oh, saturday...how i love thee

today is an absolutely GORGEOUS day! i believe the weather channels said it was going to T-storm all day, but, heck what do they know.

i used Josh's iPhone yesterday to show him my hair color at the time of Staci's wedding last year, which means i used the "Facebook for iPhone" application, which means i fell in love with the iPhone some more. yeah, that's right, i like that application. a lot.

so, kt, beware. come september i'll be schrute bucking the crap outta you.

enjoy your weekend!!!

things on my mind...

here's some better [bigger] pics of the cuppies...

about a minute after i took them out of the oven, i shoved in pieces of a hershey chocolate bar [i used the small ones] so that was my somewhat "melted" center.

the frosting turned out good, i think, not too marshmallowy.

the graham cracker crust was a little thick...i think that caused some dryness in the cuppies, or because i cooked them a little longer than necessary [cause they weren't as thick! which also resulted in a final total of 35 cuppies instead of the normal 24].

other things going on...

• got some new luggage for Neocon: an organizer thingie and a 4-wheel carry-on suitcase
• getting my hair cut & colored next week! yipppeeee!
• duh, neocon
• sunset last night was AMAZING

• iNSPiRAL has some shows coming up!!!! don't know where...or when...but in Erie...and sometime...soon :) [also, check out their page to see Oh My Josh's intense musical skillz...then check back to see Mikey J's retaliation!]
• um....CRUISE with my 4 bestest girls in DECEMBER!!!

• WEEKEND!
• i signed up to be on a softball team with some friends of mine. so far they have had about 4 or 5 games/practices and i haven't been able to attend one. tomorrow is a tournament [first game at 8 AM!!!!!!! ughgh], but i am able to go! i'm pretty excited, plus the shirts look pretty cool!
• i can't use AutoCAD or my other software right now because my main furniture system i use is empty and has "no items"...as in i have no symbols or spec info...so i'm kind of feeling useless right now
• i have a million things going on in June.
• leading worship this weekend
• sunday, June 1 - baby shower
• tuesday, June 3 - surprise shower [need to make cuppies! i'm thinking the lemon ones again]
  
• next saturday, June 7 - wedding shower
• next sunday - tues, June 8-10 - NEOCON
• following weekend, June 13-15 - house warming party for Nikkie [plus b-day party for a friend's daughter that i can't attend :(]
• that sunday, June 15 - father's day
• possible iNSPiRAL shows?
• viewing apartment with KRISTEN!!!!!!!!!
• last sunday, June 29 - leading worship
  

intense. i should get work done. :)

i know...

i know these aren't cupcakes, but hey, it's close.

we used to watch these allllll the time....[like, in high school...]

www.muffinfilms.com

pics and posts

i have way too many pictures from this weekend and am way too tired to talk about it...

i should be in bed now actually...

so, i've got all the pics on the slideshow below... 

hopefully that will suffice!

[i think every time you refresh the page a new set of pics comes up...there's probably almost 150 here...]

memorial day!

i hope everyone had an awesome weekend! i, of course, have a gazillion pictures due to the purchase of my new camera on Friday! the cuppies were pretty good, i did chocolate cake w/ chocolate inside, graham cracker "crust" and marshmallow cream frosting. there may have been a little too much crust...but anyway...

pictures and more details later. back to work!

hope everyone had a great weekend!

CHiCAGO

the days until NEOCON in Chicago are winding down...and preparations are being made! one preparation on my end was the purchase of this new camera. it wasn't just for Neocon, of course, also for my personal enjoyment and ability to take great pictures of my new found cupcake-making joy...

here are some samples i took after i bought it:

other preparations for Chicago include hotel & flight reservations and RSVP'ing to lots of events...here's what our schedule looks like so far:

Sunday:

• EARLY morning departure from Erie, layover somewhere, arrive in Chicago b/w 900am-10am
• Get settled, do some sight seeing, hopefully napping, having an awesome lunch somewhere, and getting ready for
• Knoll Dealers private showroom tour [my guess is this is a 430pm start time]
• Versteel cocktail party [in some hotel penthouse!] 530pm-700pm
  
• SPEC party - 700pm-900pm
  

Monday:

• Knoll Dealer breakfast [ugh, like 730am]
• 1100am Showroom tours w/ our KMA Reps
• Wander the Merchandise Mart
• Loewenstein cocktail party - 330pm [giving away iphones and nano's!]
  
• OFS / First Office / Carolina Showroom Grand Opening / cocktail party - 400pm
• Versteel cocktail party [yeah, another one...] - 400pm
• Sit On It cocktail party - 430pm @ Fulton's On the River
• Office Specialty cocktail party - 500pm [giving away macbook air's!]
• Nice dinner somewhere and hopefully hanging out with more of the KMA Reps

Tuesday:

• leave. at some point. get home around 300pm.
  

...lots of fun! i'm so excited :)

weekend preparations!

kc suggested S'Mores Cupcakes for this weekend...

found at sewdarncute, and they are. i like the chocolate cake idea and the marshmallow cream frosting.

these were found at cupcakeblog. i really like the idea of the graham cracker bottom.

i think we're going to go with a combination of the two, plus some added fun.

• graham cracker crust
• chocolate cake
• either melted hershey's chocolate injected inside or hershey's chocolate chunks in the batter
• marshmallow frosting
• graham cracker crumbs & chocolate chunk topping 

other idea would be chocolate frosting and toasted marshmallow on top! i can't decide...........

