in, dump it out". He is completely fascinated by the cause and effect. He played with this at a friends house and was mesmerized.
3. Land of Nod A Teepee to Call Your Own: Baby Fix-It is just a tiny bit too young to appreciate this tent. But it is so darn adorable. As a kid I know I would have found this totally magical to have in my bedroom.
4. App Store Gift Card. Im pretty conscious of "screen time", but I cant deny my kids interest in the iPhone/iPad. Im the daughter of a computer scientist, grew up with more access to technology than most kids, and feel that Ive turned into a normal and balanced person. I guess what Im saying is that I believe in having a kid who is technology literate but not obsessive. So, the fact that my 11 month old can unlock an iDevice, find "his" page of apps, launch them, and appropriately utilize them is a win in my book. But I keep an eye on it.
5. Play Tunnel. Our little guy was slow to crawl. He seemed like a kid who would be an early walker and skip crawling all together. He had finally did figure out crawling and a play tunnel would help him to continue to develop this skill.
6. Pottery Barn Anywhere Chair. I adore these chairs. They are so cute and very Montessori-ish. You know, your kid can access and utilize it independently. Our little bookworm would surely enjoy sitting in this chair and reading his books.
What are some other one year old must haves?
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Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Boozy Yellow Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting and Caramelized White Chocolate Ganache
Boozy Yellow Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting and Caramelized White Chocolate Ganache
Guys, I'm 28 today.
I don't have too many feels about it, except that, according to this Buzzfeed article, it's supposed to be the best year of my twenties. I don't know about that, but I do know that I have a reservation at one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco, a new creme brûlée torch courtesy of the boyf (since I woefully gave mine away when I left Portland), and the BEST yellow birthday cake recipe to celebrate:
Because if you've been a reader of my blog for sometime, you'll know that I'm a firm believer in the fact that birthdays should be celebrated with a yellow cake covered in generous amounts of dark chocolate frosting. I made one for Erlend's birthday a few years ago, and I made myself this saffron butter cake with cardamom and milk chocolate fudge frosting last year.
I'm cheating a little bit with this year since this is actually the same recipe I made for Erlend with some slight variations. The original recipe is one of my favorites and comes from Miette, one of my favorite bakeries in San Francisco. Its a decadent butter cake that uses TEN egg yolks (and no egg whites!) to give the cake its sunny yellow color; the cake is then soaked with a simple syrup to keep it ever so moist.
So what did I do to a cake recipe that I love so much to make it even better? One word: BOOZE. Lots of it. Since I love the flavor combination of chocolate orange, I soaked the cake with a Grand Marnier syrup and added some orange zest to the yellow cake batter. The boozy orange paired wonderfully with the dark chocolate ganache frosting.
And because it was my birthday, I figured I'd be extra freaking decadent and top the cake off with a caramelized white chocolate ganache. Did you know that if you roast white chocolate at a low temperature for about an hour or so (but more on this later, in the baker's notes — don't panic just yet!), it caramelizes and you get the most wonderful toasted white chocolate flavor? The end result is almost like a dulce de leche caramel and it's absolutely heavenly.
Some baker's notes:
- There's a lot going on with this cake, so I suggest breaking it down by making the cake first, and then the syrup two ganaches the following day. Make the cake first and cover it in plastic wrap and keep it in the refrigerator until you're ready to frost it — the cake's butter flavor actually intensifies overnight.
- So, this cake uses a shit-ton of egg yolks. You will need to use an entire dozen's total for the cake and the frosting combined. I recognize the ridiculousness of that situation (but it was my birthday, and I had to indulge myself), so let me offer you up these recipes for the leftover eggwhites: use 4 egg whites for this rhubarb and pistachio pavlova, another 4 egg whites for this white chocolate malt cake, and the rest for an egg white scramble with a ton of spinach, fresh herbs, and gruyere.
- Let's talk more about caramelized white chocolate, because I know I just dropped it in there last minute like whoa. I first found out about the phenomenon ever since spying this recipe in Food52's Genius Recipes cookbook and I've been playing around with it since. My one complaint, however, is that the original recipe requires you to heat at a ridiculously low temperature (265 (F)) for almost an hour, along with stirring it every three minutes or so. It's fussy, because if the chocolate gets too hot, it seizes and turns into solid crumbles instead of caramelizing.
So a couple of things: because the oven in my new apartment runs so insanely hot and I really don't have time to stir something in the oven every 3 minutes, I started playing around with trying to find a shortcut. I found out that you can basically get the same result in almost a quarter of the time suggested by the original recipe if, instead of baking in an oven, you cook the white chocolate over the stovetop. The trick is to melt the white chocolate over low heat, and then once it's melted completely, turn the heat on high and to scorch it. Stirring constantly to distribute the heat evenly throughout the mixture achieves the same sort of caramelization, and I found that I actually had more control over the final flavor using the stovetop method — because it's happening right in front of you, you can really control how roasted and caramelized you want the final product to be. - It took me a couple of times to get the ratio of white chocolate to cream for the topping; don't be afraid to troubleshoot it! If you find the ganache to be too runny, feel free to add a few more chunks of white chocolate to thicken it up. If it's too thick, add a splash of cream. The trick is to add just a little bit at a time to get the consistency you want. Because you're going to be pouring it over the cake, you're going to want a ganache that's still warm and just ever-so-slightly runnier than normal to get that pretty spilled frosting look. The ganache will set as it cools.
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