Ugly Cake

Otherwise known as a culinary "don't," this was my contribution to our big family party today:






















Lovely, isn't it? That's OK. I know it's atrocious. You can laugh. But you can't have any. Despite it's appearance it was quite tasty, so I'm not sharing the leftovers.

So how did this cake go so horribly wrong?

Well, really, the cake itself is not to blame, but as seems to often be the case, it was the glaze that did me in. (If you don't believe me about this being where cakes often go wrong, you really should check out Cake Wrecks, a blog that I read for fun.)

As the cake baked, I whipped up the the 3-ingredient glaze according to instructions. Only it was white, and I thought it would be oh-so-much more lovely if it was yellow, since the cake is lemon. In my mind I imagined my cake would be just as tasty and even more beautiful than the to-die-for lemon cake from C*stco.

So I got out the food coloring paste, only I forgot how potent that stuff was, and my glaze suddenly became a color only a preschooler could love. No problem. Recipes never have enough frosting anyway, so I decided I would just double glaze and not add any more food coloring. Well, obviously that didn't really solve my problem. Too late now. I was out of lemon juice, so couldn't attempt a third batch of glaze.

The cake finally came out of the oven, and only broke a little when I turned it out of the bundt pan. No biggie, that's what the glaze is for, to cover up the little dents in the cake. Yeah, right. This glaze being on the thin side, it hid nothing and instead magnified the dents. And it started hardening kind of quickly, effecting the gloppy clumpy look. At one point the center of the bundt was filled with glaze (remember, double batch?) and I scooped it out with a gravy ladle to drown the outer visible portion of the cake.

Like I said, at least it tasted good. Let's just hope this is not representative of what's to come in 2009.
-- Originally posted at: http://rebeccasmiscellanies.blogspot.com/

Just a Little Christmas Fun

One of my friends sent this list as an e-mail, and I decided to post my answers just for fun. After all, one must have a little fun on Christmas!

(E-mail directions.) Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your friends. Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not to be a SCROOGE!!! Just copy the list of questions into a new e-mail and change all the answers so that they apply to you. Then send this to a whole bunch of people you know, INCLUDING the person that sent it to you… ‘Tis the season to be NICE!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
A mix, but I definitely appreciate the convenience of gift bags.
2. Real tree or artificial?
Artificial, with a nice evergreen candle burning in the room.
3. When do you put up the tree?
Whenever I get around to it.
4. When do you take the tree down?
See answer to #3
5. Do you like egg nog?
Nope. Every year I try it thinking maybe this will be the year I like it, but so far, it hasn't happened for me. So also no for eggnog shakes and Starbucks' eggnog lattes.
6. Favorite gift received as a child?
Lite Brite
7. Do you have a nativity scene?
No
8. Hardest person to buy for?
Dad or Brother
9. Easiest person to buy for?
Mom
10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Mail
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Can't think of anything so terrible that it bears mentioning for this question.
12. Favorite Christmas Movie?
It's a Wonderful Life
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
When I first spot something ideal for someone on my list, usually sometime in the summer.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Probably
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Carol's Cookies
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
Clear
17. Favorite Christmas song?
No way I could list just one....
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Stay home :)
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers?
Yes (Don't forget Rudolph!)
20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
Either
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?
Varies. This year, Christmas Eve (that's today!) My brother is a firefighter, so we open gifts whenever we can get together around his schedule.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
Buying a gift for someone when you really don't have any idea what they might like!
23. Favorite ornament theme or color?
Red & white makes a very pretty tree, but lots of my ornaments have other colors too.
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner?
Turkey with all the trimmings, basically like Thanksgiving #2.
25. What do you want for Christmas this year?
What I want: Apple iBook and iPod Nano.
What I'm going to get: No idea, but my sister-in-law has my name, so I'm sure it will be great.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Another Hero in the Family

Today, our family gathered for a special kind of going-away party. My cousin Michael decided some time ago to join the Air Force, and on Monday night he will depart for basic training. I was 12 when Mike was born, so it seems impossible that he is (already?) old enough to join the military. In truth, it is my lack of objectivity about my own age that leads to this perception.

