Cakers

2.2.13 - We had our wedding on Saturday and it was so much fun. I'll be putting out a blog post at some point with more photos. But in the meantime, here we are with the officiant. :-)

12.25.12-

I have wonderful news! I got engaged on Saturday, Dec 22, 2012 and we're getting married on Feb 2, 2013. I'm just walking on clouds right now!

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I’m a woman in her 40’s whose life basically started over in early 2010. I live in a suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and have never lived in another state. I’ve been on Swap-bot since the beginning and though I don’t have as many swaps as others who have been on a shorter period of time, it’s because this is just one of my many hobbies. Not only that, I’m supremely fussy about what swaps I join or set up.

I’m an easy going, non-confrontational, generally happy-go-lucky kind of gal. My incredible fiancé (KDO) is lovingly sarcastic, witty, a talented photographer and a big biker (6’3” – can’t miss him). We share a home together along with our wacky cat, Stella.

KDO and I both enjoy goofing with technology so it’s easy to lose track of time. We’re not into games online; it’s more around research on our hobbies (i.e. photography or new software for dj’ng) but neither of us want to do that for hours on end.

So, nearly every evening we make sure we eat dinner together, clean up the kitchen together and then spend an hour or so playing some game like Farkle, cribbage, Othello or backgammon. It’s so wonderful to be with someone who enjoys playing games for the fun of it, and not to just win, win win.

It’s incredibly important to us to spend quality time together, and whether it’s games or just sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace chatting after dinner, we make sure we do that on a regular basis because we’ve found that it’s really helped our relationship develop into something meaningful.

By the way, I sometimes put stuff about swaps on my blog both current and past. So if you're in a current swap with me and want to be surprised, don't read my Cakers blog.

RATINGS: Ratings are important to enable fair swapping and earn a good reputation as a swapper, not to mention it lets you know that what you’ve sent to your partner(s) was satisfactory (a - 5) or better (a possible heart along with that 5).

Having said that, please rate as soon as you feasibly can and I will do the same for my partner(s). If you have not been rated for something, or have not received my package in a reasonable amount of time, do not hesitate to send a PM or leave a comment on my profile. I’m in here almost daily.

HEARTS: In the past I’ve given hearts out pretty freely but moving forward I’ll be putting more thought into doing so before just blithely adding one.

I simply don’t believe they should be given out only because the minimum requirements were met or because, for example, a little treat was added to the package or a 2nd photo emailed when only one is required. I sincerely appreciate the extras but what’s more important to me is that your package reflects how much you care about the swap.

Labyrinth (I've seen this about 3 dozen times since the early 80's), all Alfred Hitchcock movies, The Wizard of Oz (monkeys!!), Tremor series (total 'B' movies all the way), Rocky Horror Picture Show (all time fave).

There's such a variety that I enjoy but here's a list of a few of my favorite artists:

Train, Traffic, Blues Traveler, Sara McLachlan, Eric Clapton, Norah Jones, Miles Davis, B-52's, Jimmy Buffet, The Eagles, The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac, Simon & Garfunkel, Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Elton John, Bill Withers, Barry White, Cyndi Lauper, Bette Midler, Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, James Taylor

PHOTOGRAPHY - I enjoy taking pictures that are mostly nature, food, and skylines. My boyfriend says he thinks I would be considered an intermediate level photographer and that I seem to be a natural, though I haven’t had any training. I do know I have a lot to learn and am looking for new challenges all the time.

STAINED GLASS WORK - I like making small panels and sun catchers but have wanted to try something new for awhile. So KDO and I are going to experiment making pendants with vintage pictures and microscope slides this year. So excited for something new to play with!

KNIT – I’ve developed into an experienced level knitter and have attended numerous Stitches events in California and Illinois. I really enjoy knitting up a pair of socks, fingerless mitts or a lace scarf. I find it to be a good thing to do when I need some stress relief.

BLOG - I maintain on a fairly regular basis three blogs. One about my life, one for Stella, and one for my love of photographing food.

SEW - I enjoy sewing smaller projects because I like the nearly almost instant gratification it brings me. The colors that are catching my eyes these days for projects are bright and cheery - coral, turquoise, gold, bright (not neon) green, cherry red. As for types of patterns I prefer with material, smaller is better (easier for smaller projects) and I really, really love the vintage material options that are available these days.

COLOR PREFERENCES - I prefer bright and cheery colors of whatever craft or photography I'm doing. So blue hued reds, purple, turquoise, lime, yellow, orange, for example. Take a look at my blog and you'll see color is big for me. I think earth tones (brown, rust, etc) are fine but they don't make me smile like lighter colors.

CANDY: Dark chocolate and white chocolate, wow, those are my all-time favorites. But I'm not a big fan of any chocolate with nuts, must be a texture thing, I'm not sure.

I also like SweetTarts,Junior Mints and Peppermint Patties. Oh, Take 5 is another great candy bar as it has the caramel, pretzel and chocolate combination that I love so much!

SAVORY STUFF: Hot or flavorful foods that have spices like cumin and coriander make me drool. I love, love, love cooking with spices but also enjoy milder recipes. I guess you could say I’m Minnesota bred with a non-Minnesota palate since I like so much flavor.

I make my own homemade salsa and can about 2 dozen jars every few months and hope that one day I'll be able to sell it to the public and actually make a gagillion bucks off of it. Well, maybe a few thousand, I’m not greedy.

BEVERAGES: I love coffee straight up, nothing added. Hot chocolate, milk or dark, with or without marshmallows works, too!

06.08.2012 - As of today, still no rating from @bookwormal she hasn't been on Swap-bot since 3/22/12.

03.20.2012 - Resent a swap for one that should have been received at least two weeks ago. I hadn't heard from my partner, @bookwormal so thought it would be safest to resend - here's hoping she gets this one and I can get my rating and archive the swap. :-)

03.19.2012 - I really love so many things about Swap-bot, some not so much. Like when people flake on you for swaps or tags or when they don't rate you. But I really truly love and appreciate when others take care of those who've been flaked on. A special thank you to @luleemik for sending me a couple of great tag items for the tag that I was flaked on in the Cocktail Bar for Swappers group. It's people like you, Lu, that convince me that it's a great idea to stick around here, year after year. A toast to you, my friend!!

01.04.2012 - The new job is going fabulously, I love the people, the atmosphere... simply everything about it. I cannot believe how fortunate I was to land this special position.

11.26.2011 - A special thank you to @racheljohnson of Swap-bot for angeling the 100,000! swap for me. You rocked that package, girlfriend!! Thank you tons being so gracious to do so.

11.04.2011 - I am officially employed again in an accounting position at an ad agency after three years of being unemployed (2009 and 2010 I was going to school but this whole year I've been job searching). I start on 11/8/2011. I can finally start doing bigger swaps again! Yay!!

10.24.2011 - I've had my user name changed to Cakers, my old one was MIdwestknitgirl. Let me know if you have any questions.