Category: Daily Thoughts

Daily Thoughts

Vacation Blues & Bloating

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We just returned last night from a month of being in California and Arizona. What a wonderful time we had…but we are back to reality of grocery shopping, washing clothes and going through piles of mail. As we drove through Arizona and New Mexico, we had lots of time to reflect on this past year and a half of living back in Texas and the things that we love about Texas and what we miss about living in California. Of course, we are so thankful to be living near some of our family and precious friends that we missed while living in California. We were excited to come back to Whataburger, Pappadeux and Paciugo! Our home church of Prestonwood has a choir that is makes me feel like I am standing in Heaven and hearing the angels sing. It is nice to be familiar with the area and not have to wonder if we are on the right street for the Driver’s Liscense Dept.

But we were just as excited to drive up to different friends homes out in California, where we enjoyed so many evenings of laughter and fellowship and food, food, food! It was such a blessing to go back to our Sunday School class there in Pasadena and see the people that we love so much and enjoy worshiping together with them. Even after a year and a half, they make us feel like we are still a part of their family. That was a highlight of our trip.

We ate our way through California, Arizona and New Mexico. Of course, we had already sent our list of favorite places that we wanted to go back to while in CA, and everyone there was sweet enough to be sure that we visited each and every place we had listed. Randy told me that if they didn’t want to go to all those places, they should not have ask where we wanted to go while out there. Isn’t he just so precious! So off to New Moon & Panda Inn (the original) for Chinese, Porto’s for the best desserts in Glendale, Guadalupes for Mexican food and Mama Patrillos for one of my favorite salads that is only available during the summer months with awesome pizza and spaghetti.  This time I was sure to buy some of their salad dressing to bring home so I could make my own. It is so interesting that when we moved back to Texas, we both couldn’t wait to get back to Tex-Mex food but after we got here, we both realized that we had really begun to like the Mexican food better at Guadalupes. Their sauce was just so good that is poured over all the enchiladas and then sprinkled with cheese and placed into the oven to melt. It oozes into the rice and beans and just creates this masterpiece of Mexican flavor that we haven’t found here. Isn’t it weird that the slogan, “distance makes the heart grow fonder” is so true. When we were out there, I couldn’t wait to get back here to go to Pappadeux and when I am here, I can’t wait to go back to Guadalupes and New Moon. Because of the extreme heat this summer back here in Texas, we took our time coming home. Some friends offered their home while they were gone to their cabin in the Segoia National Forest. So that is exactly what we did. We “house sat” for them for a week. The weather in California that week was just gorgeous so we would sit out on the patio and have our quiet time, our breakfast and even dinner, all the while teasing our family and friends back in Texas with pictures of us being able to sit outside in August, while they were melting here and not venturing outside until after dark, to try to escape the heat.

We were paid back the minute we arrived to see our kids in Phoenix. We were met with a monsoon, our first night there and then the sweltering heat wave of record breaking heat for the next few days. I won’t ever tease about being “so cold sitting out having dinner that I had to go put on a sweater” EVER EVER!!!! We simply melted. I thought for sure that some of the new found pounds that had poured on during our eating tour of California would have melted off, but NO!!!! this morning, when I got on the scales, I had gained weight this last month. Doesn’t it just seem that driving should burn calories? Or having to hold going to the bathroom, when you didn’t stop at the rest stop and have to go another 120 miles before you see any type of road side rest stop out in the desert? I am telling myself that it is the humidity that is making me fat. Out in CA and AZ, where it was so dry that I had to pour coconut oil over my face just to put my make up on, I could easily zip my new capris.

I already texted our friends who we sit by in church every Sunday that they might need to sit in front or behind us as we will need a little more room on the pew this week. I guess that all of our “oh, I just have to go to Panda Inn one more time and go get a Tiramisu from Portos to snack on in the car” caught up with me. All the restaruants which we have found on previous trips in towns that we drive through and “just had to go back to”…the pounds just kept adding up after each stop. These great little cookies from Paradise Bakery in Phoenix….well, how can cookies so small have so many calories? Where do they put the calories when the cookie is that small? That is a Google question I guess for this evening when I am caught up with all the laundry and am having some of the chocolate that my daughter-in-law sent me from Ethel M in Vegas.

