Sugar. Overload.

Last weekend was the 6th annual Hogue family Pumpkin Carving Party.  I'm pretty sure that there couldn't have possibly been more sugary desserts in one place.  I tell myself every year to just keep it simple and not go overboard....and then when it all comes together on the day of the party I'm just staring at this dessert table thinking that I might send someone into sugar-shock.  But you know what?  Halloween only comes one day a year....and Halloween needs to remain the holiday that revolves around candy and fun...no matter what those school parties are doing with their crazy restrictions about not bringing candy or cupcakes to school.  So this is the way that I remember Halloween parties from when I was a kid.....games, candy, desserts, and carving pumpkins.....here's how it went......

We did actually make dinner for everyone first.....so don't think that I don't feed people normal food sometimes.  Dinner is just so boring to me.....so let's keep moving towards the fun stuff.  I had bought powdered sugar donuts to play the donut-on-a-string game.  The kids thought it was so funny!  The boys played first and I think Elliot won.  I can't even remember because we were all laughing so hard.  The Mia went up against her two girl cousins, Faith and Gemma.  Mind you.....they are 4 and 6 years older then her...and Mia seriously was in it to win it.  She didn't hesitate for a second to eat that donut and her face was covered in powdered sugar.  God I love her.

Look at my little champ, Mia!  Lollllllll

!

Powdered sugar face!

After that game it was time to carve pumpkins.  This portion of the party is really a lot of work and though it is fun.....it's just kinda stressful because you know, the combination of children and knives and pumpkin goo can be somewhat scary.  It is because of the above combination that we always carve the pumpkins outside.  But you know in Pittsburgh you never quite know what kind of weather you'll get on Halloween.  This year it was freeeezing cold and rainy.  Awesome.  So Rob and I set up our shed to be able to house the pumpkin carving.  Our shed isn't really a normal shed....it's kind of like a miniature house in our backyard...it has electricity and a stereo system, a ceiling fan, 5 windows, and a nice front door.  Sometimes I think that Rob should just live in it. 

Gutting Pumpkins.....boooooo

Like my hair bow?  Mia picked it out for me at the craft store because she told me that I needed a costume

Anyyyyway,  everyone had a lot of fun carving this year.  My nieces and nephews are getting older and they're really able to do a lot of the work on their own.  I did get the job of gutting like 4 pumpkins this year.  I swear....I wouldn't just do that for anyone.  I just reallllly love my nieces and nephews :)  Mia had a ton of fun putting stickers on her pumpkin.  She was done in approximately one minute and ten seconds and then she was onto something else.  She had absolutely no interest in helping me gut the pumpkins.  Do the kids EVER want to do that job?

a work of art :)

Can you guess which one is mine? 

Rob's, Mia's, mine :)

Derek's pumpkin was so funny!

After carving we came inside and I set up a small pumpkin hunt around the house.  Similar to an Easter egg hunt...but with pumpkins and skeletons.  I fill them with candy and lottery tickets and stuff.  It' so simple but the kids think it's really fun.  Mia was on a complete sugar high at that point so she buzzed around the house searching high and low well after all of the pumpkins had been found.  She was on the hunt for more fruit snacks and tootsie rolls and there was just no getting through to her. So how did I distract her?  Duh...more sugar!  IT'S TIME FOR FRANKEN-PUDDING!!!  OMG....I made these Frankenstein pudding cups from Pinterest and they were awfully cute.  The kids (and some adults, too.... ahem Jonathan and Rob) were so excited about eating vanilla pudding with oreos on it.  So simple and really a big hit!



FRANKEN-PUDDING!!!!



Then I handed out the treat bags with dollar store toys and more candy (of course!) and the kids just disappeared to go play or chug Huggies or something....who knows where they all went?  The grown-ups sat down for some coffee and dessert....which included apple pie and pumpkin pie made by my mother in law.  She's tried to teach me her pie skills but I'm just not good at pies. Period.  I'll work on that in my spare time.

Did I forget to mention the rest of the cookie table that I made, too?  Let's see....there were caramel filled brownies, white-chocolate dipped Twinkies (insanely over the top but they sure did look cute!), pumpkin kiss cookies, thumbprint cookies, and of course sugar cookies.  I TOLD YOU!  SUGAR OVERLOAD!!!

