So this past week was a bit busy. That's a good thing. I had a wedding to go to on Friday, so I had to come up with a present. I decided that I would make a stained glass pansy. This took all evening on Wednesday as well as part of an early morning on Thursday.

I then took the project to work and showed it to everyone. I meant to take pictures of it when there was enough sunlight streaming through the windows, but completely forgot. So when I gave it away on Friday, it wasn't until I had wrapped it all up and was driving there that I remembered that I hadn't taken a picture. Oh well. It was really pretty. It was a 3-d pansy and was really heavy because it was made with the lead came instead of just the Tiffany copper foil method. I plan on making at least one more, so when I finish that, I will have to take its picture.

On Thursday evening, I went to a Pampered Chef party. It's really hard to call those things parties. Especially when there are only 6-8 people attending one. Anyway, I needed to get a new spatula. I had bought my last one about 8 years ago. I remember that it wasn't supposed to crack or to stain. However, mine finally cracked in a few different places this year. Plus, I got it to stain two weeks ago when I was trying to make some black icing.

I am a bit impressed because it has gone through the dishwasher twice since then and the stains are starting to disappear, so perhaps a few more times in the dishwasher, and there will be no stain.

Nevertheless, I decided that I needed a new one since this one is cracked in a few placed.

The wedding I went to on Friday was nice. It was a sunset wedding on the golf course. The bride was really pretty and her kids were just beautiful. Her oldest daughter gave a small speech/toast to her new stepfather as well as to her mother, and it was really nice. I only knew two other people in the room, and there was probably 100 people there. I really wasn't comfortable, and accidentally choose the table next to the bar. That was an experience.

I did see something that was a cute idea for any occasion. You know those hurricane vases, or something similar to those things? There was candy layered in them. There was probably a half dozen vases with candy. One had Reese's Pieces PB cups, another had mini Hershey bars assortment. There was another that was layered with white chocolate covered peanuts and layers of chocolate covered raisins. One had a layer of the dinner mints and jelly bellies. Another had sugar orange slices, a layer of gumdrops, and then a layer of the nice Ghirardelli chocolates. It was a cute idea.

What I have been up to....

Here is the pumpkin that I made on Tuesday night. This one was fun to make. I really like the color of the glass. This is a piece of glass that I have had for a while and I had bought it off of eBay. I had gone to the glass store again this past Saturday to pick up more glass, and I specifically looked for some orange glass. I didn't have much luck. I found some stuff that was almost orange. So I decided I would just have to have a lone pumpkin, and not a pumpkin patch. :-)

Also, here is a bat that I made. This one was a bit more difficult to make. I used a different method on this one than on the pumpkin, and I ended up cutting myself a couple of times and burning my knuckle on the soldering iron. I really have to remember to be a bit more careful. ;-)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

No more Lint

So I gave away Lint this evening. I posted a message on Freecycle.com to see if someone would want him. I thought I would save the $35 I would have to pay if I took him to the SPCA.

A lady emailed me and asked if they could have him, and so I took him into town with me tonight and dropped him off. I had him in the cat carrier all the way to Bakersfield to his new home. He cried the whole way there. It was kind of sad to hear him meow for a half hour. I also took the cat scratching post that I had. My cats are declawed and so they don't need it, even though they still use it.

It was a good decision to get him a new home. I sooooo do not want to be the cat lady.

Lint

Yesterday morning a couple of people came to my door to find where I stood on one of the Propositions that will be on the November ballot. As I was talking to them, I heard a kitten crying and thought it might have been with them.

Later, about 4:30 I was in the family room and thought I heard the cat crying again, but this time it sounded like it was in my house, and behind my dryer. I went and moved a few things around and pulled my dryer vent apart to see if there was a cat caught in the tube. My dryer is about 8 feet from where it vents out of the house, and the vent is low to the ground, almost in one of my flower beds. I didn't hear anything more and couldn't find the cat, so I thought my ears were hearing things. I knew it wasn't Phil or Sam. Then about a 1/2 hour later, I heard it again, this time I came around the corner fast enough to see my dryer vent move. So it took it off from the dryer as well as from the metal pipe that pipes it out of the house. No cat... it was in the bottom of my dryer. So after about 2 hours, I heard it again. This time I figured I would try to coax it out of the dryer because I had no good ideas on how to get it out of the bottom. It had got out by itself and was covered in lint. It is a black cat and it is such a tiny thing. I think it is a boy, but he is really small. It probably is less than 4 weeks old.

Sam it not happy that there is another cat in the house. Phil isn't sure. Me, on the other hand can't wait until Monday when the SPCA opens up. I will have to take some work off to take it in, but I am not going to turn into a cat lady.

This cat thinks I am a mommy cat. It woke me up at 3:30 by nibbling on my ears, neck, and fingers until I got up and brought it to the food. It did the same thing about 7:00 am as well.

Flowers

Here are some of the daisies that I made last night. They were fun and simple to make. I think I need to make a few more for the Daisy Cake I have in mind for the class "final" next Tuesday.

Here is a carnation that I made as well. However, this one had already fallen on the floor once and all the green petals fell off.

Team Tami

We are all behind you. We love you. Good Luck. Let me know if you need anything.

Fondant

Does Fondant Icing ever taste good? I have had some that wasn't too bad. There is a recipe for fondant made out of marshmellows and powdered sugar. I just haven't had time to experiment with that one yet. There is another type of fondant that my teacher uses, and it isn't too bad.

However, the Wilton fondant is horrible. There is not enough vanilla or almond flavoring that you can add to cover the taste.

However, the people at work are more interested in the cake that is below the fondant. They pick off the fondant and eat the cake.

Yes, the John Williams concert was a date...however, he turned out to be a dud.

Fracture and Streamer Glass

So today I went to the glass store. That is one place I probably shouldn't be allowed in with a credit card. I spent a couple of hours in there looking at all the glass that she had in there. I had several projects in mind and one of them needed some fractures and streamer glass. Below is a sample of that type of glass.I couldn't find it, and I probably should have left it there, but I asked if she had some, and she pulled out a piece that was about 2.5 square feet and told me the price. I had no idea that, that type of glass was as expensive as it was. However, I needed that piece to complete the project I had in mind. However, I had three projects in mind for this type of glass. But, she only had one piece (thankfully). So I quickly nixed the other two projects I had in mind for this glass.

But it is really pretty glass. :-)

eBay Strikes Again!!

I keep swearing off eBay because of my spending habits. I keep thinking I can stay away. However, it taunts me and I can't stay away. This time I bought 10 pounds of lead solder. Why did I do that? It turns out to be $30.00 cheaper than if I bought 10 pounds here in town. But, do I really need 10 pounds? Noooo. It will take a couple of years before I go through that amount of solder. While I was at it, I bought 50 clear glass bevels. Now what am I going to do with that many bevels? I don't know. I still have about 60 bevels I bought at the end of last year.

Oh well. I have come up with a little plan. The plan consists of making a whole bunch of stained glass things before April next year and then renting a booth at the craft fair and trying to sell my stuff. We'll see where I'm at by next April.

