It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Wow... it's been like 4 months since I last posted. Actually, it's not like that much has happened. I finished my 4th official semester of law school... Go Me! I will pat myself on the back, but not until I get the grades. Con Law and Evidence are NOT fun. I actually enjoyed Constitutional law, but my professor was feisty, you never knew what she was going to ask, so even if you knew the material, you didn't know the material...

I am making some wonderful cupcakes tonight. It will be my first time experimenting with mint! The order on the table is Mint Chocolate with peppermint cream cheese frosting. I'm so excited. I've had this box of Williams & Sonoma peppermint bark for about a week now and every time I take a bite, I envision little chocolate cupcakes with that stuff sprinkled on top.... drool. I can't wait!

I'm also making Red Velvet.... let me tell you my thoughts on that (pointless) cake. I don't like using unnatural ingredients. Mostly because I have a sensitive tummy and I never know what is going to upset it, but also because I just don't think it makes things better. Why add something unnatural if you can get the same affect using a (sometimes more expensive) alternative? I know, I know, I'm probably insulting everyone's mother right about now... Lord knows my own Mom used gelatin, food coloring and (bleh) artificial flavoring. I'm just saying... if God made it, why not use it?

With that being said, I hate red velvet cake. That seems to be the only cake with which I cannot find a suitable alternative. What's the point of Red Velvet cake anyhow? I know the history: Back in one of the great wars, there was a shortage on chocolate. Most of it was being sent to the troops over seas. So, it started as a great cause. However, red velvet has chocolate in it... a tablespoon to be exact. I guess my whole problem is, if it has the chocolate flavor... why not just make chocolate?? Anyway, back to my rant, to get that disgusting blood red color, you have to add like a whole bottle of cancer causing red food coloring. A WHOLE BOTTLE! Gross. I've tried looking for alternatives... beet powder, etc., but nothing keeps that red color. I'm not a chemistry major in any sense, but I do understand that even though the beet powder makes the batter red, once heated, it becomes a blah brown. Again... the cake is a waste.

Anyway, I am making this diaster of a cake because it's Christmas... and since it's Christmas, I am going to make it pretty and festive.

EEE! I just ordered new cupcake boxes. I'm pretty excited... this will save lots of money. Glenn is gonna freak. I have no where to put the boxes, but we'll figure that out later :)

So many things are happening soon. We are going to Atlanta for Christmas to spend time with his family. I'm uber excited! And then, for New Years, we are going to NEW YORK!! He's never been, so there are so many things I want to show him... can't wait!

Ok, I need to go do some work. I will write again before the month is over.

New things all around!

So many things have happened in the last few weeks. I officially launched Callooh Callay cupcakes. I made some marble cupcakes for my friend Christina and the Animal Law Society and from what I heard, they were quite the hit.

I officially created a fan page on Facebook. So far I have 31 fans! That's a big number for me, especially since only a few people have actually tasted my confections. I'm working on getting my name out there... my best friend Amaris actually just created my logo, so now it's just a matter of time before I make business cards and get down to business.

Big news! My brother and his wife just had a beautiful baby girl! Fallon Claire. She is perfect in every way. She has my nose :)

I can't wait to post pictures. I am making a big batch of cupcakes on Sunday to celebrate.

Saturday afternoon we are having a huge baby shower for my best friend Nicole. She is also expecting a baby girl. I'm making Bakerella's Cowgirl Cookies just for the occasion.

So many things to celebrate, so little time to cram it all in!

Callooh Callay Cupcakes!

So it's become a mad hobby. My cupcakes have taken over... and it's not just cupcakes. It's cookies too. Vegan cookies! I am totally in love with this baking thing. I love how I feel when a fresh batch of anything comes out.

My 4th semester of law school is set to begin. On the plate I have Evidence, Constitutional Law and Property II. Am I excited? Not one bit, but I have vowed to make this semester one of the best. I don't know how I'm going to do it exactly, but hard work and a lot of studying will have to pay off eventually....

Big news though! I have officially named my products/hobby/future cupcake shop. It's now called Callooh Callay Creations! My tag line is: "Delicious Nonsense". I'm pretty excited about it. Several people have already volunteered to help with websites, logos, taste testing, etc. It's gonna be big, man. Take over the world big!

I forgot to tell you guys about the move and California! And my birthday! I had the greatest 27th birthday ever. We had a get together at Cedar Creek in the Heights and so many friends came to celebrate. My bestie Nicole got me not one, but TWO cakes, both equally delicious. I got so many cupcake related presents too! From the Martha Stewart Cupcake book to cookie decorating instruments, this really was the summer of baked goods. Awesome, awesome birthday!

