{Favorite} Cake Friday

This week I am showcasing a beachy sand dollar cake by Sheri's Edible Designs, actually here in South Carolina. She really has some amazing talent, opening her shop in 2007 at the age of 22!!! WOW, most 22 year olds have partying still in their systems, much less running their own successful cake design business! Kudos to you Sheri, what a great idol you are.

See more of Sheri's work on her website: Sheri's Edible Designs 

{GRAND OPENING} Etsy Shop

I finally have my ETSY shop up and running!! Click the PINK DOT below to enter my shop! There are lots of cool designs. I am working on many more to join the others. Hop on over there and tell me what you think!! I am so excited for this new journey in all my creativity! There will be some special promotions coming soon!!

Click icon to go to my shop!!

You can also get to my shop by clicking the Etsy widget to the right!!

{Cupcakes} Heaven in your mouth!

Chocolate + Coffee + Frosting + Cupcake = HEAVEN IN YOUR MOUTH!

After craving a mocha frappe from starbucks one night, I decided to make a cupcake out of one of my favorite coffee drinks. Here it is. I call it Heaven in your mouth - Mocha frappe cupcake. I have got to say that these cupcakes were absolutely delicious! After I frosted a few I just started eating the rest of the frosting. Literally had to pull myself from it! So not only am I addicted to food, but this frosting as well. The only thing that needs to be added is a chocolate syrup drizzle. Then it really would be PERFECTION.

Yuuummmmmy!! Looks like I will have to make some more and hopefully they will be around long enough for me to share. OR not.........

{Design} Preview

I am excited to announce that I will be opening an ETSY shop! My grand opening will be this THURSDAY! I have been working on a lot of designs (everything designed by me) to get ready for my shop and I am happy to have made the decision to open a shop. I thought about it and put it off for quite some time. I have actually been doing this kind of stuff for a while, just not selling any. So why not make some extra money while doing things that I absolutely love?! A great way to end the month of July. (boy has it really flown by)

This collection was previewed a while ago for my nephew's Cars themed party. See it HERE.

From My Racing Collection

Preview for my Girl's Summer Ice Cream Collection {Invitation}

So many more to come, BUT you will have to wait until Thursday!!!!! :-)

{AMAZING} Alice In Wonderland Photo shoot

I had been on the edge of my seat waiting for this photo shoot! Dying to see the whole thing come together and to see all the pictures. There are some REALLY talented ladies out there. I am just Amazed with the talent that these ladies have! 

Kim with The Tomkat Studio along with her BFF Laura with Laura Winslow Photography, did this bright and modern Alice in Wonderland photo shoot. With Kim styling the table, I knew it could be nothing short of FABULOUS!! She is like the do-it-all mommy! Very inspirational in everything she does. Kim has been such an inspiration to me for remembering to keep going and pressing forward and I know that she inspires many others as well. 

You can just feel the energy in everything, from her blog to her facebook posts. A bright colored Alice in Wonderland collection she created, it really makes your spirit "fly". Anything bright, count me in. It has the same effect that the sun has on us. A "lifting" effect. LOVE IT!!

Laura, Kim's friend, truly has a great eye for photography. I love how she can really capture the moment. The photos really take you back to that day and you can get lost in them because they are so gorgeous. Seeing the kids eyes sparkle in a photo is just amazing. I love photography, not that I do it or anything, but just love the whole aspect. And these photos really reflect the person behind the camera. You can tell that this is a true passion of hers.  They are UNBELIEVABLE!!!

These two ladies weren't the only ones behind the shoot. Check out the others  made it all happen!!!

Photographer :: Laura Winslow
Tablescape Styling/Accessories & Party Goods :: The TomKat Studio
Cupcakes & Cookies :: Decadent Delights
Poms, Lanterns, Napkins, Cups & Paper Plates :: Polka Dot Market
Flowers :: Zuzu's Petals
Hair Accessories :: Dolce Vita Mia 

Tutus :: Tiny Belles Boutique

 

Thanks to Kim and Laura for letting me share!!!

{Favorite} Cake Friday

I have decided to showcase some great bakeries around with "Favorite Cake Friday". I love cake and love seeing other people's creations. And I love all styles of cakes, sculpted, tiered, wedding, kids cakes, cupcakes, etc. It is really inspiring to look at different cakes from successful bakeries. It lets me know that anything is possible!

This cake is from Studio Cake Design and this cake is what I am loving this week!

{Photo via Studio Cake Design}

In love with the detailed work!

Have a great weekend!

{New} Invitation Design

I have been working on quite a bit of invitations lately, but one I want to share at the moment is a Fiesta {Dora} invite I have designed for my daughter's 2nd birthday. I can not believe that my baby girl will be 2 in September. Seems like I just came home with her yesterday. I can still remember the exact outfit I had on and the exact outfit she had on the day we had the "ok" to come home. After spending 10 days in the hospital, we were to thrilled to have her home. Wish there was a button moms could push to slow down time and have them grow up slower........

