I. Love. Themes.

I love themes. A lot. To the point where many would consider it creepy. I can't even understand why people do things without a theme.
Anyway, my friends and I decided to plan this big group date. We're aware that the boys are supposed to plan the dates but what can I say? We're better at it. So we start talking about what day we want to do it on deciding between Wednesday or Thursday not really caring which. Then one of us pointed out that Batman premiered Thursday and that sealed the deal. We were now planning a Batman themed date!
Yeah I know. This post just jumped from interesting to epic.
Here's the best thing I could think of for Batman nail polish since there's no way I'm drawing anything that even resembles a bat on my nail. 

We started off the date decorating a Batman themed T-shirt for our date.

Brittany and Joseph here won the T-shirt making contest. Whatever. I cut out the stencils that made that possible...

Chris and Chelsea were looking pretty dang good too. But pink and red on the same shirt? Really Chris?

Michael only had time to finish the back of my "Batman jersey..."

Lesli wrote "Batman is sexy" on Cody's shirt. That stunt definitely won them second place!

Before the date I worried about our shirts drying in time to wear. Luckily Meg was the only one with that problem. Nice work Adam.

After making shirts, we had a fancy dinner down in the "Bat Cave" we dressed up for. I'll admit that decorating my toy room for this was probably the best part of the whole night! And I'll also admit that we clean up very nicely if I do say so myself...

Our adorable Lurch playing Alfred for us...

Fancy.

Yeah I polished that silver!

This is my glowing water. Seriously people it glowed with my black lights. The sad story about this was that I had a fountain to put the water in but my fountain had lights inside of it. A light up fountain kind of completely ruins the use of glowing water... So I had to put it in this lovely dish after spending three hours trying to temporarily break a light bulb

After dinner we split up and headed out to do a super hero picture scavenger hunt. It was a little difficult to do some of these so late at night but we sure gave it a good effort! Well... Some of us did I think.

-Make the bat signal
-Open a door for someone
-Save a damsel on the RR tracks
-Stop a suicidal jumper from a bridge
-Shake hands with a police officer
-Stand majestically on a high place
-Hand-to-hand combat with a bad guy
-Stand by the batmobile (a black car)
-Stop a mugger from taking a purse
-Picture with a motorcycle
-Defuse a bomb
-Rescue someone trapped under a car
-Put out a fire
-Help a homeless person
-Save a cat stuck in a tree
-Read a comic book
-Help an old lady cross the street
-Climb a wall
LAST ONE
-Picture with the movie poster

As soon as we finished we headed to the movies and got there just as they were letting people in. Perfect timing! All in all it was a fantastically themed date and I've finally decided what I want to major in... Party Planning! Somebody point the way!

The Best Cupcakes Ever? We'll Be The Judge of That!

My mom found a recipe for what was called "The Best Cupcakes Ever" and knew that they needed to be judged by her now. Nobody is going to tell my judgmental family what is and isn't the best! Plus when the recipe wasn't calling for any kind of candy to be hidden in the middle we were pretty skeptical...
However I'm making this post because my gosh. These are good!! I guess I should have known from the fact that this girl won Cupcake Wars (the greatest cooking show out there) but I definitely had my doubts when I tasted the batter and it was gross. I think this is the first recipe where I wasn't tempted to just stop and eat all the dough instead of baking them... Here's the recipe!

 

Black and White Chocolate Cupcakes

By Megan Faulkner Brown (’02), Sweet Tooth Fairy Owner and Cupcake Wars Winner
http://www.thesweettoothfairy.com/

1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup and 2 tablespoons dark chocolate cocoa
1½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup sour cream
3 eggs
¾ cup ready-to-eat chocolate pudding
½ cup butter, melted
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake pan cups with paper liners.

In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients together with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds until well combined.

Add wet ingredients and mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Stop and scrape the sides of the bowl and resume mixing on medium speed for an additional minute. Stop mixer and fold in chocolate chips.