All this to say, that after going back and reading this post, it appears that our lives certainly center around food and special places where we love to gather around the table with friends while sharing some amazing food. Our home in California had an artist that had painted this across the end wall of the kitchen. “Alls Well That Ends With a Great Meal”

That is the best way to describe our lives, no matter the town!

Daily Thoughts

California Cuisine & Table Talk

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

We are visiting friends here in California, where we lived for 3 years before moving to Texas. We stay with several different couples, not wanting to ruin out our welcome (which we probably did a long time ago, but they are way to nice to say anything)

The memories that are made here seem to radiate around meals. They say that the South is known for fellowship around the table, but the South has nothing on the friends who have taken us in here and treat us as one of the family. The meals that people serve to us are exceptional and always filled with great conversations. While at Bonnie and Arnie’s house, each meal usually consist of Arnie ending the meal with one of his thought provoking questions. Today, we ended up our lunch time with this question, “if you were being rescued from a desert island and they told you that you could have anything that you wanted to eat, what would that be?” I didn’t have to think too long on this one. Of course Randy answered with “Chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, green beans and chocolate cream pie with whipped cream.” Bonnie said, bacon wrapped filet mignon from The Derby. My answer wasn’t so simple. Depending on the mood I was in when I was rescued would dictate what I would want. But some of my favorite foods are grilled steak, hamburgers, spaghetti and meatballs, chicken fried steak, cornbread dressing with turkey gravy and Houston’s Key Lime Pie. So there you have it, my favorite meal would probably be a progressive supper. They could just take me from restaurant to restaurant until I was able to sample each of my favorite foods, then collapse into a Lazy Boy recliner and watch the cooking channel, drooling over the recipes that I will be dying to get up and bake as soon as I have regained my strength from being shipwrecked on the island.. We have been preparing to go to the California Philharmonic Pops concert tonight with some friends. We had all decided that to save some money, instead of buying the dinners that they sell at the concert, we would bring in our own picnic dinner. The food there would cost about $15.00/person, so our precious hubbies decided that we could certainly eat cheaper than that if we just brought in our own. So off to Trader Joe’s for our cheese, crackers and meat. Then off to Porto’s for  a variety of desserts. Oh and of course, we decided that we needed a cute little table from the Crate & Barrel that Randy told Arnie about. We had bought one while living here for all the Pasadena pops concerts and the Rose Bowl 4th of July fireworks evenings. So off they go to Crate & Barrel to buy them one. They have gone up in price just a little from 2 years ago. We have totaled up what we have spent on the food and picnic items for this evening. We would have saved money had we bought the dinners that are available to purchase at the concert. But, the memories of collecting all our favorite snack foods and going downtown Pasadena to pick up the new table and Barbara standing in line at Porto’s, seriously, isn’t this what memories are made of?

Last evening we were at dinner with two precious couples here celebrating their 50th wedding anniversaries. What a grand evening we had. I felt like I was having dinner in Europe, as the dinner lasted from 7:30 to 11:30. What a memory we will be taking back to Texas. The laughter, the conversations that ranged from politics, family, church, and old memories of times past when all of us had been up at Big Bear made the entire evening a great time.

That is what is so great about friendship. As we age and look back, we see that our fondest memories are not what we have bought or obtained with money, but the experiences and friendships that God has blessed our lives. It’s true, most memories are centered around food, and the laughter, the conversations and the love that flows from the times together. It makes having to go buy new clothes a size larger by the time we leave here, all worth while.

Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Desserts

Dessert For Two

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My son, Cameron and daughter-in-law, Mandy, gave me a great cookbook called Dessert for Two, by Christina Lane. It is wonderful and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves dessert as much as we do, but hates the thought of baking 4 dozen cookies, knowing that unless you give them away, you would eat the entire 4 dozen, making it necessary to go out and buy a size bigger blue jean. This once again proves just how much everything tends to cause a ripple effect. Anyway, back to the recipes. Last night, thumbing through the book, which has colored pictures on almost every page, I found the first thing I am going to make: mini sour cream pound cakes. We are hitting the road again tomorrow and there is nothing better that to have a large sack of snacks to grab to make going through the desert a little less deserty. I have baked oatmeal cookies and brownies, but will be making these Mini Sour Cream Pound Cakes for Randy, hoping he will leave the brownies for me.

