Flowers and Cake Design

I completed my second cake decorating class this month. This class focused on royal icing flowers and designing a balanced cake. We learned to pipe roses, apple blossoms, primroses, violets, lilies and daffodils. We also learned the classic basketweave technique. We just made a million flowers each week. I planned ahead and made all of my flowers in a similar color pallet so that I could use them on my final cake. 

I decided this cake was for me, so it was going to be uber-chocolatey. I baked a two 6 inch chocolate cakes from a box, then filled and iced them with canned chocolate frosting and chocolate chips. Then I made a batch of chocolate buttercream icing to pipe the basketweave with because the canned frosting is way too soft. This is the most amazing recipe for chocolate frosting ever. It is extremely fudgey and tastes best at room temperature. It was so hard not to just sit there in class and pipe the icing directly into my mouth instead of onto the cake. After piping the sides, I mounded up a pile of frosting in the middle and attached my flowers. I added some little green leaves and itty bitty squiggly green lines. My piping bag burst before I could finish the squiggles, so there are only a few. The chocolate is a little too dark for the flowers, but it tasted amazing. 

8 months

Little Miss Lily is now 8 months old. She's 13lbs 3oz and 25.5" long. Her little face and legs are getting chubby! She thinks solid food is the greatest thing in the world, particularly if she can feed it to herself. She has been babbling up a storm. It's so fun to hear her pretty little voice and not just screaming. She's also working really hard at crawling. She can scoot around like crazy, and can now stay up on her hands and knees to rock back and forth a few times. It won't be long until she's crawling all over the place. I'm not particularly looking forward to this because it means it will be that much harder to keep her safe. She's sleeping great at night with us, usually we get one 4-6 hour stretch and then 2 hour chunks until morning. Since she's in bed with us it's not a big deal at all and we're all getting the sleep we need. 


She's also having lots of fun banging and shaking things. I'm really excited for our music class that will start at the end of April. Originally we were going to try Musikgarten out in Oak Park, but I did some research and found something closer. The Old Town School of Folk Music offers a baby music class called Wiggleworms at the Hyde Park Art Center that is just down the block from us. If you don't know about the Old Town School, you should. They are super awesome and my father-in-law has been involved with them for a long time. Check them out here. They have several locations for classes, so they're not just for us city folk. 


And finally, Lily still really loves books. Particularly if there are things to feel and grab at. 

Ready for a break

From Spring Break, that is. How is it that after 2 weeks of having Joe home to help take care of Lily and hang out I'm exhausted? Maybe we just had too much fun. We went to museums, celebrated birthdays, visited friends, made cakes, cooked delicious meals together, had many dance parties, day-tripped, shopped, wandered the city, and did some massive spring cleaning. 


It was really nice to be able to take long showers and have Joe prepare lunches, but I'm looking forward to getting back to our usual, less hectic routine. More naps, less driving. More walking, less eating. More music, less TV. More snuggling, less adventuring. 


Amazingly, we got through most of my spring break to do list. The only things I still want to get done are organizing Joe's and my closets and finally hanging things on the walls. The closets I can do slowly while hanging out with Lily, and the hanging can easily be done on a weekend day. 


So we had a productive and fun break. I know Joe feels more relaxed, so he's ready for his Spring Term. And I'm ready for our break from Spring Break. 

Happy Birthday Grandpa Joe!

Last Monday was Joe's dad's birthday. So I of course had to make him a cake. He really likes chocolate and fishing, so I thought I'd make him a cake with a chocolate fish on it. Ta da!

This cake was super fun to make. First I baked two 8" round chocolate cakes, filled them with vanilla icing and semi-sweet chocolate chips, and iced the whole thing in vanilla frosting. Then I mixed together some piping gel and blue dye to make a goopey, watery type substance to look like a river. I bought some candy rocks at the grocery store to go all around the bottom, like a river bed, and in a couple spots on top to represent a river bank. I piped a few tufts of river grass, wrote "Happy Birthday Grandpa" on it, and attached my fish. (You are supposed to write on your cake before you do any other decorations so that you have enough room and you don't have to worry about messing anything up. That is good advice that I will remember next time so that I don't end up with blue piping gel all over my arm and the words are straight.)

So about this fish.... it is a rainbow trout made out of melted chocolate that I mixed candy colors into. First you print out whatever image you want to make and cover it with wax paper (or if you are artistically inclined you could free hand it).Using dark chocolate in a piping bag trace the general outline and any details you want. I used a toothpick to pull the chocolate in lines for the fins. Then you fill in the background with whatever colors you want, in this case muted rainbow stripes. After letting it harden completely, peel it off the wax paper and turn it over. Then you add whatever other detail to the front that you need. I added the dark speckles, the pectoral fin, and the eye to give it a little dimension. This was way easier to do than I expected, and wicked fun, so expect to see a lot of chocolate painting/molding on future cakes. 

