copy cat

i was inspired by my successful fondant experiment and wanted a treat from baked and wired (so much better than g'town cupcake). but instead of trekking my way into the city, fighting for parking and possibly getting disappointed (they have limited offerings of each flavor), i decided to just make my own version of lemon cupcakes with raspberry filling.

i started with a basic yellow cake and vanilla buttercream recipe and experimented with lemon zest and juice. then i injected some raspberry jam/preserves... and viola!


it's not the magically dense yet moist baked and wired cupcake - mine were fluffy instead -- but was very lemony.

ps. i still want cupcakes from baked and wired.

wonderland

i spent most of this weekend trying my hand at ousting duffy of ace of cakes... (ha, riiight). my sister asked me make a crazy, tea-sized, alice in wonderland themed cake for my nieces birthday party as a nice addition to the cupcakes and ice cream cakes already on the menu.

it's not perfect, but considering this is only my second attempt at fondant, i think it came out pretty well.

my sister did a great job decorating my parents backyard as a garden party gone mad.

the mad hatter made an appearance to do a magic show, face painting and some awesome balloons.

happy 4th birthday janiya!

riding the mexican train.

this is why we're hot [while chrys' neighbors played beer pong]

life's been a little crazy since i've returned from the beach but the girls and i still managed to have some good, old man, dominoes fun.

mrs. p4d hosted us on her glover park roof deck and we had a nice sunset dinner overlooking the national cathedral, washington monument, capitol, and even got a view of the nat's fireworks.

for our dinner theme, we decided to play up on the rules of the game ... aka... mexican [train] night!

k made a ridiculous mountain of ultimate nachos
complete with chili, corn, black beans and refried beans

peach sangria + rooftop deck = good night

new to my repertoire - black bean & chorizo empanadas
(watch out julias!)

part II: nags head

for those that don't like reading. *ahem*cousins*sister*ahem*.

independence day fireworks in front of our house | july 2009 | nags head, nc

massive [click to see the people on dunes] | july 2009 | nags head, nc

buried [dunes] | july 2009 | nags head, nc

snake tracks [dunes] | july 2009 | nags head, nc

beach house #3 | july 2009 | nags head, nc

nags head pier at sunset | july 2009 | nags head, nc

gone fishing!

relaxing on the pier | nags head, nc | july 6, 2009

after working remotely from the beach for a good part of the day, i slipped away for a couple of hours to go fishing. i grew up fishing with my father, so no matter how much i squirm touching the bloodworms, i actually really enjoy it.

here are some shots from today:

fallen between the cracks | nags head, nc | july 6, 2009

left for the seagulls | nags head, nc | july 6, 2009

bait & hooked | nags head, nc | july 6, 2009

not our catch | nags head, nc | july 6, 2009

our big catch! | nags head, nc | july 6, 2009

outer banks photos

photo by parkerspain

it's raining on the outer banks but while, of course, i'd rather it be sunny -- a rainy day here still beats a day at work.

however, i've started taking a photography class at the torpedo factory and have yet to find some good weather to do my homework. i'm sure i could take shots of things in the rain but, as a beginner, i'm not confident on finding correct lighting in the cloudy haze.

so instead, here are some fun shots that i've found on flickr. i'm not sure i will ever be this good, but it's nice to dream anyway.

bodie light house | photo by jim frazier

nags head pier | photo by cary scott photography

kitty hawk | photo by cary scott photography

i know i'm not the only one who <3's dc.

The lovely people at welovedc had a party last night (happy 1st!) and wore these shirts. How cute are they?

Buy the shirts at 237inc's etsy shop!

my wish: to live simply

from our aunt's beach house in mindoro

kris w/ our nephews

my cousin rj w/another nephew in mindoro

my cousin kris (mentioned here), took these shots in her hometown of sablayan, mindoro. if only i were there now...
[it's going to t-storm in dc again. ...sigh.]