pleasure in simple things

little cakes with big attitudes

June 21, 2013

Do you like cupcakes? For the second time, a Connecticut team won the top prize on the Food Network show Cupcake Wars.

SuzieCakes of Milford won the top prize of $1,000 and the opportunity to make 1,000 cupcakes for a Hollywood inspired poker party!

The bestselling “All About Ethel” cupcake at SuzieCakes in Milford, Connecticut, winners of Food Network’s Cupcake Wars.

Cousins Sue Schowerer and Darlene Delaney are the owners that create “little cakes with big attitudes” at the newly opened shop on River Street and I ~~wanted~~ needed to check it out!

After seeing the episode featuring the Connecticut store, I knew I had to feature it on a Friday field trip. Of course, this required tasting some of the products!

I sampled five different varieties, including the top seller inspired by the show I Love Lucy. Seeing themselves as a modern day Lucy and Ethel, Sue and Darlene named their bestselling cupcake “All About Ethel.” This tribute to Ethel Mertz is a chocolate cake filled with peanut butter mousse, topped with chocolate mascarpone frosting, and finished off with a mini peanut butter cup. Intense!

But, my favorite was a different chocolate and peanut butter creation called “Mail Guy.” A chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and caramel drizzle garnished with a chocolate dipped pretzel and crunchy pretzel salt.

The shop features some of their most popular flavors on a daily basis, but also rotates additional flavors each day. I decided I need to go back on a Wednesday to try a “Rosie.” This is a pistachio and rosewater cupcake with rosewater buttercream, custard filling, dark honey/vanilla buttercream and crushed pistachios on top. Sounds wonderful! If you find yourself in the vicinity of Milford, the shop is definitely worth an exploratory visit. ;) Bet you can’t try just one!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you enjoyed Friday field trip to Cupcake Wars winner SuzieCakes in Milford, Connecticut.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things and have a wonderful weekend, Jackie

Sharing at The Tablescaper, and Crafts a la mode.

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got nuts?

June 18, 2013

For a friend’s birthday, I wanted to give her a little something acknowledging her squirrel obsession.

Inspired by many jars I have seen across the internet, I decided to find a plastic squirrel to affix to a jar to make a birthday gift.

To make something similar for a friend or as a party favor, decide on something to fit an obsession or theme and purchase a toy version at a craft or dollar store.

For myself I would have chosen a mermaid or something sea inspired ;)

Once I found the squirrel, I glued the figure onto a jar rescued from the recycling bin. After the glue dried, I spray painted the jar top…figure and all. I know the brown I chose isn’t a very summery choice, but I wanted to match the décor of the recipient. Chalkboard paint would have been a fun option as well -“got nuts?” could have been written right on the lid with chalk.

There are so many fun alternative ideas for this gift. I know exactly what I would have made for my son if he were still small…I would have used an army man, painted the top with olive drab, and wrote “got ammo?”, filling the jar with water balloon ‘grenades.’ Or, I could have addressed his childhood train obsession and put a train on the lid top. Of course, the contents would have to be bubble gum so I could write “got choo?” A perfect choice for a train themed party favor!

Other ideas? A shark on top with gummy fish…“got fish?” A fish on top with gummy worms… “got worms?” A baseball player with sunflower seeds…”got seeds?” …come up with some using your favorite theme or obsession.

I decided to tie the “got nuts?” message onto the jar so it could be removed, but you can use whatever you prefer. A chalkboard label on the side of the jar is a cute option. Or, even etching cream … etch the words onto the side of the jar for an elegant look.

I filled the jar with peanuts and it is good to go. A perfect ‘little something’ designed specifically for the recipient.

Can’t understand a squirrel obsession? Does this National Geographic photo I found on the web change your mind?

See more examples of squirrel cuteness I found across the web on my Facebook page by clicking here.

I hope you will use this tutorial as inspiration to come up with your own gift creation! Thanks so much for visiting.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing at Better With Age and Craftberry Bush.