Fill the prepared cupcake liners with batter 3/4 full. Bake about 15-18 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting.


White Chocolate Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
¼ cup butter, softened
1 cup white chocolate chips or 6 ounces white chocolate, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
2⅓ cups powdered sugar

To make the frosting, beat cream cheese and butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for 1 minute. Add melted chocolate and vanilla; mix for an additional minute. Add powdered sugar gradually, beating until light and fluffy after each addition.

Spread the frosting on the chocolate cupcakes. Garnish with fresh raspberries, mini chocolate chips, or chocolate sprinkles.



So everyone, go make these. Because they are good. My family is of the opinion that the Lindor Truffle cupcakes are better but these are definitely a close second!

And just for my five or so friends out there, I am finally home from my internship in Seattle at the Elite Dance camp. It was a bunch of fun but I wish my Moses Lake Molahiettes had been there so I could show you guys off! Oh btw mom, now would probably be a good time to inform you that I invited all my intern friends to come up and visit me anytime they get bored during the summer... Hope you're cool with that! Anyway, I am definitely ready to officially begin my summer before I'm shipped off to college where I'll have to fit in both partying and college work! Ugh not looking forward to that challenge...

Surrounded by 49 of the Smartest, Most Talented Girls in the US? Yeah it can get to a Person.

For those of you who don't know (Meaning those random people searching for "smart talented girls" and got confused enough by my title to start reading this) I've been in Mobile, Alabama these past two weeks to compete at Distinguished Young Women Nationals Finals. Let's get these oh so interesting FAQ's out of the way first.
Did you have fun?
More fun than a barrel of monkeys! Actually sometimes it felt like a barrel of monkeys being constantly surrounded by that many girls... Alright we'll go with the same amount of fun as a barrel of monkeys.
What was your favorite part?
Getting to eat a Krispy Kreme Doughnut everyday (the link is a funny Simpsons episode about donuts)! Or maybe it was my awesome girl scouts who I definitely fooled into thinking I was cool (Jordan, Gracie, Rileigh, if you're reading this, I'm sorry for tricking you. I would send back the candy you gave me but it is definitely gone already.) Or maybe it was getting to sing as loud as I could at the Southern Baptist church and still not be able to hear my off-key notes (no where else has that been found possible). Or maybe it was eating ice cream out on the porch every night without gaining a pound (But considering how much work I had to do everyday to make that miracle possible it doesn't totally seem worth it.) I guess I'd have to go with... Everything. It was an awesome two weeks!
What was your host family like?

If I had to choose one word, I'd say perfect. My host parents Meg and Geoff were the funniest and sweetest people I've ever met. They definitely had the Southern Hospitality thing down to a science. Plus my roommate and I got along so well everyone thought we were twins! Also, as the most gangster girls there we received the nicknames A-Swag and K-Dizzle (my other nickname was Barbie which clearly didn't fit me as well as K-Dizzle did). I also had a host brother that we really got along with! At least, the three times we talked it seemed like it... What can I say? He was definitely too cool for us!
How was the humidity? 
Devilish. All my gum feels like someone sucked on it and then put it back... I love the South but I am never living there.
Are you glad to be home?
I cried with joy.

And now the NSFAQ's (Not So Frequently Asked Questions)

So, did you like participate in every eating contest they offered?
It was only ribs and oysters but yes I did. Like a boss. Actually this oyster video was the only one I found that showed me in it. Turns out when you only eat one they don't give you a lot of air time... The rib pictures are too embarrassing to be seen.
What was your actual placement? This question is actually one many people want the answer to but are not sure if it is a rude question.
No worries it's not rude! All I know is that I made top ten. I have no idea how I did in the top ten other than knowing I wasn't in the top three. If you would like to believe I got fourth place I have no power to stop you...
Do you miss being treated like royalty?
I get to come home to sitting around all day and being fed without even having to get ready... I'm pretty sure this is better than royalty ever had it. So jokes on you all. I'm still spoiled rotten.

