Splash of COLOR!

I have no excuse as to why I haven't posted these happy little cookies until now... They were actually for two sweet sisters who celebrated their birthdays about a month ago.  I will just blame my lack of posting on Summer getting in the way.  Summer can do that you know...

At our house Summer means sleeping in a bit later....lots of playing outside, swimming in our backyard inflatable pool, lemonade-making, crazy eight card game tournaments over lunch, lots of paper plates, paper napkins, and paper cups, a few band-aids here and there,  backyard grilling, and bike rides.

For being a laid back season...Summer can sure keep us busy:) But I wouldn't trade it...Nope...not even when the temperatures soared above the 100 degree mark for well over a week.

I think I could take a hundred pictures of these rainbows and still not be bored.  The colors just scream HaPpY!

I found the original idea for these on this AMAZING woman's blog.  Can't even put her talent into words because it wouldn't do her justice.

But... when I originally saw these... my soon to be 8-year old at the time was dwelling on the thought of a rainbow themed birthday party.  I was tickled to say the least... I had found the perfect cookie to go along with her chosen theme.

But then....as most kids do....she changed her mind....and a sweet fairy party it became.

But I didn't forget these cookies.  I tucked the thought of them away....and they were the first that came to mind for these two sweet little birthday girls last month!

The ruffle technique was pretty painless ( I used a Wilton 101 tip)....and actually kind of a dreamy break from the usual piping and flooding:)

See...

I told you I wouldn't be able to stop taking pictures....

Hope your summer days have been filled with color too!

Happy Birthday America

It definitely feels like Fourth of July weather here in the Midwest.  June was quite the scorcher....and we have seen temperatures in the 100s all week already!  My 8-year old has been excited about this holiday since her birthday in April when she got a red, white, and blue dress that she deemed perfect for the Fourth!

I really wanted to make some cookies that the KIDS, especially, would enjoy on this holiday.  A few months ago I saw these from The Last Course Bakery...and absolutely adored how they dreamed up an Uncle Sam out of a teddy bear cookie cutter...just brilliant!

I made just a few changes to the original version....

and had so much fun adding all the details to these little Uncle Sam's.

I guess I am partial to "Sams"....aren't I?

Have a SAFE and fun Fourth!

Spa Day!

Since my daughter's Brownie Troop had money left over at the end of the year from their cookie sales, the girls got to choose a fun way to spend their extra earnings.....After some brainstorming...the troop quickly agreed on having a SPA day....a short afternoon of manicures,...foot soaks, and pedicures.  

When I heard about the SPA day... I knew immediately which cookies I wanted to bring for the occasion.  I had seen these very similar cookies here....and was instantaneously head over heels in LOVE.  Loved the sparkles...loved the jewels, what girl wouldn't?  Kathryn Collins, of, Hey Cookie was the master mind behind these cookies, and graciously shared with me where she found these lovely edible gems...after I had no luck finding them locally.  I took her advice and ordered these amazing little edible decorations here....

Halfway through my cookie making .... I realized I had run out of the Rainbow Disco Dust.....tsk, tsk, tsk..... (And of course these cookies would have not been the same with out that fancy schmancy.... bling!) So I headed to one of our local baking stores to pick up some.....and to my great surprise I noticed...they too carried these beautiful edible gems.   So I bought more....larger ones than I had originally ordered!   Guess I'll be well stocked in that department now!

I had fun with the sparkle on these cookies....and I think I am still finding remnants of Disco Dust in my kitchen....but boy did I have a time with those craters forming on the nail polished part.  I wanted to make the nails a little more raised...and either my 20 sec  frosting was too thick or there is just plain too much HUMIDITY in Kansas because after about 15 minutes of dry time under the fan... I those sneaky craters would start to sneak up on me...and only on some fingers...ARGGG!

Luckily I was able to catch it early and get rid of the majority of them.

I took pictures in different light because the shimmer from the Disco Dust seemed to show up a little better under certain lights.

My only regret about these cookies was that I wasn't more creative in my use of color on the nails....because when our troop left the Nail Salon today... I don't think one girl left with nails that were all one color.  Alternating color schemes seemed to be most popular!