This cook book uses Mason jar lids for little pies, bread loaf pans for bars and cookies. Do yourself a favor and get one of these cookbooks, (after you have ordered Princess On The Porch, of course).

Mini Sour Cream Pound Cakes

Makes 4

1/4 cup granulated sugar

4 tables unsalted butter, at room temp

1/2 teas vanilla

1/4 teas almond extract

1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

3 tables sour cream

1/2 cup flour

1/4 teas baking powder

1/8 teas salt

Preheat oven to 350. Place cupcake liners in four cups along the edge of a muffin pan.

In a medium size bowl, cream together the sugar and butter for 1 minute with mixer. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and beat until well combined. Next, add the whole egg, egg yolk and sour cream. Beat until combined.

Sprinkle the flour, baking powder and salt on top of the wet ingredients. Beat until just combined, do not over mix.

Divide the batter equally among the prepared muffin cups. Bake for about 15-18 min, depending on your oven until they test done. It’s ok to remove the cakes when moist crumbs cling to a toothpick which has been inserted in the middle and the tops appear slightly damp. Let cook in the pan for 5 min and then allow to cool completely on a cooking rack.

Sprinkle powdered sugar on top if desired.

Some of our snacks for the road (Randy just walked in and saw all of the snacks and ask me when we were going to be able to eat all the snacks and how long did I think we would be driving. I told him that I just like to be prepared. They can save our lives in case we get stuck on the road or maybe can use them to bribe a policeman if we get stopped. (oops already tried that once and the officer told me in no uncertain terms not to keep offering him a brownie, my goodness, was just trying to show a little southern hospitality)

Snacks for the Desert
Snacks for the Desert
Daily Thoughts

House Hunters

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Having lunch with one of our kids today brought back memories of when I sold real estate. As we talked about house hunting and what they would look for in the next house, I thought it might be interesting to share a few tips.  This has nothing to do with food, but thought it might come in handy.

When I sold houses, I kept a list of things to look for when out looking at property. If you are not in the market for buying a house, maybe your kids or friends might be. So print this list and have it handy to give to anyone thinking about buying.

1. When looking at houses, drive by the home you are interested in, several different times of the day. Just because the street might be empty when you are looking, doesn’t always give the same impression after 5 p.m. Some streets fill up with cars after work hours.

2. If buying a house in the states which have a “hot” summer, look for houses that face North/South instead of East/West! or at least check to see if the yard you would be using, is not be in direct West sun. Are there lots of windows facing West which would increase the electric bill and need for extra shades during the summer.

3. If you are a couple with a possible growing family, does the living area allow for a space for toys/children’s play area. Remember that even if there is a separate play area from where you will be “living”, kids never play in the play area until after the age of 5 or 6, (and even then, they want to be where you are) they will always play where you are, so be sure there is enough living space to accommodate play pens, toys and the large couches, which are the trend right now..

4. Is the home close enough to your work that you don’t spend a lot of your free time on the freeway going back and forth.

5. Take in account that if the neighborhood has a lot of rental property, their will be a lot of transition in ownership. Also, it will effect the resale price of the home that you are currently looking.

6. Is the neighborhood trying to attract young families or older couples who are looking to downsize? If you are looking to have friends in your new place, this might be important to you. Once again, this is another reason to drive through the neighborhoods at a couple of different times of the day.

7. Make a list of what is important to you and to your husband/wife. Take the list with you and as you go into the home, either take pictures or write down what you like/dislike about each place that you might be interested. You might think that you will remember each house, but at the end of the day, and as you try to think back, it’s not always easy to distinguish all the pros and cons.

8. I always told the people that I worked with that if the house didn’t feel like “home” to them, then probably it might not ever feel like home. Most of the time, women know the minute they walk in the door if it is the house for them. Each home has a certain feel, so don’t force trying to make it feel like home. Take your time and know that there is a house out there just for you. Don’t just settle, because it is a “good deal”. If it doesn’t feel right, it will cost you more in the long run having to move again, if you aren’t happy with it.

