My nephew and niece's birthdays this year called for another round of my famous (in my family, anyway) birthday cakes.


For David, I went with a Guitar Hero cake:





I had actually intended for it to look like an actual guitar, but I couldn't figure the strings out (none of the local stores had thin-enough licorice strings), so opted for the Guitar Hero look at the last minute. Of course, I didn't tell my nephew that, and he loved it.


For my niece, I had originally planned on making a cake in the shape of a tub of popcorn, since her party theme was "Hollywood." But she turned 12 this year, so I opted for making her more of a girly cake instead:





To make the star, I frosted and refrigerated the cake to firm up the frosting, then put a star decal on the top and dusted some (OK, a lot of) granulated sugar over the cake. When I removed the decal, the star shape remained. For the stars on the second cake, I melted yellow chocolate and put it in star-shaped molds. After about 15 minutes of refrigeration, I put them all over the cake. All the girls loved it.


I'm always a little sad when they cut into the cake, because it takes me so long to make them, but I enjoy doing it and hope it's something they remember as they get older: "Remember the year Tia made the cell-phone cake for your birthday?"


And at least I have a whole year to think about what to make for their next birthdays!

My new e-reader finally arrived!




I'm not the type of person who goes out and buys the latest tech gadgets, and I wasn't especially keen on getting an e-reader, but when I saw it on sale at Woot for just over $100, I couldn't resist. I figure that even if I don't love-love it, it's at a price point that I won't feel too terribly bad about it.

After work, I'm heading over to the library to get an updated library card so I can borrow books digitally. No sense paying $10 a book if I don't have to.

Weeeeee! Off to the library I go!

My sister was recently given a list of all the foods she can’t eat while pregnant. The list included things like eggs, soft cheeses, deli meat, and fish exposed to industrial pollutants.

Remember how, in the olden days, women could eat pretty much anything while they were pregnant? Nowadays, foods are riddled with pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, and a number of other unhealthy things. This got me thinking about all the chemicals I’m putting into my body with every bite I take.

My grandmother, who is a fairly healthy 89 years old, eats pretty much only the food she’s able to grow herself. I have never seen her so much as try a Pringle (though she does have an affinity for Kit-Kats). She raises her own chickens and grows her own vegetables, and when she eats fish (often) or red meat (rarely), she buys it locally and knows exactly where it’s coming from.

So, starting tomorrow, I’m going to be doing what I call "The Grandma Diet." If my grandmother wouldn’t eat it, then neither will I. If I can’t buy it locally or make it myself, or if it isn’t organic or natural, it will not go in my body.

Now, am I going to start a chicken ranch in my backyard? No. But can I be more conscious of what I’m putting into my body? Absolutely.

I know it won't be easy. I’m going to sorely miss potato chips, store-made bread, fast-food chili, and all those other yummy treats to which my body has become so accustomed. But, in the end, I hope I’ll be healthier and more attuned to my body. And if I lose a few pounds, well that will just be a nice ol’ bonus.

I’ll post my food intake here, and if I struggle with anything in particular, I’ll post that here, too. Who knows, maybe I’ll inspire you to take the journey with me. If so, let me know how you’re doing with it, and if you have any food suggestions/tips, please feel free to share here.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some junk food to eat before I start the diet...