What to do on busy days

 For the days that I have to study, or I have work and school, it can be really difficult to be productive, or try something different because you are so busy. I have been forcing myself to play around with photoshop a little bit in order to create on those days. I take breaks between studying, and I find images on the internet (or use my own), play with filters, manipulate colors, and create new works of art. Below are some of my ideas. Check back for updates to this section.

November 5, 2011 - Inspirational Art

This image above was really inspiration to me. This quote is something I love thinking about especially with a husband that will be deploying to Afghanistan for 6 months. I interpret it as no matter where you are, you are never alone. Even when I take my walks, even when I am doing my art, or sitting in my backyard. The trees with hug my heart, they will keep me safe, they will be by my side until he returns.

I actually plan on printing this out poster size and hanging it over my bed frame.

This image is a photomanipulation of the Harry Potter Castle at universal studios. Being in the spirit of halloween and given my classes are making me stay in this year, I figured why not create a spooky image to celebrate! This involved photo manipulation with hue changes, negative space, stamp brushes of trees and water splotches, a lot of different layers and a lot of cutting and pasting! Had a lot of fun doing this one!

This one you may or may not recognize from my original picture of sesame seeds in wonton dipping sauce.  I placed all of the pictures together and it looked so much like bacteria in a petri dish. Why you would ask would I want a picture of bacteria? Well, although I am getting my masters in psychology, I received a bachelors in Animal Science, with Microbiology being one of my favorite classes! This brought back memories to me, so I gave it an effect and created something unique!

Carving Time!

It wouldn't be right if we had halloween without carved pumpkins!!! Luckily Kevin isn't leaving for Minnesota until tomorrow, so we spent the afternoon making pumpkins! The hardest part is definitely finding a design (that you are capable of completing), the next is finding a design you don't have to pay for on the internet.

Here was the process and the final product

I am attempting the logo from the book the hunger games...

Kira waiting patiently for some pumpkin to fly her way

My favorite! I can't wait to roast these with Cinnamon and sugar!

The finished product

Kevin's finished product

A Delicious October Weekend

Although October may not be my favorite month of the year, it is definitely a perk for all of the sweets and fall delicacies that I indulge on... My favorite being caramel apples. This year, my part time job, Michaels is having a cupcake wars which only inspired me to do some extra shopping to practice my skills for making the perfect cupcake this coming wednesday. I woke my husband up at a bright an early 10AM in the morning Saturday, and dragged him to the local farmers market. We picked out 2 perfect pumpkins, some tomatoes and persimmonen. Unfortunately the pumpkins did not make it home in one piece...

My goodies from the grocery store

(Note to self, do not place two large pumpkins on the floor of the back of a large SUV...they may not survive.)

First attempt of melting packaged caramel - 

SO BIG!

Anywho...we stopped at the grocery store, where I picked up all the necessary goodies to tryout a pumpkin spice and cheesecake cupcake with vanilla whipped topping, and large green granny apples for the perfect caramel treat.








NO these will not be the cupcakes I make on wednesday for any michael's coworkers who are reading this. They turned out amazing, but very thick like a muffin..I will have to try something else! Pictures to follow!

Favorite photo of the final product

Pumpkin Cream Cheese muffins with whipped topping 

- reminded me a bit of my sister's buttercream frosting

Here is the recipe to the pumpkin cheesecake muffins - Yes, they are a Rachel Ray recipe -So recommended!

Cheesecake-Filled Pumpkin CupcakesFrosted pumpkin cupcakes get spiked with fluffy sweetened cream cheese.

Ingredients:

• One 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 large eggs, plus 5 large egg whites
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• Simmering water
• 3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces and chilled

Using a small pastry scoop, fill the baking liners to the top with some of the pumpkin batter, then the cream cheese mixture, then more batter.
Let the cupcakes cool before frosting (the tops will crack during baking).
Add cold butter a piece at a time to make a fluffy frosting
Use a pastry bag with a star tip to pipe the frosting decoratively.
No pastry bag? Fill a resealable plastic bag with the frosting, snip off a corner and pipe away!

