Changes in the Kitchen

As I mentioned last week, there are more changes taking place in our house. One question Pete & I are often asked is how we do everything we do. Pete is in residency, which often requires 80 or more work hours a week. I'm in grad school, take care of the house and our family schedule and such, run The Little Yellow Kitchen, and am on leadership with our Mops group. Together, Pete and I teach the six-week premarital counseling class at our church a couple times a year, and we regularly meet with individuals or couples to encourage and support them during challenging times. And, most importantly, we have Ella & Sam. The thing is, we love everything that we do. We flourish in times of busyness. So much can be accomplished! But two months ago I started feeling something wasn't quite right.

rose cake - most requested style

It was about that time I really started struggling to keep the house in order, something that helps me feel that this home is a place of rest rather than a cube of anxiety. I couldn't keep up on laundry or dishes or the mail. I was constantly rushing from place to place and had a hard time focusing on class work when I really needed to. I felt awful when I would forget to return phone calls or emails. And then I got sick. And when mama gets sick, everything stops.

very first batch of cupcakes - August 2010

I had a lot of time to think during my week in the hospital. I couldn't do anything at all. Even writing a simple two-sentence text to my sister was a challenge because my meds made me so tired. It was during that time that I had the first quiet opportunity in a long time to reflect and to ask God what he thought of my life. I don't think that he thought I was way out of line or deliberately ignoring him in any way. But I did feel like he was telling me he has something better for me. And then I remembered the concept of margin.

Margin was something that come up in a book I read while studying with a group at our church last year. You know, like the margins on a piece of paper or along the edge of a page in a book. The margin is blank, empty space. Having margin in life means we have time to breathe, time to soak up the good stuff all around us, and time to simply rest. I went back to the book (The Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith) and read the chapter on margin. Three sentences really stood out to me.

When we lack margin, it's our own doing and a sure sign we have stepped outside the kingdom. So be honest and be ruthless with your schedule. Your spiritual, relational, and physical health depend on it.  (Smith, p 130)

This hit me. My crazy full schedule really was my own doing. It was all great stuff, but I know from plenty of personal experience that even if things are good, they aren't nearly as amazing as what God has for me. I really don't want to be outside his kingdom. After praying about it and talking with Pete, I started to realize that, yes, God has better things for me if I follow his direction and make more room in my life.

first fondant designed cake - my favorite

And so, with a full and content heart, but a little sadness as well, I am announcing that I will be closing The Little Yellow Kitchen at the end of December. I have absolutely loved seeing this little hobby turned business take off through the past two years. I'm so glad I seized the opportunity to go after it and see what I could do with my baking. With each project I completed, I was amazed and pleased that I could create something so beautiful. It was fun being a part of so many weddings and parties, special events that people remember for a lifetime. It's been wonderful, and I truly do feel ready to set it aside for now.

My hope is that I won't fill the space with busyness. Instead, I want to slow things down and enjoy small moments. I want to sit and eat lunches with Ella in the nook and focus on Sam's development as he grows. I want margin to be a real thing in my days and to continue to seek God's guidance for what it is he has for me.

first wedding - for my cousin

So farewell, Little Yellow Kitchen. Thank you all for making the kitchen such a special place. It has been a dream. 

Mug Winner!

Oh, my friends, I am so very, very tired. I catered two amazing weddings this weekend. Both couples went through the Fully Engaged premarital counseling course that Pete & I teach at our church. I would love to tell you more about the weddings and the couples, but I'm not even thinking straight right now. My eyes are half open as I click, click, click across the keyboard. (I did up my nails yesterday to feel extra girly at the weddings and for my birthday, which presents a challenge in typing. I've even found it makes texting a bit ridiculous. These glam nails may not last much longer.) Even though I'm so tired, I wanted to announce the winner of The Little Yellow Kitchen mug giveaway tonight.

So here it goes! I made a list with numbers in the order of those who commented and then added numbers for those following. I came up with 21 entries and plugged it in to the True Random Number Generator (so fancy!) and came up with ...