John William Concert

A couple of weeks ago I went to the LA Philharmonic conducted by John Williams. (For those that don't know, he has written a lot of music for movies including Star Wars, Jaws, and Indiana Jones.)

As we walked into the Hollywood Bowl, I started laughing. I didn't expect to see what I saw. There were several people that had light sabers. ??? Light sabers at a concert. Anyway, they waited until John Williams played one of the Star Wars songs and then all these people lit up their swords. It was the funniest thing to see. There were about 100 people with light sabers. One of the people in front of us starting taking pictures of the light sabers and made a comment about the nerdlings.

I was just surprised that someone would bring that to the LA Philharmonic. It was a good show.

More Cake.

This one I didn't take a picture of. No one would want to see it. I made a fake cake this past Tuesday night. We were learning how to make swags and other small things out of fondant. However, I was running late and didn't have time to get all the things I needed done before class. So when I got there, I went and purchased two round styrafoams to make a fake cake with. However, they were the last two in the store, and one had been munched on by a little kid. I figured, that it would go on the bottom and no one would be the wiser. So I went to class with my munched on foam and the teacher took one look at that and laughed. She had me leave it in the plastic so that I would be able to trade it in next Tuesday when I came back for class again.

So everyone at work is a bit sad that Wednesdays are no longer cake days.

Newest Stained Glass!!

So here is my latest creation. I actually finished this a couple of weeks ago, but hadn't posted it. I am really proud of my 133 piece panel. This was difficult for me to do because of the number of pieces. There were several times I had to walk away so I wouldn't break the glass in frustration.

Some of the pieces are so small that I wasn't able to foil them without completely covering them. I then had to go back with a razor and cut some of the foil off so the light could come through. I really liked the butterflies. They were cute. It is hard to tell from the pictures, but the butterflies are purple and yellow with a black center. The purple is hard to see through.

Stupid me...when I was soldering the panel, I went to flip it over and start on the other side. The plate actually fell out of the panel and hit the wood table. It only fell 2-3 inches, but it broke in half. Thank goodness I had purchased two plates because I thought I would do two panels (that was until I cut everything out for the first panel). So I was able to save the panel because I had an extra plate.

Just as I finished, I was straightening out some of the lead lines on the blue border. I had my little chisel hammer, and went dink, dink, crack. I broke one of the blue rectangles. However, that is easy enough to fix.

Last Cake Class..at least for now.

So I went to the last class for this session on Wednesday. My normal class is on Tuesdays, but I will not be able to get to this Tuesday's class so I moved it up to this week. We were to make a double decker cake. (Making the cake is actually another story for another day). So as I drove to class Wednesday I tried to think of what I wanted to do. I had wanted to make a cake with a bunch of the fondant roses, but didn't think I would have the time. So I decided to make a mermaid cake. It was fun to do it. Here a couple of shots of the first layer. All the "rocks" are really colored fondant. Also, do you like the dolphin? That one was easy to make it was actually fondant pressed into a soap mold. I did that for the seashells on the bottom layer of the cake. The pink stuff is supposed to be coral. However, after three hours of decorating, I was tired and wanted to be done. I wanted to use one of my pretty flowers, and I tucked that into the rocks. I know it didn't belong, but I was proud of my pretty roses. That mermaid sure needs her bangs cut!! I am proud of the school of gold fish that I made. I aslo think the seashells were pretty, but they were very easy. I just marbled some fondant and put it into a soap mold. This cake was fun to make. From the pictures you may not be able to see that I marblized the blue fondant with some green to try to give it a sea look, the top layer shows it better than the bottom layer. Anyway, everyone at work really loved it. It was carrot cake again. :-)

Pretty Flowers!

So here is shot of one of the pretty roses we made last week in cake class. It was actually very easy to make. I can't believe how easy it was. It looks difficult and intricate, but looks are sure deceiving. It is made out of fondant...the edible (yet yucky) frosting that lays over a cake.

To make this, all you need is a couple of flower cutters, a leaf cutter, a tool to frill the edges, a bit of clear vanilla, and a foam pad to work on. It took about 5 mins to make and I think it looks very nice. We made some other flowers that night, but they weren't as pretty as this one. We learned how to make Easter lilies, morning glories, and poinsettias. The other flowers were fun and easy, but I was more impressed with the rose.

It has potential!

So here is one of my new plates. :-) From this I can see a beautiful window. Yes, it will have to be a big window since the plate is about 14 inches across. However, I see this as a very nice flower in a window of several shades of green for leaves. I just haven't completely figured it out.
You would think that by now I would have enough plates/glass and that I wouldn't continue to look on eBay for new things. However, I do. I have now started to collect things that will become potential projects. I need to stop because I can't seem to catch up with the potential projects and what I actually am able to accomplish. I now have a couple of stellar plates and that they would make beautiful windows. I am in the process of one window, but it is giving me a bit of heartburn and I get a bit frustrated with it and walk away then come back in a few days. Hopefully I will be able to finish that window next week. :-) I will have to post a picture of the finished product when I get done.

So, I made the cake last night. It turned out pretty nice. There was one thing about it that I didn't much care for, and that would be the piece that ties the bow together. It just looks like a piece plopped right on top of the cake. If I was to make this design again, I think I would do that last piece a bit differently and make it look a bit more like the rest of the bow. As for the fondant frosting, I didn't get the time to make the marshmallow fondant, and so I had to use the store bought Wilton fondant, and that stuff tastes nasty.

It is a bit easier to work with than the homemade stuff. I watched the others in the class struggle a bit with the homemade marshmallow fondant. I think I will make some of that this weekend so that I can use it in our class on Tuesday. Everyone at work liked this cake as well. I must be getting better. :-)

Pretty soon I will be getting people to ask me to make cakes for a Quincenera Party. JK! I don't think I would like to do cakes for a whole lot of parties.

Carrot Cake

So today I made a carrot cake. I needed a cake for Tuesday night, and so I had asked my co-workers what type of cake they had wanted next and they all said they wanted a carrot cake. I told them that I would have put the gross frosting on it because I have to cover it in fondant icing, not the nice cream cheese frosting. However, they didn't really care.

I didn't have a recipe for carrot cake, and so I looked online to see if I could find one that I liked. I came across Carrot Cake III on allrecipes.com. However, that one wasn't the one I made. I also found a carrot cake on cookinglight.com. I thought I would try that one since it was the only recipe that I could find that didn't call for a 1 1/2 cups of oil. This one only asked for 1/2 c butter. The trade off was it needed 5 cups of shredded carrots instead of the normal 3 cups. I didn't think so much of this until I went to mix the carrots in with the rest of the ingredients. There seemed to be more carrots than other ingredients. However, it cooked well.

It is currently in the freezer until Tuesday when I ice it first with buttercream frosting then in class we will put the fondant on it.

I need to make some fondant to put on the cake because it is expensive stuff, but if I make it, it will only cost me $4 instead of the $7. I came across a recipe for marshmallow fondant. Hopefully this will taste a lot bettern than the Wilton fondant. That stuff is horrible tasting. I even end up putting other flavors in it to hide the taste, but it doesn't work out so well.

I get to teach the lesson for Sunday School again next week. One of the guys asked me to teach, and I get to teach about all the wars that are at the end of Alma. Woo who!!