Ok, on to California. What can I say about how much I absolutely loved that state? We flew into LA and rented a convertible (truly, the only way to go!). From LA we went to Santa Monica where we dipped our feet into the Pacific for the first time. Holy hell, that was cold water! We grabbed lunch at this fantastic Italian deli and let me tell you, it was one of the best sandwiches I will crave for the rest of my life... From Santa Monica we took highway one all the way to Santa Barbara. Again, an amazing drive. We finally got to Santa Barbara that evening and stayed at this amazing little cottage. Wine and Boccie ball are a great combination, btw!

After Santa Barbara, we headed to Paso Robles. I fell in love with the couple we stayed with there. Anne and George are the cutest! Their wine was pretty awesome too, Justin the Orphan. If you ever have the chance: TRY IT. We got to go to the mid-state fair in Paso Robles which was exactly like the Texas State Fair or the Houston Rodeo. No difference. Glenn and I rode the Ferris wheel and another fun ride, then decided to get daring and ride some crazy spinning ride... needless to say, we both got seriously nauseous. That night didn't end well.

After Paso, we went to Carmel and Monterey. We went to the aquarium, saw the fishies, sea lions, sea horses... all too cute to describe in detail here. From Monterey it was on to San Fran, but not til I had my In and Out Burger! We literally crossed over a Mountain to find the closest In and Out, but it was so worth it. I think that trek over the mountain officially got me my official foodie card! San Fran was AWESOME. I would totally live there. From the people, to the scenery, to the weather, to the FOOD... it was all just so amazing. We went to this fantastic Oyster Bar called Swan Oyster Depot. Best and freshest seafood I have ever had and I've been to New Orleans. There was nothing special about the place, just a really old bar, really old stools and great service. If you are ever in San Fran, GO.

Now, onto the biggie: THE CUPCAKES!! Of course we tried cupcakes. We found a place in Santa Barbara: Crushcakes. I must admit, we could only eat one... way too sweet. The cake was perfect, but the icing was totally diabetic coma inducing. Too sweet. Even Glenn, who loves icing couldn't take it. I loved their motif and bumper stickers, but was not impressed by the actual delivery.

In San Fran we went to Kara's Cupcakes. WOW. That's all I can say. WOW. I know I might have said that I am aiming to be the next Martha... I changed my mind. I want to be Kara. I want my cupcakes to taste like Kara's cupcakes. I don't know who she is, but I love her. We trekked all over San Fran trying to find her store... being unfamiliar with the city, it wasn't easy. We found it and again, totally worth it. Kara, if you are out there, you have a devoted fan in me!

On our last day in San Fran which also happened to be our last day of the trip, we made it to Citizen Cake. Glenn loved it. I was just ok with it. I don't know. I think I didn't care for the Rocky Road cupcake? Maybe that first one ruined the rest for me? Anyway, she was good, but not Kara good. Glenn liked her, so that made the trip there worth it for him. I could have left San Fran happy with just Kara and her delicious cupcakes.

Finally, the move. We moved in together that day we got back from our vacation. Talk about stress. We both love the house, but everything is still a mess. I can't wait til we get everything unpacked. I love my kitchen tho. I have a ton of counter space! It's gonna be cupcake heaven.

Anyway, that's all that's going on. I have a family reunion this weekend, so Friday night will be spent making all sorts of goodies. I think I am opting for Martha's lemon cake with berries, some chocolate chip cookies and another item... carrot cake maybe?

I will let you know how it goes. TTFN!

WOOO HOOO!! School's done for the Summer!!

So Yippie!!! I am done for another semester! and it was a toughie! Whoever thought OF cramming Torts and Contracts into a summer session was seriously demented. I mean, products liability and defamation alone should get their own course. Well, at least the way my professor taught it they should. And what the tell was up with that Contracts final!? I thought we took Contracts, not employment law!

Anyway, sorry. I had to vent. It's been a crazy couple of weeks/months since I last posted. Since the last posting, obviously summer school started, but so many other great things happened too!

Carady, my sister-in-law had her baby shower and I hosted. I did a pretty good job too if I do say so myself. I really am trying to be Martha Stewart... I made favors and everything! Her theme was honey bees and Winnie the Pooh. It was absolutely perfect and she racked up a ton of gifts which made me infinitely happy. We don't know what the baby is yet, so I'm not sure if I am going to have a niece or a nephew, but regardless, I am ECSTATIC. Here are some pics.



No, unfortunately I didn't get to make those cupcakes. They are from Crave Cupcakes, which in my opinion, is the best place to get cupcakes in Houston... well, aside from my cupcakes that is :) That lovely cake is from Whole Foods. They make really good cakes too. I don't know what that one is called, but holy cow! It's scrumptious.

Anyway, the shower was in June... so fly by a few more weeks and the (future) in-laws came in town to celebrate 4th of July with us. It was wonderful. I love seeing them. We spent Memorial Day with them in Memphis and I absolutely fell in love with Glenn's nephew Brady. Goodness gracious, I had baby fever that entire weekend.

