Cupcake MADNESS

It's been awhile since I've had time to blog about cupcakes but here goes. I made peanut butter cupcakes awhile ago and I wasn't happy with them. I got the recipe off food network where I get most of my recipes. As I was making the peanut butter recipe from the website I found that at first taste the peanut butter was good but as thirty seconds after it had the worst after taste. JUST HORRIBLE! So I gave up and worked on perfecting my vanilla icing (which I have) The other day I was staring at my Reese peanut butter chips that I bought for reason that I don't remember but not the point, I decided that I would try and make them the same way I make my chocolate frosting. Turned out to be the best way to do it! Using peanut butter is some peoples preference but I can't stand it, everyone else enjoyed them, but I said no way Jose. So what I do is take two separate recipes and mix them together. At first I thought it would be too sweet, but if you cut the ingredient in half it turns out to be perfect. Probably not the healthiest but I'm not making Tofu here! :)

Okay so here is the recipe I used: (secret ingredient left out and no it's not love...although love is added)
Use whatever vanilla icing recipe the you prefer, but cut the ingredient in half except the salt.
-3c confectionery sugar
-1/4c crisco or non salted butter
-2tsb salt
-1/4c milk
-2tsb vanilla
-I always sift in the confectionery sugar because sometimes you don't need a full three cups. Also add the milk then sugar then milk than sugar. You might not even need 1/4 cups of milk.
-I also freeze my bowl before I use it and then put whatever icing I make in the fridge for five minutes

For the peanut butter icing
-1/2 bag of Reese's chips
-1/4 cream cheese
-2 oz (secret ingredient)
Endless cups of love (See I told you it was in there)
-add more peanut butter chips for more of a stronger peanut butter taste

I recommend using a double boiler for the chocolate chips and the cream cheese when you melt it down. I put a picture below of how I make my own double boiler since I don't have one.

Who want em?

These are the first peanut butter cupcakes
I made. See how far I've come?
(actual peanut butter)

Had to slap my dad's hand away he kept taking them and adding chocolate frosting I had left over from a cake I baked.

My double boiler :)

Happy baking!!!

Had to use a zip lock bag to do the icing because I didn't have piping bags



YUMMY!




Next cupcake I'm trying are going to Orange flavored. We'll see how they turn out ;) Till next time! Happy baking!



My ebook is finally here!!!

After months of trying to figure out the best way to publish my book my ebook is now available! It's a day late due to techincial difficulties, but IT'S HERE!!

I've been working on this for the past two years and I am hope y'all will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!  So cheesy right? Everyone always says that, but it's so true! I had a great time writing about Melissa, Brett, Shawn, and the rest of the gang and I can't wait to get started in the editing process of the second book in the series (no title yet). I am looking for Beta readers though! Let me know if your interested.

It's very true that once you start writing your characters, they become a part of you. A big part of you! Surprisingly, enough I also found out things about myself that I didn't notice until reading through the book. Apparently, I'm not very girly when it comes to relationships. My first editor told me I think like a man. That was something I found to be rather interesting to learn. I also found out the type of man I go for. (Brett *wink wink*) Ladies you'll him. Advisory warning, he is not real and if he would be taken...by me!

And although I've already thanked them. I would once again like to thank my editors: Cara, Glenna, and Sarah. I would also like to thank everyone in my writer's group! Sitting through unedited versions of my work must have been rough. From My Shelf for answering the million questions I had. Vicki and Michele for putting up with my constant fear about EVERYTHING and to the rest of my friends and family that have supported me throughout the entire process! If I missed anyone specifically I apologize, I'm going on a week of barely any sleep!

Again, thank you guys for all your support and If you would like to purchase a copy of my first book, Such is Life, click on Such is Life tab for directions. Don't forget to click on Follow this blog for updates on the upcoming release of the print edition of Such is Life, Contest and Giveaways, book signings, and much more. It'll take ya two minutes just to click Follow this blog and sign up :)

Love (poem)

Another poem I wrote in college. This one I really like, hope you enjoy.