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but i don’t care for roses…

June 14, 2013

A rose has never been my favorite flower. When all my friends would hope for a dozen roses on Valentine’s Day, I was wishing for an arrangement of many different varieties of flowers – all white. Or, a single variety of something unique or exotic.

So, when a friend suggested I visit the rose garden in bloom at Boothe Memorial Park in Stratford, the idea of making the trip was met by me with lukewarm enthusiasm. Not one to dismiss new experiences, I decided to surrender a little bit of my time to the roses in bloom.

Today’s Friday field trip is a visit to this rose garden. And, with hundreds of different types of roses represented, it was really hard to edit my photos to just a few representations. The weather had been very rainy and I was lucky to time my visit between a series of rainfalls. I thought the weather actually added character to the photos, although an excursion like this really makes me yearn for a good camera. (hint, hint Santa!)

Enjoy our little stroll through the garden…

And yes, I did change my mind a little on the roses…still not my favorite, but I definitely have a new respect for them after this experience…hard not to, right?

I hope you enjoyed sharing the Boothe Memorial Park rose garden with me. We even happened upon a lovely volunteer caretaker during our trip :)

I will be posting more photos from the Boothe Memorial Park rose garden on my Facebook page in the coming days…please ‘like’ my page if you haven’t already and please feel free to share any rose experiences! Also, please feel free to ‘pin’ any photos you like :)

Have a wonderful weekend. Thanks so much for visiting.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing at Mona’s Picturesque, Little Red House, and The Tablescaper.

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diy patriotic spoons

June 11, 2013

We make a lot of hand churned ice cream in my family and the batches are huge…so, ultimately we eat a lot of ice cream also. A really fun thing to do when serving ice-cream, particularly at the beach, is to decorate disposable spoons for the occasion. This is a fun and easy way to add a festive spirit to your beach or yard get together.

For our upcoming Fourth of July bash on the beach, spoons of the patriotic variety are in order!

I am providing some easy DIY directions for you to make patriotic spoons, but there are so many more ways you can personalize spoons with your own colors or themes just by using different colors, motifs, or letters…so be sure to experiment!

Here are the supplies my project required:

disposable wooden spoons*
permanent stamp pad ink in red and blue
a sponge cut into a thin rectangle, approximately ½” wide and at least 1” long
a pencil with an unused eraser
an X-Acto knife
natural twine
red & white baker’s twine
glue

I used the X-Acto knife to very carefully cut a star shape into the eraser of the pencil to use as a stamp. Then I cut a strip of sponge ½’ wide to use as my stripe stamp.

These two stamps will serve as the way to imprint the stars and stripes on the handles of my spoons.

Using the stamp pad ink, I added the stripes and stars to the spoons using my stamps. Using permanent ink ensures the ink doesn’t come off on hands or clothes should the spoon handles get wet.

Striped disposable spoons are easy to make and give a festive flair to any get together!

For a fun addition, I added some twine “finger grips” to some of the spoons by simply wrapping twine around the spoon a few times – adding a dot of glue on the beginning and ending spot of the twine.

That’s it! Easy, right? And so cute! They are hard to throw away!

Going back for seconds on the ice-cream? Don’t want to lose a favorite spoon? You can always wear your spoon as a necklace ; ) … just add some extra twine! Problem solved.

Hope you enjoyed this easy tutorial on making patriotic spoons for your Fourth of July shindig! You can easily make up some forks and knives also!

*P.S. I get my spoons at Garnish.

Thanks so much for visiting! Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing at City Farmhouse, The Shabby Nest, Finding Silver Pennies, and Craftberry Bush.

