Red Velvet Cupcakes.

Look what we made yesterday ...


Griffin and I made red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and valentine sprinkles yesterday.

He helped me measure the ingredients, mix the batter and pour it into the cupcake tins.


We waited patiently for them to bake and cool


Then it was time to add the cream cheese icing


Yes siree ... we like ALOT of icing on our cupcakes


Then it's time to sprinkle, sprinkle, sprinkle


Ahhh ... looks yummy!


We made two dozen cupcakes ... enough to last awhile.

Of course the MOST important part is ... did they taste good?


Griffin responds with a rousing YES!!

Owning a cupcake boutique or business would be SO much fun. But I'm thinking my "straight out of the box" recipes just wouldn't cut it. =)

I would like to share links to two friends that offer amazing homemade and delicious cupcakes! Mattie Cakes and Sweet Jolene's Gourmet Cupcakes. Check out their websites for {delicious} and {delectable} treats!

Jumping Bean!

Ever since Griffin started walking he's wanted to jump!

He would jump from a stationary position all the time ... some of you have actually seen his amazing ability to jump like a frog.

When he was a tiny little thing I used to keep his books in a plastic box. He learned quickly if he turned the box on the side and took the books out he had a "jumping machine".

Then of course we went through the whole jumping on the couch phase.

And he's certainly never met a bouncy house he didn't like. =)

I've been wanting to get him a trampoline for a couple of years now. Mike didn't think he was ready for it. We discovered a fantastic compromise!


Sam's had this "My First Trampoline" at their store at Christmas. It's fantastic! It's bigger than an exercise trampoline. It can hold up to 100 pounds. It's 80 inches (I think) across, at only 12" high it's low to the ground and it has the safety sides.

{Perfect}


He absolutely, positively LOVES it!!

I'm so glad we found this wonderful option!

Weekend Away.

This past weekend Mike had to work out of town so Griffin and I decided we would visit him and enjoy a little mini retreat with him.

When we arrived in town (after driving three hours) Mike was still working so we had planned to visit The Science Center in Danville.


The Science Center is a fantastic place for children to learn about various subjects. One of the new exhibits is this planet Earth. It's kind of like a movie screen in the shape of earth and it changes as the speaker is talking. It's amazing.


On this visit they were also hosting a taxidermy program.


My favorite was the butterflies.


Of course Griffin liked the beetles & bugs.


His favorite exhibit was the skeletons of course ... especially this snake!


We enjoyed a Dr. Suess moment when he discovered a fox on a box.


Seeing the different types of owls was very interesting ...

After our trip to The Science Center we went to the hotel and Mike arrived shortly after.


Mike has been very sick for over a week now and we just wanted to show him as much TLC as possible.

We decided to get Japanese take-out for dinner and it was delicious! The restaurant is called Bentto's and if you are ever in Danville you MUST go! Double yum!

Mike and Griffin snuggled in the "Daddy Chair" and I on the couch as we watched Men In Black.

It was truly wonderful to enjoy a nice little get-a-way with my boys.

Paper Rocket Ship.

Griffin has alot of toys.

{When I say alot ... I mean ALOT!}

I love it sometimes when he completely ignores them.

Take for instance yesterday when he came home from school ...


He wanted to make a rocket ship out of paper. Together he and I worked on it until we got it just the way he wanted.


Who needs bells, whistles, lights, and batteries when a handmade toy can be boy powered?


This guy ... he's so creative and smart ... and he has my heart.

Ice.

We have been experiencing some wintry weather of late.

Although we are not getting as much snow as we did last year we are getting just enough to where the kids have recently had a number of "snow days" off from school.

Last night a wintry mix come through our area and we woke up to ice!


Needless to say the kids are out of school AGAIN today.


Of course I would much rather have Griffin home safe with me then us traveling to get him to and from school.

But, he is SO ready for school to be back on!

{and I am too}

Ella.

On my last post I mentioned our trip to Natural Bridge Safari Park.


When we were there Griffin met Bella the pyton and he LOVED her. When we were at the gift shop he was allowed to choose a gift to bring home with us ..

He chose ...


Ella the snake!

I actually took this picture just the other day. Ella the snake is his snuggle buddy when he goes to sleep each night. And of course when he's in Daddy's lap snuggly as well.

He loves his Ella.

Missy Made It! ~ News

I have a new paper piecing design ... the first for 2011!

My custom little girl or little boy name with Elmo!


This of course is the little girl.


And the little boy is here.

They are available for purchase in my store Missy Made It!

The great thing is you can completely customize the kids and the custom name.

How many can I make for you?

Natural Bridge Safari Park.

I came across this post this morning and realized I had never published it.

After we went camping with the Hall family we decided to go to the Natural Bridge Safari Park located right next door to the camp ground.


It was such a beautiful fall day and we really didn't know what to expect.


Carol, Allen, Hannah, Zachary, Sarah, Sam and Griffin were in the back of the truck feeding all the animals. Mike and I road up front in the cab.


I was taking pictures out the window so I pretty much got the same angle on each one. Here the kids are feeding the camels.


The elk were huge!


And they were hungry too!


The zoologist came out with Bella the pyton.


Griffin went right up and petted her ... he was in love!

It's alway so much fun when our family can spend fun times with the Hall family. I can hardly wait until it's warm enough to do some fun outside adventures again.

Making Sugar Cookies

While on Christmas break Griffin and I found many things to keep us busy.

We made sugar cookies together for the first time. Actually this was MY first time to ever make sugar cookies as well.


As you can see we made a big old mess on the kitchen island ... but it was worth it!


Griffin enjoyed rolling out the dough and cutting out the shapes. See that rolling pin? It's brand new. I've been married for 15 years and I've never had a rolling pin before. I've always just used the side of a cup. I thought it was high time I got myself a rolling pin and picked one up at the store. =)


Of course Griffin's favorite part of the cooking making was decorating the cookies. He added a little icing here and sprinkles there.


Voila ... a sampling of our beautifully edible sugar cookies. The icing we used was wonderful. After about four minutes it hardened and yet it was still soft enough for the soft sugar cookies.

Can't wait until Valentine's Day to make sugar cookies again!

Basket Paper Piecings Now Available!

It's funny to me how I took all of these pictures at the same time ... in the same lighting ... with the same camera ... and yet ... the brown on the basket looks completely different on each of them. =)


I've listed these cute Basket Paper Piecings in my Ebay Store
Missy Made It!

My handmade paper piecings can be used in
♥ Scrapbooking ♥ Cardmaking ♥ Altered Art ♥ Gift Bags & Tags ♥ Party Favors ♥ Framing ♥ Gift Giving ♥ and more!

I have these cute handmade items and MORE right now in my store!

Click HERE to visit my store.

Also bookmark www.missymadeit.com for your scrapbooking needs!