This was my first attempt at a fun cake. And it was satisfying in a different way than my previous cakes. This cake was all about making it look like something, but it certainly also tasted good. It was fun to try to figure out what to use to make things look realistic, but not too real. If you google rainbow trout cake you get some disturbing things. I'll never be one to make a cake look like something that is not a cake, but I will be more than happy to put anything on a cake. 

Week 12

Ugh. Ended up at 173. This is not good. My only explanation is that it was Spring Break and Joe was home every day. That means I was eating a lot more food for breakfast and lunch than I usually do, plus an extra delicious dinner, and don't forget the cake. I might need to find a new hobby...

But this is the week. I can feel it. The sun is shining more regularly, I won't be distracted by Joe, and my pants are getting close to not fitting. Spring training here I come!

M: 1 mile walk + birthday food
T: 3 hour scavenger hunt at MSI
W: road trip to Galena
Th: not much
F: 1 mile walk
S: 3.5 mile walk
S: 1 hr walk

Week 11

So... I ended up at 171. Fail. I did pretty ok all week, and then we ordered a deep dish pizza last night. Cheese is always my downfall. I went for a good run this week, though, and felt great! My core is way stronger from baby yoga so it doesn't feel like my intestines are sloshing around. AND I fit into my pre-pregnancy sports bras again!!! This is a huge deal. It is so uncomfortable to run with big boobs, I can't even explain it. It feels so good to be back in the "normal" range for me. The problem now is when I work out I get REALLY hungry and feel like I have somehow "deserved" to eat something ridiculous. And it's Spring Break so I'm eating a lot more fook than usual, and cooking more ridiculous things. Also, because Joe's home we're doing all sorts of fun things and exercising always gets pushed back. One more week of just trying to hold steady, and then I'll be ready to really kick it in gear. I'm encouraged by the couple of times I ran, and if I can keep my appetite satisfied with something other than cheese, I should be ok.

M: 15 min warm up, 4x1/2 mile repeats with 1/4 mile walk in between, 15 min cool down. All half miles were between 5 and 5:15.
T: 1hr + walk
W: afternoon at the zoo
Th: 1 hr stroll
F: 2 hour walk
S: not much
S: 1/2 hr stroll

Baby Carriers

Lily does not do well just hanging out on the floor for very long. So we basically carry her most of the day. She does fine for a little bit if she can still see you, and she'll be happy for quite a while if you get down on the ground and play with her. She loves to scoot and crawl on her face and roll over again and again if you're right there. This constant need to be held can make it a bit difficult to get things done. So we've experimented with a number of carriers, 6 to be precise. I have a bit of an obsession. I love getting new gear, be it hiking, climbing, running, yoga, etc. And now I can add baby gear to that list. 


The first carrier I bought was the Mei Tai I got at a used baby stuff store in Tucson. I posted about it when I first got it. It's certainly the prettiest of the bunch. This one was great when Lily was first born. It was one of the only ways she would sleep. I like this one a lot because it can be used as front or back carrier and is fairly small. It's good for doing chores around the house, but doesn't have enough support for longer periods of time. It's also great for going out because it looks so nice and not like a big strappy/claspy/velcro-y baby tank.


Then we got a hotsling. Lily absolutely loved that for about 4 months. She would snuggle in like a little pea in a pod and be happy for long periods of time. She's too big to snuggle into it like she used to, but she's almost big enough to use it as a side carrier on my hip. I just know she's going to love it again in a couple of months. This one is great to throw in a bag because it's tiny and can easily be put on anywhere and over anything that I'm wearing. 


A friend sent me a Moby wrap/ring sling combo. This was a hit in Tucson because the light fabric was very breathable, and it covers up so much I could just wear it over a little tank top. Lily liked to snuggle down into this and even nurse in it. It has the softest, stretchiest fabric of all. I have friends who say it will be great again as she gets a little bigger. 


Another friend gave be a Baby Bjorn. Lily wasn't big enough to use it until December, but now she's pretty comfy in it. It's a great front carrier for longer trips to museums and public transportation. It's a little cumbersome so it's not great to bring "just in case". 


Then I got a super cheap Infantino carrier at Target that could be a front or back carrier. I couldn't get the Mei Tai on my back by myself, and it's hard to sweep and carry things with Lily in the Bjorn, so this seemed like a good option. The back carrier is great. It's a snap to put on, I know she's secure, and it feels so much better to have her on my back. This is my go-to-carrier for chores. We tried it at the Morton Arboretum the other day (see action shot below). Joe carried her and it worked ok. She can't see a whole lot because she's so low down and it doesn't fit Joe very well. 

