Spring Has Sprung!

There's been a couple of things going on with me at the moment that I've been grappling with. I realised that both are about change and new beginnings - this seems quite appropriate as we find ourselves in Spring! Today I want to talk about these two things and first to share the recipe for some Spring inspired cupcakes that I made last week because I always said I'd do some baking posts and this seems like a fun way to start!
If you want a soundtrack as you peruse this blog then click here... My main man, Sinatra, singing 'You make me feel so young, you make me feel that spring has sprung!"

Spring Garden Cupcakes

It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago and my very lovely friend Livi bought me some of the cutest baking supplies you ever did see. This included flower pot cupcake cases, flower icing cutters, and a piping bag set. These things really added to the effect of this super cute and easy baking idea.

Ingredients:

• 100g margarine
• 100g caster sugar
• 100g self-raising flour
• 2 eggs, beaten

Method:

1. I used my favourite fairy cake/cupcake recipe which comes from the book 'Cooking with Daisy' by Josie Klafkowska. All you need to do is cream together the marg and sugar until they are pale and fluffy.
   
2. Add the beaten eggs gradually, mixing well each time.
3. Sieve the flour into the mixture, folding it in. 
   
4. Finally spoon the mixture into cupcake cases and bake them in an oven heated to 190°C (170°C fan) for 20 minutes approximately. Or until they are golden in colour, spring back when you tap them and are coming away slightly from the edges of the cases.
   
5. When they are cooked, take them out of the tray to cool on a wire rack.

Next up is the best part... decorating!

Ingredients:

• 140g butter
• 280g icing sugar
• 1-2tbsp milk
• a few drops of green food colouring

Method:

1. Beat the butter in a bowl until smooth and then gradually sieve the icing sugar in to the bowl and beat as you go.
2. Add one tablespoon of milk and beat again until smooth. Add the second tbsp if needed.
3. Pop in a few drops of green food colouring and mix well. Keep adding the colouring until you get the desired shade of grass green!
4. The icing definitely looks nicer piped on to the cakes so try and do this if you have a piping bag. Unfortunately I ran out of time so had to go with more of a smeared effect... let's call it 'rustic' lol.
   
5. For this next step I required the expert advice of my pal Lizzy who is an incredible baker. Check out her blog 'Tartlife' here, it is amazing by all accounts. Anyways, she suggested that I use shop-bought fondant icing to make my flower decorations, rolling out the icing thin (thin enough to dry out but not so thin that it became too fragile to use). So this is what I did. I rolled the icing out thinly and cut the flowers out using my cutters and then left them to dry out for a while. 
   
6. I also kneaded some red food colouring into some of my icing to make it pink so that I could have some variety in colours. Alternatively, you can buy ready-coloured icing or just stick with the white.
   
7. I then used a very small, clean paint brush dipped in yellow food colouring to paint a middle to my flowers. 
   
8. When I was in the shops buying my icing, I spotted these absolute gems and just couldn't resist! TOO CUTE. So to finish off the cakes I stuck on some flowers and an icing animal to each one. 
   

The finished product!

Right, now on to the deep stuff lol.

So, as I said at the start of this post, I have some changes going on at the moment that I'm trying to process. The first involves a specific person. I think it's harder to deal with change when it involves another person because you have to rely on them handling the situation well too. I can't control how this person behaves following this change but I can do my best to focus on myself and how I'm feeling. Last night and this morning I sat down to write them a letter. I do not intend for them to ever read it but it was a very therapeutic way for me to process everything that's going on in my head! This may not work for everyone, but for me writing things down really helps me (hence why have a blog!). I've been able to work through everything that I'm thinking and feeling so that it's no longer a big jumbled mess in my brain! There are some things that I've wanted to tell this person but haven't been able to and, although they won't read it, by writing it all down in this letter it feels like I've got it off my chest. It wasn't easy digging up some emotions that I've been trying to ignore and for a while afterwards I felt this sort of pain in my chest but I'm glad I did it and feel I can now move forward easier. I also didn't realise how much I needed to get out... I filled 10 pages of my notebook! I'm now feeling a lot lighter. (If you're not a Harry Potter fan, this reference will go straight over your head, but this process really reminded me of Dumbledore and his Pensieve!)

Something I've also found a real encouragement in this area is the reminder that God will never give up on me. People will let us down, people will decide we're not worth it - but God  never will. He loves us unconditionally and is in constant pursuit of our hearts. 

"You hold the heavens but never let go of my heart!"

The other thing that's been weighing on me is my move to Brighton which is coming up in September. I've still been worrying that it's not the right thing for me to do and so this weekend my Dad and I headed down there. I wanted to remind myself why I originally wanted to go there and to get excited about moving to that city. I'd say my trip was definitely a success! When visiting before, I'd only really seen the Uni campus which is a bit 'out on a limb' from the city and so we spent some time actually in Brighton itself.

Brighton Pavilion and some fab street musicians

I completely fell in love with the place. 

Two happy beans on a v windy beach lolz

It has all shops and facilities you could need and more, but it also has real character - what with the Lanes full of quirky independent shops and cafes, the stunning Brighton Pavilion, and of course the beach! I can really see myself heading off for a walk along that pebbled shore if I ever feel stressed and need to find comfort in the sounds and sights of the sea. 

Despite the fact that my trip has definitely helped me to feel excited about my move away in September, I am still terrified! But I'm working through this and I think I'll get there. As usual, it's my faith that's getting me through. I know that God has a plan for me and that all I need to do is trust in him. The sense of peace that I had in Brighton was a real confirmation that that is where he wants me to be. 

I picked a pebble that took my fancy from Brighton beach and have brought it home with me. Partly as a reminder of how much I loved that beach so that if I ever feel stressed about moving there I can hold it and remember that it's going to be amazing, but also as a reminder that although - in the grand scheme of the world - I am about as significant as one little pebble on that huge beach, God cares about me and has a path laid out for me and will never let me go no matter what. 

my lil peb

"How precious are your thoughts about me, God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me" - Psalm 139: 17-18

Although changes like these can be really hard, try to look at the positives. I'm getting into the spirit of Spring and am seeing them as fresh starts/new beginnings/a new season in my life!


Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this post and that you perhaps found it helpful in some way: maybe you'll have a go at making the cakes, or have related to the changes I'm experiencing at the moment.



Love,
Katie xxx