Another Fondant Adventure

So hey, the fondant is back! This time it didn't go quite as planned. The fondant was very moist, and didn't hold together very well. At all. We had been planning on covering the two-layer cake with one big piece of fondant, but because it wouldn't work with us, we decided to cut circles out and layer them over the entire cake.

The circles and the flower were Nita's idea. Thanks Nita. ;)

As you can see in the picture on the right, the circles on the right side weren't staying on quite right. I hope they will stay on long enough for us to eat it tomorrow at sunday school.

Either way, I'm satisfied with the results of the cake. However, I have not mastered fondant yet. Not even close.

Austrian Sweets

A friend of mine went to Austria with her family and stayed there with her brother and his wife. She explored and admired and had a smashin' good time. She took tons of pictures of the fam, buildings, statues, and most of all, the amazing food. I swear, she took a picture of probably every dish she ate there, which made me extremely hungry.

While they were gone, I went and cleaned their house once a week. So, now that they're back, they came and visited me today. They paid me for the cleaning, and also gave me delicious Austrian yummy things. I received two packages of Manner, which are hazelnut sugar wafers, and Kinder Schokolade, which looks like a milk chocolate candybar. The only thing that I've tried so far are the Manner cookies, but I'm super excited for the chocolate.

The kid on the chocolate box kind of reminds me of Augustus Gloop from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but maybe that's just me.

Amelie

My mom and I watched a French movie together last week. It was called Amelie. The sweet, innocent beginning when Amelie is born and then in her childhood puts the story in a pleasant mood.

One night while Amelie is in her apartment, she discovers a rusted tin box hidden in the wall. The box is full of childhood knick-knacks and pictures. She decided to find the owner of the box. If it makes him happy, she would dedicate her life to doing good things for other people. If not, too bad.

When she finds him and returns the box, he is hit with nostalgia from his childhood. He is happy that the box has been returned to him.

So begins Amelie's journey.

Throughout the movie, she does anonymous kind things for other people. My favorite scene is when she takes the arm of the blind man on the street and leads him down the sidewalk, excitingly naming all the things she sees to the man, so he can feel like he can see again. Their walk lasts less than a minute, but when she leaves him, you can tell that he is happier than he has been in a long time.

Farther along in the movie, Amelie sees a man drop a photo album in the street. She decides to return it to him, but at the same time, she is shy about him. So, she asks him to meet her in different places, but never has the courage to go and talk to him face to face.

Finally, he goes to the place where she works, and one of Amelie's friends tells him where she lives. They finally meet. And then they fall in love.

It ends with Amelie and her true love riding through Paris on his motor-bicycle, and everyone else happy because of what Amelie did for them.

It was a very cute movie. However, it was R-rated for sexual content. Yeah, there was a lot of sexual content, but it talked about sex in such a light, silly way it didn't seem terrible.

My Review: I gave Amelie 4 out of 5 stars. It was a perfect blend of happy and melancholy. The whole overall feeling of the story was very satisfying. Because of the sexual content, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone under the age of 17. Even if they can handle seeing a lot of naked women doesn't mean they should. I know the movie sounds really dirty now, but I mean c'mon. It's a French movie.

Audrey Tautou gave an excellent performance. There were so many parts in the movie that I didn't mention that were probably worth mentioning. But that would take a very long time, and I'd prefer that you go and watch the movie for yourself.

I think that what I love most about this movie is how simple it is. She doesn't find the need to change the world. She just makes it a happier place one person at a time.

The Letters

I have a stack of letters.

As I recieved them, I had kept them in my piano bench. But when the letters stopped, I tied them together with a shoelace and put the stack in a shoebox which I hid away for safe-keeping. And, as awful as it sounds, that's how I handled the friendship as well...

Sometimes I open the shoebox, and admire my little stack of memories. I never open them, never even untie the shoelace, because I am afraid of the guilt that would find me there.

He used to be a good friend. More than a friend actually. For one naive and wonderful month, we experimented on what it meant to have a relationship, as it was new to him, and somewhat new to me. All my relationships before had been long distance and almost imaginary. And they all broke my heart. But this guy, he was tangible. He was more than just a phone call away. He was there.

I remember when we started to call eachother 'sweetheart'. There was something about the word that put my heart at peace and complete bliss. It was being loved. No more second place. It made me first, and special, and wanted. I wanted to hold on to it with both hands and cling to it, no matter what it took. Anything to be called 'sweetheart' one more time....

But I knew I couldn't. When I realized that I was in love with this feeling more than I was in love with him, I broke it off (my parents' disapproval played a big role in this decision also). I broke his heart.

Then came the letters.

They started out as being our secret way of communicating, to go undetected by my parents' radar. At first they were genuine. We talked about what was going on in our lives and the comic in the paper that morning that had reminded me of him. But as time went on, and as my piano bench was beginning to overflow with letters, it turned into a hiding game.

He felt uncomfortable talking to me in person, so he continued to write letters that became more and more meaningless. I always sent one back, even though we both knew our hearts weren't in it anymore.

We finally agreed to stop going through the motions. We would try to just talk in person for now on. But it never was the same as it was last October. We had both changed. And even now, I feel like I don't know him anymore. And that's my fault.

I took all the memories and all the feelings, put them in a stack, tied them together with a shoelace, and hid them away in the outermost part of my brain. Maybe one day I will be brave enough to open them up and relive them. But the fear of the guilt and the longing I will find there is almost overwhelming....

I'm sorry Batman.

Marley Isn't Going to Heaven

Marley and Me, another addition to the legacy of dog movies, was on TV tonight. So, of course we had to watch it.

Everything was going fine until it got to the part when the dog is about to die. My little brother was starting to get emotional. Finally he let it out. "Doggies don't go to Heaven!" And he was tearing up. I was finding this quite amusing. So to make it worse, I said, "Well, at least they don't go to Hell where they belong."

Poor guy was so upset. In the movie, they began to give Marley the lethal injection. My brother was crying, and I was laughing. Perhaps, I was a little too harsh? But I mean, c'mon, he's twelve years old! He should be able to handle it.

I have to admit though, I let a little tear out, too. I'm a sympathetic cryer, and Owen Wilson was really upset. I couldn't help myself.

Chocolate-covered Strawberries

Tonight, I made chocolate-covered strawberries, which I suppose you already guessed.

In a way, I feel like I cheated. I used a premade container full of chocolate that you put in the microwave and stir until it's nice and smooth. Then you dip the strawberries in it, place them on waxpaper, and chill them in the fridge for a few minutes. Voila.

It was called Dolci Frutta, and I would recommend it. It was fast, easy, and yummy So what if it's cheating? They were delicious. Maybe next time I'll do it a smidgy more fancy. I was thinking of making "tuxedo strawberries", or at least getting some white chocolate to drizzle on top next time.

The possibilities are endless.

Animal Hybrid #2

ANIMAL HYBRID MONDAY

Animal Hybrid #2: Dolphin + Deer =

Wouldn't it be fun to ride one of these, or is it just me?