Number 17 was Lexie! 

Yay, Lexie! You'll be getting your very own Little Yellow Kitchen mug in the mail shortly. I hope you like it! Thanks to everyone who left a comment. It was fun hearing about your favorite cakes and the stories behind them.

I'm off to sew capes to costumes and get ready for the big walk tomorrow. So excited! It's going to be a big day!

The Countdown Begins {and Giveaway}

We're only five days away from Sammy's very first Step Up for Down Syndrome Walk! FIVE DAYS! We've been absolutely amazed at the support that has rolled in through the last two months. You can see on our sidebar widget that we're about 80% of the way to our goal of $2,000. I still can't believe we were able to dream of hitting the $2,000 mark.

With five days remaining, I'm feeling like our goal is definitely within reach. If you've been thinking about donating but haven't done so yet, this is the time. We'd really love to have as many people a part of the team as possible. You can give anonymously if you'd like, and no amount is too small. The money goes to the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota for resources for individuals and families with Down syndrome. We have already benefited tremendously from the help they have given us during our transition to this "new normal" I talked about in Sammy's birth story. Since Sammy birth just four months ago, we've met three families here in Duluth with brand new babies who unexpectedly have Down syndrome. The resources for families are incredibly important. Thank you so much!!

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I just had an odd mama moment. I heard Ella in bed calling for me, saying, "Mama, Mama, I'm thirsty." I went up to her room with a very small glass of water, and while she drank it, I thought, how did this happen? When did I become a mama?

Do you ever catch yourself in a moment like that, feeling like it should be years earlier, a time when you couldn't even imagine what it would be like to be the keeper of a little life, let alone more than one little life? Yet when I heard Miss Ella calling for me, I knew exactly what to do and exactly what to say to her that would encourage her to go back to sleep without wanting to crawl out of her bed and see what I was doing. Sometimes I'm just amazed at what has happened on this path of life. I'm married to the most amazing man alive. (It's true. I could write a book with all the proof.) I have two beautiful babies who brighten my world countless times a day with their smiles. I love practically every part of my life (I could do without laundry) and we're on an adventure that's about to take us halfway around the world. Whoa. I can't even get my head around it.

I know this is all rather contemplative. I'm pretty sure I know what's bringing it on. In just three days I'll wrap up the first year of my thirties. Yes, it's my birthday, just around the corner, on Friday. I will be the big three one. I'm not one who hides my age when the day comes around. First of all, I know I don't look it. I hear that all the time. What? You're married? Um, yes. And I have kids. Gasp. I'm used to smiling and saying I'm older than I look. I think it's kind of funny. Second, age brings so many good things - wisdom, experience, adventure. I'll gladly take more of all of the above.

This is going to be a crazy busy week, so I want to have some blog fun just for my birthday. I was recently playing around with a few ideas and created a mug for The Little Yellow Kitchen. I just received two of them in the mail, the only two that exist, and I want to give one away! Yes, you could be the winner of the very first Yellow Kitchen mug!

To enter the giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment at the end of this blog post telling me about the best birthday cake you've ever had. Be sure to include at least your first name with your comment. I'll end the comments at midnight on Friday, select the winning post with random.org, and post the winner on Saturday. For an extra entry into the giveaway, become a follower of our blog! You can do so by clicking "Join This Site" in the column to the right. If you're already a follower, let me know in a comment. Be sure to check back Saturday to see if you've won!

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Pete just headed to the hospital for a night of baby deliveries, the little ones are sleeping soundly, and I have a list of costume ideas to put together for the walk this weekend. Sometimes these nights alone are just what a mama needs. I'm going to put in a movie and get to work.

Happy end of September!

Photo Friday: Cake!

Yesterday I had the joy of having my cakes photographed by Rachel of Rachel Lee Photography. I loved making the cakes and then stepping back to watch her find all these cool angles and lighting options in my very own kitchen and dining room. Check out a few of the photos on her blog!