So once the kids starting coming down from the sugar high it was time for everyone to go.  I can't have a house full of kids all breaking down at the same time...it's only my job to provide the sweets....not deal with the aftermath.  But my sister-in-laws will be happy to know that this year I had my own little sugar maniac to deal with instead of like in years past when all of the kids would get sent home and Rob and I would have a quiet house.  Nope, not this year!  Mia broke down when everyone had to leave....you know that cry that you just can't console.... and once she did fall asleep I was on high puking alert the whole night.  I was up working on cookie orders late into the night and at one point I heard her cough on the baby monitor and then start crying in her sleep.  I RAN upstairs totally thinking that she had thrown up all over herself.....but thanks to all Halloween gods it was just a false alarm.  She never got sick!!!  It's actually a miracle.  Let me tell you something, though.....her sugar hangover the next day was just awful.  She was a little monster all day.  But I can't blame her....afterall....it was all MY fault!

So that's the way that I know how to have a Halloween party.  It's the best feeling ever to create these memories for my family.  Happy Halloween!!!

You're the next contestant on.....

Match....that....invitation!!!  Sounds like a game show, right?  You know I used to work around actual other human beings all day.  Now I work from home and when Mia is napping or at school I really struggle to keep myself entertained.  I tend to daydream a lot while I'm working on cookies.  One thing I've really always wanted to do was go on a game show.  Sometimes I think about what exact theme of game show would be tailored just for me.  I used to be the go-to person in my family for all things pop-culture.  Everyone would tell me that I would be on their phone-a-friend list for Who Wants to be a Millionaire  just in case they were faced with a question about the names of Brad Pitt's kids or which reality TV star was the sole Survivor in season 3.  And then....I had Mia....and then even WORSE for my pop-culture studying, I became a stay/work-at-home mom.  I stopped reading Perez Hilton, my People magazines started stacking up for weeks before they were even glanced at, and my tv time was replaced with Nick Jr.  Now I'm lucky if I even see a movie in the first few years after it's been released.   But you know, there are some up-sides.  Like for example....when Rob and I do decide to rent a movie(like twice a year)....there are SO many to pick from because we haven't seen anything.  And my brain isn't all filled with useless pop-culture stuff anymore.  There's so much more room for.....wait.....I can't remember anything anymore since having a kid.  There's just empty space in my brain now, I'm convinced. 

So I think if I were to be on any type of game show it would be like craft-wars but for cookies.  Kinda like Cupcake Wars but way less mean judges, please. (I mean, does that one guy EVER like any of the cupcakes?  I'd like to see HIM bake something with rosewater and see how it tastes.  That guy really annoys me.)  So yes....I'd like a game show where they give me a topic or a theme or something to coordinate with and then I would create a cookie that was super awesome and I would win a gazillion trillionty dollars. The end.  I win.

So back to reality....I was asked to make some cookies to coordinate with this invitation:

I really liked the idea of baby cookies that weren't pink or blue or pastel at all.  Anything out-of-the-box gives me a little break from the usual work week.  So I used the green, orange, and brown colors and made a collection using some of the leaves and branches and just the general design idea of the invitation.  And I always like to add in some solid-colored cookies to every collection just to break up the pattern and give it some bold accents.  My onlyyyyy slight problem with these is that I wish that I had made the green color more olive-y.  That made me a little bit sad and definitely would have cost me the win on my game show.

Have a great week :) 

Blame it on the rain

OK, so be honest.  When you read that post title did you
      a. start singing Milli Vanilli. 
                    Or
      b. think about the episode of Doc McStuffins where the neighbor girl leaves her stuffed cow toy outside
          in the rain

Anyyyyyway....

Did you ever notice how many things people blame on the rain?  Like just last week when I was complaining to my mom about how my 2 year old was being sooooo crazy misbehaved and not listening to a single word I said and hitting me and whining and not wanting to go to bed and giving me mean looks and stuff...you know, being 2...and my mom was all like...."Well it's probably just the rain."  Umm, what?  That's all you got?  Thanks, mom. 

Now unlike blaming crankiness on the rain, I had a problem this week that was actually the rain's fault.  You see, humidity and cookie icing, they're not friends.  Especially when we're talking about black and white icing.  And of course this rainy Pittsburgh week is when I had an order for black and white zebra print cookies.  So I did the best I could by trying to eliminate as much of the humidity as possible from the cookie environment.  But it didn't matter.  This is what I ended up with:

 What...you can't see the problem?  OK look a little bit closer:



See that color bleeding?  That's the worst.  The first time I ever saw it I thought I was drunk and seeing things all blurry.  But no, it's a real cookie problem.  It's so annoying to put so much time into a cookie design and then let it dry for 8 hours to finally reveal a major problem like this.  And let me tell you...zebra print takes a longggggg time to do.
So the new calm me decided to just fix it and not totally freak out.  There's (almost) always a way to fix a cookie.  I fear the day that I am faced with a cookie that I can't help. 

So my solution was to outline the black one more time and cover the area that had bled.  I actually think that the extra black outline really defines the zebra print and now I think I'll add it onto every zebra print cookie that I make!

