Five To Nine

Cut the Rope Cupcakes

By Vanessa on January 30, 13

2 Comments

My awesome sister introduced me and my boys to the Cut the Rope app game and we’ve been addicted ever since. I realize that this game has been out for a while now but I’m kinda slow with these things. I must rely on my younger, more trendy sister to keep me in the loop :/

Over Christmas break, we went on a family trip to an indoor water park but ended up spending most of our time in the arcade… at the crane game… trying to win my crazy boys each a Cut the Rope Om Nom toy! After many many dollars spent, my husband finally managed to win one. We ordered a second one online and thanks to Amazon Prime we got it shortly after we got back home! Om Nom is a super cute character so I don’t blame my kids of wanting one. When the second toy arrived, it came in a little cardboard box labeled “feed with candy” just like in the game. Since my boys and I love baking together, I thought it would be fun to bake an Om Nom treat and this is what we came up with!

Before I get into the “how to”, I’d like to ask everyone to please check out my son’s new YouTube channel called “Abe’s World”. He does an adorable tutorial on how we made these Cut the Rope cupcakes! He has been pretending to make YouTube videos since he was four and I finally decided it was time to do the real thing. I’m so proud of how it turned out. He’s usually a very shy and quiet kid (like his mommy) and I just love seeing him come out of his shell.

Cut the Rope Om Nom Cupcakes – Abe\’s World Episode 2

Please check out his new channel and show your support by:

Subscribing
“Liking” and commenting on his video
Sharing on your social networks Your support is greatly appreciated!!!

Ok, now here are my instruction:

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Category(s): Baking, Parenting & Family, Recipes, Tutorials
Tag(s): Cupcakes, Parenting, Toddler

Snow Day Fun In The Sun

By Vanessa on January 07, 13

2 Comments

Even though I was born and raised in Michigan, I must admit I’m not a fan of winter…AT ALL! It’s quite unfortunate considering winter seems to be the dominant season here in Michigan. Sure snow sounds like a great idea: beautiful white freshly fallen snow…cuddling next to a warm fire…drinking hot cocoa..maybe even some light sledding. In reality, however, winter also means 1. Dragging your kids through mucky snow 2. Slipping and sliding through the streets in attempt to get to/from work on time 3. Salt all over your nice pants 4. Dry skin 5. Craters a.k.a. Michigan potholes. I could go on but I’ll spare you.

Over winter break, we got a pretty heavy snowfall and my boys were begging me to take them out to play. I presented many distractions in attempt to avoid the situation, but after much thought I decided to stop being jerk and take them out. As you might imagine, if I was going to be dragged into snow play, I was going to make the best of it and do it MY way. Summer may be months away but that shouldn’t stop us from pretending we’re on a nice warm beach playing in the sun! As my “fun in the sun” ideas started flowing I started getting really excited about playing in the snow!

Here are some ideas I came up with to turn a snow day into a day at the beach!

1. Make Snow Castles

Pull out your sand box toys and get to work on creating some beautiful snow castles and sculptures

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Category(s): Parenting & Family
Tag(s): Play Date, Toddler

Red & White Holiday Party

By Vanessa on January 03, 13

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Even though the “holidays” are behind us now, I still wanted to share this fun Red & White themed party that my good friend Abby and I put together. There are a lot of great ideas that can be used for a bridal shower or Valentine’s treat. Abby has become quite the party planner and I always have a blast teaming up with her! We wanted to throw a nice dinner party for some friends and decided on Red & White since we both love peppermint. We got together over lunch to do all the planning and Abby took off with it. She did pretty much all the dessert BY HAND and I adore how it all turned out!