In all honestly, I loved my time at Nationals and am so grateful for the experience. I really did make great friends there that I'm going to remember forever. I've got to again thank everyone for all the gifts and good luck wishes! The support meant so much to me and I loved knowing that so many people believed in me. It helped me to believe in myself!
Before I left, I was told to go big or go home. So I went big and did my best to make Washington proud! But I've got to say, I am glad to be home. Even if I am heading to Seattle tomorrow... The joys of a busy summer time! Also I have no recipe for you because this post has already taken way too much of my sitting around time.

I was the only one to nail the pirate face although Mad Dog (bottom left) definitely got second.

Me and A-Swag. #Distinguished

Biggest. Sleepover. Ever.

Yes we look good. No we weren't going out with boys. That's not questionable...

Everyone kept telling me my sisters were Kendalls with different hair cuts. Does anybody see that? Anybody at all?

 

It's All About Me; Except When It Isn't

This week I've been preparing to go to Nationals in Mobile, Alabama. I leave tomorrow June 16. Some of you may not realize this (but most of you probably have) but at times (quite often) I tend to become a bit self-focused. I know I know, the two of you out there who haven't realized this are sitting there with your jaws dropped in shock. However, it is true. Getting ready for Nationals has definitely brought that out in me. To be fair, I do still remember to say please and thank you and even feel a little guilty about how hard everyone is working for me, but that's about it. So when Kylie reminded me that mom's birthday was the 16th you can imagine how terrible I felt.
My mother has been going to the studio with me (all while I complained), shopped for me (I complained during that too), sewed my clothes (I didn't complain during this! But I also didn't help so there wasn't anything to complain about), and even kept me motivated throughout it all. In addition to that, she has been planning on waking up at four in the morning on her BIRTHDAY to get me to my Pasco flight at 6. My mom deserves the greatest award ever made! I'm thinking that would be a statute of her. I mean really does anything get cooler than that?
I wish that I could do more to make her more fully realize just how much I appreciate the woman she has turned me into. To put it into terms everyone can understand, every good thing about me I learned from my mom through her constant care and advice. Heaven knows she does love to give out her advice... But I love her for it! My mom loves to say that she hasn't been able to be there for us because of dance but it's not true at all. Is she working at the dance studio or on dance things almost all day? Yes. But does she ever refuse to help me with something because she's too busy? No. Never. If I ever needed anything done she would take the time to help me (or just do it herself when I inevitably proved incompetent) even if it meant she was staying up late to finish it. In fact sometimes she was taking time off just so I wouldn't have to watch TV alone!
Now that I've covered everything great about her, let's make a list because there's even more!

Why you wish you had my mom!

1. She doesn't ever give up on you no matter how often you want to give up on yourself. I don't know how many times I wanted to quit dance because I thought I would never be good enough and every time she asked me to just hold it out for another year. Now I know that was just a bunch of trickery but I guess you have to love her for that.

2. She will always share her opinion. Some of you may be raising your eyebrows as in "Really? We want a mom who constantly wants to share her opinion?" Yes you do. Because she is always right. And if you didn't have that opinion, you need to change yours.

3. She will stay up until the wee small hours to work on something for you. And not only that but she'll tell you to go ahead and go to bed. You will feel like the biggest jerk of life going to bed with her still working but you will do it anyway because she insists and you realize you're useless.

4. She will perfect projects way more than anyone else will even care. But since everything she does will turn out amazing you really can't even complain. You've just got to hope that one day you will gain that trait so everything you make will be amazing. But then you'll turn in a terrible school project and realize it's never going to happen.

5. She has the ability to love all her children to the fullest. You can preach all you want that you have found her favorite child but the honest truth is, she doesn't have one. Kacey has got the perfect first child thing going for her but Kristy has her adorable dorky charm working. Brad is one of the funniest guys you'll meet while Courtney is one of the most talented girls you'll meet. Kylie is the perfect blend of pretty and smart but Bryan... Well we're working on him... It's no wonder she doesn't have a favorite! (Just to be clear, I am not bragging about how awesome my family is. Awesome people aren't allowed to brag about being awesome. We'll have to say this is just stating facts to prove a point.)