I totally feel like the Doc McStuffins for cookies by the way :)  (Don't know who that is?  Think I'm crazy?  Welcome to the world of having a toddler....where you watch Disney Jr. and get excited about a new episode of a cartoon that features talking stuffed animals.)

Have a great week!

Making the cut

Hi cookie lovers :)

So I've been in the best mood lately....I started going to Hot Yoga classes and I'm really starting to love it!  I'm kinda afraid that my entire household might start falling apart and that Mia will stop recognizing me, though.  I mean, before these Yoga classes came into my life I was NEVER away from my house, my child, my husband, and my iphone for an entire hour. No, I'm not exaggerating.  Plus, I'm one of those people that has a brain that never stops going.  I knew that Yoga would be a challenge for me because it dares me to only think about breathing and stuff....not even think about cookies....for a whole hour.  It's crazy how after just 4 or 5 classes it's totally starting to work.  And I enjoy it!  And Rob actually told me that I'm nicer.  Really, Rob?  Is that a compliment?  Truly, though....I do find myself being more tolerant and patient.  And who couldn't use more tolerance and patience in their lives?  I know that all of you who have a 2-year old just yelled AMENNNNNNN at your computer screen.

So when it comes to the cookie business I've had this great attitude of just accepting each week as a challenge and trying not to freak out about certain designs or requests like I used to.  Last week I had a request for some girl dinosaur cookies.  Sounds like fun to me!  I'm always up for a new and fun idea!  So I asked my customer to email me any pictures or party supplies to get some inspiration.  And as soon as I saw the dinosaur on the invitation I just knew that I could match it.  I loved it....it was so cute! 



FYI....an image like this dinosaur is the perfect type of image to re-create onto a cookie. 
Here's why: -simple eyes, no shading, clean lines, bright colors
So if you would ever like to pick out an invitation with ordering cookies to match in mind....
those are just a few things to think about :) 



I know that somewhere in my gazillion cookie cutters that I probably had something that would have worked for this shape.  But I just didn't feel like searching through all of them.  So I just printed a picture of the dinosaur on card stock in an appropriate size, cut it out, and traced around it on the cookie dough with a knife.  It's really so easy and it's awesome to get that custom shaped cookie to match your inspiration image. 

I also loved using the pink and white chevron pattern as a backdrop for some name cookies.  And the polka dot #2 cookies tied in all of the colors to make a collection.  These were so enjoyable to make and I'm not sure if it's because I'm this calm yoga-goer now....or because I'm getting more and more comfortable taking on challenges and bringing them to cookie-life.  Either way.....I'm proud if these.

sorry for the really poorly taken photograph here.  It was 6 am and I clearly wasn't awake yet.

Roar!!!!

I mean, this is the cutest dinosaur ever :)

Have a great week!  I'll check in again soon!

Cookies for a fellow blogger!

It's kind of of a big deal to start your own website.  I know that there's a lot of space out there on the Internets but really....it's sorta fun to own your own little corner and be funny and entertain people and stuff.  NO, I'm not talking about me!!!  I'm hardly funny and my entertainment factor is questionable.  Unless you think it's entertaining to read about my crying over cookies.  OK, that is kinda funny. Seriously....what is wrong with meeeee?

I do happen to know some really funny people...and one of them is a very entertaining blogger named Kelly.  Kelly and I went to high school together years ago.  How many years ago I won't say...but I will admit that technology back then wasn't quite sophisticated.  The cool way to listen to music was on your disc-man, computer class was basically about how to use Microsoft Paint, and ...wait for it....high schoolers didn't have cell phones. All of the cool kids had pagers...but my dad wouldn't let me have one because he told me that pagers were only for drug dealers and doctors. I was neither if you were wondering. Technology sure has changed since then.  I think you can even go to high school like virtually or something.  Weird.  But back to the point... Kelly, would you have ever thought that we could each one day own a part of the Internet?  Crazy stuff.

So you really do have to follow Kelly's blog. In the Mom Light is an awesome way to escape the daily pressures and struggles of being a mom.  It gives you a chance to laugh at some crazy kid stories, too!  I'm not going to spoil the fun for you...just go check it out! 

So I'm pretty sure that people from Bethel Park, PA are some of the nicest people ever because another one of our high school friends wanted to send some cookies to Kelly to celebrate the birth of In the Mom Light.  That's where I came in.  I had such a fun time creating these cookies for Kelly.  I just love the design of her site....fun colors, too!

 

You can find In the Mom Light on facebook here: In The Mom Light. 

Congratulations, Kelly! 

50 shades of....yellow?