Directions:

1. Place a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350°. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with baking liners. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and confectioners' sugar for 3 minutes. Beat in 1 egg white and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.
2. In a bowl, whisk the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. In another bowl, mix the pumpkin puree, 2 eggs, granulated sugar, oil and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Whisk in the flour mixture.
3. Layer each muffin cup with some of the pumpkin batter, then the cream cheese mixture, then more of the batter. Bake until springy to the touch, 25 minutes. Let cool.
4. Using the electric mixer, beat the brown sugar, remaining 4 egg whites and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Fill a medium saucepan with enough simmering water to reach a depth of 1 inch; place the mixing bowl on top. Whisk the mixture until it registers 160° on an instant-read thermometer.
5. Transfer the bowl back to the mixer and beat at high speed until fluffy; lower the speed and beat to room temperature, about 5 minutes. Add the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, then beat at high speed for 5 minutes. Beat in the remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. 6. Transfer the frosting to a pastry bag; pipe large rosettes on top of the cupcakes.

And because that day could not get any better, Kevin then figured,why not finish it off with a visit to the Korean Grocery Store and have us a comfort food meal in PJs with a rented movie? YES is what I said to that!

Here was my relaxing evening ( and some of this afternoon) with the boy and the pups:

Our stuff from the Grocery store

Cooking the Miso Soup

Premade noodles and mushrooms in the soup....YUM!

Finished product!

Wontons!

Add caption

The Whole Meal!

More wontons - not made froms scratch though

Wonton Sauce with Sesame Seeds

The true face of my perfect pup :)

Kira age 6.5 months

Appropriate photo of my Leo

Haunted Horrors and Graveyards on my day off

In the spirit of this coming holiday, a few of my posts will most definitely be creepy/spooky/halloween related.

Most people when they think of graveyard, the first thought is creepy, dark, scary, decrepid, lonely, sad and ghost. I take a different approach. I find cemetaries to be absolutely beautiful, with foliage you cannot see in most places, tombstones that are over 100-200 years old, carved statues, etc. To me it is like going to a museum... a calm, vacant, relaxing and peaceful museum. I've even contemplated just bringing a camping chair on a cool day like today was and studying. There is no one there to bother me, no screaming from passerbys, children making a fuss, or my dogs. It is an ideal quiet spot. 

I found it odd that someone born in 1858 did not have a death date....or that the death date was covered up.....interesting......

Carvings below a tombstone

Infinite care...I love this...

Today on my day off, I charged the camera, drove to the Oakwood Cemetary in Downtown Montgomery, parked my car in the middle of a gravesite, and walked around for about 2 hours. The images I got were so facinating! I have done this once before and remember seeing infant tombs, tombs of great governers, wealthy families, tombs about to fall apart, open gravesites, broken gravesites, flowers and soft words. Some gravestones were even back in the 1700s! 300 years ago!!

This is a statue of Governor William Calvin Oates

This reminded me of winter....

An angel carving on top of a large tombstone

The weather was amazing being 60 degrees, without a cloud in the sky. It was a perfect opportunity for long sleeves and a scarf. Had I had a mug of hot chocolate it may have been heaven. I have to say I love the cemetary.

I took tons of pictures today! Feel free to take a look and hopefully any of you reading this who do not have a place to get away and relax will take me up on the suggestion of walking through a cemetery and enjoying the beauty of nature, learning the history of people and admiring the monuments of our past..

Just please - stick to daylight hours....

I think this was the craziest thing I saw today - I don't know if that was a spider, or something caught in the web, but the web was thick like rope!

More pictures of the web

I liked the symbols on this gravestone; I am trying to figure out what they mean

Strange nuts on this fern like tree

Close up of the branches and the tree itself side by side

Hidden pathway