Daily Thoughts

Faith & Failures

Chocolate Castles2 Comments

Last week my mom, age 92 passed away. Very peacefully, with no suffering. Knowing that I wanted to write about her life, I had to give it some thought as to what to say. Being an only child, my growing up years were filled with lots of memories of people coming to live with us. There was always someone at church that, for many reasons, needed a place to live for a while. We had cousins from Michigan, missionaries, her Mother-in-law, my Aunt Gladys, after losing her husband. The list goes on and on. I felt that the extra bedroom, was always filled with someone. There were years that I know my parents really struggled financially, relationally and physically. Growing up, I remember thinking that when I was married with children, I would do everything totally different from how my parents did. Probably every child thinks that. My parents were always involved in church activities and I have such sweet memories of parties that were held at our home, which always involved lots of food. My parents loved God and even though our home wasn’t always as peaceful as it should have been, there was always the knowledge that was imparted to me that God was always to be first in our lives.

Over the last week, I have thought back to some of the things which my mom taught me, which at the time, I felt that she was just being “silly” and didn’t think she knew what she was talking about. As I have matured, I have often thought about her trying to instruct me in following God’s path for my life. It was sad that my mom spent many years as a very unhappy person.  Looking back, sometimes I feel that maybe she always wanted people in our home so that she wouldn’t have the time to think about her situation, or having to deal with it.

The last few days I have heard some sermons on forgiveness, which was what I have been dealing with for many years regarding my mother. She was a good mom, and did the best she could. It became apparent after hearing these wise men preach that I truly had never forgiven her. It was always important to me that people know that there was another side to my mom which most people never saw. Now it has made me realize even more that God uses the ones who are available and willing. That we don’t have to be perfect for Him to use us. In spite of our failures, we can still be used to help others and to glorify Him. Even though I spent most of my life being emotionally afraid of my mom, I can still thank her for some of the things that are so important to me in my life and how I want to live. As Tony Evans says, “you can allow the “dents” that people put on your life and walk around mad every time you think about the hurtful “dent” or you can forgive them and walk around with an uninterrupted fellowship with God”. Isn’t it amazing how God places stories and sermons right in front of you at just the right moment.

Here are a few of the things that my mother tried to teach me.

1. She wouldn’t let me play with a ouigi board because as a Christian we are not to have anything to do with anything that has to do with “spirits”. I told her that she was being so silly, it was just a board game. Later, I understood what and why she was trying to teach me.

2. If you are well enough to go out to do anything, you are well enough to go to church.

3. Give God the first 10% of your income, 90% will go further, giving God what is due Him than 100% when you don’t. Years ago, she relayed the story of how one week, she and my dad were really broke and agreed not to tithe. That same week, their car broke down and the amount to get it repaired was the exact amount of what their tithe should have been. That was the last time they didn’t give their tithe.

4. People are right when they say that kids learn by watching, not just listening to words. I wish I would have learned that a little earlier than I did, not after my children were all grown.

5. To always keep the Sabbath holy. We were not allowed to go to movies or shop on Sunday, in fact, it wasn’t until later years that my parents would even go out to eat on Sunday, as they felt guilty making people work on. This is one of the rules I wish I had taught by “example” more when our kids were growing up.

6. To read my Bible daily and have personal prayer time.

Yes, my mother wasn’t perfect, in fact, sometimes she was truly very hard to get along with. But she loved God and she loved me and I just want to tell her thank you for being faithful to what she felt God had for her. She, like myself, failed many times, but her faith was strong and no matter how bad her mind got at the end, she could always recite scripture. Thank you Lord for being faithful to her and thank you mother, for passing on your love of God to me!

Daily Thoughts · Salads

Slips & Salads

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Being responsible for lunch today for a ladies Bible study, I decided to make shrimp salad and tomato mozzarella salad. At the last minute, I decided instead of making shrimp pasta salad, I would stuff avacados with the shrimp, so ran up to Kroger to buy avacados about 9:30 this morning. Being sure that I looked around for just the perfect soft ones, not to soft, not to hard, I found just the perfect ones that would allow me to cut them in half and scoop out of the shell. I turned to go get a plastic bag to put them in when I walked across some water on the floor by the strawberries. Of course you know the rest of the story, having my cutsie little sandals on with lots of bling, I fell down on my left knee with my right leg going in the opposite direction landing on my rear. The produce guy ran over to help me up and acting like I am a senior citizen, he kept asking me if anything was broken (besides my pride) and thank goodness, he was a hefty little thing, so was able to pull me off the floor before to many people walked by snickering.

