my cakes

So I've been working on my cake decorationg skills. Here's a little slideshow I put together of what I've done so far:

Now I just need to work on my photography skills! 

I got to see it this time! I've barely slept the past few nights because I kept getting up to check on the chrysalis, but it is finally over and I didn't miss it! Check it out:

It was so amazing to watch. Seeing that butterfly flit around my garden and realizing that just hours before it had been packed up tight in that chrysalis was kind of boggling. It set me thinking. I think there is a great lesson in the butterfly, but I'll get to that another day. For now, just be amazed.

"Ordinary white light has within it all the colours of the rainbow when viewed the right way. Likewise, an ordinary day contains a full spectrum of beauty, if only we know how to see it. My mission: just be dazzled."

Coming soon...

I feel like an expectant mother. For the past couple of weeks I have been awaiting the moment, and it will be soon, I can tell.
This is what I'm waiting on:

I think I need some photography lessons; that is not a great picture!

It is a Monarch chrysalis. We brought a cute little half-inch long caterpillar into the house, put him in a jar and fed him all the milkweed he could eat until he formed this lovely chrysalis. I am really hoping that when the moment arrives for him to emerge that I will see it. The last time we did this it happened overnight. When we went to bed it was a chrysalis and in the morning, a butterfly. (It made me feel a bit like Spongebob when he thought the butterfly was a monster that ate his friend Wormy!)
If all goes well, my next post will be of a butterfly.

Annual Elora trip, with pictures!

We did a family day-trip to Elora this week. We do this every summer, and this year I remembered to bring my camera! Unfortunately, I frequently forgot that I had it with me, so I didn't photograph all I could have, but here are some of the things that interested me enough for me to remember to snap them!
Due to construction we took a detour through Orangeville. As soon as I saw this place I was scrambling to unzip my camera bag. I wish we'd been able to stop so I could get a better picture of...

Ghostbusters Headquarters!
Okay, it's not exactly like it, but that's what it made me think of. It is the town's old fire hall.
See:

There is a store/gallery in Elora that has these really cool benches that are carved out of tree roots. They are really comfortable, as well as looking super-nifty!

It was inside this store/gallery that I found the piece I really want, though. I don't remember what the price on it was, I just remember that it was a lot. Check it out:

Doesn't that look great? But that isn't all; look at this:

How fantastic is that?! I love it! We were thinking of a steampunk theme for when we finally finish the family room; I think that table would look awesome in there!
That was about it for photo-worthy stuff. It was an incredibly hot day and we mostly gasped for air in the antique stores and shivered as our sweaty underclothes got chilly in the air-conditioned shops.
We're looking forward to going again next year!

My 15 milliseconds

How silly am I that this just made my day?
 Cake Wrecks (which I love, love, LOVE!) did a post on Saturday featuring submissions from fellow stalkers followers, one of which was this absolutely adorable photo:

Get the story behind the photo at cake wrecks.

 So, being the strange little person that I am, and having some time on my hands, I embellished a bit. Here are the results of my goofiness:

I sent this off to Cake Wrecks to give them a giggle, and they put it up on their Facebook page, where hundreds of people are seeing it, and liking it!
 Is it just ridiculous that this gives me a thrill?

Dusty treasures

My sons, through methods and with reasons I cannot fathom, have discovered a love for antique stores. They revel in looking through the heaps of dusty rubble, unearthing treasures. Having spent time with them at various such nests I have myself developed an interest in broken old jewelry. I'm beginning to collect some of these pieces in hopes of restoring some and "converting" others.

I like the intricate detail on this piece. (It doesn't show up so well in the picture, sorry.) I'm planning on replacing those hangy bits with something daintier, perhaps some colour too.

I think these clip-on earrings are absolutely hideous, but I love the orange crystals dangling from them. I'll be taking those off and using them elsewhere. Also, the scroll-ish looking bit along the bottom that the dangling parts are hanging from are quite pretty, if I can just find a way to separate them from the ugly part.

See what I mean? It's like a peacock's tail!

I thought these glass beads were pretty. I'd like to find a way to feature each one of them; they're so interesting.

This bracelet I love, just the way it is. It's sad that some of the stones are missing. I'd love to replace them if I can. Even if I can't I'll be wearing it as is anyway.
Hopefully I'll be getting around to doing the things I have planned for this stuff sometime soon.