Star Wars Lego Cookies!

December 23 - Our little Padawan celebrated his 9th birthday. With a winter storm raging outside we felt as though we were on the planet Hoth. Conditions forced distant and elderly family members to remain at their base camps. Only Master Grandpa, Master Grandma and a youngling from a neighboring camp were able to attend. Spirits were high though as warm soup (in bread bowls!) and cookies and cupcakes were enjoyed by all.

Christmas Eve - The winter storm continued to rage and our datapads warned of an impending blizzard with white-out conditions. Our mission, to carry out Christmas Eve traditions with Master Grandma and Master Grandpa, seemed doomed. However, the Force was with us and a break in the weather provided the opportunity we needed to travel the short distance to their base camp. While there, we were able to locate the pickle ornament hidden in the tree and enjoy chili and cinnamon rolls. With our mission completed we returned home safely.

Christmas Day - Conditions forced us to alter our original plans. We would not be able to complete a journey to visit family on a distant planet. However, Master Grandma, Master Grandpa, Master Great-Grandma and Master Great-Grandpa were able to join us for our gift exchange and dinner. We felt very lucky to be able to enjoy the day with them and glad that they made it back to their own homes safely before we had total white-out conditions later that afternoon.

I hope all of you had a safe and merry Christmas. May the Force be with you!

Faithful Friends Who Are Dear to Us… Dog Treats

We were looking through the dog food aisle for some special treats to put in our dogs' stocking and to give to my sister in-laws' dogs, who always join our Christmas celebration. That's when my daughter said "Why don't we just make them some treats?"

Why didn't I think of that? We're a DIY family after all!

So… that's what we did yesterday. Baked and packaged cookies to share with all our canine companions. I have to say… making dog cookies was almost more fun than making people cookies!

Here's the recipe I used:

2 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 c. cornmeal
1/2 c. unbleached flour
1 tsp. salt
2 T. oil
1/4 c. molasses
2 eggs
1/4 c. milk

Mix all ingredients. Roll out on floured surface, to 1/2" thickness. Cut with desired cookie cutter. Bake on cookie sheets at 350º for 30 minutes, until lightly toasted.

We decorated these with a little white chocolate.

How to Decorate Christmas Cookies

Photos not adjusted, text not proofread, layout a little wonky…

But it's done!

I've been meaning to post a "How to decorate cookies" tutorial forever and here it is finally, imperfect though it may be. So let me know if it doesn't make any sense. I'm happy to answer questions if I can!

Download the PDF here!

Last weekend my best friend (who lives 2 1/2 hours away) came for my birthday. We went to our favorite junk shop and bought tons of vintage Christmas decor.

This weekend my cousin (who lives all the way in Spain!) came over for a lesson on how to decorate cookies. Here's the angels she decorated. With a little practice I think she'll be a great cookie decorator!

Next weekend is the first of 3 family Christmas gatherings for us.

Christmas parties, programs & shopping fill the time in between.

So… like everyone else I know… I barely have time to think. But it's a very happy state of stress. I really love the flurry of activity this time of year and I feel very lucky to get to spend some time with family and friends.

So… in case I don't have time to write again before Christmas…

HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS!

It's Beginning to Look Alot LIke Christmas!

• Cookies Baked √

• House Decorated √

• Presents bought (almost done!)

Before this weekend I was feeling pretty stressed about getting everything done. Since I work full time most of my holiday preparations have to be done on weekends and this weekend was the last free weekend I had to get the bulk of my shopping, decorating and baking done. Actually… my mom came and helped with the cookie decorating last weekend so that was taken care of. (Thanks Mom!) But I still had lots of things to do. Thankfully… after a nice Thanksgiving with my in-laws, I was able to finish my decorating and get most of my gifts bought. PHEW! Feels good to start the work week with some big things checked off the old "to-do" list.

AND…

I GOT A NEW KITCHENAID MIXER!!!!! Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas to me! My 18 year old Oster mixer was falling apart. I literally had to hold it together to use it. So… I braved the early morning Black Friday crowds and got myself a new Kitchenaid! Totally worth getting up at 3:00 am!

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and that your Holiday preparations are coming along!

Happy "Cyber Monday"!

Makin' a List, Checkin' it Twice

Download the Holiday Baking Planner

Handmade'ns is over. Thank goodness! Now I can focus on baking and blogging and start getting ready for Christmas.

Getting everything done for Christmas requires extreme organizational skills and that's not something I come by naturally. For me… organization takes a huge effort and I don't like it. But… if I can make something pretty to keep track of everything… it helps a little. So I designed these pages to go in a 3-ring binder. You can use them too if you want, just download the PDFs here.

Making lists of everything I need to bake for helps me figure out what kind of supplies I need to order too. Look at all these fun things I found in my favorite shops. Makes me so anxious to get started!

Next weekend… the baking begins! Time to blast the cheesy Christmas Carols, put on comfy slippers, pull out the rolling pin and cookie cutters and let the flour fly!

Blue Sugar and Deer Toppers from Layer Cake Shop, Mushroom Picks & Red Spotty Baking Cases from Bake it Pretty, Pink and Gold Cupcake Liners from A Cupcakery, Metallic Gold Edible Glitter from Sugarcraft


Urban Floral Brushes by Rawox, Dyspepsia from Larabie Fonts, League Gothic from the Leauge of Moveable Type