paintings of the week

2 are from 2 weeks ago but I never posted them -oops! My friend d was telling me how much she missed some of my traditional pieces so maybe I'll stop and do an impressionistic series for old times sake.

nothing says general conference like...

AND

I love conference weekend. I know all of you not of my faith, think we are crazy because our church is 3 hours long each week. You must think I am even crazier when I say my favorite thing is every spring and fall when we have our general conference broadcast from salt lake when we get 8 hrs of talks over 2 days!

I just love being together. It is nice to have a day with no responsibilities, no classes to teach, meetings to go to, no stress of getting everyone up and dressed and out the door right on time. I love listening to wise words...and feasting on scrumptious foods all weekend!

1. a living prophet

2. inspiring talks

3. hangin' with my boys

you caught me with curlers in my hair

actually my neighbors have actually seen me with curlers in my hair- i am not that vain.

the time has come for a blog makeover- yep the whole 9 yards, facial, highlights, lowlights, a snappy cut, pedicure-- so pardon it's appearance as it gets spiffied up for spring.

(okay this is so long overdue- The last time i edited my template- oh 2.5 yrs ago- back before the "layout option" on blogger when to make an changes you had to hack into your HTML code! )

Do I deprive my children?

As I picked up my 7 yo son from school today, he was walking through the rain sticking his tongue out to catch the rain drops. This is a normal enough childhood behavior but, as he got in the car I told him to be careful and step over the chocolate milk because I had just come from the local dairy.
"Oh Good," he replied sounding ever so relieved, "I was so thirsty was trying to catch the raindrops for a drink".

At least I have taught him to be resourceful.

1.nice people at our little local dairy

2. staying up late painting with friends

3.my sons firefighter raincoat

why you shouldn't clean out your van

(Interior of my van in it's previous state-- pristine, yet unprepared for mothering adventures...)

Now I know many moms feel guilt an embarrassment at the state of the interior of their vehicles. In fact my mother is appalled, that anything besides post it notes and a pen resides in my car for more than 24 hrs. But I am here to make the case against cleaning out your van because your day may go something like this... after schlepping your 3 kids to a baby well visit, you get in you car remarking how well behaved everyone was despite a brief squabble over whose coat went on which hook. You then drive home on this blustery day thinking about the remainder of the afternoon when bam! someone in front of you swerves to miss a huge object in the middle of the road- you however cannot swerve due to the short distance between you and said roadway object, car to your right and no shoulder to the left (concrete barrier)- so try as you might the only option is to go over or risk sudden death either by 55 mph collision with 55mph car or stationary concrete barrier). Such a choice unfortunately instantly shreds your tire instantly reducing you to a limping crawl. Unfortunately this occurs just before the height of rush hour on a very major roadway. Now there is no shoulder- so you eek along with hazards on and finally make your way to the median section between the road and an exit. This doesn't sound like a hugely safe location but it had to do. Now as you sit stranded with your three kids waiting for roadway assistance and your husband to come you can look around your vehicle and find things to make this unfortunate hour pass more quickly and comfortably. You can pop in a DVD (although my car is outfitted with a DVD player i am a stingy TV mom and it is only ever turned on for drives over 1 hr in duration) Pass around pretzels, dried fruit, fruit snacks, snickers anyone?- and even chug down a fruit punch drink box. Everyone can remain calm and buckled in. All the while perusing the latest Ikea wardrobe catalogue, a copy of Discover, or Ranger Rick. You can use your phone to talk with your mom about the purchasing of bulk quantities of Calrose rice. You can explore the functions of your GPS. You can catch up on a little NPR and read up on Friday's PTO bingo night. And that extra coat you have in the car will come in handy because of course the moment the tow truck guy arrives and comes to your window to talk to you is immediately after the moment in which you start nursing your crying post- immunization baby.

(Now the unexpected events not accounted for is a 2 yr old announcing he has to go potty as we were limping perilously along the shoulder) Note:add porta potty to car.

any similarities between the above episode and my day today are NOT coincidental!

