Look how far you've come...

Last night, I was scrolling through my phone looking for the photo of the sticker under the bottom of the router because I was too lazy to wander out to the hall and precariously juggle my laptop in one hand, trying to squint at the tiny code on the upturned box and tap in the non-sensical code with the other hand/eye's help. Cake. Cake. Cake. Dog. Cake. Dog. Dog. Child. Child and dog. Dog and child. Cake. Cake. Cake. You get the picture.

My camera roll is full of pictures of cake. Cakes I love. Cakes I've liked. Cakes I loved and have recreated so many times, I now no longer like them (well I secretly do). But seriously there's a lot of cake.

It's a wonderful, archival testimony to having achieved something over the last few years. I can see how I've mastered ganache and still not nailed sharp edges on fondant. There's my epic wedding cake. Some stunning sugar flowers I made in lockdown. And my bouqcake journey.

I know we should live in the moment and not capture endless pictures on our phones but actually - especially when you're getting old and forgetful like what I am - it can be a wonderful reminder of how good things are or can be. Especially when you've had a rough year (like everyone else who lived through 2020/2021 and sometimes it all feels a bit bleak).

My first ever bouquet - I was so proud of this at the time

Which was why it was lovely today when I popped in to 'the day job' and bumped into a colleague, Chris, who I've not seen since before lockdown. We used to meet on Friday with another couple of colleagues which was sometimes the highlight of an otherwise bleak week. He'd previously offered me some support and guidance on setting up my cake business but I'd never really found my groove, continuing to try being all things to everyone.

But as he enquired about my year (he'd heard the less good stuff on the grapevine), I was able to proudly tell him that I'd finally found my niche and my business was taking off. I ham-fistedly tried to explain to him that I was now focussing on cupcake bouquets and the conversation moved to the practicalities of managi

'The Laura'

ng a business that required a limited set of tools and ingredients but had maximum impact in the end product.

A little later, I remembered back to a day when I'd proudly turned up to the Friday meeting to gift my very first bouquet to another colleague in attendance. Back then, Chris had been generous enough to comment that he thought they were real flowers and offered to get a vase for them. At the time I was so proud but today I had a wry smile on my face. So I've dug back through the archive and found the picture of that very first bouquet. up above And there's one from just last week on the right.

Look how far I've come. Feeling pretty darned proud of me today!