I do not aim to make you fat

Being the dessert lady I find that I'm unfairly labeled with being the person who is trying to make you fat. So I thought I'd just use today's posting to clear the air a little. :) I hear things from people like "Kayla, my hips are sure going to appreciate this turtle cheesecake of yours," and "Ugh, this monkey bread is going to cost me 30 more minutes on the treadmill tonight." I do not aim to make you poor folks fat. I support your desire to workout and be thin. I mean what girl doesn't long to look like the victoria secret models? Boobs are upright, stomach is flat, curve-acious has a whole new meaning when they are titled with it, and here we sit having, as I say, sacrificed our bodies for our children.  However I must admit, that I think the way that God made you is just perfect to me. I think that you only get to live this life once, and I would hate to have gotten to heaven and told God that He has surely blessed me and I lived a full life, only having this one regret...wishing I had eaten just a few more BigMacs. Life can be full of little indulgences. My best friend manages to indulge a little every few days and remain strict in her daily diet of healthy eating. So do I want everyone to be fat? Absolutely not. I just want us fine people to be able to indulge in a little something sweet every now and again. Let's not swear off all desserts until the holidays and then pig out with pies cakes and all the gravies we can get our hands on.
We work hard don't we? We deserve to meet up with the dessert lady here and there and have good coffee and great treats over unsurpassed conversation? Yes! So keep running ladies, and keep hittin that treadmill, I support you! (Me, I'd rather die than go to the gym or exercise, that's sounds too much like work.) But for all of you out there, like my husband, who enjoy working out, keep on going!
I'm just here to remind you that not all indulgences can be afforded anymore. Not too many of us can indulge in a little trip to Europe or vacation in Hawaii. Let's not get upset about that, but rather enjoy the little indulgences that we can have; like Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies. (Happens to be my best seller.) Lol. We'll chat soon~

The Traveler's Journey

I am embarking upon new journeys all the time it seems. Of coarse we did cover that in my last posting, seeings how I am one who takes on more than I can chew. :) And today I have the luxury of trying to compile a family tree. This is quite difficult since my knowledge of my extended family is..well we can sum it up in this three letter word, zip! One cannot help but get a little mushy and nostalgic as the information floods to you (or trickles slowly down a very narrow stream) on your family members and the journeys that they have embarked upon. It's odd how you can have the desire to search for someone you have never met, and how the curiosity of family members abounds, tho they are distant and often dead, strangers. Sorry, I believe the politically correct term for dead is "expired."
So I have invested time and money searching for those people, and in the middle of all of this, I have to confess one of these mushy feelings I am experiencing...thankfulness. A rush of gratitude comes over me as I try and decipher port of call records dated from 1923. Imagine with me the journey of an immigrant trying to head to the "Western World." A land of opportunity. Hmmm...I wonder if America is all my great grandparents thought it would be?
Knowing now that I am only a 3rd generation American, makes me so thankful that my great grandparents were willing to take the trip and hop the seas. Had they not, I would have grown up in a different country. A land where perhaps I had to worship the government's gods, pray in the fashion they determined, dress the way they told me to, and raise my kids how "every generation before me did." Naturally then my train of thought leads me to the sweet treats that other cultures enjoy. Yes, my mind is always on sugar. :p
What if my family decided to stay? What if God placed me in a country like Asia where chocolate is considered a luxury? This means no mean mugs of hot chocolate, no warm chocolate chip cookies for Santa Claus, and absolutely no Reese's Peanut Butter cups. Are you kidding me? Ugh! Then I learn that India is a culture full of sweet-toothed citizens...surely my type of people. And yet most of them cannot afford chocolate due to high taxation (without representation?..had to... sorry.)

I am determined to delve into a daily life full of chocolate, not much modification has to be made there, as well as continue to learn about my distant family who unbelievably could have lived with a limited chocolate supply. Would it be too much pun to say let's get em' while they're hot? The chocolate chip cookies that is. Hot because they are coming out of the oven...get em' because we have the current luxury to indulge...never mind. You'll get that later :) Just a little thankful thought to approach Thanksgiving Day with tomorrow. We'll chat soon~

It's hilarious...

