What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say?
Our fortunes!
Recently we had Chinese food and the following were our fortunes from the meal:
- Jake – “You will be traveling to distant lands for business purposes” (He travels a lot of places for work!)
- Bridgette – “You will travel to many exotic places in the next few years.” (I LOVE to travel. I have already been to many amazing places over the years and I cannot wait to see more of the world. Plus, sometimes I get to travel with Jake when he goes on work trips. Maybe our fortunes were suppose to be together, sounds like more fun for me though! 🙂 Already looking forward to these exotic places we are going to together!)
- Brina – “You have a flair for adding fanciful dimension to any story.” (She is definitely the more fancy of the two kids!)
- Karlie – “You will soon be involved in many gatherings and parties.” (I am curious about what she’s going to be doing!)
It was a fun evening of relaxing with the family, eating Chinese food, and laughing about silly fortunes. We have so much to be thankful for in our lives. We are richly blessed and take many things for granted every day. Let’s treasure the time with have with our friends, families, and those around us. It is not impossible to run into people that you know even if you are across the world. Our lives leave an imprint of each person we interact with whether it is only once or many times! Make each moment count for good!
Extra “SnowCATION” with the Kids!
Really concentrating on her throw!
In South Carolina we really don’t get a lot of snow. If we get a sprinkle here or there everyone gets excited and we might have a day or two off from school. Also, it is likely that many people will lose power. Somehow the last few years we have been lucky and haven’t lost our power! We haven’t have a big snow storm in South Carolina for several years. The girls have been waiting, hoping, and wishing for snow all winter. Their wishes came true this week.
We have several inches of snow and they have been out of school since Tuesday. They think its AWESOME they got an unexpected 6 day weekend or Snowcation (snow-vacation) in the middle of the school year. They have been having a BLAST playing outside several hours every day. It has been a lot of fun having them home and spending extra time with them this week too. Jake was home for most of those days too, but he still had to work. One of the “benefits” of having a job that he can work from home at times, but he got to join in on the fun here and there (we didn’t leave him out)!
One of the snowy morning the girls and Jake were up at the break of dawn to work and play. Their three smiling faces were first thing I saw this morning as they were bringing me breakfast in bed! Snow days are rated pretty high in my book already, but this makes them even better!!! I had a great breakfast of fresh strawberries, yogurt, cashews, homemade Egg McMuffin, and a huge glass of ice water. Feeling very blessed! Love my family!
Karlie all smiles! She got her wish of a big winter snow storm so she could play for several days in the snow!
Brina very excited to have a snow day. Snow is always fun and it gives them a little break from school. She loves playing outside with her animals (as you can see Skipper is loving the attention too)!
Karlie was definitely more into snowball fights this year. You had to watch out because every time you turned around another snowball would be zooming right at you followed by lots of giggles!
Here it comes! DUCK!
Here she comes again! LOOK OUT!
Skipper was excited to be out and playing in the snow with the kids all week too!
There’s just something about time spent playing in the snow followed by a good hot cup of hot chocolate or apple cider. Of course, the marshmallow and candy cane stir stick was an added bonus!
Gingerbread men and sugar cookies hit the spot too!
Snack time!Kids in the Kitchen: Colorful Gingerbread Cookies
Tray full of Gingerbread cookies to share!
The girls love helping out in the kitchen. At some point over the Christmas Holidays we try to make cookies. The girls really enjoy decorating the cookies. We have done a variety of different cookies from sugar to gingerbread and more.
We typically turn on some Christmas music, whip up a batch of cookies, and play a game or read a book while the first batch is cooking. Once the first batch has cooled enough and others are baking in the oven we start decorating. As you can see from the pictures we used a couple varieties of frosting and decorations. The girls decorate them however they want and as many as they want (they stick to the decorating until the very last cookie is done).
It has been really neat seeing their skills improve over the past few years. You can actually tell what the shapes of most cookies are after they are done decorating nowadays. Plus, they have learned not to “lick” the frosting or their fingers during the whole process, ha! 🙂
Starting to fill the tray with colorful Gingerbread cookies. I especially like the Betty Crocker writable frosting because their easy to use for kids, only a little bit comes out, and you can stack the cookies together once they have dried.
Just looking at these make me smile! Some as you can see from the tops of the Christmas trees broke in the decorating process. Love seeing the girls creative juices get flowing.
