Halloween Friends

 One of my dearest friends recently introduced me to the game, Words with Friends, and I am now addicted. I was never much of a Scrabble player, so I am surprised at how much I enjoy this internet game.  Since Kathy and I had a lunch date this week, I couldn't resist adding some WWF tiles into her Halloween cookie mix. Trick or Treat to a dear friend.

Kathy(l) and me--friends for 40 years.

I was inspired by Sugar Dot who recently posted photos of  Scrabble tile cookies (link).

Witch's Brew

Last summer, I received a jar cookie cutter as a gift and thought I'd use it as part of my Halloween cookie collection this year.   Happy Halloween!

Witchy Woman!

Why is it that when I make cookies "just for fun" they turn out to be some of my favorites?  A hint of disco dust on the hats is not very visible in the photo, but adds a nice glimmer to the design.

A Family of Giraffes

I have a love-hate relationship with this cookie cutter.  Loved him so much that I was determined to add him to my collection even though I had to figure out how to get him to travel all the way from Australia to Chicago, Illinois, USA  link.  Hate him because he is so darn tempermental.  If the neck doesn't break while cutting, it breaks after baking.  If the neck doesn't break, watch out for the antlers.

Last Christmas, I made a few of these adorable reindeer and then retired the cutter to the Christmas cookie cutter box.  Little did I know that he would be quite a popular guy in the summer when he reappeared on Sweet Sugar Belle's blog as a giraffe.

When a friend called and asked for giraffe cookies for a baby shower, I was happy to do them.  Although I've never made giraffes before, I knew that very little planning would be needed because I could go directly to SSB's blog and follow her clear, step-by-step instructions link.  Of course, I couldn't just stick to the reindeer cutter, I had to try one of the alternative cutters that SSB suggested, so I used the reindeer and 2 different pineapples to make my family of giraffes.

Baby has Dad's face and Mom's eyes

Daddy giraffe is quite large and while decorating I kept seeing Fred Flintstone's Dino or a big purple dinosaur! 

Kaley's Senior Night

Kaley just celebrated her 17th birthday, is a senior in high school, a cheerleader, a softball player, a coach for Special Olympics, a member of the National Honor Society and the oldest of my great nieces and nephews.  Can you tell that I am just a bit proud to be her great-Aunt?

Tonight is Senior Night with special recognition for the senior members of the football team, cheerleaders,  marching band,  and pom-pon squad.  It's going to be chilly out there, but I will be watching, cheering and probably shedding a few tears thinking about how fast she has grown up.

One of my favorite things about baking cookies is the opportunity to create designs to celebrate the special events in the lives of my family and friends.  I always try to think of something new that will surprise the kids in the family on their special days.

The stick figure cheerleaders were free hand and I think they will make Kaley smile her very special smile.   











For years I have admired the stadium cookies that I have seen on line, so this was a great opportunity to make my version of the design.





Love and cheers to a very special girl!

Kaley with Mom and Dad

A New Season

It's the first full day of fall and the Chicago temperature of 50 degrees definitely suggests that the seasons are changing.  I have a love-hate relationship with fall.  Love the crispness in the air, football (GO BEARS), and the beautiful colors.  Hate the shorter days and the snow that is sure to follow.

In my cookie world, fall is my favorite season, there are no mistakes on pumpkins and leaves.  I haven't started baking fall cookies yet, but decided to put a few pictures together of fall cookies from the past.

I tried to use nature for
inspiration in this collection.

Quilt Cookie Inspired by Cookie Crazie

 For my Mom's 80th birthday in 2010, we had a quilt made that included the name of every family member.  I contacted Pam (Cookie Crazie) and she graciously gave me permission to use her unique quilting style on cookies that were part of the collection I made as a thank you gift for the woman who made the quilt.   If you are not familiar with Pam's work you can view all of her beautiful designs on her blog:  http://www.cookiecrazie.com/

Inspired by SweetSugarBelle

This Scarecrow collection was created using the tutorial that Sweet Sugar Belle posted on her blog.  My Brother-in-Law said they looked like snowmen dressed up as Scarecrows for Halloween!  Don't you just love the honest, constructive criticism from family members?  Lesson learned, next time make the face a little darker.


I can't imagine there are any cookie decorators that are unfamiliar with Calleye's work, but just in case, you can check out her step-by-step instructions for the scarecrows here.

Thanks to SSB's creativity and willingness to share her decorating tips,  I have become a better cookie decorator.  

I have some new designs that I plan to make this fall, so I'm looking forward to decorating cookies in the weeks ahead.

Owls for a Baby Shower

Have you noticed owls everywhere?  It seems like no matter where I go there are eyes staring at me.  I have to admit, I'm old enough to remember when owls were "in" back in the seventies so I guess the current craze is retro.

When it comes to making cookies, I've skipped the owl craze until now.  A friend is hosting a baby shower this weekend and asked me to make some cookies for the event.   A tulip shaped cutter was used for the teal and brown cookies.  The mini owls were an after thought and turned out to be my favorites.