The New York Baking Company Review

I was contacted by the The New York Baking Company to do a review of their product on my blog.  I was delighted!  As you probably know from the title of my blog, I love baking.  Funny enough, I love the process of baking even better than the eating of the things I make.  Baking is my therapy, and it just makes everything better in my world.  

On to the review: The New York Baking Company Silicone Baking Cups.

They are so pretty!  The kids were thrilled to open up the package of colorful cups, and line them all up.  I have to be honest... I had to youtube a video to make sure that I could put the cups on top of a regular baking sheet.  Yes, they stayed upright, and nothing spilled out!

 I also wanted to bake some (pink!) cupcakes in the normal paper liners for comparison.

 Here is the finished product!

 Yummy!

The cupcakes in the silicone cups took a little longer to bake.  They peeled right out of the cups.   I didn't have any baking spray (the youtube tutorial suggested using it), but it didn't matter-- they peeled easily out.   As Tate pointed out, if you have the silicone cups, you don't have to throw them away, but get to use them over and over again!  Also, they washed right up.  They are dishwasher safe, so I just popped them into the top rack of the dishwasher.  

Now, since this is an honest review, I will also add that I prefer the paper liners when you are giving cupcakes away.  When we wanted to give a few to our neighbors, we didn't want to have to ask for the liner back.  I guess I could have peeled them out before frosting them, but really, I don't think my neighbor wants my hands on the outside of the cake when I hand it over.  

Lastly, here is Tate's review. 

We spent all afternoon making review videos, as little kids are funny.

Corners of My House and Random Blathering

I kind of stole the "Corners of My House" title from one of my favorite blogs, Soulemama.com.  She posts photos of her cozy spots in her home, and it always inspires me to feather my nest and make it look intentional and loved.  As we unpack the new house, COZY is my theme.  I plan on staying in this house for a long, long time, and cozy is very important to me.  We are still not finished, but here are a few shots:

 This is my dining room, and the big armoire will hold all of my crafting things.  Thanks, Marja, for the craft-in-the-dining room inspiration!  That chandelier has GOT to GO, by the way.

 The Princess Room.

 Inspiration for my bedroom.

Our Library.

And the random part of the post.  If you don't read regularly, this is where I chatter on about what I have been up to.  (That's basically most of this blog!)

Biggby's is a local coffee chain in our area, and I was much in need of caffeine one afternoon, on the way to the park.  Little did I know that they would give me the most gigantic iced coffee ever!  I put the leftovers in the fridge, and drank off of this thing for 3 days.  

Best benefit of living in the Lansing area?  I can pop in and see a sibling when I want.  (Isn't his puggle adorable?)

Hooked.  I mean, completely and utterly OBSESSED.  

(This is Game of Thrones, in case you don't know.   Must be viewed with red wine.)

Practicing up with new face paint techniques.   This was a study in flower petals, which I loved.  I love watching face painting and traditional acrylic painting tutorials for inspiration:)

Long story short, I helped out a new creperie to get their chalkboards finished.  Yes, they gave me a crepe as payment, which was DELISH.  I was happy to have a creative outlet amongst the unpacking.

Enjoy the end of summer.... it is fading away fast.

Embracing Michigan-Blueberry Picking!

I knew that when I moved to Michigan, (it being my forever home after moving a bazillion times), I planned on settling in, listening to the seasons, and doing what the locals do.  This time of year here is blueberry season!

My kids were hooked after about 5 minutes in.  Tate said "I now want to be a farmer... but without the farm house."  He doesn't even eat bluerries.  He does, however, love to run around free, along the rows, as the breeze blows.  (It was only about 70F, and such delightful weather.) 

They enjoyed it so much, we went twice this week!  I can't wait until apple season...

We picked with The Country Mill in Charlotte, MI.

This is just a portion of the 5 lbs of blueberries we picked in under an hour.