Did I mention she made me a float?! Yeah she's awesome

I made this post so that everyone can finally understand that my mom really is amazing and that she does so many amazing things for me even when I clearly don't deserve it. Thank you mom for everything! Everything I do well at Nationals is thanks to you. Happy birthday! 

BTW she is just now going to bed and she is driving me to airport at 4 in the morning... Yeah. Once again she's awesome.

Cupcakes, Ice Cream, and Graduation

I recently made those ice cream cupcakes I've seen on Pinterest and I'm sorry to say, I'm not a huge fan. To make these cupcakes all you have to do is put less batter into your cupcakes liners as usual, spread ice cream on them once they've cooled, and then stick it all in the freezer. After that you can add whipped cream or frosting to the top but personally I think some hot fudge was exactly what they needed.
What I liked about this recipe was the fact that you can mix and match any kind of cake mix with ice cream flavor. I have a seriously love affair with mix and matching different flavors to get a magical blend of taste. There was nothing I loved more when I was younger than the giant tubs of Jelly Bellys that let me make such things as strawberry lemonade and pina colada by biting into multiple beans.
Anyway, even with that I still have a lot of things I don't love about this dessert.
1. In all the recipes I looked at, they all just wrote in the instructions to spread the ice cream over it. Maybe I'm missing some common sense thing here (which is very likely seeing as I hear daily complaints from my mom on my lack thereof) but ice cream does not spread all that easily. I set my ice cream out to let it thaw at least but it seemed that it was always either too frozen to spread easily or too melted already. If someone had a quick and easy solution to this problem it would greatly improve these cupcakes standing with me.
2. Cupcakes are supposed to be a hand held food. But when the food gets melty, sticky ice cream all over your hands when you try to hold it, I don't appreciate it. Even if you eat the cupcake right out of the freezer it is still already melting all over you and by the time you throw away the wrapper, you're definitely already covered.
3. The cupcake is pretty darn frozen in the middle after being the freezer and that's kind of an odd thing to bite into. Maybe this could be solved by not making them too early so they don't have to sit in the freezer but I'm so disappointed in my unhappiness of this recipe that I cannot look at the solutions.
4. I had a whole bunch of cake batter left over after making 24 cupcakes! I couldn't waste it so I made a cake with the leftovers. Which I then forgot about baking in the oven because I had to go watch SYTYCD with Kristy. Luckily Trevor got it out of the oven before it burned. Unlucky that meant I not only had 24 ice cream cupcakes but also a whole cake to eat without even having my whole family in town to eat it. Yeah I think I need more friends who feel like just coming over to eat treats all the time... Or at the very least a teenage brother who can actually eat like a boy!
Well now I'm done complaining. It is a fun kind of treat on days when you can't decide between ice cream or cake so go ahead and try it out. It's highly probable that the only reason I really don't like this dessert is that it takes too much work. I think I'm going back to cake mix cookies mixed with random candies...

On another note, I graduated high school this Saturday!

NBD.

It was a pretty fantastic day! Bunches of parties and treats to go around. My funny story of the night is after we made a trip to Sharies at 3:00 in the morning. I made one of my friends order the southern style something or other plate which served fried chicken and waffles. Together. With syrup on the chicken and gravy on the waffles. I don't think I've ever heard of anything more perfect! I got a delicious cake shake that I loved very much. However, whether it was the fact that I had very fattening shake at 3:00 in the morning or the combined smell of fried chicken and waffles, we'll never quite be sure what caused it, I suddenly felt really sick. If I even moved slightly I was sure I was going to barf all over the whole table. As I'm driving home ridiculously slow to avoid throwing up before I got there, I was considering the fact that there were a million policemen out trying to find the kids that were drinking. Not only on my drive home did I have to concentrate on not throwing up all over my beautiful car but also how in the world I was going to explain to a policeman that no I had not been drinking but yes I had just thrown up all over him... Luckily I made it home with any policemen pulling me over so we'll have to call it a happy ending.
 