We rounded out our day nicely and it ended uneventfully with ss2 changing it from his sopping clothes into a self selected outfit of camo fleece pants with a red and blue sweater vest (nothing underneath)- an outfit that would have made the village people proud. smart daddy-o dropping $250 at sears for 2 new tires while smart mama sinks into a hot bath with a handful of girl scout cookies. And as the sun sets, the smart parents draw straws over who gets the unpleasant task of diaassembling one pee-d in carseat.

moral of the story- don't clean out your car- you never know when you'll need that stuff!

My three for the day:

1. walmart fruit punch drink boxes

2. scalding hot baths

3.my sons terrible fashion choices and the comic relief it brings

36 great things about smart daddy-o

I wanted to post this last night but I was too busy watching a movie with smart daddy-o,wait strike that, too busy falling asleep while watching a movie with smart daddy-o (which i always seem to do). But here I will enumerate 36 great things about my husband (in case you don't know him well) to celebrate his turning 36 yesterday.
1. He is great delivery service.When we have little babies he goes and gets them, changes, their diapers, and brings them to me to feed them, then when i am done, I kick him (gently) and he takes them back to their cribs (no not just on holidays - every night) so I never get out of bed.
2. He makes great sour dough pancakes every sat am for breakfast
3. He sews- no he's not the project runway type and draws the line before couture fashion- he will only use his skills for the good of our home. He is known to kick out a mean pillow, curtains, or comforter. Actually I think it's the engineer in him that gets frustrated with the 3-d spatially challenged wife and figures it is easier to do it himself than try to explain it to me.
4. He is good at drawing and perspective. Even though I am the official artist of the family. (Well i guess he should be seeing as he models things in 3-D all day long) I actually con him into doing my preliminary drawings for paintings alot of the time.
5. He has patents with his name on it- yes they belong to his employer but it's fun none the less to think you did something really unique
6. He made our dining room table- it is really cool, he's even had people offer to buy it.
7. He is in charge of all things trash (part of our marital contract) and never complains.
8. He is in charge of all things cold (another part of our marital contract) (which entails alot here in New England) and never complains.
9. He is in charge of all things dirty (and yes yet another marital requirement) and never complains.
10. He gets up with our boys and lets me get more sleep, which I am not an early morning person (forever scarred by early morning seminary)- Just give me 10 more minutes which usually becomes an hour and 10 more minutes.
11. He has a great voice if you haven't heard him sing, you should.
12. He plays the guitar very nicely- couple it with the singing-and it is a treat ask him to play for you-- he hasn't been doing it much lately and I miss it.
13. He is doesn't need much to be happy- when we got married everything he owned fit in his car with room to spare- we won't take about how much i brought into the marriage- i think i brought more than he did in Christmas decorations alone.
14. He spoils me - yes yes my husband has been know to drive 15 min to friendly's to get me my favorite peanut butter cup sundaes or go downstairs and get me a sprite with a fresh lime squeezed into it simply because I asked him to.
15. He doesn't get mad- really we're both mellow people but this is a very good thing.
16. He is frugal- seriously i have to convince him to buy a new pair of shoes- i think he had to marry me or he wouldn't have anything to do with his money.
17. He supports me in the things I do- which if you know me is a lot- whether it is making cakes, doing art shows, giant pto posters, catering weddings, callings, you name it.
18. He is a good dad to our boys- and takes them places and does special stuff with them.
19. He's appreciates cultural things- I really like having a husband who doesn't find it torturous (as too many husbands do) to watch foreign films, or PBS documentaries, or Jane Austen movies.
20. He cleans the house alot, he does the lions share of dish washing at our house) and a great mopper- I have often been know to come home from an evening event and find the house 10x cleaner than when i left.
21. He lets me go on trips without complaining, when we were first married i travelled the world doing a lot of medical missions- all the while he was slogging through days of work, not i often take my boys to visit family and friends across the country- he doesn't have that much vacation time, but he still lets us go- and while we are off playing he is hard at work and footing our bills.
22. He respects me- which well if you read this you should know i am an strong woman with my own ideas but this is something he appreciates.
23. He is a good guy- now that sounds really plain but i this is actually why i married him- because if you know- you know that he really is a GOOD person and there is no better way of saying it or describing it.
24. He has this quiet chuckling laugh he makes especially when our kids do amusing things.
25. He always tries to do the right thing.
26. He rubs my feet or gives me a massage whenever i ask for it.
27. He has good thoughts and ideas.
28. He always thanks me for making dinner.
29. He is disciplined and never cops out- me I am known to use the "i'm too tired, too sick,too...something" to but he'll get up even when exhausted, has basically never taken a sick day from work- he just keeps going.
30. He tells me I look nice (well at least on sundays when I brush my hair and try to wear matching clothes).
31. He is a great swaddler- seriously he can burrito any baby. He gives any baby nurse a run for their money. although don't ask him to dress your child because for this he randomly pick items that don't match and places them on your children.
32. He perseveres without getting distracted- not me- I remember when we were dating he'd spend 8 hrs a day straight working on his Masters thesis- now if you have ever done a thesis you know this to be torture in its truest form I don't think I ever worked for 8 hrs straight on my thesis- I am way to distractable.
33. He's really cute- not that I wouldn't love him if he wasn't- but that is a nice bonus.
34. He always lets me take more than my share- of the bed, of the closet, of the bathroom counter, (I even use part of his dresser- I know I should be ashamed!)
35. He is great at cutting wedding cakes- this was a skill he aquired by default- engineer + cake baking wife= designated wedding cake cutter.
36. He is smart and works hard- this was actually why i didn't keep dating him the first time around I was 17.
37. He puts up with me!