Any how, as I have said before, I am not big on character parties, but want to incorporate some of the "Dora The Explorer" things into her party. For the wording you can see I used Dora's main saying from the show. The color inspiration came from Dora herself. The pink (shirt), orange (shorts) and brown (hair). I hope I can pull this off and still give baby girl a party of her most favorite tv character. I am open on any ideas anyone may have :-)

There are 2 versions that I am trying to decide over.

Here is the Fiesta Invite with flowers at the bottom:

And the other with Circles at the bottom:

Let me know what you think!!

{Ideas} Constance's Room decor

When I was pregnant with Constance, I became overwhelmed with all the different bedding out there. And the one's I really wanted would end up costing me over $1,000 for EVERYTHING!!! I was not about to spend that kind of money on something that would only be good for a couple of "baby" years. So I set out to design my own. I designed and cut everything and my mom did the sewing. Since we had no patterns everything had to be cut from scratch Not too bad for a first time getting the idea for sewing something.

Fabric used {Pink and green Paisly }

Here is the changing table area. You can see the custom made changing pad cover. The changing table was actually a good will find that we painted to match the rest of the furniture. The original color was tan.

Here is the rocker chair with the custom slip covers. Another cheap find - yard sale! Had blue cushions and the wood color was tan. Amazing what a good paint job can do!

A friend made these letters for me as a baby shower gift! She was super crafty! In the bed is her patchwork blanket that was custom made as well! Forgot to get a picture of it open as it is folded here. We just took the front railing off her bed so she can sleep like a big girl. Though, I find her laying across me in my bed at night, she has been doing pretty well with the adjustment.

The bumper, bedskirt and sheet came from babies r us. And now that I think about it, I could have made that stuff as well. Next on my list is to really learn how to sew!!!

These are the valances we made to coordinate with everything else. The panels came from another store. One of them looks kind of yellowish in the picture, but its actually green - sunlight coming through the window.

And this is an alphabet banner custom made by me to coordinate with her room! 

Banner Will Be Available For Purchase Soon!!!!!



I am looking to change things up in her room a little or maybe completely. Ideas are welcome especially for the walls since I can't paint. 

Hydrangea Cupcakes

Happy Monday to all! Flowers, flowers, flowers. I have always loved hydrangeas! There is something about the colorful, round, pom-pom shaped flower. When they bloom they are just gorgeous. I saw a post on Glorious Treats's blog with a tutorial on how to make hydrangea cupcakes. Before I looked at the tutorial I knew that they were done with a 2D tip and two colors of icing. Also knew that I had to try it out. 

Not too bad! I like them!

See the original post HERE with the entire tutorial

{Designs} July flyers and coupons

I have had these ready to post since the first of the month. And I always seem to think that a month last as long time. Time REALLY flies these days. I mean, wow, we only have two more weeks left in this month and then it will be August! (my birthday month)

These flyers also fall under the "design" part of things as well because they are my designs. More of that stuff will be coming VERY soon! But for now here is a price list for custom designs. Everything will be done by me. Then packaged and shipped to you. Will be working on getting things as DIY printables when everything is set up the way I want it.

If you or anyone are in need of some custom designs, don't hesitate to get in contact with me. I am here to work with you to make your designs something memorable!

Fifa World Cup Champions {Cupcake}

For those of you that don't know, I am a HUGE soccer/football fan! This year I was a bit slack on keeping up with the whole FIFA world cup. I was horrible. Sorry guys to not give you the support you all needed......

BUT, I had to watch the finale! 

NETHERLANDS vs. SPAIN

Viva Espana! I was definitely rooting for Spain. And they pulled it off in the end. During the normal 90 minutes of the game, you could see that both teams were REALLY good as no one scored until overtime. That goal was from Spain! I couldn't stop smiling! I wanted to jump up and scream, but of course I had Constance in my arms asleep. She wasn't feeling well that day so all I could do was CHEER on the inside. And that one goal made them the 2010 FIFA world cup champions! Well done guys, Well done.

So in honor I had to make a team Spain cupcake!

 

10 ways to find success as a working mom

 {photo via The Pink Cake Box}


I will be going back to work full-time soon as my husband will be getting prepared for Paramedic school. I know there are times as moms when our priorities just get all out of order and we forget about the things that really need our attention. Can be overwhelming at times for moms with more that one child in different sports and activities. How do you stay on top of everything?? I know I am gonna need these steps!