One of those days!!

So yesterday I had one of those days. It started even before I cracked open my eyes. I vaguely remember as I was trying to wake up that my eyes weren't feeling quite right. Finally when I really woke up I realized I had a problem. I thought I probably had pink eye. Then I got to thinking of the things that I needed to accomplish at work and realized there was NO way I could not go into work. There were things that had to be done, and we were already two people short because they went to SLC for some training.

So when I was able to crack open my eyes, I looked at the alarm clock. It wasn't even time to get up yet....what was I thinking? So I got up and realized I had forgot to take my contacts out and that I didn't have pink eye, it was just irritated from the contacts. Phew!

Before I was to go to work, there were a few chores to do around the house. I figured that since I was up a bit early then I should be able to accomplish them all. Nope...didn't even come close, plus I was late for work. As I got into my car, the button on one of my back pockets got caught on something and broke in half. This had happened to my other pair of pants, and I think that they just had cheap buttons.

I get to work and I knew that I had the almond board reports due by 5. I also had an accounts payable check run that I needed to approve by 12. Besides that, I had accounts receivable invoices that I needed to approve before the accounts payable check run because there were some credits I needed to give back to customers. Before I could do that, I had some things I needed to check on for a couple of the shipments that I needed to invoice.

In the meantime, we had sold three 4-wheelers in April to a local farm. I had, had some issues with the DMV for them last week. However, it turns out that when we sold them, I had been given misinformation and the wrong VIN numbers. So they showed up with the ATV's to get the proper paperwork. I couldn't give them the proper paperwork because we had given the paperwork to someone else that we thought we sold those VIN's to. While I am trying to figure this out, my boss comes up and tells me that it has been requested that I go to Chico in two weeks to train some of the workers there. That was fine and I told him sure that was fine. I don't think that I even looked up from what I was doing. I did explain to him that I was in the middle of something that there were people up front waiting for me to finish. During the midst of trying to clean that up and figure out what we were going to do, a stake came to drop off there handcarts and wanted their deposit check returned. The poor missionary that came up to me to ask me for the check, I just didn't have time to go looking for a deposit check. I had a mess to clean up. I told him that I would deal with it in a few minutes after I finished the VIN mess up. Then I had to ask a co-worker to come translate because I didn't speak good enough Spanish. At that moment, another co-worker needed him to translate for something else. However, I looked at her (and she is new) and told her, "No, I need him right now!" Since I am queen of the office, I trump, right?

So the VIN got as cleaned up as possible as of now. Then I couldn't find the deposit check, but it turns out that they never gave us one.

Then I sat down at my desk to work on the accounts receivable invoices, and heard a rip. My zipper seam was coming undone. I didn't have time to run home and get a new pair of pants. I couldn't believe it. Now I had a hole. Since I was wearing two shirts I thought that if I un-tucked the first one then it would cover it. It kind of did. So I decided it would have to do. I wouldn't get up from my desk and then if I had to, I would just hold a file or something in front of me. However that didn't work out so well either. At one point, I sat down again and heard the rip again. This time the whole zipper was done for. I thought my shirt did an okay job hiding it, however, when I stood up when my boss was talking to me, I know he must have thought my zipper was undone. He totally looked and so I know that the shirt didn't do a good enough job. No one had a safety pin or a needle. I had dental floss, and that would work only if I had a needle. I knew tape wouldn't work, but then I remembered that I had a stapler. So in case of emergencies, FYI-staple will work for a needle and thread....wish I had realized that in the first place instead of flashing my boss. What can I say...all in a days work.

Then I had about three different people in the afternoon asking me for help on something that needed to be done. I couldn't say no.

With all that needed to be done at work, I still had to leave by 5:30 because I had class in Bakersfield at 6:30, and I had to get my supplies ready to take to class.

I was able to run 2.89 miles, which is .15 more than I had ever achieved in the same time frame. The accounts receivable invoices got released in time, and the accounts payable checks were done on time as well. The almond board reports were completed by 5:30 and then I was able to go home. Life goes on. Crisis averted. :-) So it must have been a good day!

Pretty Cake

So last night was the last class for Wilton Class number two. I think I should stop now for a bit,
but I think I will continue on because August is still 40% off, and I get a $5 break for taking the class right after another class.
When I brought this cake into work, everyone thought it was beautiful, and no one wanted to cut into it. I didn't get into the lunch room until about 12:30, and there was everyone circled around the cake waiting until I cut the first slice. They had pretty much finished their lunches, and wanted a piece. Within 15 minutes of me cutting the cake, it was
gone. The funny thing about this cake was it was accidentally a purple cake. I was actually trying to make it a red, white, and blue confetti cake, but I didn't use the correct sprinkles in the cake batter. I had used the small hard balls instead of the soft cylinder sprinkles. So just as the sprinkles hit the cake batter, they started to dissolve. I tried to quickly mix them in so they wouldn't completely dissolve, but it seemed they just more dissolved. I eventually ended up with a pink/purple cake. It was cut, and no one seemed to mind.

Stupid DMV!

So yesterday I needed to go to the DMV for work. We had sold three ATV's to a company in Shafter and they were attempting to get them titled. We had never titled them because they were farm equipment and we did not need to have them titled in the state of CA. However, we had the original paperwork and when we sold the ATV we turned the paperwork over to them, but it seems like one Certificate of Origin had been misplaced before they were able to title them. So an appointment was made at the DMV and the two of us went there to square things up. I got there and she was already there getting instructions on what I needed to do. Apparently the DMV didn't like our bill of sale that we created, so we had to create new bills of sale on the forms that the DMV had. I had to do this on all three of the ATV's. We have sold ATV's in the past, and not one has been returned because the DMV wouldn't accept our bill of sale. I think they just didn't like us yesterday. :-(

Then I had another section of paperwork I had to fill out for the one that the cert of origin had been misplaced on. So I filled that out and we had to wait in line again. Once we got to the front, I found out that there was another section that I was to fill out, but no one had told me. Apparently they had explained to the other girl, but she didn't tell or show me or I would have filled it out. So we sat back down and I filled out the section and then we stood in line again and waited. Finally we got to the front and it took anther 10-15 mins before they completed the one ATV that didn't have the Certificate of Origin. At that point, I had been in the DMV for an hour and 10 mins and didn't want to be there anymore. The lady still had two other ATV's she was working on, so I asked if that was all that was needed from the seller and they said yes, so I left.

Today, the girl showed up at my office saying the DMV needed my signature on two more documents and they forgot to mention that to me yesterday. While I was there, I did point to the paper I had filled out on the one ATV and asked if I needed to fill out something similar to that for the other two and was told no. However, I guess I was supposed to. So, now I hope that it is all resolved. I have also decided that I am going to look into whether or not we should be getting titles for our ATV's or not. That was sure a hassle. I am sure there are other people that had to title the ATV's they have purchased from us, but it wasn't this much of a problem.

RS Lesson

So the lesson went well. I didn't end up making cookies, but come to think of it, I didn't have the right chocolate chips. Plus I didn't really want to make and clean up cookies on Sunday morning.

