I am so relieved that this weekend is over. I got the cake baked Friday for the event planner, and decided to wait until Saturday morning to ice it. I had to leave by 9:30, so I got around 7.
First lesson learned: Piping straight lines at 7:30 isn't that easy....
It would have looked so much better in fondant, but that's not what she wanted. Whatever.
I drive the hour it takes me to get to her house. I knock on the door quite a few times, before her husband answers. It's not like they didn't know I was coming!!!! He lets me in and Calls to her to let her know I'm here. I stand there balancing 2 cake boxes for a few minutes, before he realizes he didn't offer to A) help me or B) let me set them down somewhere. The second cake was Flourless chocolate cake for a guest. This is only a 6 inch cake and there's a pound of chocolate in it. I have no idea what the name means.
So I set the cakes down and wait. And wait, and wait. Just standing there, while he's cleaning the house. Twiddling my thumbs. I finally ask if she knows I'm here. He calls her again. After almost 15 minutes, she decides to make an appearance. She sort slinks down the stairs. Well, Thank you, your ROYAL HIGHNESS for allowing me to be in your presence! That's the exact "feeling" I got. I am not some lowly little baker. I have done my time in the kitchen I held the title of Head Pastry chef and Chef de Tournade. Don't get me wrong, I've been out of it for a while, but if I'm going to show you some respect, I expect you to do the same. She's seen my resume. I'm not tooting my own horn, but she could show me a little respect. She's a planner!! Not a doer!! She points her finger and demands!
She introduces me to her husband, who I have just watched sweep the floor for the last 15 minutes, and says "oh, we're old friends, I met her a few times when she delivered the cupcakes and picked up the stand." Um, excuse me? I've never met him before! My sister delivered and
picked it up. I can see some confusion.
I don't wear glasses, Just put these on to show the similarity. I'm 5 years older. Anyway, she looked at the cakes and says "they're so cute." I wasn't thinking "cute" was how I would describe a cake for a 36 year old man. Yes, the piping wasn't perfect, let me see her try it. She looks like the type of woman who: doesn't get dirty, won't chance breaking a nail by doing any type of labor, obviously doesn't clean, her husband does, doesn't cook and really comes across as a beotch.
The next order I get from her, I'm going to DEMAND to speak to the client. I'm laying down the law. Take it leave it. I want signed contracts and I want access to the client so I can ask questions. If she gives me a hard time, then it's bye-bye bitch. I would take dealing with the Mother of a Bride, or a Bridezilla herself rather then deal with this woman.
What's the saying from Dirty Dancing..."nobody puts Baby in a corner." Well nobody makes Kelly wait 15 minutes just to deliver a cake. AND AN HOUR AWAY NO LESS!!!!
Monday, March 31, 2008
The Event Planner
Friday, March 28, 2008
I shot the Event planner, but I did not shoot the deputy
AAGGGHHH! A few months ago a friend of mine recommended me to an event planner friend of hers. (or acquittance, they're kids were in the same class). She asked me first and I said sure! How bad could it be to get extra business. BAD. I have yet to met her in person, even though I've done a few things for her. I prefer to deal with the bride, person having the party, etc. because I can get a better feel of what they're looking for, and I can throw out ideas to them, things they might not have thought of. NO. She wants to be the middle woman. Which scares me.
A) I think she's she's charging the client more then what I'm quoting her and therefore, she's making money off of me. Fine, but I can guarantee she not marking up the banquet hall, or the flowers, or caterer.
2) I am VERY afraid that something is going to get lost in translation, communication, e-mail, or any other form she chooses. I will have 50 e-mail exchanges with her and I have to re-iterate EVERYTHING we discuss every time, because she can't remember what was said. I have to save every single piece of information I get from her and repeat it all back in every e-mail, because I'm afraid She'll pin the screw up on me. That would be the end. And she's constantly changing the plans for delivery at the last minute. YOU'RE NOT MY ONLY BUSINESS, LADY!!! You revolve around me, not the other way....I try to be accommodating, but come on!
