I may blame this crafty project on my compulsive hoarding of cans, toilet paper tubes and jars. Or I may blame it on this girl and her birthday. What to make a crafty girl?

Well, for awhile I have been saving empty ribbon spools thinking they would make darling cake-like sculptures. Perfect as a token to celebrate a festive day…because I’m all about celebrating. Anyway, shortly after Christmas I was planning my next non-Christmas project and thinking of my pal’s day. Seemed like the perfect time to buy some more ribbon and venture into other parts of the craft store I don’t normally visit (scrapbooking supplies and different kinds of glue- wow, there are lots!).

I have had so much fun watching these little “cakelets” emerge that I decided to venture out and sell them in my sister’s shop. Guess what? 2 have sold and 1 other is a special order (the lime green one!). Fun!

Also, I want to thank this fellow blogger for helping me name these creations. I had several people comment on my Flickr account (I asked for name help) and they were all so darling. I knew you guys could help me out.


Okay, I admit, I love birthdays and today is my 36th. I don’t love birthdays for the gifts (I’m a tad old for that, but I was informed a camera is on the way…yippee!), but I love all the kind gestures. The flood of cards and pictures from my kids, the thoughtful words from Nathan and the well wishes from so many people in my life.

One tradition I started last year was “the making of the cake”. I now insist that I make it. Not that I don’t love what my sister would make or my mom’s cake and frosting she has made me in the past, but it’s a challenge for me to make a new recipe and knock my family’s socks off. Last year was a coconut cake with lemon curd and Swiss meringue buttercream…this year I introduce to you the “Salty and Sweet cake” from this lovely book that eveyone must buy for themselves!

Imagine layers of salty caramel, whipped caramel ganache and more ganache on the outside to make sure the cake is even more decadent.

Oh, and chunks of sea salt garnishing the top to add a “burst” to your bite.

This is quite the temptation for all of us today, especially since everyone is home! No school due to frigid temps.- we are talking negatives numbers here, but the sun is out!

Wish I could all share with you a slice of “my cake”!

I don’t know about you, but our dining room table is more than a place for eating…

Today we:

ate breakfast
“modge podged” a treasure box
played with clay
glittered “stuff”
cut out some fabric
learned to write the number “35″
and taught our animal friends to fly

Sometimes I yearn for a nicer table that’s more “grown up”, but then I look underneath and see my kids graffitti of happy faces and proclamations of loving God. What was I thinking? This table is a treasure!

The week was welcomed by me with routine and a relatively clean house, I mean clean like the top shelves were dusted off and the window sills were wiped. After taking down Christmas, I quickly realized that our living spaces needed some attention...ahem!

Don't get me wrong, I loved 2 weeks of no lunch making, no bussing kids to and from school, and no homework! But now is the time to set some goals and I have done pretty well this week considering that sunless days do NOT motivate me. Ha- the sun is out and I am posting here and knocking things off my list...go figure!

One thing I have been doing is crawling into bed early to read. This book, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly has quickly become one of my favorite books. There is a movie and my sister said it is equally well done. It’s a biography about a man that suffered a stroke and consequently was diagnosed with “locked down syndrome”, a condition of total paralysis, BUT your mind is sharp and you can no longer speak. He wrote his book blinking his left eye to a translator…the book is so beautifully written and inspiring. Go get it if you are looking for something to read! Has anyone else read this book?

And of course, every new year brings on new motivation to get projects done! I have had this quilt pieced for about 18 months- I’m so lazy, I know. I figured if I posted this shot, I would feel energized to shake a leg. I also have another quilt haunting me that needs to be done for February 15th (Simon’s 8th birthday)- this year I will finish them! Oh- and perhaps change the banner to this blog and print more photos from my iPhoto and eat less sugar and learn to use my husband’s nicer camera and…

Happy New Year!

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