Course 2

I just finished the 2nd cake decorating course at Micheal's. We learned a few new borders, but mostly flowers. I completely misunderstood and had a cake ready for the first class....but alas, we didn't need one. So as soon as I got home I decorated my cake with my newly learned rose buds. Cake 4: Sour cream pound cake with an orange custard filling and orange flavored frosting. This is the same cake recipe we used for our wedding cake. (Only, we put lemon glaze on each slice and a helping of fresh cut strawberries. It was so good! There was NO cake left at the end of the night.)

Class 2 and 3: We learned all about royal frosting and practiced several flowers. This frosting gets hard as a rock. Which means you can make several flowers in advance and keep them until you are ready to decorate your cake. I came home and used up all my frosting and made a ton of these little pretties.

Cake 5: Same sour cream pound cake. I marbled it with chocolate this time, and put cherry pie filling in the center. We learned how to use color flow (which helps your frosting dry smooth I think) and created birds in class. I came home and decided I wanted mushrooms instead. (Since the trip to the Redwoods I have shrooms on the mind.) So here is my last cake, shrooms, blossoms, and a basket weave which took forever!

The week after next I start course 3, fondant and gum paste! Whoopee!!

One Long Wonderful Day

We decided to head over to the Jelly Belly factory for a free tour. We realized the factory is half way to the Redwoods, which is close to the beach, and we would drive right by Fentons on our way back! So we were up and out the door at 7:30 am and on our way to the Fairfield factory—the first of four stops.

Guess who helped to make the Jelly Belly famous? How did you guess? To see a video CLICK HERE.

Yep, we all had to wear hats. Our tour took us above the factory floor so we could look down and see all the hustle and bustle.

No cameras were allowed during the tour but I did find some of the video they showed. CLICK HERE to view.

After the tour we perused the shop downstairs. The factory offers free samples of any of their flavors. You can try just a few, or all of them—that includes the funny flavored ones like centipede and dirty diapers. I tried skunk, which tasted more like burnt skunk to me. And then I tried moldy cheese.... THAT was the worst decision of my life. I felt like puking, and could smell my own breath. You KNOW something tastes bad when you can smell your own breath (probably because some of the stink is actually escaping out your nose too)! I DO NOT recommend moldy cheese to anyone. (Although the experience tasted bad, it was hilarious.)

After swishing with water, picking the remnants out of my teeth with my fingernail, and trying a toothpaste jelly belly, we left to make more pleasant memories at the redwood forest.

You are now entering...Muir Woods

Located 11 miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge, Muir Woods stand tall, and silent. The woods are made up of Giant Redwood trees. (Not to be confused with the Giant Sequoia—which are shorter and much thicker in diameter—they are the ones you can drive through.) The Redwoods are the taller of the two, they can get up to 379 feet, 22 feet in diameter and have bark that is 12 inches thick. However, they have shallow roots that penetrate only 10 to 13 feet deep, but they spread out nearly 100 feet. I couldn't put my camera down. The forest is a touching place, it appeals to all your senses, and everything is beautiful and calm.

Below is a large piece of bark that is pealing away from a felled tree. This is the inside of that bark. Redwoods get their color—and their name—from the reddish-brown, bitter chemical tannin. Tannin makes both bark and wood resistant to fire and attack by insects and fungi.

I know, lots of mushrooms right? During the winter there aren't many flowers to speak of. But the different mushrooms were flower enough for me.

Below is a burl. Burl sprouting accounts for most reproduction of redwoods. A burl is a mass of dormant buds that grows at the base, or sides of redwoods. When a tree is injured or tissue near a burl is affected, the burl may sprout.

If you have a chance, I would recommend a visit to the redwoods. It's only five dollars a person. There is nothing like them, it will be a one of a kind experience. And after, you can head to the coast to view another large beauty...the ocean.

Muir Beach

Five minutes away from Muir Forest, and kitty-corner to San Francisco is Muir Beach. We love the beach. So, despite the cold weather along the coast, we packed up our blankets, our Zuki, and lunch and headed toward the ocean.

Zuki, of course was adorable. Sand, to any kid, is an amazing thing.

And as a kid, ALL things are subject to a taste test.

Adam handled the cold pretty well...

...sort of.

After freezing at the beach we raced to Fentons to happily freeze our innards.

Ice Cream!!! Fentons!!!

Fentons is a . . . shall we say "nostalgic" place for many. Including Dad. He used to hang out at Fentons as a teen. (Trivia....Fentons appeared in the movie UP) Currently There are only TWO locations: The original at 4226 Piedmont Ave. in Oakland and the second just opened in Vacaville (at the Nut Tree)—so OF COURSE we had to stop in on our way back from the coast—it's right off the freeway!

Dad says their chocolate sauce is better than his. As many of you know, that is saying A LOT. He usually orders the Black and White.

There used to be a Fentons in Placerville. And yes, I did hang out there as a teen too. I always ordered the Saddle Back Brownie. And I did so again, for tradition sake. Yes, there is a huge brownie buried under all that ice cream. So goooooood.

The portions are HUGER than HUGE. Four people could easily eat one serving. But since some of the group had never been, we decided to enjoy the total experience—which includes going bug eyed when you see the waiter walk out with your order and realize, you should have shared.

In the end, we did our best. Man oh man was that a lot of ice cream. Looks like Dad was the only one to finish!

Upon leaving Fentons I noticed some fun playthings outside. I can only blame our silliness on the effects of sugar and nostalgia—a good mix.

If you are ever in the Vacaville area GO TO FENTONS. And after, walk outside and play! There are giant sized rocking horses, giant chess and checkers, giant rocking chairs around a fire—all sorts of things for adults and kids. GO GO GO! p.s. If you are ever at the Oakland international airport....a shop in terminal two will serve you up a couple of scoops of Fenton's ice cream, lucky!