Love can be described through interaction

Love can be described through touch

Love can cause pain for some

Love can bring happiness for others

When I think of love I think of happiness

When others think of love it could be anything

For love is a powerful gift for those

For love is a powerful sin for those

The world can experience love in different ways

The world could experience love the same

Love can make you do crazy things

Love can open your eyes to see

All the wonderful things love can bring

Could leave you wanting everything

Hidden (poem)

I wrote this poem in college. I'm not sure why I named it hidden, it's been a long time. It's interesting to read something that I wrote so long ago compared to the poems previously posted.

Empty inside with no place to hide, I run for the door but my feet stick to the ground. I try to gasp for air but I start falling, falling into a place that feels so far from home. When I get there there’s a black hole on the wall that seems to hold all the answers that I am looking for. I run toward the black hole but the closer I get the further it is away. I reach out to touch it but my hand gets pulled back as if someone not wanted me to achieve my destination. I slip and fall! As the wound exposes and the blood comes out of my knee it's black too. But I had to ignore what was happening, I had to ignore this black thick liquid coming out of me. I picked myself up and start running full speed toward the hole. My legs are pumping, head is sweating, I can feel failure on my tongue as this damn hole keeps moving! Why! Why won’t it let me reach it? Why can't I just feel like I am at home again? Why do I feel belittled and degraded as if this hole is in a way mocking me?

I wipe the sweat from my forehead, I know longer feel the blood running down my leg, my legs move faster than the last train departing from the station! As if I am the train and it's heading right towards the hole! It's not a dot to me anymore, actually it's very close! Did I need to feel failure in order to make me reach the hole? Did I need to trip and fall so that there was an obstacle that would make me stronger? Is the black circle even a hole? I stop, I'm standing right in front of this bitch of a hole but it's not a hole, it's not a black circle! It's me! I am whole! It took obstacles, and hard work but I made it to the place where I am whole! I look down at my knee and it's not cut, I go to wipe my forehead and It's dry, my legs don't hurt from running like a mad women, I can breath and feel the fresh air. It dawns on me everything I do I will need to be ready to stop and think about the journey that it took to make me whole! I have to try my best, every single day! I can fall down, but I should never let it stop me, I'll have hurdles everyday but I have to jump over them. But most of all, all my fears I have I will know that I just need to spit out that taste of failure, because you aren't a failure unless you let yourself be one! I know that if I never stop letting myself feel as if I am not whole I won’t have to go finding myself! Because in the long run I think I was whole the entire time I just needed a little help finding myself.

My first poem for Viewshound

Metamorphasis-Leave it to the butterflies 

I used to be fat, but now I’m thin
I used to be natural, but now I wear makeup
I used to be Plain Jane, but now I’m the prettiest in the room
I used to hide, but now I stand out in a crowd
I used to like to look in a mirror, but now all I see are my faults
I used to smile, but now I cry behind closed doors
I used to be fun, but now I only worry if others think I’m fun
I used to have real friends, but now I have social media
I used to be nice, but now being cruel is a game to me
I used to see everything half full, but now everything is empty
I used to have confidence, but now I have none
I use to be myself, but now I don’t know who I am
I used to have one face, but now I have two
I used to want to make a difference, but now I’m the one who’s different
I used to be a butterfly, but now I’m a snake

Article category: Poetry
Article tags: changing, butterflies, inspirational, confidence

The second poem I wrote for Viewshound

When one door closes...

There was a time when it was just you and me
We would spend time together so happily
But something’s different in the way you look
I feel as if you’re ready to let me off the hook
I tried in the past to hold on to something we’ve lost
But let’s face it I’m glad we’re a lost cause
Now I’m sitting here trying to figure out what to do
When you’re out on the town with God knows who
See we’re about to do things a little differently
So what I want is for you to do is pay attention closely
I thought I needed you because you made me feel small
But it turns out I’m the big one after all
You once told me a woman should stay in her place
It was the first time you ever got in my face
I should have realized then that you were no good
But I was so caught up on doing what you told me I should
No longer will you push me around
Being slapped and kicked and knocked to the ground
I feel so empowered I wish you were here to see
This I the first time since I met you that I feel so alive and free
I have a surprise for you sweetie and I hope you’re sitting down
Because you might not like this once it gets all over town
You told for so long that no one would ever take me as their lover
Well, guess what baby I’m running off with your brother

...another door opens

Article category: Poetry
Article tags: confidence, self-esteem, women, drama

It's been too long...

