Eight months ago Janette Stenstom’s life seemed half-baked! She was laid off in April and unable to find another corporate job with benefits in this burned out economy. Then her husband’s contract wasn’t renewed and it seemed to be a recipe for disaster! But this mother of three sprinkled in a dash of optimism, a pinch of perseverance and an immeasurable amount of inspiration.
Instead of eating cake (‘cause let’s face it, I mighta holed up with a Sara Lee and some coffee to drown my sorrows). . .Janette passed the time by increasing cake classes at a local craft store and dreaming. Her day dreams turned into ideas in a notebook and that notebook became a business plan. . . All Things Cake! CAKE Supplies, CAKE Classes, CAKE Parties, CAKE Contests, CAKE Club, CAKE Camp, Custom CAKES and more…all in one fabulous shop in Tulsa, OK, opening on March 8th at 71st & Memorial. (For a preview of this fabulous new shop, you can visit Janette’s blog, become a fan on Facebook, and go to the All Things Cake Shop website. And if you’re all about the social networking, she’s also on LinkedIn.)
The reason I am sharing all this information with you is that All Things Cake is having a fabulous Cake Camp for Spring Break, March 15-19! This half day program will teach your budding pastry artist a variety of baking skills and decorating techniques. All tools will be provided. . .and my favorite part. . .treats/projects completed at camp will be sent home for the entire family to enjoy! Morning sessions run 8:30 until 12:00; and afternoon sessions begin at 1:30 and last until 5:00. The cost per session is $175. Appropriate ages are 7 to 15 years old.
If your little baker isn’t quite old enough for cake camp, All Things Cake offers monthly opportunities for you to share Once Upon a Cake preschool story hour and treats with your child. Younger children can decorate a treat and listen to a story about everyone’s favorite subject. . .CAKE! A different treat and book will be featured each month and did I mention it is FREE?!?!?! Yep, I said it. . .FREE!!! Leave it to a Mom to understand just how few FREE things there are to do with the little ones!
My son and I are already signed up for the April 2nd Mommy & Me project class – Easter cupcakes! I can’t wait to enjoy some icing-laced fun with my little guy. And, bonus, we’ll have Easter dessert already done a couple of days early!
Moms, we are not forgotten either. . .if you’re dreaming of becoming another Janette Stenstrom/Cake Guru OR if you’re like me and looking for a fun night out. . .All Things Cake is available for a private CakeGirls Night Out. Gather your girlfriends and decorate the night away! A project will be customized to your group or the season. All tools will be supplied and you go home with a fabulous treat for only $25 per CakeGirl (limit party size to 6)! I’m not going to lie. . .I just might truck it across the parking lot with my treat to Starbucks and eat it alone!!!
Occasionally, All Things Cake will have public CakeGirls Nights Out where you can bring a friend or make a new one. In addition, Janette provides numerous cake decorating classes. Just keep checking the calendar for those special events!
All this being said, All Things Cake is also still a cake shop! I can attest to the shear fabulous-ness of Janette’s cakes, cookies and brownie pops! I am a repeat-turned-lifetime customer!! (Friend me on Facebook and you can view pics of what she has done for me – the cake she made for my sweet Karoline’s baby shower is featured on her blog as well!)
Please join me in congratulating this hard-workin’ Momma on not letting life get her down and following her dreams right into reality! Who says moms can’t have it all. . .Janette Stenstrom is having her cake and eating it too!