Today is my brother's 27th birthday! He's old now so we went down to Orange County to celebrate with him, his wife, and their 2 year old, Charlotte. I know everyone probably bakes cakes/cupcakes for birthdays but in our family it's a really big deal. When we were kids and visiting California in the summer, our lovely Grandma Doris (who turns 100 in October!!) would always help us bake a cake for each other or our dad and those are some of my favorite memories. We always made a box cake but it was still tasty! My Grandma made the best frosting and she tried to teach me how but whenever I make her recipe, it never turns out as good as when she made it. So I was on the hunt for the perfect frosting that I could make and a few years ago I found it on the foodie blog, The Girl Who Ate Everything. Seriously, this is the best frosting you will ever make...Well, if you like super sweet frosting and I do so it's perfect! My family seems to enjoy it quite a bit too!

But I decided to try something a little different his year because my stepdad, Wayne, got me a Debbie Meyer Cupcake Genius. I was a little skeptical at first but it worked perfectly! I used The Girl Who Ate Everything's chocolate cake recipe which I've made before when I first made the frosting and it is so rich and moist and amazing. I can't say enough nice things about her recipes.  

I also used her homemade whipped cream recipe for the cupcake filling, which was delicious! I'd never made it before and I was so amazed by the process. Mom and I aren't fans of whipped cream but I think we both might be converts to the homemade variety!

And to top it off I used - guess whose? - The Girl Who Ate Everything's chocolate frosting recipe! I had never made chocolate frosting from scratch before and I was a little nervous but I think it turned out well. It's pretty light but a little too sweet for my tastes...I think I might try a dark chocolate frosting next time.

Miss Charlotte seemed to enjoy them too!

Thank goodness it's Friday! I think this is the first time since elementary school that I've been around so many Valentine's Day cards! I'm not quite tired of them yet since I am a lover of all things pink unlike my mom (ahem...excuse the shameless plug) and girly. I'm really excited about the possibilities of the new paper I got. I love the almost vintage aesthetic of the cages on modern, clear paper! I can't wait to make some cards with it!

Here's 5 things that made us happy this week! 

1. Lily the cat, perched atop her new tree, overseeing her kingdom. 
2. Just some of the Valentine's Day cards and items we made this week!
3. Boiling eggs to make my mom some egg salad for lunch. 
4. My new pretty paper! 
5. The oranges from Wayne's orange tree in the backyard! 

What kind of things make you happy?