The cupcake tower with butterflies was for an event she planned and I wanted the stand back. It came back with the fondant bow crushed and it had obviously been left in the sun, as the top to tiers fondant had completely changed color. Tomorrow I am delivering a cake to her house for a party for her husband. She asked my if it could be "wheat free". I asked if she knew that, that meant NO FLOUR. Duh. NO she had no idea. So I'm making a regular cake and a small flourless chocolate cake, which is heaven in itself. Like fudge in the shape of a cake.
So, If I happen to kill Said event planner, Meleah was nice enough to offer to bail me out. The way my day is going with my children, ( just stepped in a blob of playdough and thought it was cat poop. My son wanted dinner at 7:30 this morning. And what pray tell do we want for dinner....pizza) I just may stay for the weekend. Peace and quiet in a rough and tumble sort of way.....
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
The boy knows what he needs....
My son fell onto a truck this morning, that he got for Easter and crushed it. It was a flimsy plastic monster truck and he landed smack on the center of it.
He asked me to fix and I told him, it really wasn't fixable. He decide he would wait to ask Dad to fix it.
This afternoon he comes to me and says, "I fix truck. Need a screwdriver and a wench."
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Someone kick me in the head next time...
Explanation tomorrow.....I'm off to make a 3D Golden Labrador. Pix to follow.
Monday, March 24, 2008
I'm a survivor
Thank GOODNESS this weekend is over. Somehow, I have survived and today am completely wiped out.
Friday night I had a big "Mom's night out" shopping for Easter stuff with 2 of my friends. Who knew 10 years ago, that going to Target and Walmart on a Friday night WITHOUT children would be considered fun. When the night ends at a bar it does :) We shopped and then hit the local Pub to end the night. Apparently Target doesn't stay open until 12:30, so my husband was a little confused.
Saturday was chaos. I was at the Market the minute it opened. Flew through in record time, I might add. We took the kids to an early morning egg hunt. They had a ball. My 2 year old son proceeded to win the largest and the smallest prize baskets. ( Note to self: Have 2 year old pick winning lottery numbers.) From there I had to rush to finish a cake and then off to a Roller Skating Birthday party. Never mind that I had 20 people coming the next day and I hadn't really done a thing yet. What a FLASHBACK!!! I walked into this Roller Rink and felt my heart beating hard...oh the memories! Holding hands with a boy for the first time, while skating. Sharing Sodas, the games, and the outfits!!! Let me say that the rental skates looked like they were the same ones from when I was younger. Thankfully my daughter has her own and we didn't have to rent a foot fungus. Fun times!!!!
We got home at 2 and I started cooking immediately and did so until about 10. Here was the Easter menu:
Screwdrivers, Bloody Mary's, beer, juices, soda, etc.
Creme Brulee French toast Strata
Brie and Chive Strata
Ham and Cheddar strata
Hash browns "21 club" style
Bacon, hot and mild sausage
Fresh fruit
Roasted Asparagus with lemon and butter sauce
Blueberry cream pie
Cherry cream pie
cupcakes for the kids
Almond essence and vanilla bean shortbread
I went heavy on the strata's, only because I knew the people coming all had different tastes and would either eat sweet or savory. Everything was a hit. I wouldn't really know.....Why is it the chef doesn't really get to eat until everything is ice cold and or gone? I was bummed, but everyone else enjoyed it. I did get to enjoy the liquids portion of the meal though.......And I didn't spend all morning preparing. It really was timing everything right to fit in the oven, and I was only off my estimated time to eat by about 20 minutes.
So Today, I straightened up, battled with my home-on-spring-break-and-bored-to-death-so-go-clean-you-room-8-year-old, and crashed for an afternoon nap with my boy. I am slightly refreshed.
So glad the weekend is over. Now, if I live through this week, it will be a miracle!!!
Friday, March 21, 2008
Can someone replace the batteries in my back....?
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Look at this Stuff
Meleah @ Momma Mia Mea Culpa Tagged me with a "Look at this stuff" Meme. I couldn't wait to do it, this is a fun one!
