Angelina Ballerina

Belle and I had a very special bonding earlier this evening.  She saw me modelling a pig using gum paste and decided to join me.  Lately, I am very interested in doing figure modelling and I am seriously practicing when I have the time.

I was doing Ms. Piggy's hair and Belle wanted to do her own version

Our work :)  The hair keeps falling! Tsk!

I've been wanting to do Angelina Ballerina since I saw this cake topper in one of the blogs I am following. I was requesting the blogger (she lives in Malaysia, a mommy-baker too) to give me a tutorial and promise to take step by step pictures when she has the time.

But I can't wait for her tutorial, I have to do it now on my own.  I was very inspired because Belle is a big fan of Angelina Ballerina and we always watch the show together.

A certified fan!  She has more than 10 cds (3 episodes each)

Unfortunately, I was not able to take pictures because Belle was following what I'm doing. You have to work fast because gum paste dries immediately when exposed.

Almost done

My little student's work, Angelina is doing floor exercises

It's already 7:30pm and I still have to do Angelina's hands, I asked Belle to clean up because it's already time to sleep. I can't stop... I have to finish her tonight so I that don't have to dream of Angelina again.

So here's my version of Angelina Ballerina! Not too bad but I need more practice. Belle might want to bring her in school for her Show-and-Tell!

 

Her ears should be bigger!  I forgot her eyelashes and eyebrows!

Oh no! arms too big :( I can hear Belle's ballet teacher "Back straight girls!" 

Belle asked me, "Mommy, why is your work nicer than mine?"  I told her, " Your work is nice too! You did a great job and you're only 5 years old. We have plenty of time to practice."  And she's off to bed after our conversation.

So what's next? I have to bake a nice cake for Angelina to sit on!  And I have to own this book by Debbie Brown which I think is not available locally.

Finally!

My Balikbayan Box via LBC has finally arrived!  Thank you Lord, the long wait is over. It contained my birthday and Christmas gift from hubby.  He is very supportive of my passion in baking. He's the first to taste test my creations most of the time. Fortunately, he loves me so much and I was able to "convince" him to give me my dream Kitchen Aid Mixer! So I have requested my dear friend Jinky who is now based in Chicago to buy me a red one and other baking supplies. It's way cheaper to buy there even if the shipping cost is added.

Belle is as excited as Mommy!

My mixer, baking pans, cookie cutters, sprinkles, vanilla extract, meringue powder, etc, etc ...

I really wasn't expecting it to be delivered today.  I just realized that I'm wearing red too!  It's really meant to be.

So happy to be able to hold you!

Make way, for the queen of the kitchen is finally here! You already have a special place in my counter :)  Happy baking to me!

A big thank you to my BFF Jinky! Hugs and kisses to you! Sa uulitin....

*Updated on Feb 24.  Hubby already bought a transformer last night so we were able to test it. Isn't she nice in our kitchen?  I love RED!

Red na Red!

You made me so happy, Daddy! I promise to make a very special birthday cake for you 3 weeks from now :)

Consider this

Very timely reminder for parents....

"How aware are you of what your kids pick up from you every day?  As parents, it's safe to assume that the answer is everything.  The Bible says that believers in Christ should live in the Spirit.  So often, people view life as what one does outside one's home -- not behind closed doors when interacting with family.  Yet this is here it's hardest and most important (and necessary) to seek to live by the light of God's Spirit.  Being a parent brings you to the end of yourself and then asks for more.

If parents strive to live by the Spirit, and the fruits of the Spirits are evident in their lives, children will see this light.  They will be drawn to it, and they will want to emulate what they see in you.  There is nothing greater than to have your children drawn to God because of what they see in your life."

The fruit of the Spirit is love,  joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. . . .  Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. -- Galatians 5:22-23, 25

Source: God's Devotional Book for Mothers

Top 10 Tips II

Top 10 Tips for Giving Your Children Wings (and teaching them to navigate safely)

1. Pray for your child everyday - for safety, for wisdom, for their hearts and souls.
2. Give your children the freedom within the boundaries they can handle.
3. Give you fear and anxiety about your child's safety and well-being over to God.
4. Encourage your children to be a part of situations where you know they'll find success.
5. Challenge your kids to test their limits in ways that build confidence.
6. Recognize and reward your children's accomplishments, but be certain that they know your love is not based on what they do, but who they are.
7. Teach your children to trust God with their lives and their future.
8. Introduce your children to new cultures, languages, food, music, books, art.
9. Don't over schedule your child so he has no free time to be creative or explore his world independently.
10. Give you child the space and freedom to fly and entrust him to God.

I was only 12 when I left home and studied high school at UP Los Banos, Laguna.  It's about 1.5 hours travel by jeep then bus from our hometown in Rizal, Laguna.  My older sister (who was 14 then) was a batch older than me. We come home every Friday afternoon and leave very early Monday morning. We both stayed in a rented apartment with our close aunt who worked in UPLB Campus. We learned to be totally independent and responsible with our studies. We are grateful to God, that he has provided us very good friends that made our high school (and college) life easier and more fun. We've also met their families in Los Banos and somehow I felt at home away from home.

My mother is a retired public high school teacher so she really values education above anything. It must have been very hard to let her two girls go at a very young age. I remember I was very hesistant and very shy then and I really don't know what was in store for me in high school.  New school, new environment and no friends! All I know was I'm going to a very good school and that's what really matter that time. It's a chance that we can not pass up, only 160 students are accepted in UP Rural High School every year.  Even if it was difficult and more costly, it's still the best decision she ever made for us. That experience prepared me for bigger challenges in life.

