And the first prize goes to..... (ICCA Mother's Day Cake Competition 2013)

I loved it and was thrilled to bits when you thanked me, JY :))

Learning points for JY:

• Certificates have a tendency to disappear. Keeping them with meticulously neat and tidy Papa is a must...that is, if you can find them.
• Running around looking for lost items at the eleventh hour is never fruitful. Especially at an hour I would rather spend in bed.
• Always ensure Papa's T5 is in tiptop condition so that you can make PD to Giza in 1 hour, so that your cakes do not get disqualified for being late.
• Jumping on stage in a short skirt is a tad tricky
  
  Btw, it was the best Mother's Day ever.

Finicky Fickle Lovable teenage gal

She's back to caking.

Who would have thought.

She swore off caking not too long back when she was faced with disappointment after a nonmaterialised promise from a highly regarded mentor. she didn't know what to do next, neither did I. So she poured her creative energy into others artsy stuff like sketching. She sketched and painted, and never neared a piping bag. Her cake studio was sadly neglected for months.

Until early this year when she suddenly decided to compete in the third ICCA cake competition.

Ummm...didn't you say you would NEVER enter another?

I guess, never doesn't necessarily mean forever to this 15 year old

   

 Here CheChe try this tip

Meme enjoys wondering around Cheche's room and Cheche is gracious enough to let her mess it up while exploring.

 Roses drying

 Piping bags filled and ready to squirt.

 JY had to dig up her Wilton Method manuals as judging is based on this particular method. The Wilton way isn't particularly difficult. After some show how, Fai can make a perfect Wilton rose and JY is convinced he will be able to pass Wilton 1 with ease.

This time around she can't Wow the judges with her more elaborate flowers. So she has to be creative with these cute little ones.

I love the abundance of flowers on the bottom tier. The white on white of the middle tier. And best of all, the eye-catching MOM right in the centre :)
This cake was completed in a harrowing, nail biting, tense, drama-filled 7 days. It rained , no, more like stormed daily as she was preparing the flowers. Let me tell you something, fondant does not work well in tropical climates. I had to keep my apprehension in check, my emotions at bay and leave her with the opportunity to have a learning experience.
Here's what happened. She completed the cake, packed it up into a box with a cannister of dehumidifier and left her cake behind in PD as she prepared for her graduation ceremony with Amber Chia Academy in KL.
She came back after 2 days, ran to the cake studio only to find that her flowers had wilted under the humidity.
She was inconsolable. she couldn't sleep that night.
But the very next day, she showed that no storm will get her down for long. She redid the wilted flowers and restored the cake.

This cake is just so sweet and pretty.
I didn't see much of her for the 2 days she marooned herself in her studio. She came out occasionally for food, down load more songs onto her phone and she was gone. This cake is all piping and she says she did so much piping in 2 days, the piping bag now feels like a permanent extension of her hands.

GingerBreadMan Camp part2

By the beach, the boys got ready for their fishing workshop.


Observing little crabs

It started to pour but the kids continued with their crabbing while the men contemplated their fishing nets. they carried on with their plans to lay the nets in the rain.

DH commented that it was remarkable to see how grown men were transformed into boys again the moment the waves hit their bodies as they carried the nets out into the sea.
So if you need to be rejuvenated, go fishing!

Luckily the rain stopped within an hour.
The campers who had been waiting patiently in their cars, got to work immediately.
First, the ground sheets - helps in keeping the base of the tent clean and any ground moisture from seeping in from the bottom.

Tents in a row.

Words of advice from the campers:

1. 4-men tents are too small. 6-men sleeps 4 and a bit of luggage. 8-men is ideal for 2 camp beds and a double air mattress.


2. place paper pulp egg cartons at the entrance to clean sandy feet


3. get tents with 2 doors for better ventilation

Preparing the ditch for the barbecue

items required to get the fire going - matches, charcoal, twigs, bits of newspaper or firestarter.
Place twigs at the base of the pit, topped with the firestarter, arrange charcoal tippee-like.
Light the firestarter

Fanning the flames
DH throwing in more firestarters.

More fanning

If fanning doesn't work, blowing helps

More blowing

Trying the get the fire going

DH went from pit to pit to give firestarting tips

Fire, at last

Getting wood for the campfire

Emil who was back for our second camp by the beach, helped to stack the wood

and get the fire going

Food preparation

potatoes cut into chunks drizzled with oil, herbs and a dash of salt, then wrap in foil.
Sweet potato and pumpkin slices to be grilled

Chicken wings, lamb, garlic bread, sweet corn and sweet potatoes

one handy item to bring on a cookout.

Kids in the water

These girls feel the flag pole lacks foundation.

Bonding by the fire

More bonding.
Fai stayed up till 2am to be with his friends and got up at 9am to jump into the sea.
He still had energy after a small breakfast to hike up the lighthouse and down to Pulau Intan

Gingerbread Man @PD Part1

Thea and Emil started off the workshop with their version og The GingerBread Man. They were supposed to have rehearsed but as they had been out fishing till 1am the previous night, the storytelling session was rather impromptu.

Emil had never heard of The GingerBread Man story and Fai felt he had to help Emil out a bit.

JY handing out gingerbread dough that was prepared by Uncle Danny.

The kids had to roll and cut their cookies. some improvised and created their own designs

Han's Pirate and treasure chest

Gingerbread cookies waiting for the oven.

Cooling in the cake studio

JY's icing. She had to outline all the cookies with her steady and skillful touch. Everyone else had shaky hands and the outlines turned out clumpy and awful.

Such fun!
The colours were amazing - bright and cheerful.

Smoothing out the icing with a satay stick.

JY piping and piping and piping....

Sprinkles!

The kids were so focused the entire workshop. They had so much fun playing with the icing and sprinkles, there weren't enough cookies to satisfy their creativity. They could have continued decorating for hours.

Pregnant Gingerbread Woman

Mommies had fun too

Han's cookies.

Ean enjoying his snack.

A great, big thank you to Teri and Danny for another successful baking-decorating workshop. The support from the homeschooling group has been tremendous. Their keen participation make organising such events a delight.