What's up Bloaders! It's been awhile since I've been able to do a blog. Let me start off by saying that I missed blogging these last couple of weeks. This november has been the busiest month I've had all year. First thing on my plate was National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) Trying to write a novel in thirty days. The goal was to get up to 50,000 words. I found that once I began writing getting to 50,000 words was no problem, I wrote free style like I wrote my first novel. I didn't have a plan I just wrote, I have to admit my first novel I knew exactly how I wanted it to map out and in the third novel in the series I just don't know how I want it to map out.  So although I got to my 50,000 words and even got there 15 days early I don't know if I can even use all those words. I'm glad I did it though, I felt as if it was going to be a challenge and I never turn down a challenge no matter what.

I feels as if the path that I want to take my book is a good path, but I feel as if I should change it. I guess I'm not quite sure how to actually say what I mean. Writing my first  book was the most exciting thing that I've ever done and being in the position I was in with not feeling well, barely being able to get out of bed, and being in constant pain, writing was my one release. I've always been the person to have two or three jobs. Trying to keep as busy I could and being out of work was something that broke me down...long story short writing help me feel as if I wasn't wasting away in my bed room with my remote control. My mom always says it happened for a reason so I could complete my book... I have to agree with her, although I could have done without some of the pain :) My point though is the one thing I had was my writing and I feel as if I don't have that anymore.

At every turn of completing one step I feel as if I get pushed two steps back. First step was not being able to afford it, well, then I got the money. Now it's not being able to go through the self publisher that I want to because my word count would put my book at 17.95 Not quite sure what I should do about that. I thought maybe I would just do kindles but I know 75% of my fan base don't have them. So now I'm worried what my next move should be in this lously rollercoaster I call becoming an author.

Now after going through my book one final time trying to put everything together and ready for whatever I decide, I come to realize it's nothing like my first draft, and when I say nothing, I mean nothing. I feel as if I listened to others more than I litsend to myself and somewhere down the line I lost myself a little. My jokes, the scenes, everything just seems so diffrent. I just can't figure out when you go with your gut and when you go with someone elses. IDK I will just be happy when I have my baby in my hand. 

Well, since I've rambled on forever I'll show you some pics of some cupcakes I made last week. I'll try and
do a cupcake blog next week :)

These are my Grinch cupcakes! Every time I look at them that's what I think about. They are vanilla icing with chocolate chip cupcake. AMAZING! I can't wait till I come full circle and make these again. My pipping still need some work and for some reason I can't ever get my frosting thick enough. 

These are chocolate cupcake(devils foodcake) it was the first time I didn't make from scratch. I topped it with peanut butter icing. I HATED IT! It was so thick I couldn't spread it and once I added the confect sugar I thought it tasted funny but everyone else said I was being overly critical. Why do people say that to me of course I'm overly critcal! DUH! One word of advice as adding the confec. sugar keep tasting it and put in microwave to soften. I actually added peanut butter chips to the frosting and it made it taste alot better still not my favorite though. Oh and use Jiffy.



These are what they look like before the awful peanut butter! Aren't they beautiful? I added peanut butter chips to these too. Personally I loved them just like this.



Sneak peak! I wasn't going to do it but then I thought I'll give my Bloader's a little treat! This is what my cover looks like. It's not completely done but I know I've had a couple of people asking about it and asking about it so I figure I would give ya little peak! Let me know what you think!

Alrighty this girl is going to work on some more NaNoWriMo have a pleasant night and a happy Thanksgiving if I don't write again this week.

PS. Thinking of putting the first chapter of my book online for a sneak peak, but only if I people will read it, so we'll see!