{CUPCKAKES AND SCHOOL REPORTS}

I know, I know ... I've been a shocker. The last 2 weeks have been insane what with Miguel's birthday and all ... let my try and give you a rundown of some of it ..

first of all my son had his school photo and and school report given. I am very proud of how much he has matured in the last 2 months. He just seems so grown up now .. what happened to the baby ?? They say that the average 4 year old asks 400 questions a day, well I'm sure that Miguel far exceeds this quota! He never stops asking questions - I don't mid the questions, except he has a way of stumping me at times and I'm not too sure how to answer them. "Ma, who made God?"

(this is for grandmeme and grandpepe in Mauritius)

Tomorrow morning Miguel has his assessment for entry in to grade 00. The school that he is applying for is called Thomas More College . It is a lovely school, they seem to be able to get the right mix of academia and just letting kids be kids too. We hope that they accept him. So keep your fingers crossed for us!!

I have also found out the one of my most favourite artists Jamie Cullum has done a cover of Pharell Williams song Frontin .. Oh man it is good ... I love him he is so young and innovative with his music, always pushing the envelope .. Just listen here

sigh ... does it get any better ?? Listened to quite a bit of him when I was having my chemo treatments...

Oh yeah i got an new hair cut ... what to add a little va, va voom to it - so i am wanting to colour it. I want to do something WOW with it, so I will have to see what happens. I need some vibrant colour to distract every one form how thin it is. I was very lucky not to loose my hair during treatment .. but it fell out enough to be very thin .. so if any one has some great ideas on how to get your hair to grow back fast and thick ... send them my way !! You can tell that I'm getting better, my vanity is returning !!! I 'heart' cupcakes .. I have truly fallen in love with them ... I just love all the innovative things that people are doing with them .. check out these super talented ladies ... CupCakeBlog and also Bakerella does the most amazing cupcake decorating ... must learn how to do that!! Here is my small attempt at cupcakes, i had to bake 40 for Miguel's school mates for his birthday .. I made the M stars by creating the stars with the letter M on Coral draw (though I'm sure any software would do), printed them out onto adhesive paper. I punched them out using a star craft punch. Peeled and suck them back to back on a tooth pick !! What do you think I found a really fantastic recipe on the net ... nice and moist and not too sweet. Here it is if you're interested.

Magnolia’s Vanilla Cupcakes.

Makes about 2 dozen cupcakes (depending on the size of your cupcake papers and muffin tins)
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.
3.In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.
4.In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not over beat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended. Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about three-quarters full. Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.
5.Cool the cupcakes in the tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

and last but not least after that loooooooooooooooooooooong post a freebie for you

click here to download

Well I will keep you posted on how tomorrow goes ....night