[make sure you vote for the cuppie idea you like best!!]

sampling

check out the iNSPiRAL blog for your viewing and listening pleasure! Oh my Josh! made an awesome video set to one of my favorite iNSPiRAL songs!!

my aunt is cool

my aunt sent me an email with some awesome cuppie ideas...

first, this book, she found at Sur la Table.
[great gift idea....but there's no gift giving occasions coming up soon...shoot.]

second, Ace of Cakes is on FoodNetwork. these are "baby cupcakes" made for a...
you guessed it, baby SHOWER!
stace, i think this is a sign...that you are to make them.

lastly, super-cute cuppie holders. these are geared for wedding cuppiecakes.
found at estiloweddings.com. which, looks pretty awesome...kt, take note.

Memorial Day Weekend!

ok, i'm well aware it's only Wednesday and the weekend...well it's only really two days away now. my boss said if i put in a few more hours at the "front end" of the week, i can get out a few hours early on the "back end". so, the goal is to cut out early on Friday. plus, no work monday! i'm so in need of a "vacation".

this week has been insanely busy so far. we have a pretty hefty bid due on Friday plus lots of continuous and involved work for another client. 

last year around memorial day is when kc and i started talking about moving out! here we are, a year later, and pretty much no further [except more money saved up for cool things for our apt! when we finally get there...]. for Memorial Day, we celebrated at kt's now-fiance-A's mum's house...and we plan on doing the same this year! i'm excited...i like "get together's" , parties, etc...times to make cuppies! or desserts or any dish really...

kt enjoying the yummy food...

bonfire with the skank's!

i think kt and i were wearing mikey's shoes...

lovely day for a walk the next day!

anyway, trying to decide what i should make for Sunday night's celebration. i'm thinking of some homemade mac'n cheese and maybe some red-white-and blue cuppies [probably the raspberry ones done for mother's day]. my mum bought a "tiara dessert" sort of cake-pan and i was thinking of trying out a recipe for that...i haven't found any recipe yet...but this is potential the look i'm going for, minus the gigantic star on the top. i'm envisioning raspberries & blueberries and the frosting look...mmmm...

what do you think?

image found at Everyday Cookies at Sweet Woodruff Acres' flickr page

weeeeeekend!

[spring photos from my aunt & uncle's yard]

saturday my sister and i planned on taking my mum "flower shopping" for her mother's day gift. somehow it ended up being a whole family outing with my dad as well. we piled in my dad's new Nissan Murano [despite the large TV in the trunk], and set out on our way. i'm glad that even though we may fight and get on each other's nerves...it always ends up in laughter.

i made the Cookie Dough Cupcakes thanks to Big Red Kitchen's recipe/idea. i was going to make the cookie dough, but i opted for some pre-made dough. rach helped me make them, and we were in quite a hurry, so we had to cool the cuppies in the freezer while we made the frosting. i used the frosting recipe also suggested at Big Red Kitchen. personally, it all turned out amazing. [plus, the mocha cupcakes that are suggested with that frosting look like a great one to try...]

rach said that i should start blogging about all the weight i gain from all the cuppies i make. can't say i've noticed any additional weight gain...but it did inspire me to try to do some sort of "healthy" cupcake. i'm not really sure what to do here. some ideas include:

• using applesauce instead of oil
• zucchini, banana or carrot cupcakes [doesn't necessarily mean healthy...but...it could be...]

ok, so those are my only ideas really. anyone have any other suggestions??

re-design & Sprite Chairs

i wish i had a bunch of money.

i know, duh, right?

i really really really really have this [i think] amazing idea for my house. i want to renovate it. i think i'm going to sketch it out [maybe even render it!] and maybe post it for all to see. 

other than that, i want to move out, get my own place, and buy cool furniture. some day i vow to have these chairs sitting around my dining room table:

Sprite side chair, designed by Ross Lovegrove for Knoll

however, with them listing for well over $700...

[though i could get the solid maple for about $100...]

i'm not sure how or when that could ever happen...

i see these chairs ALL the time in magazines such as Metropolitan Home, Domino and House Beautiful [and more]. it's fun though, knowing that my company is the "exclusive" dealer for Knoll in this area...

follow up

i posted a few weeks ago on some things i'm looking forward to. one was the new Death Cab for Cutie CD. it came out tuesday! totes excited. i also downloaded the Duffy CD and sissy shared with me The Bird and The Bee. i enjoy this so far, and maybe it's because i've been sort-of listening to it all day, but i feel like i'm hearing the same songs over and over again...yeah...duh.

i don't really have time to post right now, or i'd put some links up, but ugh i feel like i'm so busy i have no idea what i'm even supposed to be doing.

booo :(

poll time!

i know i'm going to be making some cupcakes for saturday night...but i'm not sure what to make! i want to do something i haven't done before [because it's no fun to document something i've already done...]

so here are a few options:

cookie dough cupcakes
kc found these at Big Red Kitchen. they look REALLY good, but i don't know if i want to go through the hassle of making the cookie dough. plus, cookie dough isn't my specialty...




chocolate-mint cupcakes
kc found these at chockylit. if i do these, however, i'm probably going to end up filling them differently...i don't know if i can do the complexity that seems to be in these.




strawberry cupcakes
kc found these from Martha Stewart. there's no icing recipe, but i'm sure i could come up with something good for this...

Meyer Raspberry Lemon Cupcakes

i found this at Martha Stewart also. these look really good to me....mmmm. and i'm sure there could be a surprise put in the center...

other options are to do the raspberry filled ones again, but do them with chocolate cake instead of the white, or do the Hot Cocoa Cupcakes with some sort of injection in them as well....

anyway, i'm going to put all these into a poll that will end Friday, and possibly, i will make the cupcakes that win [hah, i might find something i'm too set on and change my mind...]

so...help me decide! thanks :)