okay and my friend LL always put three things at the bottom of her posts that she is grateful for- and I love celebrating the details of life- so i think i am going to follow suit-0 yes i am a big old copycat so my 3 for the day

1. watching shakespeare
2. my husbands pink cherry chip cake that totally reminds me of the 70's.
3. falling asleep during movies (this is actually my favorite way to fall asleep- crazy I know.)

art of the week- "green" collages

Here are some collages I did this weekend- The first I added to a pieces I started a few years ago- it reminds me of spring and bubble gum and cute clothes. Then I did the next two I am trying to decide on a new giant series for my dining room and Collage is a really fun medium and anyone can do it--I love the texture and the juxtaposition of shapes and colors. So get creative try one today these are from magazine pages (some painted), paint, tissue paper, adhesive, and varnish!

don't bring that near me it smells like ladybug

One of the great and dreadful signs of impending spring in New England is the infestation of ladybugs. Actually about 2 months ago they came out on an unseasonably warm afternoon, it was seriously akin to the plagues in Egypt, (which had Moses story been set in New England I am sure the plagues would have been ticks and mosquitoes, ladybugs and Japanese beetle bugs)- they were swarming everywhere- I remember my son dashing in from the bus- coat pulled up over his head trying to battle his way to the front door all the while being bombarded by the tiny flying beetles! I opened the door shouting to confused child to run for it- he made it over the threshold we slammed the door and stopped to breathe and take in the collateral damage over 60 lady bugs were now crawling on the inside of our entryway window). And lo the season is upon us- now let me state for the record- there are few things I truly hate- but definitely at the top of my 5 HATED THINGS is the smell of ladybugs- when I talk about this most people think I am crazy. It is a little known fact that when a ladybug feels threatened it exerts a foul smelling liquid from its legs. This my friends is the worst part of lady bug season. I am not cruel to ladybugs and actually engage my children in a humane ladybug resettlement program, they capture them by the containerful and move the stinking suckers outside. My oldest tried to create a distracting lure out of legos for them yesterday when that didn't work he moved on to a and then a slightly more forceful bionicle ball shooter to "blast them off the high parts of the window" so they would drop down to reaching length.

