Angry Birds Cupcakes

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/Edit: this is a temporary theme that I am using while I get my new layout up and running. ^^

About a year ago, I tried baking a small square cake for my dad’s birthday. It was a 2-layer cake, coated with frosting. I believe it sat in the fridge for about 24 hours or so. After the celebration and pictures, it was time for cake. We sung “Happy Birthday” and my dad went to cut the cake. Instead of a soft, moist cake, we had a hard and nasty one. We couldn’t cut through it at all. It was terrible to eat. Since then I haven’t tried to bake a full size cake.

So this year, for my dad’s birthday, I decided to make cupcakes. He also liked Angry Birds at the time, so I wanted to incorporate that somehow. I looked online for inspiration and found tons of different ways people created Angry Birds, with fondant, candy, and whatnot. I stumbled upon this tutorial and knew I wanted to do that because I had leftover fondant from a different baking project.

My friend helped color the fondant with me. It was such a mess. We had coloring and powdered sugar all over us. But, in the end, we got the right colors. He also helped me create the red bird and pig. I was tempted to do the other birds, but I didn’t have enough fondant.

Surprisingly, the pig was easier to create! It only had 3 colors. The bird was a little difficult because of its beak and little details. But, overall, I am impressed with myself (I really thought I was going to fail at this).

Then, I made simple vanilla cupcakes from this recipe. I wanted to try this one because the recipe called for whipping cream rather than milk. I don’t think I tasted anything different, but just holding the cupcakes, they were softer. I bought icing from Ralphs, colored the frosting, and frosted the cupcakes. I topped each one with an angry bird or pig using a toothpick. In total, I made 24.

My family and relatives were pretty surprised and impressed by the decorations. They were pretty shocked to see that I made all these by hand. It was tiring, but I definitely had fun with it. Overall, I am happy with how these came out.

Realistic Goals? Maybe…

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I have to admit, after 8 hours of work, 2 hours of commute (going and coming), I am exhausted by the end of the day! I rarely want to do anything except eat, watch TV, and browse the Internet; which is why I rarely update this blog or any other websites. I decided I needed to stop and get back into my hobbies. So I created a short list of “goals” that may or may not be tangible. But, nevertheless, I need to push myself to become more active.

In order of most realistic to never going to happen unless I am completely motivated and inspired

  1. Finish Kid Icarus: Uprising on 3DS. I got stuck in one level of the game and haven’t touched it since. But I plan on finishing soon.
  2. Re-join BHIP. They have ongoing sessions for people who have graduated from the first class. A few of my coworkers are continuing it and it kind of has me wanting to to do it too. While I do workout on my own, I don’t always find myself pushing my limits and I don’t workout on a schedule. Con: Paying $40~ish/month ($20 for the gym membership, $20 for program fee).
  3. Eat healthier. I’ve been cutting down on sweets and junk food. I rarely drink soda anymore. But, it wouldn’t hurt to eat more greens and fruits. So this would be a good habit to keep up.
  4. Learn photography. At my job, I am sometimes required to take photographs of events and talks. I am amateur at it, but for some reason, people think I take good photos.
  5. Stop splurging. I’ve noticed I have been spending lots on clothes, shoes, and other personal indulgences that are more wants than needs. I definitely should stop that and resist anything I can wait on buying.
  6. Bake and/or cook more. I have been baking recently, but they have been more failures than successes. Of course, that doesn’t really stop me. (Reminder to self, make baking posts)
  7. Build online portfolio. I’ve been slacking so much on this. One day I would tell myself, “alright, you’re going to do it today!” but end up not finishing it or deleting it.
  8. Revamp all websites. I have been avoiding all my websites lately. I need to give each of them a makeover.
  9. Become “fluent” in Cantonese. Though I can understand it, I am terrible at speaking it. I love learning new characters and practicing writing. But, when it comes to speaking, I fumble and mumble. My friend does not understand how I can understand it, yet be unable to speak it.
  10. Visit more places. Like theme parks, museums, or just places around where I live. I feel like I’ve been missing out and should check out local shops and whatnot.
  11. Create a graphic novel/short story/strip. I’ve been in a drawing mood and kind of inspired by some web comics that I’ve been reading. But, realistically, this probably won’t be done… maybe started?
  12. Learn other languages. Practical. I would love to speak more languages.

So, I guess most of them are realistic, tangible, and “easy” to do. I just need to stop being lazy.