Upon arriving home and knowing that this was probably good enough to get me some sympathy from Mr. Great Bedside Manner, I came in from the garage limping and looking like I had just been in a 3 car pile up. He comes over to me, and ask if he can get me anything. I tell him, yes, I would love a tall glass of iced tea and an Advil. I proceed to go sit on the couch and wait for my precious hubby to come bring my tea and pain med. Knowing that maybe, just maybe this would get me dinner out tonight so I wouldn’t have to stand on my already swollen knee, he hands me the tea and says, “isn’t it great that you weren’t on the liquor aisle? They would have just thought you were drunk!” And that my dear friends is about all the sympathy I received. Well, along with, “maybe “we” can just make it an easy dinner tonight since your knee looks pretty swollen, what about just “fixin” meatloaf, baked potatoes and green beans with bacon. I bet there is a couple of slices of butter milk pie left over from yesterday, so just don’t feel like you have to bake something tonight.”

Is he not the greatest and most thoughtful of husbands?

I am so glad I bought a couple extra avocado so I can throw one at him.

But in the meantime, I made a salad of cherry tomatoes with mozzarella balls and put sea salt, olive oil, mashed garlic and fresh basil to go along with the shrimp salad which I will post after I see how the ladies like it.

Daily Thoughts

Princess On The Porch

Chocolate Castles5 Comments

2015-07-13 10.41.37

It has happened. Princess On The Porch has been published by Westbow, a division of Thomas Nelson. It is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and available for Kindle.

There are several precious friends who helped make this a reality.

Amy and Kathy Duncan (mother and daughter), Peggy Stodola & Cora Wilkinson, I owe you so much for the time and effort that each of you invested to help me complete the book.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your prayers, encouragement and love. Randy, your sense of humor and love gave me so much material to write about. Thank you for loving me and for continuing to hold me accountable to finishing what I felt the Lord had lead me to write.

It is now a reality and a dream come true. Time to start on the 2nd book which will be all desserts, plus more stories that will hopefully bring a song to your heart and a smile to your face.

Daily Thoughts

4th Of July!!!!

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I love fireworks, I love what they stand for. We have had a whirlwind of company the past 2 weeks with more family coming in from Austin today. I just made the pioneer woman’s incredible chocolate sheet cake. My son coming in from Austin is bringing his new “friend” for us to meet. I have seen pictures of her from FB and some texts that they sent us when he went to Chicago to visit her. But getting to meet her has brought up many memories. I remember meeting my husbands mom and dad and how nervous I was. What would I wear, would I have a good hair day? Would I sound silly or be able to act the way I felt they expected? Is all this going on in her mind?

It is so different to be on the other side of the “meeting the parents” day. I got up, showered, put on shorts, flip flops and thought, “oh well, my hair looks good enough”. Or wait, does it? Should I iron the shorts and make them look nicer? Should I put on my whole face, with eye makeup and all? Do I go ahead and wear perfume? What if she is allergic to perfume? What if she is allergic to nuts that I put in the chocolate cake? I need to dust and sweep and clean the bathrooms before they get here.

I guess it really isn’t much different. No matter the age, no matter the circumstance, we all still feel that we need other’s approval. As we age, the approval doesn’t seem as intense, but we still want everything to be perfect for meeting people that might be a very special part of our family.

So we have cleaned the house, baked favorite dishes for our son and will hopefully make her feel most welcome. We have a sign over our back door that says, “Enter as Strangers, Leave As Friends”….that is what we hope will happen this weekend.

Have a glorious 4th and remember to stop, pray and thank God for the freedoms we do still have and for the families that still sacrifice so much for us to have those freedoms.

America, God shed His grace on thee, and crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea!

Daily Thoughts

July 4th & Just Some Thoughts

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

We are sitting here, watching news before heading out with some of our kids to watch fireworks. We love fireworks and picnics. It is truly one of the most fun activities that I look forward to every summer. As we were watching the news and listening to warnings regarding possible threats by terrorist across the country, we are reminded to be aware of our surroundings, and report any suspicious behavior.The last several years, it has been such a  heavy thought to me that our leaders choose to not see how our country has spiraled down to become a country that sees more and more violence. They try to tell us that it is because we need more “programs”.

We have continually pushed God out of our country, our schools and our families. We then wonder why we are seeing more school shootings, more violence against churches and constant rising in crime across our land.