Here is a guide  for 10 steps to finding success as a working mom:

Becoming a mom is a full time job. Period. There are ongoing debates regarding stay-at-home moms and the level of responsibility they hold, but if you are a mom, it will take little persuading to get you to agree to the previous statement. So when it is time for Mom to return to work, or get a job to help provide for the family financially, you will find that your entire family will experience a period of adjustment. You must find a balance between work, your spouse/significant other, your children, yourself, friends, and all other activities you enjoy (be it traveling, crafting, cooking, working out, etc.) If you are a working mom, or soon-to-be, look over (and memorize) these suggestions...??

10 ways to find success as a working mom:

1. Define your priorities. With only so many hours in the day, you must prioritize those things in life that are most important to you. It is about finding a balance and making it work for the entire family. Once you define those things that are most important, you can then begin organizing your life accordingly.
2. Get organized. Now you can organize your life based on priorities. Get your home, you office, and your life in order. This means de-clutter your life--have a yard sale, give extra items to local Salvation Army, hand down your children's clothing to friends or family--do what it takes to clean up shop. This will lay the foundation to get, and stay, organized.
3. Stay organized. If you have not been a "list" person in the past, it may be time to take a quick lesson in list making. Start prioritizing by categories (i.e., family, home, personal, work) and keep a visual log (list) of the tasks that need to be completed for each category. It may be useful to get 4, 12"x12" cork boards and assign one for each category. You can then place it in a convenient location so that you may review it throughout the day. As each task comes up, place it on its designated board, and remove each task as completed. Keep the tasks short, sweet, and direct so that you can eliminate unnecessary steps.
4. Eliminate the extras. Find the tasks in you current (pre-working day) routine that are not NEEDED. Tasks that either don't need to be done as often, ever, or that maybe don't need to be done by YOU. That's right, decide which of your daily duties can be handled by another member of the family. Now that you won't be home as often, you can vacuum once a week instead of daily--as with many of the daily chores.
5. Delegate tasks. It is time to delegate the household chores more evenly amongst ALL family members. Do you think your three year old is too young? Chances are that they will love the structure and the opportunity to help out. Make it fun, offer rewards to teach them that hard work will pay off. Start with small chores of helping out and lead into "making the bed" or putting away toys. While the bed will not look the same when they do it, they will learn quickly and will be so proud when they get it right.
6. Prepare/Plan your meals in advance. When dinner time rolls around you want to keep your family on schedule and eating healthy. So often, when both parents are working, the family tends to eat based on convenience. Sadly, convenience often means fast food, pizza, or processed foods. Don't feel bad if this sounds familiar, some times it is inevitable, but you can take steps to help avoid it. Spend a couple hours on the weekend preparing meals for the week. You can also use this as time to get the entire family involved and spend time together in the kitchen. Getting the family involved makes everyone a little more excited to sit down at dinner time to see what they have accomplished. For your pickier eaters, you may find a little more willingness to try new things. You may also want to try Fresh & Easy for quick, reasonably priced, healthier meals throughout the week. If you stop by in the late afternoon and evenings you can find clearance items at amazing prices. You can have Mystery Monday and determine your meal at the last minute, based on the clearance items for that day. Dinner MyWay is another option that allows you to plan meals in advance, or call in at the last minute and pick up a full meal on the way home (based on availability). While it may seem a bit costly, the food is fresh and tastes more like a home-cooked meal than you will find with most other warm-and-serve options. Check local listings to find the closest Fresh & Easy (they are popping up all over Fresno), and find Dinner MyWay on the NW corner of Herndon and Clovis.
7. Make an effort to reach out to your friends. While you will find that your head is spinning as you try to balance the working life, the mommy life, the friend life, and the married life, you must make a huge effort to keep in contact with your friends. They will always be there for you, of course, and they will understand when you are overwhelmed, but a quick phone call on your lunch hour or afternoon break will serve you well. It sounds crazy to pencil in a call to a friend, but you don't want to take your friendships for granted. Heaven forbid that you don't call your girlfriend for three weeks, until you are in a bind and need a babysitter at the last minute. While your intention is not to avoid or ignore them, you will have much explaining to do when you finally have a chance to get together. Even an email or a Facebook message reminding them that you appreciate your friendship is better than nothing at all.
8. Set aside time for your kids. You are swamped at work and bogged down with household chores, and all the kids want is their mommy...sound familiar? Of course it does. Here's the trick. Don't consider it family time when you sit on the couch paying bills or catching up on your emails as they watch TV or a movie, or as you read on the toilet while they take a bath. You need to designate time to focus 100% on your children. This means dressing up and having a tea party, or putting on a cape and playing super heros. No phones. No texting. No Tweeting. Just you, the fake cookies, and the kiddos. Make it a point to read a book every night before bed, or find something consistent that you can plan on every day. Depending on your work schedule and flexibility, take a morning off (once a month or every other week, whichever works for you) and take the kids to the Chaffee Zoo. You can check out the animals and head over to Storyland and Playland for interactive fun. Your little ones will love the small water area at Playland, so be sure to back a bathing suit or change of clothes! *This is a really important step in maintaining and developing a strong relationship with your children.
9. Set aside some intimate time with your spouse. After a long day at work you are probably completely exhausted. The last thing you want to think about is getting intimate with your spouse. Uh oh, it's time to make an effort. Find what works for you. Mentally prepare yourself for the fact that you are not going to go to bed and go to sleep, don't let your body come to expect that. Make yourself make an effort and do different things to help set the mood. Light candles, do whatever works for YOU. This is one of the first things to go when women or overwhelmed at home and in the workplace so just make sure you don't forget to make an effort to keep things intimate with your partner. Even if this means time alone with one another discussing your day, or watching a movie--as long as you are doing something you enjoy together.
10. Don't forget to take care of YOU. You will probably be the first thing to drop off the priority list. Most women will take care of the family, work, and home and quickly lose sight of what they need themselves. Don't let this happen to you. You must take care of yourself, take a daily breather to regroup and do something for mom. Don't stop working out if it is already a part of your routine, and even if it is not, you may want to consider squeezing it in. Set aside a couple hours throughout the week to do something you love, whether it is by yourself or with you girlfriends. It is amazing what two hours can do for you when you are overwhelmed with responsibility at work and home.