Today we got a frame backpack at REI. I'm sooooo excited to use it this week when we go to Galena. This thing is humongous, but it's so comfortable and Lily thinks it's awesome. Joe and I love to hike, and this is absolutely perfect. It has a sun and rain cover, and a small pack underneath her seat so you don't have to carry a separate diaper bag. I love it so much. It'll be perfect for the Zoo, the Aquarium, the Arboretum, walking to the beach, so many things. I don't have a picture yet, but we will by the end of the week. 


After buying the frame pack, I felt the need to justify our plethora of carriers. I literally use one of them every day. And it's almost never the same one two days in a row. And I haven't gone more than two weeks without using each one at least once. I feel like each one has very specific strengths and makes it the perfect thing for certain tasks. But I agree with Joe, we probably have enough now. If you're in the Chicagoland area and are considering buying a baby carrier, let me know and we probably have one you can try for a couple of days before you decide to invest in it. 

Week 10

We have survived another set of law school finals, and that always means bad things for my weight. More take out than usual, more stress, more snacking, more badness in general. But I did a pretty good job of doing something active almost every day. Even so, I find myself at 170lbs again. This is becoming too much of a regular occurance. I've decided that I want to officially be at 165 before I start training for the half marathon. So I'm going to try to lose 5 pounds, and actually stay at that weight not fluctuate up and down, by the beginning of June. That modest goal shouldn't affect my supply too much and I'll feel better about myself when the warmer weather comes and I don't want to wear pants and hoodies all the time.

M: 1 hour walk
T: 1 hour + walk
W: 1 hour walk/jog
Th: nothing
F: 2.5 mile hike at Morton Arboretum
S: 40 min walk
S: building/moving furniture

Cake Balls!

This week I made these cake balls by special request. The recipe was simple enough: bake a cake from a box, crumble it when it's still warm, add a can of frosting, melt some almond bark, shape into balls and dip in glaze. I, of course, decided that I knew better and changed almost everything. The result was a disaster. Tasty, but a disaster nonetheless. 

My friend loves Hershey's Symphony bars (at least she used to, I hope that's still the case!). So I decided to mimic the Symphony bar in a cake ball. My plan was to use a dark chocolate cake mix with marbled milk and white chocolate frosting dipped in a milk chocolate glaze and sprinkled with almond toffee. 

Well, I followed the directions on the cake box and that turned out great. Then I mixed in the milk chocolate frosting while the cake was still warm as per the instructions. It turned into a delicious, warm, gooey chocolate sludge. I decided to wait to swirl in the white chocolate frosting (leftover from the Berry Bonanza cake) so that it would actually marble and not just mix in. Then I tried to make the chocolate glaze I made for the Little Gifts cakes I made a while back. I halved the recipe, but I have no idea what I did wrong. It ended up way too thin, more like hot chocolate than a glaze. But, I didn't have any extra ingredients so I went with it. The cake and frosting mixture had cooled enough to add the white chocolate without melting it, so I stirred it in. It vanished. I don't know if there just wasn't enough or what, but it completely mixed in. At this point you are supposed to be able to form little balls, stick them on a toothpick and dip them in the glaze. The extra frosting made that impossible. They formed little balls but would not stay on the toothpick. So I just ended up spooning the soupy glaze over them. Finally, I added the almond toffee bits. I expected there to be pieces of almonds in the mix, but maybe I misunderstood and it is almond-flavored toffee. 

When the cake balls were still warm, they were incredibly rich and soft and good. Then I threw some in the  fridge and some in the freezer where they went from good to omigosh amazing. After chilling for a bit they turned fudgy, chewy, and more addicting. I wanted to shove them all in my mouth as fast as possible. So, while they turned out nothing like they were supposed to, they are a happy mistake. 

Week 9

Ended up at 170. Too much cake and Chinese food. This next week I'm going to focus on doing something active EVERY day and shopping doesn't count.

M: costco
T: shopping
W: 1 hr walk
Th: play date
F: 90 min walk
S: nothing
S: nothing

Berry Bonanza!

Another cake win! This is a white chocolate cake with raspberry preserves filling and white chocolate cream cheese frosting. I piped green vines and placed some fresh raspberries on the top and piled them around the base instead of a traditional border. In my quest to make delicious natural or organic cakes, I did not use green food dye. Instead, I blanched some spinach, pureed it, and then mixed it in with the frosting. There was so little green frosting and the frosting already had a flavor, so the spinach did not alter the taste. The added liquid made it a little hard to pipe, so the vines and leaves are a little wonky, but as Joe so nicely reminded me, vines in nature are a little wonky too. This was a gift for a friend so I did not taste the final product but I definitely sampled along the way. This may be one of my favorite recipes ever. 