You have to find five things around your house that say something about the person you are and snap a picture of them. Then tell us about them.
Here we go:
I have a slight obsession with cookbooks. This about 2/3 of my collection, the others are ones I don't use as much, so they're in a Huge Tupperware tub. This also doesn't show the cooking magazine collection. I especially love (see the little stack on the top shelf laying on it's side) OLD cookbooks. I have some from 1915.
These are the 5 cooking utensil I can not live with out. Icing Spatula, Flat Spatula, tongs, cookie scoop with a silicone bottom for pushing out the dough. Nice and precisely sized cookies. And a wooden spoon. All laid out on my Island that I love!
My favorite room in the house. (ok, besides the kitchen) My Bathroom. The combination of the Blue color and the White trim is SO soothing. I found the perfect shower curtain and curtain to match, added a window film (cause I hate mini blinds) and viola! I can lock the door, have a nice relaxing bath, glass of wine and a good book, and I'm beyond content. I'm not really sure how that little person got in the picture. And why it looks like he's about to throw something into the toilet. I better go check...
I love to reupholster furniture. These chairs had an ugly cream textured fabric on them. I added the plaid, that matched in color, the floral valences I made on the kitchen windows and back door. I also love to refinish wood furniture. Sand, Stain, etc. Give me an electric Staple or nail gun and I am one HAPPY woman. 
I'm not sure what this last one really says about me.....I guess I like to entertain? Yeah, that's the excuse I'm sticking. I own 30 assorted sets of martini glasses and 42 different types of wine glasses. Seriously though, we had a martini party and I went around and bought all kinds of clearance martini glasses. I can't have my guests drinking from plastic cups. Same thing with the wine glasses. Half of the number are my good Crystal ones, the rest, for everyday use.
So, there you have it. Me in a nutshell. With 72 assorted drinking glasses. As for tagging, it's open to anyone who wants to play!!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Where I am and where I'm headed
This is where I have been for the last 36 hours. Lost in my kitchen and I'm only halfway done. I'm sitting for a moment to intravenously administer some coffee and I'll get back to work.....
Butterfly cupcake for a bridal shower at a Spa.
Them on the stand with Dummy cakes and floating butterflies
What a big bow!
As I was cleaning up, I turned around look at what I saw. Riley doing " NUFFING"
Thankfully I was done with those bags!
Little Teddy..pretty cute
This is for a 1 year old's Birthday party. The little cake is his "smash cake".
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
TAT-touille
This Friday night We're holding a movie night at my daughter's school. It's about a rat that can cook. For various and assorted obvious copyright reason, we couldn't say the name outright. We bought these to give out to the kids afterwards, and they arrived today. As I pulled one out my 2 year old starts yelling. "TAT-touille hat, TAT-touille hat!" So I couldn't resist putting one on him. It's about as tall as he is. My boy loves to cook.
Monday, March 10, 2008
So Tired....
Too Tired to post much today. Had a busy weekend. A friend of mine is friends with a Harlem Globetrotter, so whenever they come nearby, she gets free tickets and cool Stuff. It just so happens that her daughters birthday is coming up, so he had an AWESOME gift for her. She gave part of it to Tierney, but Tierney was just thrilled to see her friend and have a "girls night out". Her friend lives where we used to, about an hour away, so we don't get to see her too often.
The whole team signed a really nice Jersey.
Doing the "Globetrotter Strut".Friday, March 7, 2008
Life with kids 1,2 and 3
Okay, so I only have 2, but I'm guilty of a lot of these things. I just thought this was a riot, because it really is true!
Pregnancy:
1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.
Preparing for the Birth:
1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
2nd baby: You don't bother because you remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing. 3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your eighth month.
The Layette:
1st baby: You pre-wash newborns clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.
2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?
Worries:
1st baby: At the first sign of distress--a whimper, a frown--you pick up the baby.
2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails threaten to wake your firstborn.
3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing.
Pacifier:
1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.
