American Girl Weekend

My friend Geneva came up with a great idea (because she's always coming up with great ideas)--- A Mother/Daughter weekend to the American Girl Place in Los Angeles. Two fun filled days of eating out, shopping, talking and just having a blast. We want to enjoy our little girls while they're still little.

Before we left we made these cute gifts for them. A large hot pink Chinese take-out box for our daughter, and a mini one for their doll. They were filled with candy, nail polish, lip gloss, and the most importantly - matching friendship bracelets for the girls and their dolls (thanks to Kristen and her amazing talents).

When we arrived in LA we checked into the Residence Inn Beverly Hills (thanks so much Geneva for making all the arrangements), then went to dinner at Maggianos. It was so delicious.

Hanna, Mia, Aspen, and Katelyn

Then we cruised around the shopping center and hung out by their cool fountain.

Melissa and Mia

Kristen and Katelyn

Geneva and Hanna

Jen and Aspen

When we got back to the hotel, the girls opened their gifts and enjoyed painting their nails and eating their treats. It was a really fun sleepover.

The next morning we ate breakfast and the girls spent time writing in their new journals.
We went to The Grove shopping center, where American Girl is located.

We had a 12:30 reservation at the American Girl Cafe. It was BEYOND adorable.

The entire room was hot pink, black, and white. The pictures really don't do it justice (especially since I didn't bring my new flash with me so it was hard to take amazing shots).

This was our table.

Each girl was given a little chair for their doll. Notice the cute friendship bracelets on Mia and her doll.

It was a delicious three course meal. It started with an appetizer of cinnamon rolls, fruit kabobs, cheese potatoe skins, and veggies and dip. We all picked our entree. Then for dessert, we each got a star sugar cookie, heart shaped piece of cake, and a mini flower pot full chocolate mousse. The food was wonderful and the experience was outstanding. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Then it was time to shop for some doll clothes. Mia had saved a long time for this. And her Daddy gave her a bunch of cash (fearing Mommy might be too cheap - as usual). But since we are definitely not millionaires, Mia could only choose a few items to get. So she had a list to keep them straight before making her final decision.

It was a really tough choice for her.

The weekend was so much fun. I loved having that one-on-one time with Mia. She's my beautiful first born and my only girl. She continues to say that it was the best weekend of her entire life. I'm just glad she's going to have this memory for years to come.

I love her so much.

Family Photo

My sister Chandra just sent me this picture from her wedding last summer. I don't have a lot of photos of our whole family, and since it turned out so cute, I decided to post it. Drew is such a babe.

Swasey Family August 2008

Daddy's New Toy

Drew was so excited to get a great deal on this new toy. Luke is just excited to have another helmet in the house.

The Chocolate Cake

So for Easter I made my favorite chocolate cake. I got this recipe from a friend in San Antonio, and do my best NOT to make it very often because I could eat the whole thing by myself. Anyway, here's the recipe.

Make it the day before you're going to serve it. It tastes much better after it's chilled in the fridge for a full day.

The Ultimate Chocolate Cake

1 box Betty Crocker super moist devils food cake mix, dry
1 small box instant chocolate pudding
8 ounces sour cream
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup water
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

For Ganache Icing
1 cup whipping cream
12 ounces (2 cups) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 stick butter, at room temperature

For Whipped Cream filling
8 ounces whipping cream
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Other important items
1 container regular chocolate frosting (I use pillsbury)
3 round cake pans
waxed paper
frosting spatula

First, remove a stick of butter from the fridge and set it on the counter- for the ganache icing.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place 3 round cake pans on a sheet of waxed paper and trace around the bottom. Cut the paper circles out. Butter the bottoms and sides of cake pans, then place the paper circles into the bottom, and grease again and set aside. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add sour cream, oil, and water. Mix until well blended. Add cake mix and pudding and mix until smoothe. Add the chocolate chips (I usually don't add these). Pour the batter evenly into the three cake pans and place in the oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not over bake or it will be dry.

Right after you place the cake in the oven, you can begin the ganache icing. Place 2 cups of chocolate chips in a bowl. Heat 1 cup of cream in a sauce pan, until it's just about to boil. Pour cream over the chocolate chips and let sit for 2 minutes. Then use a wire wisk to mix the chocolate until smoothe. Leave it on the counter until the chocolate is completely cooled - unually takes about an hour. When the chocolate is cooled add the room temperature butter and mix well. Do not add butter to warm chocolate, or the ganache will be too runny.

When the cakes are cooled and ganache is ready, you can assemble the cake. On a cake stand, place a small amount of pillsbury choclate frosting in the center. This will help the cake from shifting on the stand. Lay the bottom layer of chocolate cake on the stand upside down (don't forget to remove the waxed paper). Next, take a ziploc bag and add 1/2 cup pillsbury chocolate frosting. Close the bag and snip the corner. Pipe a 1/2 inch sized bead of frosting around the circumference of the cake. This baracade will hold the ganache on the cake, so it won't ooze down the sides. Add 1/4 cup (or more depending on how much you like) of the ganache to the top of the first cake and spread evenly to the frosting edge. Lay the second cake on top, upside down. Place the cake in the fridge to chill for 20 minutes. The rest of the ganache will be used to frost the cake.

In the mean time, make the whipped cream layer. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream until it begins to get thick. Add sugar and vanilla. Beat to stiff peaks, but before it turns to butter. Remove the cake from the fridge and make another frosting baracade with the ziploc frosting bag. Add all the cream to the top of the cake and place the last cake on top, upside down.

Now it's time to frost the cake. Use the frosting spatatula to evenly spead ganache around the sides and top of the cake, in a thin layer. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to harden. Remove cake and frost again, then chill again - repeating the process until all the ganache is used. To get a really smoothe look, dip the spatula in hot water and shake off excess water, between frostings. Chill the cake over night. The cake doesn't need to be covered in the fridge because the ganache hardens and keeps the cake airtight and moist. Decorate the top with fresh flowers or awesome frosting decorations

Here's the inside. It's wonderful.

Easter

Decorating Easter Eggs was our Saturday night Activity. Mia and Cole did a great job (Luke was officially banned from this project).

Mia wasn't feeling well, but tried her best to ignore her fever and developing cough, so she could participate.

Here are a few photos of Easter Morning. Mia got Pixos and was so excited about that, because I've always told her we wouldn't buy them. I guess the Easter Bunny is nicer then her Mom. Cole got his first set of Legos and he was beyond excited. They loved their toys so much that they completely ignored the candy for the first hour of getting their baskets. And true to form, I'm finding small pixo pills and tiny lego pieces all over my house. Oh well, they're only little once.

Unfortunately Mia fought her fever for the rest of the day, so she didn't get a chance to show off her cute Easter dress at church. But we were lucky enough to have a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Swasey. And we enjoyed a wonderful Easter dinner with them.

Easter Egg Hunt

Our church had an easter egg hunt this morning. This was Luke's first egg hunt experience.

Mia and Cole were so excited. They held it at a neighborhood park, and started the event with my kid's favorite thing... chocolate glazed donuts.

The younger kids started the hunt first. Cole and Luke were in that group. Daddy took time off of studying to give Luke a hand while I took pictures. He couldn't quite pick up on the concept. Maybe next year. Although he did love the reward at the end.... CANDY.

Cole had a blast.

Mia was in the second group to go. "And They're Off"...

Mia and her friend Aspen. She was too busy staring at the loot to look up at the camera.

Sweet rewards.