Read more on Examiner.com

{Designs} Ladybug Cupcake Toppers

I have been creating some different and fun designs lately and decided to do a little shot of the ladybug toppers. I I designed a ladybug theme with invites and toppers a year ago, but didn't like them anymore. So I was off to create some new designs. The rest of the collection along with my other designs will be coming soon! So stay tuned. Lady bug parties are so cute for little girls and endless ways to be creative. Maybe I will get another chance at a ladybug party for my daughter, Constance, since her first party got ruined!

Dora or Not {Constance's party Inspiration}

My baby girl will be turning 2 in two months!! Where does the time go?! I am not too fond of the "character" parties and really don't want to do DORA, but my daughter absolutely loves her. She will wake up in the morning saying "Dora" and will get me the remote to the TV so that I can turn it there. What!! Dora more than Mommy.....Yes, Dora more than Mommy. Another thing, she can spot Dora (and Diego) a mile away in a store. Its really cute though. 

So I am gonna break it down and try to do a Fiesta {Dora} pink and orange party. Pink for Dora's shirt and orange for her shorts. I absolutely love these two colors together! So bright and cheery. I have designed the invitation already along with some of the party decor.

Here are 2 inspiration boards I created to give me some pink and orange modern ideas. More ideas are welcome for the "fiesta" side of things :-)

Sources for pictures: Clockwise from top left

Inspiration board 1:

Table setting: Better homes and gardens

Cupcakes: Cupcake d'lights

Striped lanterns:  Pepper Design Blog

Cake setting: Sweet and Saucy shop

Inspiration board 2:

Flower cups: The knot 

Flowers: Lindsay Kirkland and Lily Designs

Large balloons: Not Just a Mommy!

bedding: the decorating diva

Dessert Table: Sweet and Saucy Shop

Zebra Cupcakes

There has been a lot of printed animal fabrics going around this year in the fashion world. Zebra print has always been a favorite of mine. A while ago my friend told me she bought some cute shoes from Khol's and they were zebra print with hot pink stitching. I was about to go crazy and had to go find me a pair.

And of course, my size was SOLD OUT!! Such a bummer. So I decided to use them for inspiration for my next love- baking.

{photo via All You}

I hope everyone has a fun and safe weekend celebrating Independence Day! I know I will be stuffing my face and baking and cooking, but not forgetting to take a moment out and truly remember the meaning of the 4th of July!

Enjoy your weekend!

Love from Sweet Memories

4th of July Dessert Ideas

The 4th of July is this weekend and I am just going crazy from all the things I can bake up and cook. And Martha was the best inspiration for me. So many ideas and creative desserts. I really wish I could make them all. There will never be a way to keep up with all her stuff because she is always coming up with something new! So I put together my favs. Click on the links to get the full recipes.

I Love these Pretzel Sparklers because I only eat pretzels covered or dipped in chocolate!

(left) Red White and Blue Parfaits Love the Layered look! (Right) Strawberry Slush

(Left) American Flag Tart (Right) Strawberry Tarts with Cream

(Left) Star Spangled Shortcake Mmm.... (Right) Gingered Blackberry and Black Plum Shortcakes

 

(Left   ) Vanilla-Rasperry Sundaes I have GOT to try these!!!  (Right) Raspberry-Lime Freeze