Be skilled or be killed

birthday cake

Another year, another birthday cake. I think each year joel’s birthday cake has been absurd, but this year’s might take the cake (sad trombone noise). 

Ha! Throughout the day it became the leaning tower of Rainer.

This cake was extremely fun to make, and it also reiterated how much I need to get frosting tips of my own. I made the R and stripes with just a tip cut out of a ziplock bag. I’m mildly impressed with how well it all turned out all things considered. 

We also had a tasty bbq

Happy birthday Joel!

quest for perfection, and an ulcer.

Seth and Stephanie, of the beautiful invitations, are getting married next weekend. And I have the honor (or idiocy - depending on your feelings on matters such as these) to be making their cake. 

You did hear that correctly. I am making a wedding cake. Holy freaking crap.

So I’ve been practicing. And purchasing things like 7.5 POUNDS of cream cheese, or 3 POUNDS of sugar. Should be tasty.

My aunt is a culinary extraordinaire so I went to her house last week for some frosting tutelage. There is a big difference between using your common sense and frosting your friend’s birthday cake and using actual proper technique for frosting a friend’s wedding cake. I sought out the proper technique.

I learned things like: crumb coats are really really helpful. 

Proper sustenance is necessary in the quest towards frosting perfection

And patience is a virtue and also, spinning wheel things are essential.

Practice round 2 + baking all 9 cakes for the final big cake happens tomorrow. I may have an ulcer by next week … but in a good way?

Irish twins

This photograph was taken exactly 21 years ago, and in the photo my sister and I are both 5 years old.

Only, Valerie had been five for a whopping 2 days, while I had been five for 363 days. Math, you are confusing.

veronica

It is a well known fact amongst our family that Veronica could talk the teeth off a horse. It has been speculated amongst our family that, if not interrupted, she could talk on and on, indefinitely, until her tongue fell out. On our recent vacation, Veronica was enlightening us all to some particular bit of knowledge she had been gaining from a book. I was making breakfast I think. Others were lounging about the house or porch enjoying the morning. While Veronica was talking, Valerie casually wandered up to her and began braiding her mouth shut. And she was quiet for the rest of the morning.

(Ed. note: Some artistic license has been taken in the rendering of this story.)

Unfortunately predictable.

My sisters came to visit last week, for a whole week. Seeing as they live across the country, we only get to see each other a couple times a year. But when we do have our glorious reunions, this inevitably happens.

And hey! It’s not our fault that Britney had a new single out while we were together and that within 24 hrs it was #1 world-wide. We couldn’t help that we had to listen to it together.

(filmed by pauli)