Now the worst part is the ladybugs favorite hangout-- my bathroom window-- they seem to prefer places that get morning sun this much I have learned (or maybe they just think I am really HOT!) Whatever the reason, they flock to this window 40 or so at a time- and this makes my bathroom stink like ladybugs! So if i smell very strongly of my favorite escada perfumes these days- it is for my own benefit to overpower the foul ladybug stench. Truly few things cause me such dismay- I remember laughing because a friend in jr. high once put down her greatest fear was... nuclear war? famine?, economic crisis? no...killer bees-- and well i guess to be honest by comparison my fear of ladybug stink is quite wimpy by comparison. I am sure my children will growing up remembering their mothers classic line "Don't bring that near me it smells like ladybug!!"

Live like there is no tomorrow

We are a very death phobic society. We don't like to grieve publicly either. If you have spent time in many other cultures you know we mourn and grieve in very different ways. Given the fact that we will all die, as will our parents, our children, our friends we are not prepared to deal with these eventualities. We have not mastered grieving, loss, and death in fact we really avoid thinking about it. Through the miracles of modern medicine we have learned to put-off death much of the time. We lack the shared experience as is the case in so many cultures where death is such an everyday occurrence. For us we often only accept death when it takes place in hospitals, when all else has failed, or nothing more can be done. It is skirted in conversations with socially appropriate euphemisms and talked about in hushed tones, or others simply avoid acknowledging it. And for those who find death upon them, we often don't do enough or the right things to help them through the very emotional and physical experience of grieving and loss.

When I was touring a hospital in Africa I went to visit the morgue. To some of you this sound grotesque. As any person living in this part of AIDS stricken Africa knows, death is a very real, everyday occurrence, and some if not, many of your friends and family members have died in your lifetime. In many cases not painless deaths, not very timely old age deaths. You have seen death in it all its unpleasantness. I was slightly hesitant to go in but I thought to really understand the"experience of so many people it was something I needed to see. It is a strong image to see a place overrun with death. One I hope NOT to forget, I know that may sound very strange but I think too often we get into our nice comfortable lives, we fail to see the things that are really out there. If we did it could change the way we think and it would change the way we live.

In a church meeting once about helping people change their patterns of behavior I said, "I think the problem is people don't see enough death". I that was probably the last thing anyone expected to hear come out of my mouth on a Sunday morning. Seeing death reminds you of your own mortality, it reminds you of the mortality of those around you. It reminds you that the time here and now is finite both for yourself and those you love. We cannot cheat death, we cannot outrun it. One day it will come and often at the most unexpected time, on the most normal of days. It will come in all its silence, its stillness, its coldness and it will end a chapter. However depressing it sounds "what if I died today, or my parent, or my child, or my friend" actually makes you live better. It makes you softer, and more deliberate. And the most painful sting in death is regret. Regret for opportunities missed.

If we lived this way we'd give more compliments, be more sincere, be less afraid to share our emotions, we'd give more of ourselves, we'd do more small simple things, we'd be more personal we'd make others laugh and smile more. Neal A Maxwell talked about living so we "touch others deeply, instead of being remembered pleasantly". This is a theme I explore in alot of my art. So today's wise words- Live like there is no tomorrow.

sorry, got this baby

To me, it's a good idea to always carry two sacks of something when you walk around. That way, if anybody says, "Hey, can you give me a hand?" You can say, "Sorry, got these sacks."
- Jack HandyThis concept rears its head often in our house- only slightly modified. When I pass off ss#3 to my husband, as I am madly trying to finish up on dinner or cleaning up from dinner, he just sort of holds him and paces back and forth from the kitchen to the family room. Last night I pointed out to him this inefficient behavior, I took this moment to clarify my expectation which is hold the baby AND help clean up. This allows me 10 minutes to appreciate using BOTH hands to complete a simple task. I repeated the above deep thoughts to smart daddy-o inserting baby for sacks as that is the case here and reminding him I can see through this little excuse. Then he asked half laughing, knowing full well he shouldn't go there. What I did in a day while holding a baby. As any mom of a young baby can attest there are maybe only 5 things or less that you do in a day while NOT holding a baby. And not only holding, but feeding no less. So of course I enumerated 50 odd tasks I completed that day while holding a baby. See no excuse!