For this I am very thankful to my Nanay Lita. I realized that she must have had the top 10 list above hidden in her heart long ago. She has totally entrusted us to God and the Lord has been so good to answer most (if not all) of her prayers for us. I became who I am now because my mother allowed me to spread my wings and fly on my own. I learned to value the trust that was given to me and I did my best not to let them down.

Now that I'm a mom, I fervently pray that I will also be as courageous as my mother when it comes to my own kids. To allow them to be independent yet stay by their sides to guide and support them if they fail, to be an encourager and a good friend. And I will always remember that I am chosen by God to carry our His plans for my children.

About Blessings

I heard a wonderful message in church (Bread from Heaven Christian Fellowship) last Sunday through Pastor Doy Castillo.  It's about how blessings are released to God's people.

Genesis 1:26-31 (NIV)

    ²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”  ²⁷ So God created mankind in his own image,
   in the image of God he created them;
   male and female he created them.

 ²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
    ²⁹ Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. ³⁰ And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
    ³¹ God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. 

God has chosen his people even before creation.  He has also declared the blessings upon his chosen ones back then.  Blessings are anything that make us feel good. However, some blessings are freely given but some blessings are still stored up in heaven waiting to be released to his people.

There are 3 important principles for God to release His blessings to us:

1. Blessings are released in relation to God's purpose for you in this world (v 26.)  We are created to be God's image bearer.  People should see in us who God is and what He is like.  I am working very hard on this! I am a very impatient person and I always want to get things done right. Otherwise, my "not-so-good" side really comes out :(  Lord, give me lots and lots of patience and understanding!

2. Blessings are released in relation to the path or program assigned to us (v 28.)  We need to assess if we are in the right program.  I was once a career woman but after thinking a thousand times I decided to be a full time housewife and mom.  This I think is the right path for me and I am doing my best to stay focused on my own program.

3. Blessings are released in relation to the persons given in your life. [Eve was assigned to Adam but he failed and they were both punished for their disobedience.] Be with the right people.  Take care of those who are assigned to your life by God. My life revolves around my family.  I would rather stay at home and be with them most of the time. My greatest desire is to raise my kids the way God wants them to be.

Remember the 3 P's - Purpose, Program and Persons.  Work on these three and blessings will just come, you don't even have to ask.

I'm looking forward every week because the theme for the month of February centers on Blessings :)

3 + 1 cakes this week!

Just want to blog about the cakes I made for 3 special people this week. Due to time constraint, I was not able to take pictures while I was doing them. Special thanks to my hubby for helping me out with the fondant preparation.  They were all made from scratch.

Christening and birthday cakes

Barbie Doll Cake for 11 yo Anjelica

Feb 4, 2012 - Celebration at Bigplate

Kelly (sis of Barbie) Doll Cake with Rainbow cupcakes

Feb. 5, 2012 - with the birthday girl, Isys (my niece)

I was so busy the whole week with these cakes so I make up to Matt by baking his all-time favorite Blue Berry Cheesecake today.  He's been requesting for this for weeks.

Slipping Through My Fingers

 Slipping through my fingers 

by ABBA

Schoolbag in hand

She leaves home in the early morning

Waving goodbye

With an absent-minded smile

I watch her go

With a surge of that well-known sadness

And I have to sit down for a while

The feeling that I'm loosing her forever

And without really entering her world

I'm glad whenever I can share her laughter

That funny little girl

Slipping through my fingers all the time

I try to capture every minute

The feeling in it

Slipping through my fingers all the time

Do I really see what's in her mind

Each time I think I'm close to knowing

She keeps on growing

Slipping through my fingers all the time

Sleep in our eyes

Her and me at the breakfast table

Barely awake

I let precious time go by

Then when she's gone

There's that odd melancholy feeling

And a sense of guilt

I can't deny

What happened to the wonderful adventures

The places I had planned for us to go

Well some of that we did

But most we didn't

And why I just don't know

Slipping through my fingers all the time

I try to capture every minute

The feeling in it

Slipping through my fingers all the time

Do I really see what's in her mind

Each time I think I'm close to knowing

She keeps on growing

Slipping through my fingers all the time

Sometimes I wish that I could freeze the picture

And save it from the funny tricks of time

Slipping through my fingers -

Schoolbag in hand

She leaves home in the early morning

Waving goodbye with an absent-minded smile

This beautiful song is one of my favorites in Mamma Mia!  It was sung by Donna before the wedding of her daughter Sophie.  (Watch movie version here with Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried.) It's very touching!  I don't want to think yet of Belle getting married someday.  I can't bear to give her away!  All moms (and Dads of course) dread that day I'm sure.  My little girl is only 5 so it's still a long way to go.  I was shocked when she asked me innocently one day, "Mommy, kelan ako mag-bo-boyfriend?" I told her "Maybe when your 25" and she answered "O-kay!" I hope she keeps her promise haha!

I was already a full-time mom when I gave birth to Belle in 2006.  I breastfed her for more than 3 years :) Too much bonding huh! She's glued to me most of the time. Her daddy said that we already have the same facial expressions and even gestures!  I'm glad that I have captured (in pictures and in my mind) almost every moment of her milestones. Not all moms have that privilege and I am truly blessed! 

Bellie, please do not grow up too fast. I promise that I will enjoy you everyday and Mommy will always be there for you! BFF tayo ha :)