So today, I take this opportunity to thank him for his service to my country. It is with great pride that I will say, "My cousin's in the Air Force." It is with gratitude to him and countless others who are serving and have served, that I recognize that their service is responsible for my continued freedom.

Thanks, Mike.

A day to give thanks for turkey dinner and other blessings

Today is Thankgiving, and topping my list of thanks this year is that I am currently on vacation, having a fabulous time, and so relaxed that I don't even want to think about how my vacation is closer to its end than the beginning. The vacations always go by too quickly don't they? But today is about giving thanks! So here's my stream-of-consciousness list...

* Friends, who although they live far away, remain an important part of my life and have warmly welcomed me into their homes and lives again to renew our friendship, remember the shared memories that brought us together in the first place, and celebrate the blessings in our lives today.
* My "Michigan Family" - the Hekmans - who invited me into their home as their "California daughter" for more holidays and occasions than I can count! I enjoyed a full Thanksgiving feast with ALL the trimmings at their house today: turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy, corn, and my favorite: homemade pie. Seriously homemade - crust and all. Mmmm.
* Since I now live in CA and have lost all ability to drive in snow, I am grateful for a relatively snow-free vacation!
* My rental car has leather seats and a 6-disc CD changer. Now, why you would buy an affordable car like a Ford Focus and then add bling is sort of beyond me, but I've been enjoying it. :)
* My flesh and blood family who loves me and did not have a collective cow about me missing a family holiday event while I was on vacation. I love that about them.
* Enjoying a jump start on the holiday season with some time off and relaxing shopping in some of my favorite stores. I know, I know, commercialism is not what Christmas is about... but when I walked into Pottery Barn on November 15 and there were Christmas trees and gorgeous ornaments and Christmas music, it was officially the Christmas season in my heart.
* Yesterday, Tracie and Sarah hosted a brunch for 11 women, which meant I had the chance to catch up with even more people, and enjoy some quality girl time! Tracie, thank you so much for opening your home and to both you and Sarah for all your work preparing the yummy food and doing all the planning and phone calls for that event to come together. I so much enjoyed it!!
* ... and many more.

Well, this list could be literally endless… I am so blessed. When I take time to think about it, I am overwhelmed with gratitude and am reminded that spending more time counting my blessings would be a good thing!

Ashley's Wedding

My cousin Ashley got married today!

Here's some pictures of
Mr. & Mrs. Cappelle.

Grace and Grandma

Last weekend, the Christian Reformed Churches throughout Southern California held a combined worship service to celebrate the founding of the denomination 150 years ago. I love attending events like this. I can't resist wanting to say “I was there.” I enjoy every minute of the special music, the memories shared, and simply being present as history is made. Incidentally, the worship service was held at the Crystal Cathedral, and that in itself was pretty impressive. But most special was attending this historical event with my Grandma.

Grandma is 86, and has been a member of this denomination since about 1953 when she and my grandpa packed up their four kids and immigrated to Canada from the Netherlands. You many know someone just like my Grandma – she’s the sweet little old lady with the thick Dutch accent. If you're lucky, she might be able to supply you with Mentos or Kings during that one- or two-peppermint sermon. I digress.

"Grace Through Every Generation" is the theme for this anniversary year. As I enjoy the memory of last week’s event, I need only think of being there with Grandma to recognize this theme in my own life. My faith is part of the legacy passed down to me from my parents and grandparents. Their faithfulness to God, and His to them, is a priceless gift I am blessed to share.

I've heard a number of dramatic conversion stories, but mine isn’t one of them. When I was younger, I thought my faith story was boring. When one grows up in church, the answer to "When did you become a Christian?" is ambiguous. Was it in Sunday School, when I first learned the stories of the Bible? Or at home, where devotions were read daily after dinner? How about in my years of Christian school and college, where faith permeated study of every subject? Well, yes. All of the above.

While I can’t pinpoint an exact day and time, I do know that over time their faith became my faith. More importantly, I began to see that a legacy of faith is a remarkable testimony to God’s grace in its own way. So for this, and so many other reasons, I held hands with Grandma to sing, “Oh Lord my God… how great Thou art.”