College.

Lets play catch up a bit here.

Kalynn is officially 3 years old.

Everyone tells me the terrible twos have nothing on the thunderous threes. So far, this is proven to be extremely spot on. She's very opinionated, very stubborn, very determined and very sassy. She makes her own path, right or wrong, and she doesn't take no for an answer. I'm not 100% sure if this is an age thing, or a hereditary thing. I guess we'll find out in due time. Either way, trying to tame the wild, or at the very least trying to keep up with her, is exhausting. Fun, but exhausting.

It seems like the crazier life becomes with a growing toddler, the faster it goes.

I'm having a hard time believing that 2012 is already over, let alone the entire month of January and half of February in 2013. Sometimes it's nice to slow down a bit and remember what is truly important. Mainly, the people I love.

When we visited California a couple weeks ago, it was really important to me to get some pictures of Kalynn with my grandmother (her great-grandmother). She's been an awesome staple in my life from before I can even remember and I really wanted to figure out a cool way to capture of all 4 generations of women in our family:

I absolutely love love love the idea of this picture. Being more physically distant from that side of my family then I have been in years is really hard sometimes, so having this little piece of them to on hang on Kalynn's wall is really special for us.

And with time flying by quicker than I expected, I also came to the realization that we need to be financially prepared for things that will come faster than we thought they would. Like Kalynn going to college.

Because she is going to college.

Every holiday I get asked by friends and family "is there anything that Kalynn needs?" "What kinds of things does she like?" "What types of toys does she play with?" And the truth is, She's three. And a spoiled three at that. She has more toys than she knows what to do with. More importantly, she has more energy than any person I've ever met so sitting down and playing with anything for an extended period of time is just out of the question most of the time. Sure, she loves to open gifts and have new toys and we're not unappreciative of the things that she has gotten and loved over the years. A few of those toys have even become part of our permanent daily routine, but truthfully, at least at this point, we're blessed to not lack any traditional type of toy or clothing that she needs.

Gradsave.com is a way for our friends and family to give the gift of education instead of traditional presents for any of Kalynn's special occasions, holidays and birthdays. College is expensive. I'm currently in the process of paying back a portion of my student loans and it's almost impossible to see the light at the end of the tunnel. What we're trying to do, is to not let Kalynn have a giant mound of debt after she finishes her degree. After seeing the final bill of my own college experience, and imagining the inflating cost of a college education 15 years down the road, it's frightening to think where we'd be if we didn't start planning right away.

Gradsave is super easy to use and it's 100% FDIC insured. We've set up an account for Kalynn so all anyone needs to do if they wish to donate is go to her profile page. All donations big and small are welcome. As soon as she hits her $1000 goal, that money is then transferred into her 529 college savings fund and her Gradsave goal starts again at zero. This website makes it so easy for friends and family to participate in an extremely practical gift that she'll never outgrow no matter how old she gets. It's pure genius.

If you'd like to make a donation or if you'd just like to check out Kalynn's profile page, CLICK HERE.

Other than time passing far too quickly, things are returning to normal since the excitement of holidays and birthdays has come to an end. We're gearing up for Valentine's Day by planning a little photo shoot that will be posted later next week. Hope all is well with all of you!

xo

Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Maple Glaze

These bad boys were my Valentine's gift for Jason. It seems like different recipes for red velvet pancakes have been spreading over the internet like crazy this last year so I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Now I completely understand. Talk about a legit breakfast of champions! Whip up some of these guys as a side for heart shaped bacon, cheesy eggs, fresh hash browns and a glass of OJ, you've got yourself a happy husband.

(side note: I made heart shaped pancakes. What you're looking at below are not boobs nor butts)

The chopped pecans were excellent, and I'm sure they would be delicious if you wanted to add a handful of chocolate chips in as well, but be warned! These suckers are R*I*C*H!!!! Not so much the pancakes themselves, but teamed up with the glaze they are as thick as Hulk's thighs. 

(*recipe from carnaldish.com)

Pancake Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa Powder)

1 egg

¾ cup buttermilk

¼ cup sour cream

1 tsp red food coloring

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

3 tbsp butter, melted

Glaze Ingredients:

4 oz cream cheese, softened

2 tbsp pure maple syrup
2 to 3 tbsp confectioners sugar
2 to 3 tbsp heavy cream (or milk)

If you don't have confectioners sugar on hand, it takes just a few quick seconds in a food processor to turn granulated sugar into powder.

Make the glaze first. Mix the cream cheese and maple syrup together until smooth, then add the confectioners sugar. Continue to mix until smooth. Add the heavy cream (or milk) and mix until smooth and creamy. You may need to add more or less of each ingredient to reach your desired consistency and sweetness.

