PMS Strikes Again!

You know what I'm talking about - that time of the month when ANYTHING and EVERYTHING around you just annoys the crap out of you. It can be anything from the sound of your kids screaming, your husband (just being your husband), it's too hot out, your house is messy, the list goes on and on. Then you go to the pantry to reach for a snack and there's nothing there! You want something salty and crunchy or something sweet and gooey, right? Well, today I feel like that so I thought I'd look online so next month at least I'll be prepared on the snack end of things. I'll still be an irritable monster but at least I'll find some comfort in my snacks.

Here's what I found:

For a sweet treat:

Pretty Mean Snacks is the place to satisfy your chocolate fix. The chocolates are available in 4 different tins - I love the names: Sweet Sassy Sister, Pure Passion Princess, Deep Decadent Diva and Hot Mama Madness. Try it and let me know which one you like best.

For the salt/crunch fix:

If you're a chip fanatic (like myself) you definitely need to try Anchor's Chip Of The Month Club. I did it for a month just to try it out and it was so much fun. You get a box in the mail with an assortment of different kinds of chips. The fun part was tasting them of course, but also discovering brands of chips I never even heard of. My favorite potato chip is the Lay's Dill Pickle Chip. I haven't seen them in years so I don't even know if they still make them. If anyone knows of their existence, please let me know! I've tried other brands of Dill Pickle but so far none compare to Lays

It's All About The Cake

A few years ago, I took some cake decorating classes at Michael's. I absolutely loved it!! Since then I have been obsessed! I love going to the bookstore and checking out the new cake decorating books. The cupcake and cookie decorating ones are great also. Of course I have a bunch in my collection!

The decorating classes are based on the Wilton decorating method. It was really fun and inexpensive. I highly recommend trying it out. You can also take these classes at Joann's Craft Store as well.

Here are a few favorite cakes that I have made:


1. 2.
3. 4.
5.

1. Sleeping Beauty cake I made for my daughter Olivia's 3rd birthday


2. Pink & Brown cake for my daughter Ruby's 1st birthday


3. Hydrangea cake I made based on a cake from the Confetti Cakes Cookbook


4. Baby carriage cake


5. Captain America's Shield for my husband Tony - he's a BIG Captain America fan!!
   

Some of my favorite sites for cake decorating are Cake Central (I have photos posted there), The Charm City Cakes Website (from the show Ace of Cakes on the Foodnetwork), Confetti Cakes -a bakery in NYC., Wilton - lots of things to buy and fun decorating ideas. I also had a subscription to American Cake Decorating Magazine.

I posted a bunch of cakes on Flickr - check ti out at www.flickr.com/photos/totalcitygirl/ or click on the FLickr badge on the right sidebar.

My latest challenge is Olivia's next birthday. She's going to be 5 in less than a month and she wants a bubble gum birthday cake. I have some ideas in mind so I'll post them as it gets closer.

Buy One, Get One at Design-her Gals

I wanted to let you know about a great deal going on now at Design-her Gals. They're a super fun place to go to get yourself some personalized stationery items. You design your own gal and then you can order business cards, note pads, and tons of other stuff.



Total City Girl is an affiliate - I did this because I love their products so much and really believe in them. 5% of all sales go to benefit patients with Stage IV Breast Cancer. So, you're doing a good thing and you get something in return as well. Hurry though - now through Monday August 11th they are having a Buy One, Get One Free Sale. Time to stock up!!

Northeast Georgia Kids' Directory

My ad for TotslCityGirl.com came out in the August issue of the Northeast Georgia Kids' Directory. It was very exciting! Here's what it looks like - it's on page 10.

The ad is going to run for August and September. Although I am not located in Georgia, it didn't really matter because they are doing a special section for "Save Gas - Shop Online". My friend Sarah is the publisher. If you have a business geared towards moms or kids, you should definitely check it out. Its a free directory that gets distributed to the Northeast Georgia region. It's a great resource for moms and kids. You can either send her an e-mail or check out her website.