Vanilla Cupcakes {Foodie Friday}

Now that we have found the best chocolate cupcakes, it was time to move on to vanilla. I made some vanilla cupcakes for Caroline’s birthday party and they were an epic fail. The taste was fine but they were really dense. My sister said they were like cornbread. Bummer. At least the chocolate cupcakes were amazing.

Caroline by the year

I thought I would share with you today a little ditty that I do every year for Caroline’s Birthday.

After her party is over, and she has had her yearly checkup with the doctor, I take the picture that I used for her birthday invitation and I ‘edit it up’ with all of Caroline’s favorite things for the year. It’s fun to go back even now when she is only 3 and see how much things have changed. It even reminds of things that I have slowly started to forget, like how much she loved her bunny when she was a baby.

When I started this project, Picnik.com was my editing site of choice, because it was fast and easy. Now that they have shut down, my editing program of choice is Picasa. You download it right to your computer, so you don’t even have to connect to the internet. That’s my favorite part of course, since I don’t have constant, reliable access to the internet. Now I can edit at my leisure.

*Note: I don’t use Picasa for photo editing, just for adding text, but you can do that too.

What I'm Loving Lately -Photography Blogs {March edition}

If you haven't figured it out yet, I love love love to take pictures. I'm not amazing at it, but it's something I spend a lot of time doing! For this month’s edition I thought I would share with you some of my favorite photography blogs. I would love to be able to take pictures like these people someday.

Education and inspiration sites:

Click it up a notch

Itty Bitty Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies {Foodie Friday}

What is better than chocolate chip cookies? Chocolate chip cookies with oreos. Geez! I can’t believe you didn’t know that. Next to ice cream, cookies are one of Caroline’s favorite things to eat. She certainly loved these cookies and loved helping put the oreos in the middle.

Chris & Ariel's Cute as a Button Baby Shower {My Photography}

Last weekend I had the honor of helping with another Cute as a Button Baby Shower. Ariel is due in just a few short weeks with her first, a baby boy! I reused the Cute as a Button Shower stuff from Abbe’s shower this summer. The only person who was at both of those showers was me, so it worked well =)

4 Layer Nacho Dip {Foodie Friday}

Sometimes you get a hankering for some chips and dip. A normal person would eat this as a side or at a party. I had this for lunch. Be that as it may, it hit the spot. Creamy, cheesy and full of protein. It has black beans, so that means it is healthy, right. I say yes. So go ahead, enjoy it for lunch.One Year ago: Ham and Swiss Quiche

Homestyle Shepherd's Pie

I really struggled with Pi(e) day this year. We just got back from a trip to Disney World and we were feeling a little over indulgent. Last year I made this Snickerdoodle Pie. This year my goal was just to make a pie..or at least something that was a pie shape.

Caroline's 1st Birthday- Winter Wonderland

Here's a little blast from the past. I have blogged about Caroline's 2nd and 3rd Birthday parties, and then thought maybe I should go ahead and write about this one too.

This was the first party that I ever really did. I wanted to do a Winter ONEderland theme from the time she was born in the middle of the winter. The pictures are pretty terrible despite my attempt to re-edit them. These were the pre-DSLR days. It is crazy to me how much Caroline has grown and at the same time how much she has stayed the same.

Mini Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups {Foodie Friday}

Do these pictures look pink to you? They looked perfect when I edited them on my MAC, but on my other computer they look pink.



What do you do with extra chocolate chip cookie dough? Make them into Mini Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups of course! When I saw this recipe I knew I had to make these ASAP (It was the same day). Let me tell you, it was so worth it. Honestly I think I might like cookies with icing better than cookies without…go figure.

Sugar Saucers {Foodie Friday}

Let’s face the facts. Sometimes I can be downright lazy. During those times I need some sugar to either indulge myself or to get my rear in gear. These cookies are perfect for either. They are super easy and quick to make and they taste delicious. Crispy on the edges and soft and cakey on the inside. Well they are covered in sugar, so that’s not surprising, is it? This is a standard sugar cookie that doesn’t require any icing..although I sure that would also be equally wonderful.