So no, I have not read the 50 shades of grey books.  I don't have a kindle and I'm kinda embarrassed to walk around the lake house with the books (where I do all of my reading and where MY PARENTS are always around).  No thanks,  I really don't want that awkward conversation with my dad when he asks me..."what are you reading?  What's it abaht? (Pittsburgh accent)"

So anyway, this past week was an insanely busy cookie week.  I couldn't help but notice that I used an awful lot of yellow food coloring.  I have a bunch of different yellow food colorings...electric yellow, egg yellow, lemon yellow, soft yellow, gold, etc.  It was funny....because usually when I make a shade of a certain color for one project, I can usually use it for another project, too so it cuts down on how many times I have to mix each color.  But not this week!  Every cookie needed a different shade of yellow and there was no cross-use of any shades. 

the onesie and carriage were part of a set....but I actually made 2 shades of yellow for that project because the first shade was too light....so I had to re-make it. :(

I got smart and made the Penguins cookies on a 5 inch cookie.  Much much easier to decorate the details.

But even with all of that yellow icing it was definitely not all sunshine around here this week.  One of the cookies pictured in these collages made me break down in tears and cry.  Can you guess which one?  Seriously, you'll never guess.

It was this guy:

Winnie. the. freaking. pooh.

Can't understand why icing these cookies made me cry?  Maybe this will help.  Here's a challenge for you:
1.  Google image search "Winnie the Pooh" or grab a Winnie the Pooh book or toy or something that's laying around your house.
2. OK, now get a pencil and paper and try to draw Winnie the Pooh's head.  Does it look kind of weird?  That's because this cartoon has the weirdest shaped head EVER!  It's so lumpy I just can't stand it.
3.  Now that you maybe sort of kinda have the shape right.....draw it 50 more times exactly the same.
4. Seriously if you can do that, you need to contact me asap for a job.

And even after you get the head shape (somewhat) right, now there's the task of adding the face.  His face is sooooo simple that it's ridiculously hard.  There's just no disguising any errors and there's only one color involved so it's nearly impossible to add depth or detail. To make it even more complicated....this order was for the baby version of Winnie the Pooh...so the face is just slightly different then the regular Winnie the Pooh.

To put it simply, this guy is one tough cookie.  I really did cry...you can ask my husband.  He walked into my decorating area and probably immediately regretted it because I just broke down and cried for like 5 minutes straight.  And really....Rob's so not-artistic (not that I am, but for real, he can barely draw a stick figure) so he didn't even know what to say.  It was a rough night in our house.  Was the cookie a success? Who knows.  I looked at it for so long that I don't even know if I like it or not at this point.

And just in case you were wondering...I also made lots of cookies with other colors this week, too!  Head over to my facebook page and check out all of the new pictures. Thanks for reading!

RUN!

So these past few weeks have been a little bit difficult for me.  I'm not sure if I'm just in a rut because Mia's birthday party is over and now Labor Day is over...both of those things just seemed to smack me in the face and remind me that summer is coming to a close.  Which  means that lake season will soon be over....and wearing flip-flops will soon be unacceptable(although I have worn them in freezing rain before...not snow, but definitely in freezing rain).  There are some redeeming qualities that fall brings....thankfully there will soon be an amazing lineup of tv shows.  Which ones are you looking forward to?  I would say that my top 3 will be Revenge, Parenthood, and Grey's Anatomy.  And I guess it's nice to be able to open the windows in the house and let some crisp air in.  Other than that....I'd be happy for summer to stay a little (or a lot) while longer.

Labor Day fun :)  Mia and I share nachos wherever we go!

An evening boat-ride to the ice cream shop.  Does it get any better than that? 

Why does summer have to end?

So....like I said, I've been in a rut.  I keep telling Rob that I just don't feel motivated lately....and that's very strange for me because usually I'm so inspired and thrilled to be doing my work.  But then just last week I got a last-minute request for some fun running-themed cookies.  Running is something I'm not familiar with. At all.  I ran a 5k once when I was like 10 years old.  The end.  That's my experience with running.

But this running shoe cookie project kind of inspired me to just pick up the pace a little bit and kick my butt back into gear.  People can run 26 miles in a row...without stopping to eat a cookie.  I'm pretty sure that I can handle mixing some icing and creating some spongebob cookies or wedding dresses or whatever!  26 miles!  Without any cookies!  It's amazing. 

These were a replica of Brian's marathon running shoes

his runner number is his birthday ;)

So I'm officially back.  I'm gearing up for the biggest cookie holidays of the year.  I'm stocking up on supplies, making lots of to-do lists, folding bakery boxes, and getting my eyes checked.  Yeah seriously, I think I need to get my eyes checked before making Christmas cookies.  I seem to be slightly losing my once-perfect vision at the ripe old age of 30.  Damn. 

Please stay tuned for lots of fun Halloween designs...and maybe another Halloween cookie giveaway will be in the future!  Thanks for reading!