Along with the great photos she captured, she's created another way to get involved with Sammy's Superheroes. All the proceeds from prints sold from our photo shoot will go directly to Sammy's team. There are some great photos with pumpkins that would be perfect for setting a fallish theme in your own kitchen or living room. She's posted all of the prints on her proof page.

 Thank you, Rachel, for the fantastic cake photos!

The Deal Went Down

Oh good heavens, I feel like I was just part of some kind of drug deal. Don't be alarmed, I haven't gone off the deep end. Here's what happened. I'm sitting at Barnes & Noble, nursing Sammy in the corner of the cafe with one hand and typing away on my thesis research with the other. Then I get a phone call. "Hello. This is Angela." The voice on the other end simply responds, "I'm here, parked out front." I tuck Sam into the stroller, slide my laptop into my bag, pick up my tea and head toward the door. As soon as I'm outside, I look for the blue Chevrolet I had been told of the night before. There it sat, at the front of the row, about 20 feet from the B&N door. I approach the car, the window is down, we look at each other knowingly. That's when the deal goes down. I pull out my money and she pulls out the goods. The exchange is made and I return to the store while she drives away. Done. Life continues.

my partner in crime

 Okay, so maybe I should share the details. Last night I found the perfect pair of mary jane shoes for Ella that I want to use in an upcoming family photo. I came across them on a classifieds page on Facebook and quickly posted "interested!" to claim them. And let me tell you, it was close. The next post was only a moment later. Another mama claimed second if I didn't end up getting them. So we decided to meet this morning in front of B&N so I could give her an entire dollar for the shoes. Yes, one dollar. Love it. But when I came back in the store with my baby and my tea, I felt a little odd. Almost like I should hold the shoes up over my head and proclaim, "They're shoes! That's all. Just shoes." Instead I got a little giddy about the great deal I got on the little black shoes for Ella. For a buck.

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Week one of class is finished of my last semester of grad school. Hence the lack of posts in the last week. It's so hard to post while I have class assignments.. and now thesis research.. hanging over me. Believe me, I would much rather write blog posts, but this is my attempt at being a very dedicated student. I'm so relieved that this is my last semester. Not that I don't enjoy it. I do. Very much. It's just that I'd like to move on with other things. It will be fantastic to have my Masters of Education when we finally head abroad and I get to teach there. (See this post for thoughts on our travels.) While we're in Duluth, I really want to focus on The Little Yellow Kitchen and see what can happen with it. I have so many dreams of stepping things up and doing more in the kitchen. I would love to expand and add my aprons and bibs to the shop, but I just don't have the time for now. Oh dreams, they can be so inspiring and somewhat frustrating all in the same moment.

new flavor: apple cinnamon cake with caramel vanilla buttercream

I'm doing my thesis on reading at a high school level. If you get me going on it, I've got a lot to say. It's fascinating and there just isn't enough research and time and money put into it. What is more important in secondary education than ensuring every high school student can read? Think about how much reading is done every hour of class. If a student can't read, there is no hope of further education beyond high school, if they can even graduate. Many can't. So that's my focus. How can teachers be better at making sure every student can read without taking them out of the regular classroom and putting them in a specialized class? So here's my working title: Teaching reading without "teaching reading": Content-area reading instruction in the mainstream classroom." For the next three months I'll be focusing on classroom observations, teacher interviews, and writing writing writing. I've got at least 35 pages written already. I'm thinking 35 more is a possibility.

Can you see why I prefer writing on the blog? I'll try to use blog posts as a break from academic writing between now and Christmas.

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We recently started the tradition of stopping at a garage sale on the way home from school on Fridays. This umbrella was Ella's big 10 cent purchase last week, though I'm not sure how it lasted the day. She insisted on having it open in the house and kept jamming it in doorways between rooms. We're working on proper umbrella etiquette.

Is it feeling like Fall where you are? It certainly is here! Today we're all sporting sweaters and cozy socks. True signs of changing seasons.

Photo Friday: The Olympics!