3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.
Diapering:
1st baby: You change your baby's diapers every hour, whether they need it or not.
2nd baby: You change their diaper every two to three hours, if needed.
3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.
Activities:
1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, Baby Zoo, Baby Movies and Baby Story Hour.
2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.
3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaners
Going Out:
1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home five times.
2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.
3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.
At Home:
1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.
2nd baby: You spend a bit of everyday watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.
3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.
Swallowing Coins (a favorite):
1st child: When first child swallows a coin, you rush the child to the hospital and demand x-rays 2nd child: When second child swallows a coin, you carefully watch for the coin to pass.
3rd child: When third child swallows a coin you deduct it from his allowance!
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Today, I bake
I'm off to bake enough cookies to feed an entire Hospital. No really, I am. I won't be MIA, just living in my kitchen, jammin' to my tunes, and doin' it my way.
Hmmm......I should write a song.
Bakin' and Shakin' and siftin' and drinkin',
I'm do it my way....
I'll have to work on the rest. Oh and I promise not to drink until later.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Here we go Again.
Let me start from the beginning. 2 months after we got married, The company my Husband worked for, for 7 years had major lay-offs. He was one of the unlucky ones. Then he got a corporate sales job with Kinko's. Just before Fed Ex bought them out, they too made major cuts. Again, one of the unlucky ones. 2 weeks after we bought our very first house, the tiny family owned printing company he worked for layed him and 7 others off. Of Course he was pissed, but this was a family owned company and so there was no room to grow for him. he'd already spent a few years in the same position with no raises, only more commission incentives. My Husband works his ASS off. Sales is perfect for him. He's such a people person, and when the last printing Co. let him go, about half their customers left too. The other salesmen were family members and just cranky old men. Sucks to be them. In Sales customer Service is a huge part, and building a good re pore is necessary.
So, for the last years and half, he's been through 5 jobs. It SUCKED. He hasn't been happy with the latest job, and once again all the promises they made when they hired him, never came through. So I happened to come across a fantastic job, in the printing industry. Usually in sales, base salary is low and commission is decent. But Commission is NOT a constant and very unreliable. Managing money was difficult, because you never knew what you'd be getting. This job posting listed a high salary, and a the same percentage commission for all. He went up there (It's now about 1 hr 20 minutes from home), interviewed and they said they'd let him know in 24 hours.
Monday night the phone rang. He flew of the chair and ran into the bedroom to answer it. He had seen it was the company name on the called ID. I just thought he'd lost his mind. They offered him the position.....at double the salary he's making now. Hallelujah is all I can say. There are many other perks, but the downside was, another change of jobs. Needless to say, I told he'd be the stupidest man on earth to turn it down. The other downside for me is that now he's gone even longer everyday. Most likely 7-7, factoring in the drive time. I'm not complaining, but aside from baking and blogging. I don't get to speak to many adults in a day.
He went into the old job yesterday morning and gave his 2 weeks. What I didn't know was, that the day before, they had made him sign a contract stating that if he didn't sell some absurd number of copiers in the month of March, they were going to cut his salary. Wow...that's a moral booster. They actually had the nerve to be surprised when he gave his notice. he knew they wouldn't keep him for the 2 weeks. The last guy that quit, they escorted from the building and that's just what they did with my Husband. So Yay, he gets to start the new job sooner.
So, once again our world is turned over and we begin another new chapter. Some are very short.
Some are long and mostly happy, we just have very bad luck. We're the type of people who would give you the shirt off our backs if you needed it. We stop to help people on the side of the road. Ya know...Do good deeds and you'll be rewarded. It's been 10 years and we have had FEW rewards. I count my kids as the greatest ones. Someone finally heard me, whether it was Buddha, God, The Dali Lama, Mother Earth, The Goddess, and whoever else I missed. Today, I'm thinking I can finally see the sun. That black cloud starting to look light grey.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Dog, Cat, and Rat
Why Can't WE all get along like this?? This guys is a little weird, but what he says is so true...