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celebs writing books

June 7, 2013

Last week I attended the Book Expo America in New York City. I will be reviewing some of the wonderful books I discovered on upcoming posts, but for Friday field trip this week, I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the celebrities that attended the event to promote their books. Much to my pleasure, some celebrity chefs were represented, as you can see by the photo above of Giada De Laurentiis. You probably already know I am a big Food Network fan by my visit to the ‘sacred ground’…a tour of Food Network…or, by my sharing of Bobby Flay’s Vanilla Bean Bourbon Milkshake recipe…so I was one happy camper to have the opportunity to meet some Food Network chefs while attending the Book Expo America!

Giada wrote a delightful new young readers series called Recipe for Adventure available in September 2013. I read the Naples! edition and it is a wonderful story…incorporating foods and adventure and even some recipe cards! A really awesome gift for any young readers on your holiday gift list this year!

I have attended more basketball games in my life than I could ever count, and certainly more than any other sport…So, it was a thrill for me to get the chance to talk to basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and to shake the hand that sunk enough balls to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer…the hand that shot the infamous ‘sky-hook.’ Like Giada, he too wrote a book for a young audience. Already a best-selling author, the title of his newest book Sasquatch in the Paint is aimed at readers 8 to 12 years old and is loosely based on challenges he faced while growing up.

Chelsea Handler’s newest book is titled Uganada Be Kidding Me. Described as a travelogue, it is due out in October.

Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi of Jersey Shore fame wrote Baby Bumps: From Party Girl to Proud Mama, and all the Messy Milestones Along the Way due out in January 2014.

Debra Messing narrated the book The Little Red Hen due out in the fall. (I love that this beautiful redhead narrated The Little ‘Red’ Hen!) You go on to bigger and better things Debra, but you will always be Grace to me! A truly lovely person.

Paula and I did not discuss the cookbook she has coming out in October: Paula Deen’s New Testament – we talked about our kids! My admiration for her connection with her sons ensued a discussion of relationships with our children. I know she has a really big personality, but I don’t think on television you can appreciate what a beautiful woman she is…she is stunning!

This guy attracted an awful lot of attention! I was wondering what type of book Jim Carrey would write…a children’s book seems appropriate for this comedian and his new picture book looks to be as fun as he is! Wonderfully illustrated, the book is about a wave named Roland and is titled How Roland Rolls. This is an excerpt from a letter Jim Carrey posted on the book’s website – written to the parents of children reading his book: “I wrote How Roland Rolls specifically as a way for parents and grandparents to enjoy some quality hang-time. I hope the message of the story will help them feel connected, worthwhile, and a part of something vast and grand.”

Another basketball legend I was honored to meet! John Stockton played point guard for the Utah Jazz for 19 seasons and had an amazing career – playing on a team that never missed the playoffs while he was on it! In my opinion, he is also part of the reason people know the name Gonzaga! He is an all-around nice guy and I am excited about his new autobiography Assisted that shares glimpses of his personal life as well as his amazing basketball career.

My discussion with this gal started out about Alec Baldwin, but we did discuss the premise of her new children’s book, which I totally fell in love with! My Mom is a Foreigner, But Not to Me addresses the experience of growing up with a mom from another country. Like in her Freckleface Strawberry books, Julianne Moore writes from experience, which helps her books ring true with her young readers. I see this as an important book for youngsters.

Former Presidential Candidate’s wife Ann Romney was on hand to share some recipes from her new cookbook coming out this fall, The Romney Family Table.

Fellow Food Network fans will recognize ‘Rock Star’ Anne Burrell. Anne has a follow-up to her bestselling debut cookbook called Own Your Kitchen: Recipes to Inspire & Empower that is expected for release in October.

T. Colin Campbell has written a newly released book Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition. Dr. Campbell is featured in the documentary Forks Over Knives: How a Plant-Based Diet Can Save America and is co-author of The China Study. I have been strongly impacted by Dr. Campbell and his research since I saw Forks Over Knives and I am looking forward to reading his latest book.