Another rack of delicious gingerbread cookies, decorated with love! 🙂 Thankful for those quiet afternoons that we can spend relaxing and decorating cookies together.
Next time I need to do better about taking pictures of the kids too. I only have a couple of pictures of the girls just starting to make the cookies that didn’t really turn out. Once we got into the cooking and decorating I got swept away with the fun that I didn’t pull the camera back out until all the cookies were done. Hopefully, next time I will have more kid pictures to share. Does your family like to decorate cookies, if so what kind is your favorite?
Be My Valentine: “Heart to Heart” Cookies
Heart to Heart Cookies
We made these cookies by using cookie cutters. The girls had fun taking these cookies to school for their lunches.“Heart to Heart” Cookies:- 3/4 cup Butter
- 3/4 cup Brown Sugar
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 1 package instant White Chocolate Pudding
- 3/4 cup Cake Mix (any flavor)
- 2 Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 2 1/4 cups Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Sprinkles
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a baking sheet and cookie cutters. Mix flour, salt and baking soda together and set aside. Cream butter, brown sugar, and sugar together. Stir in the pudding and cake mix until well blended. Mix in the eggs, vanilla, and mix until smooth. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time until mixed well. Stir in the sprinkles. Use an ice cream scoop to place the dough inside the cookie cutters. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
Cookie dough inside the cookie cutterBe My Valentine: “Steal My Heart” Cookies
“Steal My Heart” Valentine Cookies
Last year I picked up this Valentine Heart pan on clearance after Valentine’s Day. The girls were very excited to try it out this year. We made these fun “Steal My Heart” Cookies together. The girls had a blast mixing up the cookie dough and they thought the cookies tasted pretty yummy too. You can use a variety of cookie mixes with this cookie sheet. Below is your basic sugar cookie mix, you can add in a few sprinkles for an extra special touch.
Sugar Cookies
- 1/3 cup Butter or Margarine
- 1/3 cup Shortening
- 3/4 cup Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 2 cups All Purpose Flour
- Sprinkles (optional)
- Icing (optional)
1. Beat butter and shortening on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, and a dash of salt. Beat till combined, scraping the bowl so everything is well blended. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually add the flour into the mixture.
2. Cover and chill dough for 1 to 3 hours to make it easier to handle when making cookies or cutouts.
3. Lay down wax paper and lightly flour. Roll the dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Use a variety of cookie cutters to make the shapes you want. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet.
4. Cut out a heart shape in the middle of the cookies. Fill the hole with a crushed hard candy. The candy will melt during baking creating the glass window pane hearts in the middle of the cookies. *We tried using up extra candy canes but they didn’t melt well (they tasted good) but I would stick to the one color hard candies like life savers!
5. Bake at 375° for 7 to 9 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are firm and light brown. Cool until the middle window are set then transfer to a platter.
Heart Shaped Pan
Plate full of Valentine cookies
Heart shaped Valentine cookies
For more fun Valentine’s Day ideas go to Living in La La Land!
Rice Krispy Super Bowl Footballs
In celebration of the Super Bowl event tomorrow our family has put together Football Rice Krispy treats to share with our family and friends.
Football Rice Krispy Treats with Chocolate Frosting! We used an oval football cookie cutter to make footballs in celebration of the Super Bowl weekend. The chocolate frosting turned out pretty well. The girls had fun helping us decorate and eating the extra rice krispy corners that were not made into footballs.
Rainbow Football Rice Krispy Treats for the Super Bowl! The girls loved the rainbow colored footballs in celebration of the Super Bowl weekend. I recommend staying away from the yellow frosting because it doesn’t show up as well.
Are you doing any special recipes for the Super Bowl festivities?
Recipe: Beary Cute Cookies
We were not able to make these on our Christmas Baking Day, however, the girls were excited to do them so we decided it would be a neat recipe to do with the girls. I have had their recipe for a long time, you can either use this Sugar Cookie recipe or following the one below. The basic idea is the same and the bear shape is a huge hit with adults and kids alike. The following recipe is from Quick Cooking.Beary Cute Cookies
- 3/4 cup Shortening
- 1/2 Sugar
- 1/2 cup packed Brown Sugar
- 1 Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
- Additional Sugar
- 30 miniature Chocolate Kisses
- 60 miniature M&M Baking Bits
1. Preheat oven to 375° F.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla; mix well. Combine the flour, salt, and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well (dough will be crumbly). Set aside 1/2 cup of dough for the ears. Shape remaining dough into 1 inch balls; roll in additional sugar.
