Wedding Bells for someone soon.....well, I hope. These were done for a friend who has a friend who is getting hitched and thinking about having these for the party. I hope so...they are so much fun to make. Its been a busy week for "Party Pops". Dozens of hearts, several dozen footballs, and pigs. Today I will be busy with Kitties, popcorn bags and chicken little...and more hearts. I am also hoping to work on an idea a had for a 'gum ball machine' pop. Oh and watch out....I'm thinking ahead and working on a 'bailey's irish cream' flavor for St. Patrick's Day. I warned you things could get dangerous....

Now things could become dangerous....

Many many thanks to my Dad....aka "Pops" (and he was "Pops" long before 'party pops' ) He created a pop stand which will hold almost 2 dozen. These hearts and lady bugs are now resting there..except for one or two that I taste tested. I'm really all about quality control...


Now things could get really dangerous....thanks to my Dad I can now let my cake pops rest in the stand rather than stand and (impatiently) wait for them to dry in my hand. He's even working on a larger 'model'. Heaven help me! Seriously, though it got me thinking-- where would any of us be without people who help us along the way? In the last few weeks alone, I have had people help me in countless way...pop stands, web sites (thank you Tabitha), cake ball orders, advice givers and shoulders to lean on as I muddle through both unemployment and entrepreneurial endeavors. Going back over the last two years, I honestly don't know where I'd be without the people I know God placed in my life to help me or for that matter our whole family. It took a small army of prayer warriors to get our youngest, Anna, here safe and sound...and here we are 15 months later...I have a cake in the oven and a sweet baby girl sleeping on my chest as I type this....how sweet it is...

True tales of the one armed cook.

....and I do mean 'cook' and not chef...that would be too much of a stretch....but I digress.

It occurred to me that, like most moms, I spend most of my days and half of my nights doing things with one arm. Cooking, cleaning, makeup application, bathroom...well you get the idea. I wonder sometimes, what I might accomplish in a given day with two hands and a fully functioning brain (pregnancy really does rob you of brain cells, you know...and I have 3 kids, so it is a wonder that I can boil water).
Still, though, almost every day since my "displacement" from my 'real' job, I have been drawn to take my one arm and 1/3 of a brain to the kitchen...mixing, baking, rolling, dipping...all in the pursuit of something sweet and (some of the time) kind of cute, too. I could probably be making better use of Anna's nap time...laundry, cleaning, etc...but then I'd miss out on the sweet results. Kind of like life before kids...I had two arms, more brain cells and more disposible income...but boy without those three munchkins there would be a lot less sweet stuff and I'm not talking cake balls, here. Happy Friday, all...make it a sweet one!

I think I have a new Favorite. Hello, Kitty and welcome to my "Pop" collection.

I worked on my very first order last night...how exciting. I was so nervous I could not sleep the night before....it was almost like the night before a race.

At any rate, 12 sheep, done. Whew. Along the way, I believe I have come up with a few "commandments" for myself in the making of Party Pops:

1. It is only chocolate.

2. Thou shalt not cry when the chocolate cracks (see #1).

3. Thou shalt not cry when the feet, eyes, or ears of said Pop fall off (see #1).

4. Thou shalt not cry when "pop" falls off stick into chocolate.

5. Calories do not count when 2-4 happen and you are forced to eat said pop.

6. Mess ups are yummy.

That being said....the sheep are done...and all have eyes, ears, feet and no (pray God) cracks. Along the way I felt 'inspired' by the Hello Kitty video Emma and I were watching to create a Pop for her. I created a few others also....look for my doctor and punk rocker pop in a future post. Happy Sunday!