This celebrity may not be as familiar to you, but I had to add him in my collection of celebrities since meeting illustrator Lorenzo Mattotti was a big deal to me. Highly acclaimed in the art world and a creator of comics, painting, and illustration, Lorenzo Mattotti actually illustrated something for me on the spot when I met him…so cool!

I hope you enjoyed checking out some of the celebrities that attended the 2013 Book Expo America on this week’s Friday field trip.

Have a wonderful weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing at The Tablescaper and A Pinch of Joy.

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monogrammed shell package tie-on

June 4, 2013

‘Tis the season for gift giving. I know it is not December, but I find this time of year requires more presents than the holidays! There are so many showers, weddings, and other festive occasions.

I have the uncanny ability to turn any gift-giving opportunity into a ‘beachy’ moment. This summer I am truly in my element since I am invited to several beach-themed bridal showers. For one of the showers, I created a simple, diy package tie-on using a couple of shells, a little bling, and some twine…easy and elegant!

Find or purchase two shells that you like and coordinate well with the item you are using them with. The first thing to do is to put a couple holes in the top of each shell. You may want to have a couple extra shells on hand in case this part of the process should offer up any complications…aka break the shell. I am lucky enough to have a friend that has a dremel tool that can help me out with projects like this. Using a dremel with water is the optimum way to go if you make holes in alot of beach finds! If you don’t have this type of tool or can’t borrow one, you can use a nail, but there is a higher chance of cracking or breaking the shell. You can get by with one hole in each shell…for my application, I found that the shells hung better with the two holes.

You have seen me use chalkboard paint to write on the inside of shells…this time I wanted something more elegant, so I am using self-adhesive rhinestones that I bought at a craft store. It is really easy. Using tweezers, I just attached the rhinestones one at a time onto the inside of the shells in the shape of the the initials of the future bride and groom. The rhinestones are inexpensive and go a long way…I still have some left from my Easter egg decorating!

I am using my tie-on on a tote bag, so I used twine to tie a shell on each end and placed it around the handle of the bag as an alternative to monogramming the tote. (The rest of the gift will be shared on a future post.) So sweet! A wonderful way to make a gift for a special couple truly special!

I hope you can use this idea and make some monogrammed seashells for one of your special bridal shower gifts this summer!

Thanks so much for visiting! Please take a moment to click ‘like’ on my Facebook page and if you use Instagram, please click ‘follow.’ for more sharing!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing at Craftberry Bush, City Farmhouse, A Pinch of Joy and Coastal Charm.

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monthly book giveaway for june!

May 31, 2013

author conor grennan

Congratulations to May’s winners Lenny, Angela, and Betty! You will each receive a signed copy of last month’s selection A Diary of Healing, My Intense and Meaningful Life with Cancer written by Mary Ann Wasil. I know you will enjoy this heartfelt memoir.

Now, on to June’s selection. Since it is the last day of the month, this week’s Friday field trip will be to visit the author of June’s giveaway book…

I meet a lot of authors. And, once in a while I have an admiration for an author apart from an appreciation for his/her writing. This month’s author is one of those cases. His name is Conor Grennan and he is from my home state of Connecticut and a NY Times bestselling author.

I got the opportunity to talk with Conor on several occasions when his book Little Princes: One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal was chosen as a town read selection in a nearby town. He not only made an appearance at the town library, but also talked with the town in a couple of Skype sessions. In my estimation, when a town chooses an author’s book for a town read, the author can’t help but develop a special bond with the readers. The entire town, after all, is embracing his/her labor of love! I am not sure if that was the reason for my immediate admiration for Conor or if it was his genuine nature and old-school values. In any case, I liked him instantly. He also has a wonderful sense of humor for the everyday, which you may know if you have read his posts on Huffington Post or follow him on Facebook.

At 29 years old, Conor Grennan decided to spend a year traveling the world, beginning with three months as a volunteer at an orphanage in Nepal. After arriving at the orphanage, Conor soon discovers that the children are not orphans, but had been taken from their families by child traffickers. And what starts as a volunteer assignment to help legitimize a trip traveling the world turns into an experience that shapes Conor’s life…as well as the lives of the families he reunites.

