A Little Slice of Heaven

I finally did it! I have produced the perfect angel food cake!!!! Thank you, thank you America's Test Kitchen! Not only do they have great recipes that have been put through the ringer, but they also provide videos. This was a major help to me. The last time I tried making this type of cake (um, two years ago?!) I obviously did not fluff the eggs enough. Plus, I think the recipe was kinda botch...

Take a look at my homemade angel food cake and whipped cream. (Please excuse the lighting. It's terrible in our kitchen)

Mmmm... This yummy-deliciousness is definitely going on my table for Easter.




This recipe is very, I mean VERY, time consuming. Sift all of this, add this by the tablespoon, beat forever (literally 10-11 minutes), cool for what seems to be a lifetime... But, oh so worth it in the end though.
Next up, blueberry scone!

Trying to Find That "Something"

One thing I love to do is.... drum roll please.... Take Pictures! Shocking, I know. But, I also love to try and manipulate these pictures with Photoshop. I have run across a few websites that really inspire me (especially this one) to not only take more photos, but to also use my tools, such as Ps! Here are few photographs that I have taken and altered a bit. Let me know what you think!

1) Flower in my "garden" at our old house down in Buckhead.


2) Fence line on my family's farm. This is one of my favorites so far.

The 'after' was not done with just a B/W button. The colors are actually a deep blue and soft yellow.

3) Ferris wheel at the oh so lovely Atlanta Fair...


I love the after. I think the techniques that I used age this particular image a few decades! If I'm loving it still in a few months, I may put this on a wrapped canvas and use it for the boys' party!

So far I am having fun and would like to pursue this a bit more. There are a ton of beautiful Ps actions out there as well, especially from this site, that I just love! I may wait to purchase them because we are in the midst of a meltdown with my Mac. I will surely miss this little white bundle of goodness. :(

The Joys of Life

So things have been busy around here these days. First off, my girlfriend Aubree had her second little boy, Finn. Baylor and Hunter are now 8 months old. I am planning their first birthday party and driving myself crazy over it already!! Teeth are coming in left and right. And last, but not least, crawling and standing........ oh yeah, I said standing, has become the new norm in the Preston household! Here's the breakdown:

Welcome Phineus Muir Bergmann (aka Finn)!!!!

Born February 28 ~ 8 pounds 3 ounces ~ 21.5 inches


He is so precious! It's sad to say but, I almost forgot what it felt like to hold a tiny being in my arms. Those itty bitty baby noises no longer exist in my household anymore. And I miss them... I just cannot believe that Aub has another little one on her hands. But, I do know that our boys will grow up to be best buds! I can't wait for a "real" play date with our 4 boys!

8 Months Old!!!
I really just do not know how to stop old man time from coming around. I blink and my two boys are crawling, sprouting teeth and pulling up! Seriously. I do not think I can handle this. My love for them continues to flourish. And yet, my heart continues to break each time Baylor and Hunter cross another milestone! But, I would never wish for these moments to end. Hunter received his first tooth Sunday and Baylor now has 3 with a 4th coming in as well... Poor little buggers!



Baylor


Hunter


Proud Papa


Showing the boys the geese that came to say hello


Proud Mama (I love Hunter's expression in this photo)


A few weeks ago we took a trip down to the Atlanta Zoo and had such a wonderful time! Of course, the boys had no idea what they were doing, what they should be looking at or where they were. They did however make a new friend...





Here is a photo of Baylor pulling himself up. Note: this is also the same day he started actually crawling!



They had their first taste of meat and here's what they thought about chicken...

They're definitely my children!

Here are some random pictures that I thought I should share

Having a chat across the way

Their first "real" bath!




For some reason this is Hunter and Baylor's new favorite thing to play with!



Reading their favorite book 'Brown Bear, Brown Bear... What Do You See?'



Checking out the loot on Valentine's Day


I cannot wait for the boys' first birthday!!! It is going to be so much fun planning and celebrating this occasion! For some time now I have needed some thing to do, some sort of outlet if you will, to let out this pent up something that is inside of me. I finally have this birthday party that I, not only do I have to do but, cannot wait to get started! The theme will be that of a handmade & vintage circus. I plan on making pretty much everything for their party, to an extent of course. I will keep you updated on my progress and my how-tos! Ahh! Very exciting...