I love the Olympics. The hype and pride and athleticism and endless coverage of individual background stories that make a mama teary. (I'm not the only one who gets teary watching those, right?) I've been looking forward to these games for months and months, planning way last winter that I would be watching a majority of them in the air-conditioned comfort of Eli & Krista's house since we neither have air-conditioning or (even more importantly) a TV on which to watch them. Krista & I are huge Olympics fans. Therefore, we just couldn't pass up the opportunity to have a little opening ceremony party last Friday.

We sent a few texts to each other and to friends to get the party ball rolling, making it clear that everyone was expected to dress to represent an Olympic event. Immediately, I knew how I would dress the kiddos, but my own outfit was only selected about 20 minutes before leaving the house. I'll admit, the main reason for that was because so many things still don't fit this post-baby bod.

Can you tell what our little Samuel dressed as? (Hint: that's a stuffed horse next to him.)

Yes! A jockey! Our little equestrian was set to represent in a polo shirt and little cap. Isn't the cap adorable? I think it came to us in an enormous box of hand-me-downs from Jess and her boys. I want more pictures of him in it. It's so boyish!

Here it looks like Jack & Caleb might be attempting to get arm wrestling into the games. Jack (4 months) was a sailor while Caleb (11 weeks) was a swimmer.

It's just not a proper party without a cake. I have to explain the holes in the top of this one. I was practicing various wedding styles the night before and stuck a large monogram letter in the top. After the practice session was complete, I painted the Olympic rings on top, wrapped it in gold ribbon, stuck in the flag and - viola - a party cake. (chocolate with almond frosting & fondant, I think)

I ended up going as a weight lifter! I've got plenty of workout clothes, so I dug up a couple sweat bands from my running garb and lugged a set of 8-pound weights to the party. Eli was a tennis player and Krista was a biker. (The great thing about Eli's outfit? Apparently he wore that to every tennis class he had for a semester of college. Nice work.) I'm crazy about Caleb's goggles here. Ella had a pair too, but was far more interested in writing "checks" than taking a party pic.

I've been soaking in as much of the Olympic action as possible. I catch what I can online. One night I saw swimming at the hospital in an on-call resident room while Pete was working. Then we were at Grandma & Grandpa Olsen's house for a few days and I got to see a lot more. Tomorrow we'll be watching with Eli & Krista again. I would be so sad if I missed them!

I think I'd have to say that my favorite summer Olympic event is gymnastics. It's so hard to decide, though. They are all so much fun to watch, especially after learning the personal stories of the athletes.

What is your favorite summer Olympic event? I'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment below!

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Since I mentioned the practice wedding cake, here are two versions of what I made. The final cake was a lot like the bottom of the two but with higher tiers. I'll be posting the real photos soon on The Little Yellow Kitchen website.

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I did something crazy this week...I joined Twitter! It's actually been a really fun way to stay up on all the Olympic action, seeing pics and getting results right after things happen. I've also found some cool people to follow, like other parents of kids with Down syndrome and cute boutique shops. I'm still figuring out how it all works, but if you're on Twitter, look me up! I'm @OlsenAngela.

Photo Friday: A Hobbity Celebration

I was looking way back through some old posts I never published and came across these photos from nearly one entire year ago. My brother, Jake, was celebrating turning a quarter of a century and did so in unique style.

Enter...the Hobbit.

 

Hobbits come in all sizes. Here, Miss Malena Hobbit with her Uncle.

Hobbits are known for the large, hairy feet, yes?

 

 Ella Hobbit wanted the proper foot look, too.

The Mama Hobbit (yes, I got to be a hobbit, too) made these capes for Malena & Ella Hobbit the day of the party.

I also tried my hand at my second fondant cake. This entirely edible little hobbit house remains my favorite of all cakes I've made.

A celebration in the style of the hobbit is not complete without pipes and large mugs of beer, cheerful lighting and whimsical music. All was in abundance the night we celebrated Uncle Jake's 25th.