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Category(s): Entertaining, Holidays, Party Party, Recipes
Tag(s): Chocolate, Christmas, Dessert Buffet, Holiday, Oreo Pops, party styling

Candy Cane Sparkle Chex Mix

By Vanessa on December 12, 12

2 Comments

If you haven’t already noticed, I have a bit of an obsession with all things peppermint! I had a baggie of crushed candy cane leftover from my weekend baking extravaganza so I just HAD to find a way to use it up today. After some brainstorming and a recipe search, I decided some Chex Mix. Based on the ingredients I had on hand, I slightly modified this Sugar Cookie Chex Party Mix recipe from the Chex website and it turned out amaaaaaaazing! Read the rest of this entry »

Category(s): Baking, Entertaining, Holidays, Homemade With Love, Recipes
Tag(s): Holiday, Recipe

Andes Mint Cream Filled Cupcakes

By Vanessa on December 05, 12

6 Comments

Many people have been asking where I’ve been (well ok maybe not “many” but at least some)! If you’ve been following my blog for a while, it’s obvious that my posts have dwindled down over the past few months. I’ve had to take some time off of baking, crafting, and blogging to take care of some boring life stuff. You know, like deciding on a huge risky career change… like leaving my comfortable corporate job of 11 years to work with my husband in our software company… learning all new stuff… working with all new people…you know, that kind of stuff.

Don’t think I’ve forgotten about my readers or my passion for all things homemade! This blog is not just my hobby but it’s also my therapy. Now that I’m getting settled into my new role, I’ll slowly get back to blogging about my domestic adventures. After all, this is what Blog529 is all about… my constant quest to balance the nine to five with the five to nine!

Anyway, now on to the cupcakes!! Read the rest of this entry »

Category(s): Baking, Entertaining, Homemade With Love, Recipes
Tag(s): Cupcakes, Holiday, Recipe

Ramadan Nights Printable Collection

By Vanessa on July 27, 12

9 Comments

The month of Ramadan kicked off late last week and I’m excited to share another set of fun dinner party printables this year! Last year, I shared a fresh bright green and blue themed printable collection with matching party ideas (click here to view). This year, I decided to go with a night time celestial theme using midnight blue and gold.

The Ramadan Nights Printable Collection set includes the following:

Cupcake/treat cup sleeves
Cupcake toppers/treat tags
Flag toppers
Blank food tent labels
“Ramadan Kareem” Banner
Ramadan trivia cards

Click Image to Download

The printables can be used to decorate and embellish place settings, cupcakes, packaged treats,or greeting cards. All you have to do is print, cut, and tape… Use your imagination and enjoy! I’d love to see what you come up with Read the rest of this entry »

Category(s): Entertaining, Holidays, Party Party
Tag(s): Free Printables, Holiday, Printable Collection

SpongeBob Bikini Bottom Luau

By Vanessa on June 23, 12

10 Comments

My “baby” boy turned three last month and there was no better way to celebrate than with bubbles, water, and a whole lotta SpongeBob! For a while I was struggling with a theme for Essa’s birthday. I like to stay away from overly commercial themes. However, after witnessing his extreme excitement over a SpongeBob cake at DQ, my sister convinced me that the choice was clear!

Upon asking Essa if he’d like a SpongeBob birthday party, he replied “it’s going to be the best party evaaaaa” (quote from SpongeBob house party episode). My little sister was right… for once… and let me tell you, his party was “outta this world” (another quote from that episode)!

I thought it would be a fun twist to turn the party into a Bikini Bottom Luau! I was able to find many great luau decorations and favors at Dollar Tree and Party City this time of the year! Read the rest of this entry »

Category(s): Entertaining, Homemade With Love, Parenting & Family, Party Party
Tag(s): birthday party, Cupcakes, Dessert Buffet, party styling

Classic Movie Night

By Vanessa on February 19, 12

8 Comments

Being a full time working mother of two busy boys, it’s easy to get in the habit of “all work and no play”. My husband and I make a strong effort to have regular date nights, but it’s not always easy to get a babysitter. When we can’t go out, we love to have people over for a movie. I’ve been wanting to do a classic themed movie night for a while and now I’m so excited to share the details with you!

Classic Movie Night Concessions Stand