The lesson went very well, I had a bit of participation, and afterwards there were comments on how much they enjoyed the lesson.

Pretty much I talked about how a few degrees in "attitude" adjustments could change the course of our lives. I gave a couple of examples of people that didn't make attitude adjustments. One of them was Korihor, he was given several chances to correct himself and not deny there was a Christ. However, he refused and then he was struck dumb. Then he admitted he always knew there was a Christ. At that point, it was a bit too late, and Alma didn't believe he was sincere and that if the sign had been taken away, Korihor would go back to telling people there would be no Christ. Another example was Laman and Lemuel and how they even had angels visit them a couple of times. Their attitudes would correct for a small while before they would revert to their old ways. Then President Uchtdorf mentioned Saul and that he had not done what the Lord had commanded and then had caved to the pressures of men.

Then I gave examples of people that did correct their courses. One of them was Lehi and his wife. When Nephi broke his bow, Lehi and Sariah murmured. However, they did repent of their murmurings and were forgiven. Then someone brought up that Nephi had a small course correction when he was lamenting about how wicked he was because he was upset with his brothers and his trials even though his brothers were trying to kill him at that moment. Then we talked about Joseph Smith, and how he had to repent after asking the Lord on three separate occasions to let Martin Harris take the manuscript, which was eventually lost.

It was a good lesson. At the end of the talk, there was a part that stated..."Remember: the heavens will not be filled with those who never made mistakes but with those who recognized that they were off course and who corrected their ways to get back in the light of gospel truth."

Good words to live by. :-)

So, tomorrow I get to teach on President Uctdorf's conference talk A Matter of a Few Degrees. I am still trying to figure out how to put this lesson together. I read the talk, and figured it would take me all of 10 mins to relate it in Relief Society. I am hoping to come up with a small activity/demonstration on how a "few degrees" can really effect things. However, I am not really sure. I thought I could get some Jenga blocks and show a few degrees on the lower levels, however, I don't have Jenga.

Maybe, I can make some cookies...and cook them at different degrees in the oven....I will have to think about this. I really don't have ingredients to make cookies, and it is a bit late to go and buy them. I would have to go to Bakersfield since the grocery stores here are about to close.

I will have to give it a bit more thought and see what comes of it.

To Beach, or not to Beach??

I am trying to decide if I want to escape to the coast next weekend or not. I don't go swimming in it because I am a bit scared of what might be down there with me, plus at Morro Bay, the current is a bit cold and swift. However, it is a nice place to see and up the beach a little we can see sea lions.

I only made it over to the coast once last year, and I haven't made it this year. It is nice to just walk on the beach and have the really chilly water crash onto your feet and legs. Last year when I went, it was the Kite Festival, and it was neat to see all the different types of kites people had. We even got to watch a portion of the kite flying contest. It was where contestants made their kites dance to music. It was interesting....maybe for a couple of shows, but after the third "dance," I was done.

Pansies, Daffodils, and Roses, OH MY!

So, on Tuesday, we made five different types of flowers out of royal icing. We started first with the roses, then we went on to the daffodils, pansies, primroses, then daisies.

By the time I made it to the daisies, I could hardly push out the icing. The icing we were using was the royal icing...aka...cement. My hand was so tired. I didn't even take any pictures of my crazy daisies. They are very sad and wobbly looking. The more tired my hand got, the more it shook. I think I will try to make some more daisies on Saturday. By then my hand should have recovered enough that I should be able to squeeze out more "cement."

My favorite of the flowers were the pansies. I thought they were the prettiest and the most real looking. I can't say the daffodils are that realistic, but really, how realistic are purple daffodils? The middle primrose in the picture, you can tell I was starting to have problems with my hands. The leaves weren't quite getting out as far as they should. Then on the one that is closest to the roses, the leaves aren't as defined. The teacher did say that I had really stiff icing. I didn't put all the water in it since my buttercream icing is always way to soft. I figured I wouldn't be accused of having soft royal icing. :-)

Sunday School

So last week I was able to teach another Sunday School lesson. We are meeting in the chapel, and I hate trying to get every one's attention so we can start. I hate trying to talk loud so people can hear me because I don't think shouting in the chapel is appropriate.

A couple of weeks ago when I tried to start, someone "shushed" everyone, and within seconds it quieted down. So I first said quite loudly that it was time to start. Only the people on the first three rows heard me and turned around towards me. However, no one else did, so I remembered the "shushing" and tried it. Within a second or two, the noise level dropped so I could speak, and then about 20 people scurried out of the room because they weren't going to stay.

Other than that, I had a great lesson. I was able to teach about the anti-Christ-Korihor, and what happened to him. I have to say that I like teaching out of Alma. It is a good book. There are plenty of good stories in there.

So when we went into RS, I said to the person next to me that I think I got out of teaching RS for July as well. We have one too many teachers in RS, and I hadn't been asked to teach yet. Later at Linger Longer, the RS President came up and asked if I would teach this next Sunday. She didn't have the lesson, and would get it to me later. Of course I will teach. However, that same lady was sitting next to me and said that I didn't get out of it this month.

I thought I had a good chance. I taught the Enrichment, and two Sunday School lessons and so I thought they would have pity on me. Oh well, it is a lesson that I probably need.

Another Field Trip

So, yesterday we went for another field trip. This time we wanted to see the new equipment that is coming in for the harvest. The harvest will be starting in the next couple of weeks, and the equipment was already supposed to be here.

Here I am in one of the shakers. I was told not to touch anything. Not to worry, I didn't want to run around a break a $100k piece of equipment. I just wanted to get into it. This piece of equipment sits kind of low on the ground, but the sweepers, which I don't have a picture of are a bit lower to the ground. I know that everyone thought I was "nuts" to get into the cab, but why not.

After this we went over to the ground they are prepping for the 2009 planting. I was a bit more impressed with the equipment they were using. This machine that was approximately 20-25 feet tall was cutting a 5 foot trench every 20 feet across this block of land. Followed behind him was another trencher that was digging 3-3 feet trenches at the same time. This was a bit more impressive since they were digging though this dirt like it was butter. There were huge clods of dirt.

Field Trip

So last week I was told an exciting excavator had been brought on the property. It apparently took three semi's to bring in this piece of equipment, and that everyone that saw it was impressed. So all of us accounting folks loaded up into a vehicle to go see this awesome piece of equipment. I went more for the ride...why stay in the office if everyone else gets to go out and play, right?

So after a small drive through the orchards we happened upon the piece of equipment. There were actually two of them. They were digging 10-15 foot deep trenches by 8 foot wide. I have to say that the hole they were digging was slightly impressive. I would never want to dig a hole by hand that deep. What they were doing was connecting two irrigation districts together and so the trench was about 5 miles long. Then they were putting cement pipe in that was 50 inches in diameter. So this excavator was first digging the hole, and then laying the pipes. While I was impressed with the trench skills, I can't say the piece of equipment left me awestruck. I was hoping to see something quite a bit bigger.

Lazy, Lazy Laura

I have been thinking for the past couple of weeks that I need to do some serious writing. However, I just keep thinking I will do it tomorrow. Well, I think I need to do it today.