Now on this same topic- either this is a Y-linked trait, my 2 yr old has mental telepathy, or reading SILENTLY to your baby in utero really has amazing impact, because the other week I was loading some stuff up in the car and I asked #2 to help me carry something to the basement. He ran off to the laundry room and returned with an empty old navy shopping bag on his arm and emphatically stated "sorry mom I've this bag" and proceeded down to the basement with the empty sack. I totally wished I had had the cameras rolling because it was a moment that needed to be immortalized 1. his ingenuity 2. the sheer coincidence of this behavior to his mothers beloved deep thoughts and 3. because I was the only one there witness it. I stood laughing and laughing, deserted and alone in my entryway still with my piles of stuff waiting to be hauled down, knowing real life was better than any SNL moment.

Is that an orange in your woods?

Oh and an lime and and apple too? Why yes, yes indeed. See I hate to waste things so if I have produce that goes bad instead of throwing it away, I chuck it into the woods behind our house. I think of it as my offering to the animals. I know many people would say I should compost, but lets face it composting stinks and I am not into things that smell. As a a mom there is enough assault on your olfactory sense everyday and I am not adding to it by choice. And truth be told there is something liberating about hurling a semi soft apple 15 yds at a tree and watching it pulverized into juicy bits by your own brute force, (or a shrivelled lime or a orange that is rock hard or any past prime fruit for that matter but, I do have my limits, I definitely draw the line at cucumbers turned watery).
This has always been a secret behavior something I do when my kids are napping or playing in another room but the other week my son caught me headed toward the back deck with some fruit in a mesh bag. I told him what I was doing and being the lover of nature that he is was in full support and asked to be the fruit tosser. I unselfishly agreed to allow my son a turn as the fruit chucker. Well 15 minutes later I noticed something in the middle of the backyard-- there in the middle of the backyard was the whole bag of fruit- see picture to prove it. No son, not the whole bag at once, bag included. Not in the middle of the grass where the lawnmower will choke on it, and the neighbors will think us trashy--- one by one in the woods. There is an art to this. Ahh, there are many things I must still teach my young sons.

don't you love my playbook arrows...

family pictures

As a mom one of your jobs is as family historian, which means capturing images of your family periodically through out the year. However you often meet with opposition as you diligently attempt to do your duty. Somehow my children cannot be convinced that if you cooperate fully the torture will be brief. However if you withhold smiles and full attention to the photographer you will only be subjected to greater torture. I just ask that you sit or stand where I asked you to, keep your appendages close to your body,look in the general direction of the camera and have a generally pleasant look on your face. But really that is too much to ask.

We snagged the 5 min. prior to leaving for church today to get our first picture as a family of 5. Thanks to the auto timer setting and the help of a barstool. There is no beautiful backdrop with flowers, buds and spring greens, because while it maybe spring for the rest of you here in barren-leafless-brown-trees-still-in-the-30s-New-England we don't see those things till mid May. Any outdoor photo would entail winter coats and would looking more fitting on a Christmas card. Yes, there was bribery with Easter candy. Yes, many images were shot on the sport setting which reduces the blur for whichever child happens to be moving when the image is snapped. But alas I have done my job!

The true hallmark of these photo torture episodes is the shrewish mother barking commands like: "look at the camera" "stand up" "sit up" "put you hand here" "smile" "stop making that face". Really if you can get 2 out 3 looking in the general direction of the camera we call it a success.

Happy Easter from our family to yours!

my adoring fan

When he is not cutting butter, flushing glasses down the toilet, eating cake with a lacrosse stick, wearing your br* as a backpack, mopping the floor with flour, or stuffing as many marshmellows in his mouth as he can before you grab him, he can be very endearing. He is my most adoring fan, anytime I do a new paintings (which is almost everyday lately) he says "OOOOHHHH new paintings" or "You worked really hard mom" or "Those are nice ones" or "I like it, I like it!" So, today as I was typing my butter post he came in clutching one of my new paintings- "Mom, this is my favorite painting! It's a good one".

did you know you can cut butter with an egg slicer?