I've promised a hilarious ride to my readers who have the bravery to follow along in the curiosity of my life. So let's dive into the kitchen with me. Oh, a day in the life...lol. Outside of the humor in raising my four kids (it's amazing they let us be parents) brings us to me and my oven. You see, I am the type of person who naturally gets in way over my head. I take on big projects without a plan in how I am going to maintain or persevere, and as a result, I have been labeled so kindly by my family as a "quitter." The list of what I have started and quit, is near endless. Show choir, playing the clarinet, cheerleading, quilting, crocheting, even ghost in the graveyard. :) And then, there comes a day when you realize that you have unofficially "grown up," crap! Now you cannot quit. Days get hard in marriage and raising kids, with your job, and honestly just life, and you talk with yourself, and realize there is no going back. No giving up, absolutely no quitting. So what is a poor person to do? Here's what has occurred to me, Don't Drop the Cookies! Since on days like today, when I am in over my head, and taken on more than I can chew, I am faced with obligations (I am the "yes man") such as 14 dozen cookies in 4 different varieties due for an event in T minus 8 hours. Pans are flying folks, cookies are all over my kitchen, the dishwasher looks like it has puked all over my counters, and what happens right in the middle of all of the chaos...I drop the cookies. An entire sheet of beautifully perfected warm chewy cookies smash and crumble onto the floor. That's life, and to be transparent, that is what baking with me is like. I will be pulled in a baker's dozen of different directions, and forget to add the baking soda that makes the cookies rise. My loaves of amish bread have sat on the counter "proofing" for so long, that they collapse in the oven. I promise that I could be a millionaire at least, just selling all the "oopses" I bake each week.
So let's decide that we are going to prayerfully consider any new adventure that we are taking on, before doing so. Not much can suck the life out of you more than having a plate that is too full. Please tell me I am not the only one who does such...who is the official yes man, and agrees to help anyone and everyone at the drop of a hat. Remember when life gets a little overwhelming and we are pulled here and there, doing this and that, not to much avail, that the last thing we want to do, is fall backwards and drop the cookies. We'll chat soon~

Cold Weather = Great time for Baking

We are brave souls, my husband and I. We have just traveled 16 hours in a car with our four rambunctious children. Wisconsin is the destination, and we have arrived! The road trip was quite the experience, as always, and the feel of the ground under our feet when we finally arrived and quickly jumped out of the car, was a great feeling. Then the anticipation of arriving in Wisconsin came to a screatching halt as the first wind blew upon us. Welcome to the frozen tundra, it's 29 degrees here. Ugh! 

But like most situations, we tried to make the best of it. Sure our family is here in Wisconsin, after all, that's the whole point of taking on this road trip. But the cold! The weather here...well let's just say that one can forget what below freezing feels like. :) What does the cold weather remind you of? Do you smell the crisp air and think of Christmas time? Maybe several of you, are like me, and dream of walking into a warm house, with the oven blasting full speed, where the smell of holiday baking floods your senses. Yeah, cheezy, but wonderful. When the cold air of winter comes, start baking! There is no fear to be had, because I'm going to walk through the ease of baking with you in the upcoming months. 

So let's get started, the first step in overcoming the fear of baking...realizing it does not require any super special skills. You have heard this one, "If I can do it, you can too!" Lol. So true. Baking is about following directions. Which is one thing my family never thought I could do. Boy have I showed them! 

At wednesday night church service, we were talking about what makes us do diets. And the answer, well for most of us anyway, is the outcome. We diet and sacrifice so that we can have the outcome of a thinner, or healthier body. So that makes me realize that is why one who is being "sheep-ish" over baking, would want to take on such an endeavor. The outcome! Fresh cookies, delicious and warm, have always made us smile, since we were kids. 

So get ready because we are going to bake. You and me, because it does not require any super special skills, so I know at least I am a good candidate. We'll chat soon~

And Thus it Starts

Technology is about the coolest thing. My husband and business photographer (Faith Teasley Photography) would be so proud of me. Stepping up into the new age of webpages, blogs, and yes, Facebook. Anything and everything I need to do to promote my business, hey, I'm there. "Start a blog" you say? Sure. Even though my knowledge of blogging is second only to everyone in the world, including my seven year old. "Business Website where folks can order the most indulgent desserts they've ever had?" Sure. My desserts must get into the hands of people all around the world, after all, what is life without a little indulgence now and again? :p So I encourage you to follow me and my business, Kayla's Captivating Confections, as I bring to you what promises to be one hilarious, and a little bit insane, of a ride. We'll chat soon~