cake pops tutorial

here's a little (not so secret) secret about me:

i might have the biggest sweet tooth in the world. i think all my teeth are sweet teeth.

dessert is my favorite thing, especially if it's chocolate. life is way too short to not have dessert, right?

one of my favorite desserts is a cake pop. they're so dang cute and they're super easy to make.

red velvet is one of my favorites, so my tutorial is a red velvet batch, but you can use any flavors you would like!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

cake mix (i just use a box because it's quick)

anything the cake mix calls for: usually oil and eggs

almond bark

sprinkles

anything to decorate with

cake pop sticks (unless you want to make cake balls)

cream cheese frosting (you can make it, or buy it)

• cream cheese frosting
• 1/2 cup of butter (1 stick), room temperature
• 8 oz of Philly cream cheese (1 package), room temperature
• 2 - 3 cups of powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

FIRST: you'll want to bake a cake with your cake mix, or if you're superhuman, you can make it from scratch. i will forever be grateful for betty crocker's boxed cake mix. when it's done, take it out and MAKE SURE you let it cool in the pan before you continue to step 2.

SECOND: take the cake out in chunks and put them in a bowl. crumble it up with your hands. it'll be a little messy, but make sure it's crumbled up pretty good, just like bread crumbs, and that it's not mushy.

THIRD: make the cream cheese frosting and add it into the crumbled up cake with your hands. this is when it gets really messy :)

yes, it gets messy :)

FOURTH: roll the cake into balls. i use a cookie scoop to keep mine all the same size, but you don't need to if you aren't OCD like me.

*if you want to make cake pops, this is the stage where you will put in the sticks. you could make cake balls if you don't have sticks. you can buy cake pop sticks anywhere, Target, Wal Mart, any craft or baking store*

FIFTH: cut up some almond bark. you could use melted chocolate if you want, but i prefer almond bark because it's easy to work with. i use the western family brand. melt it and dip your cake pops in it. let them dry a little, but not completely, before you move onto step 6.

SIXTH: DECORATE! :) this is the fun part where you can do whatever you want with your cake pops.

there you have it! yummy and cute treats that are easy and fairly quick.

enjoy :)

life is coming

wanna know what's absolutely nuts?

my life is going to start soon! like, it's really gonna start and i'll be experiencing real life!

though i am 18, and technically an adult, i still live at home and am still in high school which is really bittersweet.

i am SO excited to get out of the laughable education system we call public school, but at the same time, i can't imagine life without it: friday night football games, parties, ditching class, being on dance company. my life consists of all of these things and in about 4 months, it'll all be over forever. 4 of the most important years of my life will be over within 4 months. THAT, my friends, is wacko.

the worst part about this stage of life though, isn't being sick of high school or the people you've been stuck with for 4 years. it's the questions from family members who you only see once a year at the christmas party, like

"what are you going to study?"

"are you going on a mission?"

"where are you going to live?"

"where are you going to work?"

"are you dating anybody?"

those questions are so scary! do they not realize i'm 18? that i still go to parties and dance my heart out and stay up til the early hours of the morning with my best friends? how am i supposed to determine my life in just a few decisions? well i've decided that i'll never really know what i want to be. i'll be a spunky 70 year old and i still will have a new idea of what i want to be when i grow up. if there's one thing i do know, though, it's that i want to be a mommy. more than anything in the whole world. i couldn't imagine a future for myself without a mr. whatevermylastnamewillbe and our little tiny humans running around the house.

it's so crazy that i'm gonna be a real big kid soon. i'm excited. painfully, bitterly excited.

you make me happy

hey guys.

i've been awful at posting lately. i'm terribly sorry.

with the combination of the holidays and basketball season, i've been SO super duper busy.

not only busy, though;

i have been so incredibly happy.

you know that feeling when happiness sorta hits you all at once? like good things are happening to you and you feel so blessed and lucky, like you're on cloud 9? but then you look around, and you realize that most everything around you has been the same forever. your family, your friends, they've all remained constant. they haven't necessarily gotten better, your attitude has just changed? well, that's what i've been feeling as of recent.

i have been blessed with the most amazing people in my life. everyone says that and it is SO cliche. but really, i don't know what i would do without my mom, dad, siblings, cousins, doctors, Kady, Addie, Braeden, Connor, Chris and Ashley Miles, all of the dance company girls... i could go on and on. these people have just made me so happy and i will never be able to say how much i love and appreciate them in my life. 

just a small post of gratitude, cause my heart is full of it tonight.

xoxo

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song for the night:

i've been obsessing over this song. if you haven't heard it, you need to listen to it. NOW.

Say Something by Alex & Sierra