No? Neither did I, but evidently my 2 year old did. It actually slices it into tiny segments.
Moral of the story: Don't leave a stick of butter out on your counter.

painting of the day

you've heard of the running man, and the roger rabbitt...

but what about the dung beetle? my 2 year old cracks me up- I know as a 2 yr old my dancing was never intended to emulate the dung beetle!!? Is it a boy thing or have I gone terribly wrong in my parenting?

Bread: the mark of a mother

To me making bread is a hallmark of motherhood-- all truly great moms make bread. Nothing brings comfort to a home like the smell and the taste of warm freshly baked bread. And not just the throw in the bread machine kind but real by- hand- from- scratch, bread. I grind my wheat, I grind my oats, I take off my wedding rings and knead it by hand. I use the same kind of mixer the women in my family have used to make bread for 4 generations. I like making bread because it is a tradition that transcends time and cultures- all around the world for thousands of years women have made bread for their families. In times of sorrow and celebration, in times of sickness and health. It is what sustains people in the most meager times. In my book, Bread is personal, bread is sincere, bread is intimate. It is reserved for special people. People who care for me, people who serve me, people I love, people I want to comfort. Quite honestly I will make cookies for anyone, but not bread.

All the great bread making women I know have "their bread recipe"- not one from a cookbook. finding your recipe is a sort of motherhood rite of passage. I started with one recipe. It evolved to the point that it no longer resembles the original recipe and I call it my own.

I became a true bread maker during one of the most challenging seasons of my life- the 3 yr span in between my first two boys when I had 7 miscarriages. I think I made bread to comfort, to care, for myself during a very lonely time. I often made my bread for my doctors, who saw more times than either of us can possible count. All of us struggling to figure out why at three months, after weeks of perfect normalcy, the ultrasound screen would yield only deafening silence and stillness. The whole sequence played over and over again like a video loop. Probably in some deep subconscious way, by giving this personal feeble offering, I was trying to bargain with God to show my sincerity, my deservingness as a mother. That somehow that in these acts of giving I might receive that one thing I was desperate for. Just as the recipe changed and no longer resembles its original, those years profoundly changed me, I lost the blissful ignorance, innocence of motherhood and childbearing and came through the other side as a stronger woman with the deepest love a mother forged in fire and tears.

So my bread comes with history, a very personal history, which I probably why I share it guardedly. As much as I hate the crumbs on the counter, few things make me feel more like a great mother than to hear my children cheer when I tell them I am making "my" bread. So if you haven't become a bread maker yet, I will offer you my recipe as a stepping stone to create your very own signature homemade bread.

Leslie's Homemade Bread
3 c. hot water
1Tbsp. salt
1/4 c. oil
1 c. brown sugar
8-9 cups flour (4 c. wheat (red and white wheat combo), 2 better for bread, 2 c. oats)
2 Tbsp. yeast
1 tbsp. vital wheat gluten
1 egg

Procedure
stir water, salt, oil and br sugar together. add 4 cups wheat flour, yeast and egg. beat 4-5 minutes . add 2 cups oat flour (take oats pulverize in blender to make oat flour). mix well- add remaining bfb flour and gluten. knead 10 minutes. place in grease bowl and cover with towel - let rise in warm spot until dbl. punch down divide into three loaves, roll out and form loaves. Let rise again until dbl in pans. bake 35 mins at 325.

7th belated Star Wars birthday party

Another birthday party done! No, none of my kids are born in march but December was a bad month for us and it took the 2 succeeding months to get back on my game-- which brings us to last night. It is a great feeling when you have pulled off a major venture and today I am basking in post party relief. I am a big fan of the homemade party- anyone can spend hundreds to rent a place and buy a cake but "cool moms make it from scratch". I also firmly believe in the mantra "having fun doesn't have to cost alot of $". So for those of you on a budget I will break it down for you for a complete fun stars wars evening party at home for 7 seven year olds for $72.