Little Princes is a true-life story documenting Conor’s experience and demonstrates how one man can truly make a difference. It is a remarkably inspirational memoir that is sure to captivate. A signed copy of the book will be given away randomly at the end of the month. Just leave a comment to win! Good luck!

Thank you so much for visiting!

Have a fabulous weekend, Jackie Instagram users, please read on…

In an attempt to promote some sharing on Instagram, I am posting prompts for each month…share one day or every day! Just add #pleasuregram:) to your photo! I put the :) on the end to be sure our hashtag is totally unique! Have fun with it! Here are the June prompts:

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homemade nautical gift wrap

May 28, 2013

Do you want to create some gift wrap? A nautical design? A certain color scheme? Done, done, and…done! All easily accomplished with kraft paper.

I have a thing for brown kraft paper…I admit it.

I love the way it looks and it is just so versatile. I actually have two commercial size rolls housed in my basement as you read this.

I recently created some gift wrap using kraft paper for a beach-themed shower coming up and thought I would show you how easy it is to create.

The supplies needed to create this anchor patterned gift wrap:

kraft paper cut to the size(s) needed for the gift(s) you are wrapping
off-white (or desired color) acrylic paint
anchor (or desired motif) shaped sponge*
ultra fine point black permanent maker

*Note: You can use a precut sponge or cut one yourself. Popular shapes are available precut at craft stores. If you want an unusual shape, you may need to cut the sponge yourself. (I once wanted one in the shape of the Tin Man for a Wizard of Oz party theme – needless to say, I had to cut it myself – I still have it though, if you should ever have the need to borrow it!)

Directions: Cover one side of the (moistened) sponge with paint and blot onto a paper towel. Press lightly onto the kraft paper to print the design. Continue to print the motif in the pattern desired on the paper, filling the sponge with paint as needed. After letting the paint dry thoroughly, outline (messily) each anchor design with the marker.

You are ready to use your paper as gift wrap! Just tie with some twine, rope, or raffia and you are good to go! You can also add a starfish or some other ‘beachy’ item if you are so inclined.

Hope you enjoyed this simple kraft paper gift wrap tutorial. One of the many great ways to use kraft paper! Use the motif and color you desire and have fun with it!

Ahoy & happy giving!

Thanks for visiting, Jackie

Sharing at Coastal Charm, Pinch of Joy, and Craftberry Bush.

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congratulations 2013 graduates!

May 24, 2013

A great thing about living in Connecticut is the large number of colleges and universities located here. It is so easy to frequent great libraries, lectures, author appearances, performances of all types, art exhibits, museums, sporting events, etc. because of the easy accessibility to so many institutions of higher learning.

This past weekend may have been one of the times where living near so many schools had a down side…traffic in Connecticut was made worse by all the graduations across the state. If you were lucky, you weren’t on the Merritt Parkway or Interstate 95 at the time any of the many ceremonies were concluding!

Congratulations to all the 2013 graduates and their families!

In the spirit of celebrating academia, and in tribute to all the 2013 graduates and their families, for today’s Friday field trip, I am sharing some of the beauty I find at Connecticut schools…all are photos I have taken within the past month on a Connecticut campus…there is so much beauty, it was hard to choose just a few photos! Enjoy!

And, for those of you welcoming home a college student for the summer, you may enjoy these Five Tips for Surviving Summer with Your College Student Home from the archives. Good luck!

Sorry I couldn’t get all the campuses in! Please feel welcome to share your favorite college campus photo on my facebook page.

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little cakes with big attitudes

got nuts?

but i don’t care for roses…

diy patriotic spoons

celebs writing books

monogrammed shell package tie-on

monthly book giveaway for june!

homemade nautical gift wrap

congratulations 2013 graduates!

thoughts and prayers to moore