Most chose at least two alternating colors on their nails AND toes.  It sure was fun watching them kick back and soak those cute little toes of theirs.  I hope they enjoyed their day of relaxation and their sweet little treats!

DADDY Day!

I was REALLY late preparing for Father's Day this year....I had planned on making some Super Hero cookies for the Super Daddies and Grand-Daddies in our lives....but time got away from me...

So when I saw the tutorial for these on Lizy B's blog.....I knew they were the perfect solution!  Perfect for my own Daddy who wears a tie to work everyday and perfect for our Mr. B who would rather eat a tie than wear one!!!

Lizy was featured on SheKnows.com, where you can find the full, very detailed tutorial for this... along with a ready to print template for cutting out the tie!  So sweet of her to offer such detailed instruction, and what a fun idea to be able to give a life-size cookie tie as a gift!! It fit PERFECTLY in a tie box!

Of course you could always customize the tie with whatever colors suit the Daddies in your life....but I happen to love blue and orange...so we went with it!!

Hope all of you were able to spoil your Daddies with something sweet and fun this Father's Day!

30th Birthday SURPRISE

I have gotten really far behind on my cookie posts....

It might have something to do with the fact that ALL of the littles are home for the summer....

Or perhaps it might be because of the amount of time I'm spending in physical therapy from the hamstring/hip injury I've acquired possibly caused by lifting too much of my 31- pound 16 month-old.  Not gonna complain though...because it is 31 pounds of pure SWEETNESS (except when he is pulling all nighters while battling those new teeth he is cutting:)....and I know before long...he won't want me to hold him like he does now... So for now... no complaining:)

Just a few good excuses as to why blogging has become low on the list of priorities:)

Anywho....this fun set of cookies was for a sweet friend who was throwing a SuRpRiSe birthday party for her sister-in-law.  The only request was for "pink" and "black" "30" cookies:)

As you can see... I am still working on mastering those little "fluffy-parts" on the party hat.  I used a #233 Wilton tip....but some of the icing just kept blending together when I pulled away.  I have read that plastic #233 tips sometimes work better than the stainless ones to help with this issue...but I have yet to find any.....Would love to hear y'all's suggestions for making this easier...maybe it is more of a RI consistency issue...

Sugarbelle was the real deal behind the design of these cookies...she made some very similar cookies for Cookie Crazie's 4th Birthday Celebration.  You can see her pretty set here....

Lots more to share this coming week....from Father's Day to birthdays and even a little Spa Party! Happy Weekend!

Schools OUT for the SUMMER!!!

We celebrated the end of the school year this week!  It's hard for me to believe that my oldest will be in THIRD grade next year.  Each school year gets a little busier...and goes by a little quicker than the year before.  

I love to make something "hand-made" for these teachers who work so hard all year through.  I was a teacher before my littles were born...and I KNOW the amount of hard work and dedication involved in being a teacher.  The work certainly doesn't end when the kids go home...you are always in preparation mode...and always worrying about whether you are doing all you can to educate each and every child.

Melissa of Simply Sweets by Honeybee posted a tutorial on how to make these chalkboard cookies as well as an amazing apple tree cookie.  They were the perfect little treat to share with all those teachers who worked so hard with my littles this year.  You can find the tutorial here....but don't stop there....be sure to scroll through Melissa's blog....you will drool...

I took Melissa's advice and found my scalloped rectangle cutter and mini apple cutter at CopperGifts...one of my favorite cookie cutter companies.

And like Melissa... I used just a fine paintbrush and some white americolor gel frosting to write the sentiment on the cookie... of course you could add any sweet message to these...

I hope all teachers realize just how appreciated they are....The hard work does not go unnoticed.  Happy Summer!!!

Mini Elephants

I love anything mini....

especially itty bitty cookies.  If they are mini...you can eat  A LOT more...right?

These little guys were for a little boy's first birthday party....they were designed to match a sweet little elephant-themed invite put together by one AMAZING Mama of FOUR handsome little boys.

I am smitten with anything yellow and gray these days...so I fell in love with these little guys.  I frosted the ears first with Callye's "20 second" icing using the "wet on wet" technique to achieve the stripes....and then the rest was easy peasy....simply piping and flooding the gray body and adding a red heart and black eye.

Hope little C enjoyed his BIG day!