Better Know a Cupcake 4

This is the 4th installment of my 75 part series, Better Know a Cupcake. Today I am featuring Boston Cream Cupcakes. The fighting Boston Creams!I made these little beauties to celebrate my special day. Yes, today is my birthday (fun fact - it is also Abraham Lincoln's birthday). I may be getting older, but I am sure as hell not getting any skinner.

P.S. These were the most labor intensive cupcakes I have ever made, but they were soooooo worth it.

A hasty departure

When I was a senior in high school, I moved out of my mother's house. I left out of necessity rather than a desire to be independent. At the time, I was living with no running water and no electricity. When I left, I took very little with me - my canopy bed (because I thought I might someday have a daughter who would enjoy it) and my clothes. I left everything else behind. Unfortunately, over the next few years my mother managed to lose most of her earthly belongings, including all of my childhood artifacts. I have no adorable outfits from when I was a baby. I have no artwork from my childhood. I have none of my awards from school. I have very few pictures of me as a child. Everything is all gone. It is like my entire childhood never existed (on paper, at least). Although I would like to casually shrug it off, it bothers me. I wish that I had at least grabbed a photo album before I left.

I now find myself obsessively taking pictures of my kids, stashing away all of their artwork, and saving every cute article of clothing they have ever owned. It is hard to find a balance. I try so hard not to be like my mother, that I end up being obsessive. When I try to throw away goofy pictures my kids painted or even a simple page filled with scribbles, my heart aches. I love everything they do, and keeping all of these little creations will help me to remember. I never want to forget a second of their childhood.

The weather outside is frightful

I can't believe it, but it is supposed to snow again. They are predicting 18-24" inches of snow tonight. I think I am starting to understand the concept of cabin fever. I am so freaking bored. Maybe I should clean the house or something? Nah, that sounds like entirely too much work.
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I received a letter from my dental insurance requesting more information/proof that I needed to have those 4 teeth removed last month. This makes me incredibly nervous because I elected to have those 4 teeth removed. There was no pressing medical reason to have them removed. Basically, they were preventing me from getting braces. I have a really bad feeling that the insurance company is going my deny my claim. Translation = I am going to be stuck with the $1,000 bill. I have been fretting endlessly about this issue.
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I got a new vegan baking book. I have been experimenting with lots of different recipes, but things haven't gone quite like I had hoped. The muffins are always too wet and the cookies are too soft. It seems like I have to cook everything for 5 minutes longer than the time specified. And unfortunately, things still aren't turning out right. However, I haven't given up hope yet. She has a recipe for "gas station pies," which sounds amazing. I'll let you know how they turn out.
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Potty training isn't going very well. I finally convinced Porgie to wear underwear again, but it didn't end well. She refused to use the potty all morning. Before nap time, I asked her to go pee on the potty. She cried and screamed for nearly 20 minutes, and she never peed. So, she went back to diapers AGAIN. Sigh. I feel like we are never going to get potty trained.
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My mother bought Porgie this bike for Christmas. We didn't give it to her, because we didn't have a bike to give Izzy (we also stored it away because it was cold outside and there is no room for her to ride a bike in the house). My mom emailed me the other day to tell me that she is buying Izzy this bike. YAY! I can't wait for his new bike to arrive. The kids are going to flip out!