Take Two of the 12 Days of Cookies!!

The windows in my kitchen are all fogged over. That could only mean one thing. Well, it could actually mean quite a few things, but since it is December and there is also the distinct smell of Andes Mints, it definitely means that my oven is working overtime baking Christmas cookies. Last year I posted my 12 Days of Cookies and this year I have a few new ones to add. Since it is already December 5th, I had better get posting!

Day 1 : Raspberry Linzer Cookies

These would be so sweet with little Christmas trees in the center.

Day 2: Brown Sugar Praline Cookies

Day 3: Peanut Butter Milk Dud Cookies

Day 4: Orange Slice Cookies

These are amazing. I think that these would be fantastic with gumdrops substituted for the orange slices. Red and green gumdrops would look perfect. This recipe makes about 8 dozen cookies (Courtney!!) so they would be fantastic for a Christmas Cookie exchange.

Day 5: The Ultimate Peanut Butter Cookie

I wouldn't freeze the Orange Slice Cookie Dough, but the other 4 would be perfect for freezing. All that you need to do is complete the cookie up to the point where you roll them into balls (or just wrap all of the dough in Saran Wrap and put in a Ziploc bag for the Linzer Cookies) and then freeze individually on a plate in the freezer. Once they are frozen, transfer to a Ziploc bag and leave in the freezer for up to 3 months. The night before you are ready to bake, put the frozen dough in the refrigerator. They will be ready when you are. It's a great way to take off some of the pressure of holiday baking.

What are you baking this year?

Christmas Cards

It's that time of year again! Time for me to make Christmas cards and then send them to absolutely no one. I am so not a Christmas card kind of gal. My mom, on the other hand, mailed out her cards the day after Thanksgiving. No joke. She rocks out the Christmas cards.

I made these cards using my December Mosh Posh kit. I loved all of the fun October Afternoon patterned papers and the embellishments were just perfect for lots of fun cards!

I just love using up all of my scraps of paper to create pictures on my layouts or cards.

I hand cut circles from the patterned papers and then cut them in half to create the shingles for this little cottage. The sparkly tree is made from sticks that I covered in glitter and sequins.

This is my favorite card. I just love everything and anything about Christmas trees.

I drew a Christmas tree onto a piece of white cardstock and cut it out. I then attached all of the folded pieces of patterned paper. The final step was to trim the paper from around the cardstock. I thought it would be a cleaner shape that way.

The October Afternoon Very Merry Wild Cards were perfect for the sentiment that I wanted to portray on this card.

I hand cut the petals and leaves for the poinsettia. I layered the green rick rack on top of the leaves and stapled it all together. I just love the layering.

And those are my Christmas cards! This will be my very last Mosh Posh kit. It was a very difficult decision, but I decided not to try out for the design team this term. I have been with Mosh Posh for 2 years now and I am grateful to Kristen for giving me the opportunity to be a part of her team. Mosh Posh was my very first design team. I will miss working with Brooke, Jenny and Frances!! You guys are the best!! MUAH!

You know I wouldn't leave you without a giveaway!! Just leave me a comment telling me about what you have been doing to get in the holiday spirit and I will draw one winner who will receive a little package from me!! (There will be lots of red, white and green embellishments + a little chocolate, YUM!)

You have until Monday to leave me a comment! Happy Thursday!

Mosh Posh Blog Hop + a Giveaway

Welcome to another Mosh Posh Blog Hop!!

Every month I look forward to the Mosh Posh kit that Kristen puts together. I have been with Mosh Posh as part of the Design Team for 2 years now and was a subscriber before that. I know that there are lots of kit clubs out there - trust me, I have tried most of them! I love Mosh Posh because of Kristen's awesome customer service and the fun kits that she puts together. I would never be part of a Design Team that I didn't believe in. Kristen was the very first person to put me on a Design Team, so I guess that she must believe in me too!

(November 2007 Mosh Posh layout)

As I was looking through my Mosh Posh layouts, I noticed that I seem to have a slight obsession with using trees for my fall layouts. Just a slight obsession. Oh, and it might not just be in the fall either.

(May 2009 Mosh Posh layout)

(August 2009 Mosh Posh layout)

Alright, are you ready for another giveaway??? I had so much fun decorating my trees for this month's Corn Maze layout that I thought that I should give away some of my favorite embellishments: brads! There are velvet brads, shaped brads, large brads and mini brads. Any kind of brad that you can imagine. Well, except for my Brad.


Hahahahahaha. I crack myself up. Anyway...

For a chance to win these super fun brads, leave me a comment telling me all about your favorite Thanksgiving side dish. I am working on my menu and need some inspiration. You have until Sunday, November 22nd to leave me a comment. I will pick a winner on Monday.

Now, hop along to check out what my fellow Design Team Members are up to! Happy Thursday!!

Brook Magee
Jenny Dziekan
Frances Sylvia

5 Reasons To Love Maddux

1. He is the absolute best kid in the world to go grocery shopping with. He makes all of the big decisions (Captain Crunch vs. Lucky Charms and apples vs. bananas) so that I can concentrate on not knocking over the displays as he waves his arms enthusiastically while holding on to the back of the grocery cart. I try to take his opinions very seriously because the child eats nothing other than cereal and chicken nuggets, so if he doesn't speak up when he decides that he will slide a banana into his daily routine, the child will surely starve.