Talking to teachers, we hear that things are very different now. Years ago, when they talked to parents regarding discipline problems they are having with the child, parents use to ask what they could do to show support to the teacher and offer their help in disciplining the child. Now. more times than not, when teachers have to have a parent teacher conference, it results in the parents placing blame on the teacher, because “the child certainly is not to blame.”

Times have changed. We no longer have the freedoms that we once did, because everything we say or do seems to violate another person’s comfort or “rights”. The days we live in seem to have escalated into days of people having no respect for themselves or others. Children are not taught boundries.

When we look back over the last 10 years, it is easy to see the results of a nation which doesn’t allow discipline in schools. We are no longer teaching our children to honor the real heros. The heros that the children hold in high esteem, seem to have no morals themselves. It amazes me that our leaders all over the country do not recognize that when discipline left the schools, new problems arose. We have more gangs, more drugs, more children being bullying, more kids ending up in prison. Families have changed. Because of the times which allow any thing that seems ‘right” we have a nation that confuses truth with “rights”.

This post might sound pretty negative, but our nation is no longer a nation “under God”. As we continue to spiral down, troubles continue to spiral out of control. News is full of stories of people being killed, some by even family members

.Our wonderful Nation that was formed by men who truly were heros, knew that sacrifices were being made for others. Their Godly convictions were convictions that were based on God’s truths, that we were given to guide us.  If we followed those laws and commands given to us by our Creator, our Country would still have problems, but we would be a blessed people, with God as our model.

Why, in the 40’s and 50’s when we allowed God in our schools and taught respect in our homes, did we not have the problems which we have today? Hum….

It is with these thoughts that I thank the many many people who have sacrificed so much for the freedom that we still celebrate. It breaks my heart that the Country which they have fought for has abused so many of the freedoms. That America has become a country full of people who feel entitled to “things”, which in the past, people worked hard to receive. This has created a generation of people who don’t like to work or respect those who do.

It is great that our forefathers cannot see what American has become. America, from sea to shining sea….let’s realize our mistakes and turn our country back to what it is suppose to be, One Nation, Under God!

Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Desserts

Princess Payton Cupcakes

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Last week, our daughter in law, Mandy had ask if I would make the cupcakes for our granddaughter’s 1st birthday party. All the relatives would be coming into town from near and far and it was a joyous occasion. Of course, we wanted everything to be pink so the cupcakes were going to be strawberry. I began to look for cupcake pics that would go with the theme, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and found these precious pink netting with glitter piks at Hobby Lobby and then made star pics for some cupcakes as well.

Thought a post of some of the ideas that helped might be helpful to you, if you are so inclined to be giving a party for a princess in the near future.

Cupcakes: Made from a strawberry cake mix, substituting strawberry juice for the water that the mix called for. Also, buy a package of Dream Whip and make the cupcakes according to the recipe on the Dream Whip Box. They will be so much lighter and fluffier.

1 envelope of Dream Whip (it is boxed whipping cream which is found on the baking good aisle at grocery store)

4 eggs

1 cup cold water (I used cold strawberry juice)

1 strawberry cake mix

Beat on medium for 4 full minutes and pour into cupcake lined cupcake pans. Bake about 13 minutes or until they test done. Cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:

1 stick butter

1 box or 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 teas vanilla

Enough strawberry juice (I got the juice from thawing out frozen strawberries that you get in a container in the frozen food aisle and just draining off the juice after they have thawed)

Beat all until creamy adjusting the powdered sugar and juice until the frosting is able to hold its shape when placed in a cake decorator to be piped onto cupcake. *I doubled the amount of frosting, as I was making 48 cupcakes! Had just enough after doubling recipe for frosting.

Take about 1/2 cup of the frosting and place in a glass bowl. Place it in the microwave for about 10 to 15 seconds, until it is melted. Take each cupcake and turn them upside down, dipping the tops in the melted frosting. This seals the cupcake and keeps it fresh longer. Then, using your star tip cake decorator, fill tube with frosting and make a big enough swirl to put a cupcake pic in the middle of it.

Repeat until all cupcakes have been frosted. If you have a container that will hold the frosted cupcakes, cover them and place in fridge until about an hour before serving. This also helps to keep them moist. Then remove from fridge and place a pic in each cupcake. The cupcake stand also came from Hobby Lobby!

Princess Payton Cupcakes
Princess Payton Cupcakes