As I was saying, July just FLEW by. My bestie, Amaris, celebrated her birthday this month too. Here are pictures of her and her cake... yes, I made that one. Thank you for recipe, Martha!

It seems everyone loved that cake too. I've had several requests for me to make it again. That makes me happy, however, that cake was time consuming! Squeezing each freakin' lemon... Thank God my wonderful boyfriend got me a lemon juicer!

So anyway, those are the biggies... Oops, almost forgot! My birthday is in 5 days!! Oh, and we are leaving for California in 6 days!!! And another thing... we are moving in together!! Isn't that crazy?! I am so absolutely in love... I just can't believe how things have just done a 180 in such a short year. Anyway, we are moving in together like in 2 weeks, as soon as we get back from Cali as a matter of fact. I will be sure to upload a ton of pics from my birthday festivities, the trip and the move.

Lots to catch up on! But for now, I'm off to bed. Crossfit at 6:00am sharp.

XOXOXOXOXO.

Holy Balls! This Summer flew by...

Wowie. I just realized I haven't posted in almost 2 months. Time to get crackin.... actually, I have to avoid the blog a little longer. Summer school is not quite over yet and finals are (eek!) next week. Here's the official countdown for the rest of the summer, just FYI: 8 days til summer school ends, 13 days until my birthday, 14 days til our vacation/road trip in California, 21 days til we move in together. Man, time flies when you are having fun.

I will post pics as soon as everything cools down.

Finals Are Over... I am free!

Well, freedom for two weeks at least. I'm beginning to think this law school thing is cramping my style. First, I noticed that my best friend Nicole and her husband Ed moved into their new house in March. It's almost the end of May and I haven't been over to visit. Secondly, Felicia and Doug gave birth to a beautiful gigantor named Asher. He's about 4 weeks by now and still, I am the only one that has not visited... . I suppose I could blame it on finals, but really it's just been crazy.

I haven't even had time to make a decent batch of cupcakes!! In actuality, I have summed up 3 months of much needed relaxation into one measly week, so I haven't had time for much anything except myself.

However, the break was short lived. I just viewed my assignments for the first class of summer session (which happens to be one week from tomorrow, FYI) and it looks like my mini-vacation is coming to an end. I will have to start preparing this week in anticipation of what's to come. Que sera, sera.

Oh, but Glenn and I are going to Memphis to see his parents this weekend. I'm pretty excited about that. I haven't seen his parents since Thanksgiving and I adore them. Plus, I get to meet his sister who happens to <3 cupcakes as much as I do... I have a feeling we are going to get along just fine. Oh! and I get to go to GRACELAND! How exciting is that? Well, I'm excited about it. I love Elvis and all that 50's era magic, so I'm ecstatic.

I should prolly try and find something productive to do. The problem is, I've come to realize, 24 hours in a day is hardly enough time for anything.

First Post - New Babies and Great Cupcakes

So, officially I am beginning my blog. I guess I could start off by telling you a little bit about myself. I am a law student in Houston and I bake cupcakes as a way to relieve the stress... however they sometimes cause more stress if them come out more like biscuits than cupcakes.

I have a beautiful long haired tabby cat named Charlie. His pictures will be everywhere on this blog as soon as I figure out how to post them. Anyway, he talks to me. Not literally of course, but he is a very vocal cat. He meows at every chance he gets. This is why I call him my muse. He loves me and I adore him. He is my king. King Charles I.

I am in a great relationship with the perfect imperfect man. He's 14 years older than I and I am crazy about him. His pictures will be on here as well... again, once I figure out how to post them.

In any case, I am starting this blog to basically to publish the life of a law student who likes to bake cupcakes in her spare time. I love cake. I live for cake. My boyfriend doesn't help the situation, he loves cake too. It's a wonder we're not the size of hippos.

So, thus begins my blog... LAW SCHOOL CUPCAKES.

This past weekend I hosted a baby shower for two of my closest friends. Felicia and Rachelle both went to high school with me, so I have known them since I was 14... let's just say we're about to celebrate our 10 year high school reunion next year. Anyway, I had to throw them a shower because their babies are the first in "our group".

Felicia is due in May and Rachelle is due in July. I am very excited about both new-comers. In any case, I baked like a gazillion cupcakes for the shower. I made hummingbird, strawberry, yellow and chocolate. The hummingbird and strawberry were made from scratch and I was ecstatic with how many people liked them. I mean, I had been doing practice runs for weeks and Glenn (the boyfriend) was getting tired of eating cupcake after cupcake... well, not really, but you know how it goes. His waistline was more concerned than he was. But everything turned out great! Cheers to me!

I'm off for a while to study for my exams. Second semester was much harder than first semester (I'm part-time) so I need to spend every waking moment studying. If anyone has any good cupcake recipes to help with the stress, send them on! TTFN.