Have you da wing?

That line is from one of my all time favorite movies, The Princess Bride. And rings have been on my mind lately, specifically my wedding rings. I love my rings. They're simple and elegant and perfect. I used to wear my rings ALL of the time, I even slept in them. I had little tiny ring tan lines. But by the time I was 7 months pregnant my hands were too swollen to wear my rings comfortably. So sadly, I stopped wearing them for fear of having them get stuck and then having to amputate a finger. It felt SOOO weird not to have them on. I felt like I was walking around completely naked. Then after the delivery, I didn't wear them all that much because I was worried about scratching Lily with the stone. I tried to remember to wear them when I went out, but I was so used to the feeling of not having them on I wouldn't notice. 


I'm grateful for Joe on a daily basis, but there have been a few times in recent memory where I was made acutely aware of what an amazing husband and father he is. Even though he is pretty busy with school, he almost always makes time to come home for dinner and not do work in the evenings. I know this is a huge sacrifice academically and socially. Most other students are working all the time and hanging out together lots. He always invites me and Lily if he is going out with people. He makes me coffee every morning. And he does a million other things. I am truly blessed to be married to such a great guy. 


Lily is an absolute joy. I wouldn't trade her for the world. Even so, her arrival has changed our relationship. Not in a negative way, it's just different. Generally, her needs come before ours, to include our relationship. We spend a lot of our time talking about baby related things, doing baby related things, or thinking about baby related things. We love doing things together as a family, and we still manage to have grown up discussions. And we're very grateful to both our parents for watching Lily in order to give us a chance to go out alone sometimes. We're lucky that we don't have any huge "issues" that we need to work out. We just need to love each other and know that we're each trying our best to make our new little family work.  


This is where the rings come in. Our rings are a physical reminder of the promises we made to each other. When I wear my rings, it just feels right. My hands look incomplete without them there. When Lily is screaming and I'm picking up Joe's socks again, my rings remind me that he will be home soon. When we hold hands and our rings clink together, it always makes me smile. So I'm going to make a real effort to wear my rings even if I'm just home alone. It seems like such a trivial thing. But to me they are a constant reminder of all that we've been through together and all that we still have to look forward to. And sometimes that's all I need to make it through the day. 

Woman + Baby

I've been reading a lot of random mommy-blogs recently. I enjoy reading what other women have to say about parenting, but I can't help but feel separate and apart from them. Since having Lily I have not morphed into an all-nuturing, self-sacrificing, uber compassionate earth mother. Sure I love this little girl, but that's not all there is. I still exist as a person separate and whole. My life has definitely changed, but only surficially so. I still do all the things I did before, cook, clean, exercise (sort of), read, write, make music, etc. Now I just do it all with a baby. And a little bit slower. 


I've been trying to write this post for a couple of days now, but I'm having trouble finding the right words. I don't want to sound like the girl who always claims she's different than everyone all of the time. I know there are other women out there who feel the same as me. Maybe my problem is that I'm comparing myself to a piece of writing that has been edited, stylized, and wraps up with a cute little lesson. 


And I'm horribly insecure about my abilities as a parent. After starting this post, Lily went through some sort of attention-mongering phase. At dinner, unless both Joe and I were gazing at her adoringly and she had a steady stream of food going into her mouth she would just yell. She wasn't crying, she wasn't wet, nothing was poking her, she was getting fed as fast as we could muster while we were trying to eat something ourselves, and she just wouldn't stop yelling. I thought to myself "why can't you just be quiet?!?!" and then felt immediately guilty. She's a baby, she has no real control over her actions. And since I was just writing about my non-mom-ness I suddenly felt like the worst parent in the world for not being more compassionate and tolerant. That sent me spiraling into a near anxiety attack that could only be alleviated by manic cleaning. Joe, awesome husband that he is, recognized this and amused Lily in another room for about an hour while I washed all the dishes from dinner, cleaned up the house in general, and managed to stop hyperventilating. 


By then, Lily had gotten over whatever was troubling her and was a smiling happy baby again. We all snuggled together on the couch to watch a movie. Lily fell asleep right away, and after the movie finished I was ready for bed as well. Anxiety attacks can really wipe you out. It was only like 8:30 and Joe was definitely not ready to sleep so he offered to hold Lily so I could go sleep alone for a few hours. It was glorious. I haven't had a whole bed to myself in a VERY long time. 


So, I have no idea what this post was about. I have no pithy conclusion today. I guess a picture of Lily looking sassy will have to do.