The sequence of events:
1. "droid and speeder building with legos"- basically free play with the the giant underbed bins we have filled with legos. They were so into this I could barely break them away for the rest of the party. Cost= free (recycled use of Christmas presents- LOL) We took pictures of all the kids with their creations! Here is SS#1 with his speeder 2. "refreshment at Mos Eisely Cantina"- aka pizza and drinks, paper goods. cost=$20.00
3. "galactic creations"- acrylic paintings on black canvasboards cost =$5.00
4. "yodas swamp relay" think 2 room obstacle course/relay in the dark with glow in the dark bracelets complete with light saber battling (pvc pipe covered with 1/2 pool noodle and duct tape wrapped handle for each child) cost=$9 here is ss#1 pre party in part of yodas swamp
5. "festive celebration"- homemade R2D2 cake (here is a link to my how to make r2d2 cake tutorial) with marshmallow fondant and ice cream, opening presents. cost=$10
6. "miscellaneous intergalactic atmosphere"- itunes star wars down loads (some killer disco variations included), giant Darth Vader balloon, streamers, shreds, party favors star wars sports bottles and star wars colored pencils from target one spot cost=$28

Everyone had a great time in fact none of the kids wanted to leave so I'll call it a success.

How to make an r2d2 cake

Also available the 3-D yoda cake tutorial here. A small tutorial so other moms don't have to reinvent the wheel. You too, can make this R2D2 cake and probably do a better job than I did as this project did not receive my undivided attention. I was in no state for culinary perfection, I accomplished this while talking on the phone (as my friends Tamlynn and Lisette can attest), homeschooling my 7 yr old, holding my 3 mo old (in a sling) and keeping my 2 yr from destroying the house.

First I used 1 1/2 batches of my standard wedding cake recipe aka Shelah's best birthday cake recipe (which is really a poundcake) It is good because it is solid, heavy and doesn't crack and supremely tasty (my food phrase of the week). I divided the batter into 4- 6" rounds and 1 bowl with a 6" diameter, and 2 mini loaf pans. (I believe every kitchen should have the William Sonoma set of 11 glass nesting bowls!) Baked them according to recipe directions, wrapped in saran while hot, froze them. Pulled out the freezer 20 min prior to assembly. The day before I also made 1 1/2 batches of buttercream frosting and a batch of marshmallow fondant (using 2-10.5 oz bags and 6 cups of pdwr sugar) and stored them in the fridge. Create a cake base using a small metal mini pie plate and a 6" white saucer from my cupboard. Simply hot glue the metal pie pan (upside down) to the base of the saucer.

1. Frost 3-6" cakes and stack on top of each other and stack on the base(put frosting on the base so it sticks). Place the bowl shaped cake on top and frost. I stuck a bamboo skewer through the enitre assembly to secure from sliding.

2. Even loaf pans to make a flat rectangle and shape into leg shapes. Frost them.

3. Then roll out a rectangle of fondant to wrap around the metal pie pan base to make the center leg (calculate to match the size or your given base- use those HS geometry skills) then roll out fondant rectangle to cover cylinder part of r2d2 and roll out fondant and cover legs.

4. Color part of fondant gray with wilton colors. Roll out to ensure right size- drape the 6 in bowl you cooked with fondant in cut a smooth edge. Then Place circle on dome. Mix wilton silver dust with lemon extract brush over dome to make silver. Create various grills, and r2d2 droid parts and repeat silvering (use a drop of water on back of fondant to make fondant adhere to fondant)

5. Color some fondant blue using wilton colors (again make various necessary shapes- helps to have an r2d2 action figure for general reference- i did not make mine entirely accurate- i didn't have that much time or energy) create various shapes and adhere to fondant. red m&M for red light. Viola R2D2 is done

6. I made a mini cake 6" for "candles and easy party cutting". Frost with buttercream- decorate with leftover fondant to coordinate w/ r2d2.

Yield 1 R2d2 cake and 1 small cake for easy serving and candles. (you can see a close up a shot on my cake blog) Good luck!

PS If this helped you or you have in tips- do post in the comments)

tree 6, olive trees

more paintings-Reaching tree #6, Gethsemane olive trees variation for my own archival purposes- no comments required