So how did the cake decorating class go???? It went pretty well. I can't say it was worth all the effort I put into it, but I know they had a lot of fun. At some point, the missionaries stopped in and started having a group chat off to the side, and no one was able to hear me, but it turned out okay. Also, I have to say that it was a lot of prep work and clean up. I am still picking bits of frosting off my walls.

The wonderful chocolate cake that I made was really good, yet a little disappointing. I thought I was being extremely creative by putting pecans, coconut, chocolate chips, and caramel sauce on a layer of chocolate buttercream icing on a chocolate cake. However, it tasted like the German chocolate coconut icing. It was really good, but I thought I was creating something unique.

I do have another cake I need to do this Tuesday, I am thinking of putting a key lime cheesecake mix in the middle layer and seeing if that is any good. :-)

Of the 25 people that signed up, there were 21 people, and 22 cakes. I think it was a great turn out. I did have plenty of leftover icing. I probably had 8-10 extra batches. However, I sent some home with people and then brought some back with me. The Linger Longer committee called me Saturday to see if I would bring in the extra frosting so they could frost cupcakes. So I really didn't have any extra frosting. Which is entirely okay.

13 down, 17 more to go!!

So I am beginning to wonder if my little Kitchenaid will hold out through 30 batches of icing. So far, I have made 13 batches. I did this in two parts. The first, I did 6 and then I did 7 two hours later. I wanted to give my Kitchenaid a break and let it cool down. I know it wasn't made for 8 hours nonstop of usage, but I wonder what it will take before it dies? Not that I want it to quit, then where would I be?

So tomorrow I am hoping to get a better count as to how many will be there on Thursday. I may have a few people cross their names off. But if they don't, I am beginning to wonder if 30 batches is enough. I just don't want to go home with much, if any, icing.

I am also a bit nervous that I don't have enough tips to go around. I already know that I will have to split the group up into sections and have one group work with one tip, while the other groups would work with the next type of tips, ect.

I am sure it will be fine. :-)

Powdered Sugar!!

So I finished sifting 50-60 lbs of powdered sugar. I can't believe I actually finished. I went pretty fast, and it only took 4 hours to do. :-) As I sifted the Costco powdered sugar, there were small boulders of powdered sugar, and I was very much tempted to take one out and let it melt in my mouth, but I decided to be a good girl today.

I do have powdered sugar from one end of the kitchen to the other, and now I need to clean that up. I thought I would take a small break and sit down for now.

I have been trying to plan on when I would bake the couple of cakes I am taking in to show them how to decorate. I don't want to bake them during the day since it is hot enough here anyway. It only got to 100 today. Currently it is 98. I was thinking of staying up all night tonight to bake during the night, but perhaps not.

I plan on making two cakes for them next Thursday to show a couple of techniques. I have been thinking of what I want to do with one of them. I have decided that I would bake a chocolate cake. Yum. Then I would ice it with chocolate buttercream frosting. In the center, I would first ice it with the chocolate buttercream, then I would put some mini chocolate chips, chopped pecans, perhaps some coconut, and then drizzle some caramel sauce on it. I would then put the second layer of the cake on and finish icing it in chocolate buttercream. Next, I would melt some darker chocolate buttercream frosting in the microwave and pour it on the cake so it would look like chocolate melted on top of it.

Doesn't that sound good???? I can almost taste it. I will have to take a picture and post that. Maybe even a picture of me enjoying it. :-0

Crazy, Crazy Day

This month is a bit stressful so far. Work has been one thing after another, and I know it is only 11 days in. However, I am not sure how much more I can take before I need to take a mental health day.

I say that, but that will actually never happen.

On Wednesday, my alarm went off at 5:00 am like normal. I get up that early because I have high hopes of actually getting up and running. Most mornings, that doesn't happen, but I still have the alarm set so I will keep trying. Anyway, I had stayed up too late on Tuesday, so I decided to reset my alarm so I would wake up around 6:30. I should never do this when I am half asleep because I actually just changed the time on my clock, and didn't really change the alarm.

Around 7:30, I rolled over and thought that it was sure light outside for 6:30. So I looked at the clock and it said that it was 9:00. I bolted out of bed and the idea fleeted across my mind that I should just call in sick. I had been thinking of this since January, but I just can't seem to do it. I can pretty much only take Monday, Wednesday, or Friday off because of commitments on the other days. However, every time I thought I would take the day off, I would remember that I had something happening that day, or I was really swamped and I couldn't take off.

This Wednesday was a bit different. I didn't have anything that wouldn't wait one day to get done. When I realized it was only 7:30, and I could actually call in sick, I realized I had been fooling myself for months. I never would call in sick if I wasn't actually sick. So all of these months, I kept just telling myself I would, but I was too busy to call in sick. Truth is, I won't call in sick even when I am sick. I will go to work to get things done and taken care of, then leave early. When I say early, it is like an hour or so.

Thanks Mom and Dad for instilling such a good work ethic in me. I just don't want to stay home and wash walls when I could go to work. :-)

Oh, by the way, it is already staring to heat up. It is 5:08 (usually the cooler part of the day, right before the sun comes up).

However, it was 86 around 4 am, and now it is 89. So the low today was 86 degrees. :-(

What was I thinking??

First, I just went into the bathroom and found Sam lying in the bathtub (empty of course) trying to stay cool. Poor cat.

Anyway, remember the wedding cake?? How could anyone forget, right? Anyway, when some of the ladies at church heard I was making a wedding cake, they mentioned they would love to learn how to do that, and that I should do an Enrichment night on cake decorating. I kind of didn't really want to. I had done a cake decorating Enrichment about a year or two ago, and really didn't want to teach another one. However, I got to thinking that I shouldn't hide my talents under a bushel, and that I don't use my talents, I may lose them, and I should be using my talents to help the people.

So, I talked to my friend who is the Enrichment counselor and told her that is she wanted, I would teach a class. I talked to her last month before we had Enrichment in June. She called me back and told me that she didn't think that we could do it in June. I let her know that I wasn't thinking June, but I just wanted to throw the idea out and we could do it later in the future. So we decided July.

I told her that I would make the icing for everyone so that they would have the right consistency, but they would need to bring their own cake. I did have a few instructions for them for their cakes they were to bring, and wanted to announce them.

The sign up went around two weeks ago when we had a combined meeting, but I didn't think much of it. The turn out for the regular Enrichment is about 4-7, and a good turn out is 10-12. So this Sunday I got up in RS and told them the details about what they needed to bring for their cake and some tips for it. One lady raised her hand and asked, "So, we need to bring a cake to Enrichment to decorate?" I wasn't going to make cakes for everyone. I had learned my lesson with the gingerbread houses...or so I thought.

When the sign up came around to me, I about fell off my chair. I couldn't believe it. There were 25 people signed up. TWENTY-FIVE. This means that I will need about 30 batches of buttercream icing. Let's break this down a bit.

