As I recall, the stiffener was made by Aleene's, right, Jenni? I couldn't find it anywhere around here so Jenni helped me out. *hugging on my buddy's neck* I think you can find it online, though, the bottle is now white and pink, I think. I've also read about people using liquid starch, but I didn't try it. The biggest thing is- be sure the stiffener is completely dry before you take the balloon out, or it will collapse. I had that happen a couple of times, so I stuck another balloon inside the mess and blew it back up and then wet it again and let it dry completely again, and salvaged it. Kudzu- I nearly gave up during my first star, I just couldn't figure out the 3-D part of the star, but once I did I felt like such a doofus, lol. I guess I don't read instructions well, I do better with videos. Thanks for looking and admiring, ladies!

Hi Madonna, I'm so glad that the Mandarin Orange Cake turned out to be a success for you! I really enjoy the icing for it, and it hits the spot every time. I hope the gardening season is successful and we don't have a dry summer like we did last year. It's rained overnight for the past two nights, thankfully. I have a rain chain hanging from the gutter, and they're so much prettier than a downspout. As for my costume, I will be keeping it a surprise. There's more work going into this one than what I did for Cruella, as a friend said she was going to help me. It's another female character, not exactly Disney, but similar. Speaking of which, I'm hoping to go see Maleficent when it's released. Brad AKA Moonwolf

Annie, so glad you enjoy the lemonade. Bought the lemons earlier this week, and I was afraid they would spoil before I made it on Saturday (or maybe I'll make it tomorrow, I haven't decided). LOL, maybe they should give me a part based on my cooking. I have been asked to consider doing a role, but my transportaion is limited, sadly. I shall let you all know when I do get a part. The cobbler I made before and it was very well recieved. When I made it before, there were only four pieces left to bring home. It's so easy to make and serves 16 people. I'll share the recipe again :-). Express Fruit Cobbler 2 20 oz. cans fruit pie filling (the ones I use are 21 oz.) 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened 1 18 oz. box white cake mix (I can only find 15 oz. boxes now) 1 egg. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread pie filling in 9 x 13 inch baking pan. In large bowl, cream butter to smooth texture. Add dry cake mix & egg and blend well. Mixture will be very stiff. Spoon mixture over pie filling. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into squares. Serve with vanilla ice cream or Cool Whip. Serves 16. I'll leave my cobbler whole like I did before, that way people can get as large or small piece they want. I also take a container of Cool Whip if they wish. Brad AKA Moonwolf

Here it is :). These will be mixed together tomorrow morning. Hope it tastes as good as it looks! Linda, I bought a three pack of bell peppers for $1.88 or so at Wal-Mart. They were extremely fresh, just based on the smell when I sliced them (quite pleasant to my nose). The mushrooms were already sliced and were $0.98 per pack. I diced them a little, then I got lazy and just threw them in. We had the mini onions (not pearls, but roasting onions I think they are called). "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore...." Brad AKA Moonwolf