2. He is really an 85-year-old man in a 4-year-old's body. His big concerns in life revolve around when he next gets to eat and whether or not it is too early to put on his pajamas.

3. He loves loves loves to talk on the phone. If the child gets to talk to my dad on the phone, his whole face just light up. He sneaks away with the phone so that he talk about "boy stuff" with his grandpa. I will find him later laying in my bed, all tucked in, just chatting away. He likes to discuss what he has eaten that day (are we sensing a food trend, here?), what he is currently wearing and he loves to throw me under the bus whenever possible. Mommy is still in her pajamas, he will whisper conspiratorially and she fed us cookies for breakfast. Can you believe that? I miss the days when my children couldn't rat me out to my parents.

4. Maddux is sweet. I know that there will come a day when he will transform into a stinky teenage boy, but for now he is sensitive, kind and utterly adorable. He loves to sit in my lap and tell me about all of the thoughts that came into his head during the 11 hours that we weren't together while he was sleeping. He likes to say things like, Mommy, I love you more than pancakes. And he loves to get up at 1:00AM to check on me. He will wander into the living room in his bulldog footie pajamas, rubbing his eyes, and he will ask me what I am doing. He will stick around to fold a few towels with me, discuss how his Backyardigans CD is better than whatever music I am listening to or grab a glass of water and then he will head back to bed. Night, Mommy. Love you more than ice cream.

(This picture is from November 17, 2008)

5. He is growing. His pants are too big around the waist, but just the right length. He talks about how much he is going to love Kindergarten and then, in the same breath, asks if I can go with him. When I look at him, I see Bradley. Everything that is good about Bradley, his kindness and easygoing nature, is evident in our sweet little boy.

I let Maddux pick the winner for the ribbon giveaway and he chose:

A Sarasota said...

Mmm, chicken pastry for dinner tonight.
Nice banner!

November 12, 2009 9:56 AM

Please email me at EsteeLynn(at)gmail(dot)com with your address! Have a happy Wednesday everyone!

A Little Bit of Paper & A Little Glue

I am hosting another contest this month over at Scrapbook.com. This month, all that you need to do to participate is create a layout that uses one predominant shape for your embellishments.

For the above layout you can see that I predominantly used circles. Everything on this layout is from the new GCD Studios Collection, Artsy Urban, that was designed by Melody Ross. Isn't it fun? My favorite part of the collection is that is contains so many different embellishments! There are crocheted flowers, glass brads, chipboard pieces, felt trims, vintage buttons and about a gazillion other embellishments. You can see the whole collection over at the GCD Studios Blog.

This is another GCD Studios layout that I created using the Artsy Urban and the Party It Up Collections. This layout also fits into the parameters of the contest because I used only stars for my embellishments. First, I lined the back of acetate stars with patterned paper. I then used a paint brush to brush Mod Podge onto the edges of the stars. After the glue was just as I wanted it, I dipped the stars into glitter (Pink Paislee Pixie Stix - Licorice, Green Apple and Orange Crush).

The best part of the Scrapbook.com contest is that GCD Studios is graciously giving away 4 of the new Artsy Urban 12" x 12" Quick Page Kits. Awesome. I hope to see you over there!

A Leaf Garland

As soon as I saw the Cosmo Cricket paper in this month's Mosh Posh kit, I just knew that a leaf garland was in my immediate future.

To make this garland, I first drew two leaves onto a piece of cardstock, one smaller than the other, to use as guides. Using my guide, I cut 15 leaves from felt, using the larger leaf. I then cut 15 smaller leaves from the Cosmo Cricket patterned paper.

I attached the patterned paper onto the felt by stitching a straight line across the two. Nothing fancy, just a straight stitch. Once that part was completed, then came the fun... the embellishing!

I added more details for the leaves, lots of buttons, felt embellishments and brads. This is the fun stuff. If you decide to make a garland, it can be as detailed or as simple as you please. To attach the leaves together, I totally cheated and staples them together. Hee Hee. Simple, yet effective. Voila! A leaf garland!

Since today is the Mosh Posh Blog Hop, you just knew that I couldn't leave you without a prize, right? Today I have 52 ribbons, just for you. I love ribbon and have collected so much of it that I would love to share some with you. All you need to do is leave me a comment telling me what you are having for dinner tonight. Bizarre question, I know, but I am stumped and need some ideas!

You have until Sunday, November 15th to leave a comment. I will announce the winner on Monday.

Be sure to hop along to see my Design Team Members, who have tricks up their sleeves I am sure!

Brook Magee
Jenny Dziekan
Frances Sylvia

Happy Thursday!!

A Day In The Leaves

I think that the goal of every child should be to have friends who have more leaves in their yard than you do.

By having friends who have ridiculous amounts of leaves already handily raked into a ginormous pile two things are universally true:

a. Playing at a friend's house is always more fun than playing at home, i.e. playing in their leaves would be much more fun than your own lame leaves.

b. If leaf playing is done elsewhere, this allows the mother to not have to rake her own leaves for the entertainment of her children. Or even worse, to have to re-rake the entire yard after her children have decimated the leaf pile. -shudder-

Just saying.