3. Place 3 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Flatten to about 1/2 inch thickness. Roll reserved dough into 1/2 inch balls; roll in sugar. Place two smaller balls about 1 inch apart touching each flattened ball (do not flatten smaller balls).
4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until set and edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven, immediately press one kiss and two baking bits into each cookie for nose and eyes. Cool 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about 30 cookies.
Picture by Cooking
Recipe: Berry Shortbread Dreams
I made these after our Christmas Baking Day for another event. They are a super delicious treat for those looking for a fruity shortbread cookie to share this Holiday season. I got this recipe originally from 2002 Taste of Home Annual Recipes and have done it several times with different flavors of jams, all of the ones I have tried have been awesome. Chose a flavor that you enjoy for this recipe, we picked raspberry because it is one of our favorites.Berry Shortbread Dreams
- 1 cup Butter, softened
- 2/3 cup Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Almond Extract
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup Seedless Raspberry Jam
1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in extract; gradually add flour until dough forms a ball. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
2. Preheat oven to 350° F.
3. Roll into 1 inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make an indentation in the center. Fill the center with jam.
4. Bake for 14 to 18 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove and cool on wire racks. Spoon additional jam into the cookies if you want.
GLAZE
- 1 cup Confectioner’s Sugar
- 2 to 3 teaspoons of Water
- 1/2 teaspoon Almond Extract
Mix ingredients and drizzle over cookies slightly cooled cookies. This recipe makes about 40 cookies.
Photo by Taste of Home
Recipe: Orange Dreamsicle Cookies
Our family enjoys baking special goodies for family, friends and neighbors. The Orange Dreamsicle Cookies are from The Ultimate Cookie Kit by Scholastic. It is a great cookbook for kids and comes with a rolling pin, wooden spoon, measuring spoons, cookie cutters, frosting bag, and tips. If you like orange creamsicles you’ll enjoy these cookies.
Orange Dreamsicle Cookies
- 1/2 cup Orange Flavored Powdered Drink Mix
- 3/4 cup White Sugar
- 1 1/2 cups Vanilla Baking Chips
- 1 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/2 cup Butter
- 1 Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the butter, egg, and vanilla. Pour into the dry ingredients and blend completely.
3. Roll heaping tablespoons into balls. Place 2 inches a part on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes or until tops are very lightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes about 24 cookies.
Gift Giving: Delivering Christmas Goodies to Neighbors
Brina & Karlie Delivering Christmas Gifts to our Neighbors We had a blast on our Christmas Baking day last weekend but I think the biggest joy came when we delivered the goodies to our neighbors. Once the girls realized that we were not giving every morsel of the baking goodies away they were excited to share. I think they were worried that we did all the baking and they wouldn’t be able to taste any of it. Although, they definitely got their share of sampling the day of the event.
Sunday afternoon we put the baked items into gift bags, added a photo mug of the girls full of candy, put in a Christmas Card with the traditional annual picture we give to the neighbors, and tied the packages with ribbons to deliver. The girls got bundled up in their coats and mittens to help me deliver the goodies. We have 6 neighbors on our street. Most of our neighbors are retired couples that enjoy seeing the girls and getting their annual card with a picture. I found out the hard way the one year how much the yearly pictures meant to our neighbors when we didn’t give out Christmas pictures and one of our neighbors showed me her refrigerator with pictures of the girls from every Christmas. Oops!
Karlie carrying the next gift! 
Brina rang the doorbell! It was cold and windy day delivering the goodies but our street is pretty small and we were so excited about handing out the presents to those on our street. Only 3 of the 6 neighbors were home or answering their doors on a Sunday afternoon. We headed back out on Monday to hand deliver the rest of the goodies, but it wasn’t until later in the week we were able to successful hand deliver all our treats to the neighbors.
The amazing blessing came when we delivered the presents. Seeing the smiles, joy and gratefulness on the faces of our neighbors made it worth all the time and energy it took to put together the packages. It is a wonderful blessing being able to share with others. Not to mention it opens doors into the lives and hearts of those on the street near you. We look forward to more opportunities to share with our neighbors.