Making It Official

Big, big news from The Little Yellow Kitchen! For the past 12 months I've been working on getting things in order to make sure I'm doing everything legally in the kitchen. It was actually more work and time than I had anticipated, mostly because I had classes, Ella, and zero motivation the entire first trimester of my pregnancy. Just trying to find a kitchen to work in was an enormous feat. Everywhere I looked for advice online suggested working in a church kitchen, but all of the churches I called said no due to tax issues. Eventually, a friend suggested I talk to the Youth for Christ team at The Encounter building downtown. They've been great! A lease was created, hours set, kitchen storage space cleared, and a trial run completed. After the lease went through, I contacted a gentleman with the State who checked out the kitchen and made it official. I'm thrilled to announce that The Little Yellow Kitchen is now completely licensed and insured!

What does that mean? How is it different than before I was licensed? Well, now I get to basically do whatever I want with my baking. In the state of Minnesota, it's not legal to bake and sell right out of your kitchen. People do it, just like I did, and keep things simple. However, most big venues for parties and weddings require all vendors have a license. Also, it's always a possibility that competing shops or regular people could report the home-kitchen work, which would bring on a fine. Another big aspect of licensing is that without it, a business can't advertise. I haven't done any advertising, but I do have a website, and I think that falls under the same umbrella. But now it's not an issue! No worries and freedom to move things forward. I really don't know how far I'll take this little business, but at least I have the peace of mind that I'm doing things legally and professionally.

 This week I'm moving everything into the kitchen downtown. It's not a store front, but wouldn't it be cool to have one eventually? More dreaming. This is just a licensed space where I can do all of my baking and decorating. One down side to having to bake there is that I now have to have child care during baking hours. The upside is pretty much the same. I have to have child care, which means I'll be able to work much, much faster. I'm pretty excited about the enormous stainless steel work table I'll be using. What a dream! And my kitchen at home won't be quite as cluttered with baking supplies.

What's coming up in The Kitchen? This weekend I have a small wedding reception. Then I have a couple tastings with couples who would like me to do their weddings. Tastings are one of my favorite things lately. It's so much fun to dream with brides and grooms as they plan their wedding. After the wedding this weekend, I think I have five more through September. I'll also be doing a few adorable cakes for birthday parties and, of course, plenty of cupcakes. Yum.

Be sure to check out The Little Yellow Kitchen's website for lots of photos and updates!

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Speaking of weddings, I had the enormous privilege of providing the sugar for my cousin's wedding this past weekend near Park Rapids. I've watched Elliot grow from an adorable little boy to a confident, handsome young man who will be starting medical school next month. His lovely bride, Kirsten, just received her RN degree and has already found a nursing job in the city where Elliot will be in school. Besides providing the cakes, the event was special since it also happened to be our own five year anniversary. It's fun to think that Pete was in a very similar situation with med school when we got married. July 7. It's a good day for a wedding!

Mr & Mrs

exploring before the ceremony - Maira, Ella, Malena

at a beautiful golf course

nicely done, Uncle Jake

Ella loving Cousin Megan's bouquet

Mama Bex & the girls

introducing Sammy to my grandma

four generations

fun on the dance floor - Nana Scott, Ella, Uncle Mike, Maira, Mama Bex

a photo from our own wedding 5 years ago

Photo Friday: Making of the Globe Cake

Two weeks ago I made a cake unlike any I've made before. It was a globe cake for a 90th birthday celebration and the first round cake I've created. I think it consisted of five layers of cake with raspberry buttercream between each. Then I covered the entire thing in buttercream.

Next, I rolled out the fondant, which I wanted to look a bit like water. Fondant comes in a block, which I then dye with special food dye gel and roll flat.

Once the blue fondant was on the cake, I needed to place the continents. This was the most time consuming part. I pinned the papers into place and drew outlines to get an idea of exactly how they would fit in the end.

After I had the continent outlines on paper, I cut them into green fondant, attaching them temporarily with pins and then permanently with water.

Finally, I added all the little details. I made an airplane for the top and a banner to fly behind it. I also painted and highlighted the continents.

This was one fun cake to make!