30 batches of frosting =
60 lbs of powdered sugar-30 2 lb regular sized bags, or one 50 lb Costco bag, and 5 regular
45 cups of Crisco, which I think will be 7.5 of the regular sized cans
4 cups of Karo Syrup
30 teaspoons of vanilla
30 teaspoons of almond extract
15 teaspoons of butter extract

Since I will be purchasing the powered sugar at Costco because a 50 lb bag is only $19.99 (2 lb bags about $1.80) I will have to sift the sugar. I have roughly estimated that it will take me 6-8 hours to sift 50 pounds of powered sugar. It took me 2.5 hours to sift enough sugar for 8 batches last month, and I figure I will just have to go faster this time around.

Then once the sugar is sifted, my little Kitchenaid will run for 7.5 hours nonstop. Each batch of frosting takes 10-15 minutes to beat to the right consistency.

With that said, I should stop typing and start sifting. I may get done in time for Enrichment next Thursday night. :-)

Enough griping, I know it will be fun, I just wasn't prepared for that many batches of frosting.

Sunday School

So I was able to teach Sunday School this past Sunday. I also get to teach it next week. The regular teacher was going to be out of town the next couple of weeks. Thank goodness there are actually two Sunday School teachers, and then I am the substitute. I have come to realize that I am a good story teller, but not much of a scriptorium. I can keep the attention of the class when I am telling the scripture stories, but when I try to teach chapters that don't really have stories in them, I have a hard time, and I swear I hear crickets chirping when I ask questions.

I was happy that I got to tell the story about Ammon tending King Lamoni's sheep and having to defend them. As well as converting King Lamoni, his family, and people. It was a good Sunday.

I didn't want anyone to say that I wasn't prepared enough for the lesson, and I think I did okay. :-)

Got Air Conditioning?

So, I woke up about an hour ago. I had a small nightmare. No big deal, but then after about an hour I decided to haul myself out of bed and do something productive.

It is sooooooooo hot here. I know, I know, I could move somewhere where it wouldn't be this hot, but then I would have to deal with below freezing temps in the winter. :-)

Yesterday was 107. It was to get to 111 so 107 was great. However, after 105, it all feels the same. Today it is to be 108-111 (depending on the weather station). This trend is supposed to last through the weekend. So it is HOT....that really isn't the worst part. It is currently monsoon season. Which actually has started a month early. We don't actually have the monsoon season, but Phoenix does. Phoenix starts to get unpredictable rainstorms in August, which is attributed to monsoon season. This is where the air is coming up from the Pacific Ocean, then circling over Mexico, then to Phoenix, then to Southern CA. This brings in the humidity.

When it is over 100, it isn't too bad when the humidity is 10-15%. However, currently it is 86 degrees with 37% humidity. I know that it will get one to degrees cooler this morning before the sun comes up, but I can't really say that 86 should be the "low" for the day.

When I got to work yesterday morning, it was 40% humidity and 87 degrees!!

You know it is bad when you go outside and your glasses fog up from the heat/humidity.

So we started getting notices that CA is on a Flex-Alert. This is where we know that there will be a major draw on energy and we are called to conserve power. I had to laugh at the commercial because it stated that we were on a flex-alert. We should put off using electricity until 7. This means that if you need to run the dishwasher or other non-essential things that we should wait until after 7 to do so. Then it went on to state that "If you must use your air conditioner, please turn it to at least 78 degrees, or wait until after 7 to turn it on." Are you kidding? At 107, who wouldn't need to use their air conditioner????

Stay cool!!

Church

So today the branch president asked for us to stay after Sacrament for a few moments. He wanted to do a brain-storming session and needed all of our opinions. He was trying to figure out why people were leaving after Sacrament and not staying for all three meetings. We have a bit of a problem with that. There about about 100-120 people (during the summer only) that come for Sacrament. Then there are about 50-75 for Sunday School, and by the time RS and Priesthood come around, we are lucky to have 30-40 people left between the two classes.

Some of the reasons were a bit lame. Like our meeting time is from 1-4. I can't say that I am too happy with that time, but it is what it is. Some of the reasons given were that church is too late. Well that reason is okay unless you remember that when we met from 11-2, we still had the problem with people leaving. Another reason is that we get hungry. Come on, we come in after lunch, and leave before dinner. How hungry can you get? And if you do get hungry, bring Cheerios.

The one reason I really like was that the teachers weren't prepared enough for the lessons and so they weren't enjoyable or entertaining enough to keep people here. Church isn't supposed to be entertaining. Plus it is very hard to teach a lesson if there is no participation from the members. When there is participation, then there are discussions, and those are a bit more enjoyable than the teacher droning on and on.

Oh well, enough griping. I think the main reason why people are leaving is that they are in the habit of leaving early and so staying for three hours seems too long.

Email

At work on Monday, our computers ground to a halt around 3. Come to find out there had been a power outage in SLC, and our headquarters lost power. Apparently the battery back up system they had didn't work so well, and only 1/2 of the servers stayed on long enough for the IT department to shut down the computers safely. The other 1/2, well just say they are still working on it. When we came into work on Tuesday, they had restored the servers that held our accounting software and the internet. However, they the server that held the email was one of the servers that the battery back up didn't work on. So when the power went off, the server shut down, and not too safely and the IT department couldn't get it to come back up. So all day Tuesday and Wednesday they worked on trying to restore the email system. They finally gave up on the process, and tried something else late Wednesday and it worked. So today around 11, we were able to start getting emails again.



I can't believe how much we rely on computers and email in order to get work done. It was kind of funny to hand notes to people in the office and remark that we had to revert to doing things the "old-fashioned" way. We couldn't update our calendars with meetings easily, and consequently we all forgot one or two of them.



Thank goodness we were able to get it back because I was tired of handwriting things, or going to find people to tell them something.

Last Cake Class..at least for now.

So tonight was the last cake class for the first class. I will be starting the next class in a couple of weeks. However, with the second class, we only make one cake even though there are four nights. We make the cake on the last night. The other three nights we are making flowers in royal icing to put on the cake on that last night.

As I was about to leave, the instructor told me that I had an eye for color. That I was able to choose colors that complemented each other. That was nice of her to say.

One of my co-workers requested a deer on the cake, but since we were learning roses and other flowers, I couldn't quite put a deer on the cake. However, I will have to figure out how to do that for another day.

Also, I already told everyone that Wednesday will no longer be CAKE DAY at work. They were a bit bummed by that one. They have been getting used to having cake each Wednesday.

