Before we go further, I need to say that neither of us have baked red velvet cupcakes before this. It was a first attempt, and it was highly risky for two amateurs to take on this task. But I guess things turned out better than expected.

The second thing I need to tell you guys is that we didn’t have an electric mixer. So everything was mixed by hand. Exhausting but worth it, I guess!

We looked up a random red velvet recipe online while grocery shopping. It seemed simple enough to follow, and so we based our purchases on the ingredients listed. It was all pretty impromptu.

We followed the recipe pretty closely despite having to make a few changes along the way. For example, if I recall correctly, we had to add in more food colouring because the batter didn’t seem red enough. We also added more sugar to the frosting.

At first we baked using pretty cupcake liners, but after our first batch flopped (big time), we did the next few batches without the liners. Not only were they easier to remove from our silicon cupcake tray, the cupcakes were also bigger.

Another reason why our first batch failed was because the baking duration indicated in the recipe was 18-22 minutes. Not only was it rock hard, but it was also very burnt. So the next batch onwards, we cut the baking time by half – just 9 minutes! And they turned out perfect.

I guess the best part of baking these cupcakes was the frosting and decorating part! We made a piping bag and filled it with the cream cheese mixture we made – and started swirling it all over the cupcakes! And staying true to the initial idea of rainbow cupcakes, we scattered rainbow pebbles and sprinkles over the frosting. And here’s the end result:

So I guess we did get our “rainbow” cupcakes after all!

Sure, I started the year unsure and almost afraid of what’s to come after a very bad year in 2010. The first few months were a bit of a struggle but as we neared mid-year, things started looking up. For one, I snipped off my pretty long hair and made it a cute bob. I haven’t had short hair in 10 years, so this was a drastic change! And it was a good change, as nervous as I was all throughout the time at the hair dresser’s. And now, 9 months later, I’m still waiting and waiting for my hair to be as long as it was before!

2011 is a year where I put myself first, perhaps as a step to self-recovery from the trauma of previous years. I travelled a lot – all for pleasure and not a single work trip (for once), and perhaps because I get away so often this year, I am truly a happier person. Let’s recall some of my adventures while travelling.

It was a year of picking strawberries fresh off a strawberry garden…

and watching dolphins jump and twirl at sunrise

and meeting people from books:

and island hopping at its best..

and go-karting accidents (in Malacca – some trips I didn’t blog about)

It was also a year of many firsts. I flew all the way to Jakarta to catch a Paramore concert. That was one of the best and worst nights of my year (at the same time), but still an experience I won’t soon forget.

I actually took a budget flight(not complaining, just highlighting a milestone – that goes to you dear hater), which wasn’t that bad after all.

Paramore wasn’t the only musical act I caught live this year. I won tickets to a Lenka showcase early in the year, and in October, I re-lived my fangirl days with BLUE at the ION Orchard fashion show. So awesome, I can DIE.

And speaking of musicals, I caught The Lion King this year (oh so many things unblogged!!!) It was fantastic.

Gadget-wise, who could forget the time I cracked my iphone 4 screen?

or the fact that I replaced both my pink sony vaio and my pink point-and-shoot with sexier replacements?

(oh yeah, this was the final look [sans the lens hood] of Sir Olympus’ makeover. I didn’t blog about him getting a faux leather sticker, but he looks cool doesn’t he?)

I kinda overdid it with spending on gadgets this year (no not really, because I really needed to get them replaced – and them *ahem* enhanced) but it was a good year on the gadget front.

And with a new pancake lens and a spiffy camera, came an influx of nice food photos

On the crafts/hobby front, no sewing was done this year for some reason – but I did attempt to bake. Successfully and not so successfully.

Attempt on red velvet cupcakes: More or less successful (turned out better than expected):

And one out of the box cupcakes (with edible glitter and all) which was a complete disaster! Besides the fact that I was trying to achieve the same effect as a photoshopped cupcake!

And of course our very recent adventure with ice cream making. Yet to make an ice cream at home!

Afterthought

As you can tell, this has been a pretty good year for me. And at some point I guess I started feeling happy about my life – but denied it for the longest time for fear of jinxing it. I’ve come a long way this year. I guess sometimes you just need to take a year just to focus on your own needs and wants, in order to find that spark of happiness again. My life is at such a stable state right now that I could barely even think to imagine in December last year.

This is the year I stopped living vicariously (and secretly envying everybody else’s life) and just focused on myself. It’s hard to just stop something you’ve been doing for a long while, and sometimes there’s minor relapses. But overall I’m okay. There’ll be a time and place for everything and not everybody will experience the same things at the same age.

I’m thankful that I’ve had the chance to travel to new places, meet new people, experience new food, able to afford the best gadgets (at this point). I’m thankful that my relationship with the boyfriend is even more heightened, and we’re closer than ever (how much closer can you get after 8 years? Go figure.) I’m thankful that even though there’s been a lot of changes to home life and family – the ones who matter are still close at heart and vice versa.

Lastly, I’m thankful for my awesome job that enables me to do techy things I enjoy and allow me to finally have a work-life balance. You’ll never know how rare work-life balance is until you’ve found it. And once you find it, you’ll never, ever want to let go

So this is me, signing off for 2011. Excited for 2012, because whatever happens, it’s just gonna be an awesome adventure!

Related Searches: