Carla's Cakes???

I have been dappling in the cake world for some time now, but it hasn't been much more than squeaking something out for my own kids' birthdays.  Until lately, that is. I have recently had the pleasure of making a few cakes for some great friends who placed incredible trust in my experiments.  I am no pro, far from it, but I enjoy stressing over, planning out and decorating cakes.

Here are some of the latest (forgive the picture quality: these are from my phone...)

a 1st Birthday cake for a precious little boy who has already learned to love the remote.
 (His mama had to write Happy Birthday on the cake because I was SCARED!)

My first attempt at both a character that didn't come from a shaped pan as well as writing!

a Valentine's Book Club treat for a friend - complete with a marshmallow heart border!

A baby shower cake for a friend who happened to deliver just a few days later!

I have discovered that I really enjoy being able to give cakes to friends knowing that I created something special for them.  The catch is I never really know how the thing is gonna turn out.  I mean, I kinda just make it up as I go and hope for the best.  And it takes me forever! {I credit some of that to lack of skill and the rest to my being a perfectionist.}

So, I have decided to bite the bullet and will be embarking on the official Wilton cake decorating journey - I start my beginners class next week and I confess, I'm a little nervous! At least at home, I can stress out in the privacy of my own kitchen.   I will now be in the company of other students as well as a very experienced teacher who will be hovering over me and watching my make-shift techniques.  I am hoping to learn more efficient ways to decorate and maybe some cool new tricks.

The pressure is on, friends.  Taste-testers get ready!

February in review...

I really wanted to get this posted before the end of the month, even if that meant 2 posts in one day!

I was super excited about our February sensory bucket.  I had a blast putting it together.

red beads 

heart buttons

erasers

small wooden hearts

some tweaked goodies from the dollar store
I cute apart the letters for love and took the sticks out of the hearts

red koosh-like thingys

I also added colorful muffin cups, plastic heart container, and red pom pons with a white bean filler.
Isn't it cool?!

I decided to amp up my attempt at creativitiy this month.  We made "marble art" (or in our case, bouncey ball art) for our Valentines cards.  They turned out really cute, but they didn't make it in the mail!!! Sorry family and friends - you can know you were loved from afar.

Happy February! Bring on the warmth of March!

Nice try...

So I've discovered, I'm just not the blogging type.  {Collective gasp of utter surprise!} I mean, if I can't even get my daily household chores done, my kids schooled, and dinner on the table in a timely fashion, why in the world would I expect myself to stay on top of a blog?!  Silly me.

Though it isn't posted for all to see - and by all I mean the 4 people who read this blog - life indeed goes on in the Ledford house.  Hudson is completely boycotting school right now, so that portion of our lives is a little out of whack, but alas, we continue to plug along.

Here are some clips from the past few {ahem} months:

 Thad, Hudson, and the "big kids" heading our to conquer the arctic villains during our Christmas snow storm.

 Hudson and Uncle Joe creatively passing time while we wait for Christmas dinner to be served.  Apparently that bowl makes a pretty mean reflection!

 Thad enjoying one of his awesome new toys, Qwirkle  (thanks Bebe & Pops!) on the kitchen floor .  I even made it in a picture!!!

 Proof that school has indeed taken place since November! The boys love to use their Do-A-Dot markers.

 As a motivator to get Thad to read, he's been reading these cards and then taping them in place all over the house.

 Our first stab at Pick and Draw, and super cool game that came in Thad's stocking.

 More winter work...

  My attempt to beat the winter blues by being crafty! Hudson helped me sort some of my old crayons, back from my public school days, and we made homemade ones.  They took longer than I expected, but turned out cute.  I was more impressed than the boys, of course.