Guardian Angels

I must have a couple of Guardian Angels. I was on my way to church this morning on Highway 99. I was going about 75. I know the speed limit is only 70, and I was speeding a bit, but not much. I was in the middle lane of traffic, and we were coming up on the on-ramp for the Golden State Highway. I saw there were several cars that were going to merge onto Highway 99, but figured I was in the middle lane so I didn't have much to worry about. There was a truck with a horse trailer that had at least three horses in it. It was probably going 55-60 because I passed it. I figured the people that would be merging would most likely cut in front of the trailer. I had thought the last person merging wouldn't have enough time and so he would have to brake and then go behind the trailer. However, just as I was passing the horse trailer, I noticed that last car whip in front of the truck/trailer. At that point I realized I was probably in his blind spot. Knowing cars coming onto the 99 do not like to stay in the right lane, I kept an eye on him. Just as I was thinking he wasn't going to try to get in my lane, he veered towards me. I laid on my horn, slammed on my brakes. I went from 75 to 45 in a few seconds. However this guy didn't seem to realize I was honking at him. I could hear the truck/trailer behind me breaking. What seemed like 10 seconds, and was probably only three, I see him veer right really quick. He had been inches from my car. I was so shaken by this that when I got to my exit 1.5 miles down the road, my hands were still shaking. However, I know that I have Guardian Angels. Something prompted me to keep an eye on this vehicle and that I knew I was in his blind spot, and he was probably going to come after me. I am so blessed. :-)

Wedding Cake

Okay, so I finally did it. Friday I went home from work early to make the cake (12:30). I had thought about doing it on Thursday night and then only leaving a bit early on Friday (4:30) so I could just drop it off. However, at the last moment I decided to decorate it on Friday instead of Thursday evening. It wasn't going to be that difficult to do. The hardest part was going to be trying to get it as smooth as possible. As you can see on this picture, I came pretty close to having it really smooth. I don't like the edges, but didn't know how to do them in such a way so it would be perfect. Then I called the bride to see when I could drop the cake off. The reception was to start at 7. I thought I would drop it off around 6. I planned on then going and doing a bit of shopping since I would be in town. I did get there around 6, but the bride didn't show up until about 6:20. I hadn't finished the cake because I wanted to know where she was going to put the cake and on what she would like it on. Then I was going to put on the last ribbon, dots, and then the flowers. It was also very hot so I had to have the cake inside. I had brought a cake pedestal that I had just got at K-Mart (which, I hate K-Mart). It had been in the clearance items, and I got it for $5. It was a Martha Stewart collection, but I could care less about that. I just thought it was simple and it matched the color of the icing. She had wanted her cake to be an ivory color. So when the bride showed up, I showed her the pedestal and she said that was fine. So if put the cake on the pedestal and finished decorating. Since it was still over 100 degrees outside, I didn't want to put the cake out until about 7. Then I was going to leave. I still was waiting for the check and just after I put the cake outside, I saw the groom writing a check to the chocolate fountain lady and so I thought they would write one to me at the same time. This didn't happen.

Finally I brought out the cake. Next thing I knew, some of my friends showed up. So I got to talking to them. I was there when the cut the cake, and then I was asked if I would cut the cake for the rest of the guests. I did it for them. The bride has only been in Bakersfield for about 6 months, so she really didn't have the friend support that she would normally have had. I turned to her and asked her where the forks were. Apparently the mother-of-the-groom was in charge of this reception, so the bride asked her where the forks were. The mother-of-the-groom shot me a look (whoa!) and said she didn't know we were going to have cake and so she doesn't have any forks. The look I got was more like she expected me to have the forks. So someone ran to the grocery store that was about a block away and got some forks. No big deal. Everyone said they liked the cake.

So I woke up this morning on the wrong side of the bed. From the moment the alarm went off, I wasn't ready for the day. However, what was I to do, but get up and go to work. So, I went to work and tried to not be crabby with people.

One of the people I work with, just asks me questions and questions, and doesn't look at the notes of the training that I had done. For the most part, I can be patient and refer them back to the notes or help them through the issue. Today, that was another story. When I was asked about helping with something, I could just feel myself getting irritated. I knew it wasn't their fault I woke up on the wrong side of the bed, so I would try to smile at them, grit my teeth and nicely show them how to do it. I am bad at disguising my feelings, so they must know it wasn't a great day.

I guess the secret is that I need to go to bed early today so that I can be bright and shiny for tomorrow.

I get to work a 1/2 day tomorrow because I am coming home to make the wedding cake. This is a bit scary for me since the cake on Monday got a gas bubble from the heat. So I don't know what will happen if this cake gets a gas bubble. I would hate for the bubble to explode before they get the pictures and cut the cake, but it is hot, and I can't do anything about that.

I did the flowers for the cake the other day, and I am not too sure about them. I think I made the arrangement a bit too big for the cake. I guess I will just have to see that tomorrow when I get the cake all done and on the table. If it is too big, I will just have to make some adjustments.

Here's for a brighter, happier tomorrow! :-)

Cake Decorating III

So here are some pictures of this weeks cake.

The lesson we learned today was on making clown bodies. It was actually fun. However, I found out that there are "black-market" Wilton tips, and I actually have one. I needed to use a tip 21, which is an open star tip, and I picked out a Wilton tip 21 and was trying to use it and get the same results as the instructor. I was having a heck of a time trying to imitate her. Finally I looked at the girl next to me and noticed that her tip was open, and mine was closed. I said something to the instructor, she came over and looked at mine and declared it wasn't a Wilton tip. Then she told me that I should use the tip 22 and I would get almost the same results.

So, if you notice, this cake is a whole lot smoother thank either of last weeks two cakes. I had an easier time icing this one and getting it smooth. I think that I have finally found the trick. First, I have to ice it and let it sit for about an hour until when I touch it, it isn't tacky and doesn't stick to me. Then I use parchament paper and my metal spatula and smooth the cake with the spatula with the parchament between the cake and the spatula. After that, I then run really hot water in the sink, put the metal spatula under the water for a few seconds, shake off the excess water and take a quick swipe at the icing with the spatula. I then rinse off the spatula and repeat until it is smooth.

Also, if you can't really tell, there are some figures on this cake. We learned hot to make clowns, but I didn't want to buy 6 clown heads, so I figured I would make people on the cake. Someone said they looked like eskimos.

Carpool

So the guys at work are carpooling now. That is great. There is so much pollution here in the Valley that a every bit of conservatism helps. However, I am getting to be a bit jealous of that. There is one other person in Shafter that I possibly could carpool with. However, it just wouldn't work. I wouldn't feel right about riding alone in the car with a married man. Work has rules against that because they don't want "things" to happen. Since this is outside of work hours, the rules don't really apply, but I feel that I don't want people to think "things" are happening when they aren't.

Anyway, back to the carpooling guys. They have it great, or that is the way I feel. When one needs to leave early because this or that, they all go home early. Like three times last week they left about a 1/2 hour early. I am jealous. I have started thinking that when they leave, I am going to leave as well. However, then I remember that just because the boss is doing it, it doesn't make it right.

So I decided that I need to borrow someones bike. I have been thinking of biking to work. The gas prices are high, and yet, I know that I will always need gas. Perhaps, though, I can bike the 7.5 miles to work and then for every two days of biking to work, I have almost made up for one trip to Bakersfield. This would also help with the exercising. I have been getting pretty bored with my elliptical trainer. I am up to 2.8 miles a day, but I think the gauge lies. I was on an elliptical trainer in SLC in November, and I went easy because of the elevation. That gauge told me that I went 5 miles in the same amount of time, and with a bit less exertion. So I think my gauge at home is not accurate.

I wanted to borrow a bike from someone at work, but she hasn't been able to bring the bike yet. Hopefully she will this week, and I will be able to test it out on Saturday. I want to test it out on a day that I don't have to work. This way, if I die, I don't have to suffer through 9 hours of work before coming home and sleeping it off.