Crescent Cinnamon Rolls: Perfect Breakfast After a Crazy Night

I don't know about you guys, but I am loving that people are learning how to turn all my favorite foods into cinnamon rolls. I've seen cinnamon roll cake and cinnamon roll pancakes and now there's this, cinnamon roll crescents! My sister Courtney showed them to me and I have been meaning to try them for a long time. When my friends decided we were going to have a sleepover Friday night I knew I had to make them for breakfast.

This picture doesn't make them look super appetizing but I like to show people exactly how they look when they bake so that you know you didn't do it wrong. Here's the recipe from the original site with great step by step pictures. I'll just give the simplified version.

Crescent Cinnamon Rolls:

Ingredients:
1 tube of Pillsbury crescent rolls (8 count, buttery or regular kind)
6 T softened butter
1/4 C white sugar
2 1/2 t cinnamon
2 T melted butter
1/4 C powdered sugar (the original calls for 2 T more but I was too lazy to add them)
1/2 t vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375
Place unrolled crescent rolls on cookie sheet (I greased mine but the recipe says not to... I just about always grease mine though)
Mix together softened butter, white sugar, and cinnamon for the filling
Spread filling on opened rolls and then roll them up (embarrassing confession: I just learned that there is a wrong way and a right way to roll up crescent rolls. No worries, I figured it out after only two failures!)
Bake 10-12 minutes and while its baking start on glaze
Mix together melted butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla. *If it hardens a bit before you have a chance to put it on your rolls just heat it for a few seconds in microwave and stir*
While rolls are still hot, pour or spread or drizzle your glaze on them. *Don't worry about putting too much or too little, you can't mess these rolls of deliciousness up!*
EAT IT HOT! Just don't burn yourself.
Delicious and hardly any work at all! I just wish they were bigger. I definitely always eat two.


Now that I've given you a delicious recipe, I've got some life lessons I learned from my sleepover that I feel I should pass on.
1. Although jumping into the lake at evening time when its chilly isn't a great idea, rolling down your newly mowed hill with the sprinklers on is an even worse one.
2. Fanny packs are very useful when you're army crawling around.
3. Actually, fanny packs are always useful. Go buy one.
4. Using glitter in a prank may seem fun and magical... Because it totally is. Yes it's somewhat impossible to clean up but let's be honest. Everybody loves glitter.
5. If you're sneaking around and a motion light suddenly catches you off guard, running as fast as you can away from it isn't necessarily your best choice. On the bright side however, it will give everyone a good laugh.
6. Never underestimate a boy on crutches.

I hope you take all this advice to heart because it will no doubt save your life one day.

Andy's Mint Cookies

Do you love cake mix cookies? Do you love Andy's Mints? Do you love having a super delicious, super adorable treat that takes no effort at all?! Then you will love this!!!

This is a recipe from Six Sisters' Stuff. I love my family but I think I'd give them up for a chance to be one of these six sisters... Check out the married sisters' perfect family pictures and you'd agree with me!

Andy's Mints Cookies

Ingredients:
1 box devil's food cake mix
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 package of Andy's Mints


Preheat oven to 350

Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs. Make into balls and cake for 8-10 minutes. Usually once the cookie has tiny holes in it, you can take it out. But really you probably shouldn't take my word for that because I tend to under cook things... While its cooking unwrap enough Andy's Mints for every cookie. The best part is next. Once you pull your deliciously warm cookies out of the oven, drop a mint right in the middle of it. Let it sit there for a minute or two and then just swirl it around with a spoon to get a deliciously melted mint frosting. And yes, it is fun swirling it around!

Random notes:
These are delicious warm or set, rain or shine.
I used a German chocolate cake mix since I was too lazy to head to the store. They were still good!
A lot of times my melted mint would slide to the edge of the cookie as I swirled it. Didn't even make it look bad. That's what I call a good recipe!