For the pancakes: 

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar and cocoa powder in a large bowl. In another large bowl, beat egg with buttermilk, sour cream, food coloring and vanilla extract until smooth. 

Slowly whisk in the flour mixture, adding melted butter in gradually as well, until all lumps are out. Heat a large nonstick pan over medium heat, then drop in batter 1/4 cup at a time to form pancakes. Flip when bottoms are set and bubbles are forming on top and cook until firm and fluffy all the way through.

Drizzle your maple cream cheese glaze on top with a little butter, and garnishes if you decide to use them, and enjoy!

(If you're looking for an incredible dessert to make for an after dinner treat, check out my Heart Shaped Chocolate Ganache Filled Cupcakes)

Love Day

Happy Valentine's Day!

 I did a mini photo shoot last week with Kalynn and I really wanted to share my top 3 favorite pictures:

The runners up weren't too shabby either, they just turned out too dark! (Even Photo Shop didn't help)

We have a Valentine tradition at our house, as you saw last year, everything must be homemade. Sure, you can buy the supplies and what not, but the gift or card itself has got to be constructed straight from creative hands!
I woke up to a completely decorated house with little heart shaped notes taped around our apartment for me to find throughout the day. After my husband went to work, I found one taped to the inside of both laptops, the medicine cabinet and even one on the coffee pot.

Jason got a hand-picked man bouquet this year. Instead of a dozen long-stem roses, he got a dozen long-stem airplane whiskey bottles, scratcher lottery tickets and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

I also made him a small army of strawberry cuppy cakes with butter cream frosting.

Usually I make my cupcakes from scratch, but this year I was short on time and gave in to the Pillsbury box variety. In case this ever happens to you, here's an easy way to make them at least taste like they're homemade. Whatever the recipe on the box says, use an extra egg. Ditch the oil, use melted butter and double the amount. Also, substitute milk for the water. They'll never know.

Ok, so there is a short run down of our day yesterday. I'm off to bartend our Day-After-Valentine extravaganza at work tonight! Come on down if you're in the area!

Happy LOVE DAY everyone!!



Heart Shaped Valentine Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache Filling

Wow, that title is a mouthful, isn't it?

Before I start, here's a little helpful hint I learn a while ago: Cake batter is one of those things that freezes wonderfully. After I make a batch, I cook 5 or 6 cupcakes at a time and put the rest away for another occasion. Like next Saturday. I often have sweet tooth cravings and don't feel like making an entire dozen or more cupcakes so I fill up 2 or 3 Tupperware containers of batter, freeze them, and then take one out another day when I get the urge to make more. It only takes a few hours to completely thaw so take it out in the morning and by afternoon you're good to go.

Cupcake Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter, softened
3 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups milk


Directions
1. Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line bottom of muffin pans with foil or paper cups. Set pan(s) aside.
2. In a mixing bowl stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder; and salt; set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, about 1/4 cup at a time, beating on medium speed until well combined (3 to 4 minutes). Scrape sides of bowl; continue beating on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition (about 1 minute total). Beat in vanilla.
4. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to beaten mixture, beating on low speed just until combined after each addition. Beat on medium to high speed for 20 seconds more. ** Fill each muffin cup 1/2 to 3/4.
5. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 20-22 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool.

** To make the heart shape you can use either marbles or two glass pebbles. Place them just on the side of the muffin tin, forming a heart shape. Excuse the messiness of my old muffin pan. Yes, that's part of the directions.

After they cook, they should look something like this. Kind of like tiny butts. 

I take a knife and make an "X" in the middle of each one, which is where I will put the filling.

Chocolate Ganache Filling Ingredients:

1 cup heavy cream

8oz chocolate finely chopped

Cook heavy cream in saucepan until just at a boil. It burns quickly so you really have to watch it. In a separate bowl, pour hot cream over chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth and let chill for several hours until it becomes a thick mousse like consistency. 

Now it's time to fill!

I find it easiest to put my decorating bag inside a small cup while I fill it with the ganache. It always turns out less messy.

Put the tip of your decorating bag right in the middle of the "x" you made earlier with your knife and fill just enough to make a large marble size center. Too much filling will leak to the sides or break your cupcake, which you do not want. 

It should look like this when you're finished. 

Now it's time to decorate! Use whichever is your favorite frosting or sprinkles or both. I filled one side of my decorating bag with pink frosting and the other with white so what came out was a perfect swirling effect.

That's all there is too it, enjoy and happy Valentine's Day!