So today was Father's Day and the RS presidency had a surprise for us/the men. They purchased Big Hunk and Mr. Goodbar chocolate bars, and wanted us to go in and present them to the guys. So here I am, I can get up in front of a rather large class and teach Sunday School and not turn red or get embarrassed, but put me in a group of women in front of the guys in the Priesthood room, and I want to hide behind the person next to me. One of my friends turned to me when it was all over, and told me that I shouldn't look so pained. I can't help it. I am not someone that likes being the center of attention, and get embarrassed when I think I am.

Sunday School

So this morning I received a text message from one of the Sunday School teachers. It said he thought he had food poisoning and wondered if I would do the lesson. I am the substitute teacher. However, he texted me at 4:30 am. Thankfully I slept through that and only saw the message when I got up around 6:00 because I heard my phone beep. I decided I needed to go back to bed and worry about the lesson when I finally get up around 8:00. Now I know what you all are thinking. You are all jealous that I sleep in on Sunday morning. However, I am more jealous of all you guys that have church at 9:00 am. My starts at 1:00. Since it is the Singles Ward, this doesn't get rotated with the other wards, so we will always be at 1:00. This makes for a very long day.

So I started preparing my lesson on Alma 5-7. I read the chapters, and realized I really didn't learn much from it. So I read the lesson, and then read the chapters again. This time I did pick up some things that I needed to teach. I wrote up my lesson and finished it just in time to shower, get ready for church and run out the door.

I have to say that I really am not great at teaching Sunday School. I seem to ask a lot of questions, and feel that people just stare at me. I don't really get the feedback that I am hoping for, but am not really sure how to fix this. I am a story teller, and I can teach Relief Society well because there are stories all over the place in those lessons. However, when it comes to Sunday School, it is more and more questions with some scriptures in between. So this was my third lesson, but I can't figure out how to get people to answer the 10 million questions the lesson gives.

At one point, I stated "You all think I ask a lot of questions, right?" One guy said yes. I said that I knew I asked a lot of questions. However, in Alma 5, Alma sure asked a lot of questions as well. So I wasn't quite done asking the questions, but needed someone to read some of Alma's questions.

A lot of people came up to me after the lesson and said they enjoyed the lesson, but I don't know. I felt like I wasn't getting through to anyone, and there were only a handful of people that participated. Perhaps the lesson was more for me than anyone else.

On a lighter note, my Relief Society teacher calling was changed a couple of weeks ago. I had been the third Sunday teacher, which I liked. However, they changed me to the 4th Sunday teacher. I can't say I was thrilled about this, since I love teaching from the manual. However, the RS president came up to me and asked if I would like to take a break from teaching next Sunday. I said that was fine. They had just called another teacher for RS, and needed to work her in the schedule. So I wasn't able to teach RS in May, and I am not teaching again in June. I would rather teach in RS than in Sunday School. However, where ever I am needed I will do it.

The Cake for Work!

So here it is. I know that this is kind of kiddie. However, that is what they are getting. I had thought of doing the company logo, but then I thought about all the colors I would have to do, and how much detail work it would be. I figured this would be easier, and I had, had leftover icing from Tuesday.

This cake went much easier than the Tuesday cake fiasco. This one iced smooth, and I used a couple of the techniques from the class, and I was impress that they actually worked, and worked well. So I think after I make another cake next Tuesday, I will feel a bit more confident about the wedding cake on Friday.

Finally we seem to be getting enough people at work. They all seem to be starting this month. Now, we just have to find seats for all of them.

We have six people that have started, or will start this month. Can you believe it? On July 1st, the accountant will be here and I can start training this guy. This is exciting. Now Lorin & I won't be the only ones trying to close all the books on time.

I know, I know, more cake stuff! When will I stop???

So I brought the cake into work that I made last night. I did have to try a piece because I wanted to see if it would be moist. I had followed most of the directions of the teacher of freezing it before it cools, and then icing it before it thaws. I have to say, it was really moist. I was actually surprised on how moist it was. This makes me happy to know that the cake I am going to make for the wedding will taste great. It may not look great, but it will taste great.

So last night after the class, I went through the isle at Michael's and picked up some more supplies to make my cake easier to make. I also picked up some clear vanilla, and clear butter flavoring. I like the combo of almond, vanilla, and butter in the icing. So when I made last nights cake, I used butter and Crisco instead of just Crisco. This, I know, gave the cake an off-white look to it. I didn't really care, because it looked pretty close to white-while I was at home. When I iced my cake and put it on the table next to the others, someone pointed at my cake and asked the teacher, "What is wrong with this cake?" The teacher responded that I had used butter and regular vanilla. Way to give me a complex. I will make the icing for this next week without butter, and with clear vanilla.

Tonight I baked another cake. Like I need another cake. However, work is having a potluck on Friday, and I know I need more practice on the decorating. I had thought of making another cake this week, but this now makes me have one by Friday. So I used some of the cool cake release stuff from Wilton. I have to say the cake came out of the pan really clean and hardly any crumbs. I had been putting Pam on the pan and then coating with flour, and that would give me a crumby mess. I think I will be using this method in the future. So tomorrow, I will be putting together the cake and seeing how it turns out. How exciting!!!

Class I

So tonight I had my first Wilton Cake Decorating class. So here it is. I have to say that in my history of making cakes, this one was the worst by far. Sure the pictures look okay, but it was horrible. I cooked this cake on Saturday and then froze it. I tried to follow the teachers instructions of after it comes out of the oven immediately take it out of the pan, and then put it into the freezer. That resulted in huge areas of the cake falling, on the bottom of the cake, not the crown. So the next cake I did this to, I waited 10 mins then took it out of the pan and then into the freezer. So that was the first problem.

The next problem was I used a combination of the teachers icing recipe and the Wilton icing recipe. What resulted was something I had never experienced before. I can't even begin to describe the consistency. She also wanted us to bring in two different consistencies of icing. One to ice the cake with, and the other to decorate with. When I brought mine in, she didn't like my consistencies, and so she wanted me to ice my cake with my more stiff icing. This resulted in a crumby mess with the cake. I kept tearing bits of the cake off, and it just wasn't working for me.

Then I was to add more sugar to my more watery icing to stiffen it up a bit. When I did this, it became too stiff, and I had a hard time working with it. Finally, I stopped listening to her, mixed more water into the icing until it was where I could work with it and then I finished decorating the cake.

She did have a few good pointers on icing the cake. She indicated that after icing the cake and letting a crust develop, there are a couple of different ways to get a pattern on the cake and it would look neat. The first one was to use a damp, clean sponge and sponge the cake. This would give it a stucco appearance. It thought it looked more like a snowball, but it was cute. The second was to take a patterned paper towel and use the cake spatula and rub the pattern into the crusty icing. Depending on the pattern, it would leave a cool impression. Then there were two ways to get the perfect smooth cake. The first involved parchment paper (not waxed paper) and after the crust forms, put the paper on the cake and use the cake spatula and smooth the icing through the paper. The second way is to run the cake spatula through really hot water, shake off the hot water, and then quickly smooth the cake sides. Clean off the spatula, run it under the hot water again to get it heated, shake off the water, and smooth the top. Repeat as necessary. However, that method makes me think there needs to be an excessive amount of icing on the cake.

Anyway, it is getting way to late for me, and it is soo past my bedtime. ;-0