Leslie Stewart?

I think not. No matter how hard I try. I just cannot do it. I am not going to go outside and gather a bunch of rocks and twigs for a centerpiece. They probably have spiders underneath of them or spores attached to them. Somehow. Spores being those nasty things that you don't want to inhale because you might get Valley Fever. I can't make a centerpiece out of the things that lay just outside of my front door. For one, I have a dying cactus. And thankfully we've removed the long since dead tree plant that was given to me as a "happy birthing" gift by my BIL. (for yall who don't get my code, that's brother-in-law, Kay?)

And since I feel the need to bake, I attempt it. Every year. Many times a year actually. I have no idea why the best things I can make involve alcohol. Hmmm.....??? I made a Kahlua bundt cake, that I had to promptly remove from the house by taking it to my sister's house. Simply for fear that I would eat the whole thing. Now drinking the whole bottle of Kahlua myself, another story. I certainly wouldn't share that. Did I tell you that this very bundt cake won an award for me? Best dessert maker in the whole city of Plantation, Florida! Ok, Ok, I'm totally lying, but it did win me some money in a contest!

I continue to feel the urge to bake stuff and decorate stuff. I am not at all talented in that respect. I get frustrated at times and send half decorated doll cakes off to work with my dh. That was pretty hilarious. I don't know how 'real' cake decorators do it. I mean, I love the work. I just wish I were better at it. Sometimes my inner self is confused and she thinks that she is a cake decorator. And she clearly is not. Just baking cakes and pies are more my thing. Without the decorating. Oh and fudge too. And cookies. I like all that stuff. A little too much sometimes.

I think also that I am crafty. I like to paint stuff. Not like Picasso type of painting, just crafty easy 1-2-3 painting. It's fun. I bought letters for Eddie's room before he was born and I painted those. It was soothing and I enjoyed it. Now on the lazy hand, I waited until Alexa was 14 months old before I painted her letters. But they still came out cute, and they were worth the wait.

So, now back to my baking. Today I made 6 little mini pumpkin pies. I followed the directions to a capital T. Now, why on earth do I have so much pie filling left? I read the box. My shells are too short I think. I'm such a dork. If it isn't one thing I mess up, it's another. But they smell good. And short or not, I bet they taste pretty good. And if you nearly kill it with Cool Whip, you surely have a winner. What's sad is, I'm not going to eat a single one of these. I made them for the daycare teachers. Awwwww!!!! But you see, they help give me my sanity. I go to work, they take care of my kids. Or at least that's the idea anyway.

So I made little pies. I hope they like pies. It's all very Martha Stewart of me huh? That woman gives us all a bad name. Who on earth does she think she is? Us regular folks can't measure up. And we spend time in our kitchens creating disasters. Or is that just me?

How is there time to create fantabulous center pieces and cook tarts and bake "Nothing water" on your stove just so that your house smells good for the guests. Who does that? I mean, if you are busy doing all of that, who is going to vacuum up the Ritz crackers that Eddie and Alexa have ground into the carpet after you've just finished vacuuming. Who is going to pick up all the books that your sweet little girl has dragged out for the fiftieth time???? What about the diaper that Eddie keeps taking off because he wants to wear "big boy" undies? And heaven forbid that he actually make a poopy while wearing big boy undies and not tell you, because a poopy might fall out and you don't see it. Who's going to pick up that kitty kibble on the couch before guests arrive? And if you at all realize it's even there, will it be you or your guests that figure out it isn't really a kitty kibble, but the missing poopy from Eddie's big boy undies. Who is going to make sure that the bathroom is presentable and doesn't have an entire roll of toilet paper sitting inside the bowl. These are the things that regular moms take care of. Which doesn't leave much time for baking, prepping and decorating. It's a neat idea. If you don't have anything else in your life to do, but it's not practical. And that's why I don't bake or frost cakes more often. Frosting cakes takes time. The time I don't have. I need to be hands on with these little people who are stone by stone, taking down the house.

So, like I said. I baked this morning. Something easy. Or so it might seem. Because I have left over pumpkin stuff, and I'm quite sure I shouldn't have that much left. I have to laugh now, because that's just typical of my baking. Every time it goes this way. But I'm sure they are good. And I removed the hair that was trying to get in the mix of dough. (Nah, I'm kidding.........) Or was I? But like I said, good. Have to go and run errands. As always. Here's a picture or two for your perusal.

My mini pies cooking, the box of what they should look like, and my cat Corona. Since I don't talk about him nearly enough. He used to be my baby. And then he got booted into second place. And then quickly into third. And now he just gets the scraps of what's left of me. Which isn't all that much. Enjoy the pics!