Fun time with DLee's World

This morning I had the chance to bring my little one to "DLee's World" official reading. I enjoy how the author was very interactive with the kids before and during her reading. Diana Lee Santamaria has been teaching Pre-School for six years now and has just published her new line of books called "DLee's World". The book is fulled with vibrant colors and has catchy phrases that'll make any child  huge fan. I can not wait to purchase the rest of the collection. If you missed today's book reading and signing no worries you can join her on September 25, 2014 at the Johnson Library in Hackensack at 6:30pm or visit http://www.dleesworld.com/ for other event dates. 

I also had the pleasure of baking the yummy mini cupcakes you see in the picture above. I wanted to keep the colors as vibrant and pretty as DLee. I chose to top it with bright yellow frosting (just like DLee's shirt) and a red heart all made out of butter cream icing. The cake batter itself I kept it fun with adding confetti mix. Next event is sure to be fun filled. Make sure to mark your calendar ;)

Kylie's passion 4 fashion

I My little princess is at the age where she knows what she wants to wear and whenever she wants. It's amazing how quick my little girl has grown. She amazes me everyday ;)

This little number is from Children's Place and Guess. Her favorite part of this ensemble was the sequinced denim jacket from Guess.

All ready for another day at school.

Kids outfit from Kohls styled by mommybakesnj

For Her:

Embroidered dress $7.80 $17.00Denim Jacket
 Cowboy boots$39.99Bow & Heart$12.00



How cute is this bright red Embroidered Dress? As soon as I saw it I just thought of how rustic and organic it looks. I'm a big fan of cowboy boots and this dress just had to be paired with it. For accessory I was looking for a cute headband but I then saw this adorable Bow & Heart shoulder bag and just had to get it.




For Him:

Big Dude Tee $8.00 Levi's $24.99



Ladies Man $9.00 Adidas BBNEO $54.99

For the boy I wanted to keep casual and cool. The two tee's had great color and depth to it. You can easily wear with any pair of jeans but I personally like Levi's. As for the shoes Kohl's had large variety to choose from but in the end I selected the Adidas it just fits the outfit perfectly.

Kohl's is having a huge sale and if you have a charge card you can earn an additional 30% off + FREE SHIPPING just enter code SPLURGE30. Visit your local Kohl's or go to: http://www.kohls.com/

21 Days of Beauty at Ulta

Visit your local Ulta to take apart of their 21 Days of Beauty. Each day they will be focusing on different beauty tips. Contact your local store as event times will vary. Enjoy a makeover and samples while supplies last. Visit : http://storead.ulta.com/Ulta.php?RelId=6.2.3.4 to view the full list of events to come. 

It's my bday and I had a Coco Chanel inspired Bday

I took a few days off and I wanted to share my Chanel inspired birthday with you all. 

I must say this year I left everything to the last minute hence my disaster cake :( but no worries I still kept the theme going. 

I'm a huge fan of Coco Chanel I just love how chic and classy Coco was. I wish I didn't wait to the last minute because I would've had definitely done a ton more. 

For the cake I wanted the colors pink and black to be my focal points. I used a free print outs for the cupcake toppers (visit: http://daisycelebrates.blogspot.com/) and the sign just did it myself on word. I wasn't able to get the exact font but I did the best I could. The Chanel logo I selected off of google images(http://www.pinterest.com/pin/212654413624744871/) and pasted it to the top of my sign on word.

The birthday banner I made it small and simple with little pops of pink. I made the flowers out of streamers. 

I'm obsessed with bird cages and I happen to have a vintage one. I printed out one of Coco's famous sayings "A girl should be two things... Classy & Fabulous" and placed it inside the cage with a bouquet of flowers. My inspiration for the birthday theme came from this website: http://blog.hwtm.com/2012/06/black-and-white-coco-chanel-party-dessert-table/. I just had to put my own spin by adding some color. I had a blast on my birthday and I can't wait for next year's theme ;) Any ideas please post below ;)

Meatloaf...It's what's for dinner ;)

How cute and yummy are these cupcake meatloaf's? This hands on recipe is simple and great to teach your little one the essentials of cooking. Everyone has their own special way of doing meatloaf but my version is quick and easy. 

Meatloaf Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (extra lean is great)

1 Packet of dry onion soup mix

2 large eggs

1 cup bread crumbs

1 cup ketchup

Cooking spray

Mashed Potatoes

4 cups potato of your choice (sweet potato works great too)

1/4 cup Sour Cream

4 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Get a mixing bowl and place the raw ground beef in bowl (if your child is helping you I recommend they put cooking gloves or just wash hands before and after dealing with the raw meat). Add onion mix, ketchup, eggs and bread crumb to beef. Now comes the fun part for the kids...hands all in and mix the ingredients together. If you feel the meat is a bit watery just add more bread crumbs. Once everything is mixed together prepare the cupcake tin. 

Add cooking spray to the cupcake pan or just place cupcake liners. I usually use an ice cream scoop to help me get the same portions distributed throughout the pan plus its easier for the kids.

 You can add more ketchup on top if you'd like or even Campbell tomato soup. Place in 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

Now since you have the free time work on making the mash potatoes. Peel and cut your potatoes as you normally do. For quicker cooking time cut potatoes small.

 Add to pot filled with water (make sure to add salt to add flavor while it cooks) and bring to a boil for  10 minutes or until soft. When cooked drain water and place potato in bowl. If you have  a handheld blender great! If not just use a fork or potato masher. Then add sour cream, black pepper, butter, milk, garlic powder and parmesan cheese. Mix well and taste to make sure it's at the flavor you desire. 

If you want the meatloaf to look as pictured at the beginning of the blog place the mash potato in a pastry bag with a wide star tip and pipe the potato on top of the meatloaf. I usually top my potato with chives and extra parmesan cheese. The possibilities are endless.

My inspiration for this recipe and photo credit is from: http://firstlookthencook.com/2011/11/02/meatloaf-cupcakes/

Parent's Bday Cake by mommybakesnj

This past week was my parent’s birthdays and I had the pleasure of doing their birthday cake. I wanted to make it neutral and chic. I love when cakes are simple it makes it look delicate. I made sure to keep the colors light but neither too feminine nor masculine just something in between. I choose the yellow and chocolate brown to give it a more modern look. The cake itself was strawberry flavored and I filled it with chocolate. It was my version of chocolate covered strawberries J