You could hear a pin drop...

Rob was out of town for work for 5 days.  5 DAYS!  While he was in Atlanta going out to dinner every night and sleeping in one of those overly-comfortable hotel beds (I'm actually more jealous about the comfy hotel bed then the restaurants) I was at home doing double-parent duty.  No seriously, Rob works really long tough days when he has to go out of town...but my days were really long, too!  And I didn't have a hotel staff to pick up my bath towels and make my bed. 

I'm not the cook in the family...so after working all day, picking Mia up at school, getting home at 5:30 and then having to make dinner is like the worst thing EVER for me.  I seriously hate to cook.  Before we had Mia and Rob would go out of town for work I would live off of cereal and maybe an occasional grilled cheese if I wasn't too lazy to turn the stove on.  I'm not exaggerating.  At all.  I hate to cook.  I think it stems from my lack of interest in food in general.  I'd just rather have dessert! 

some proof that my child did, in fact, eat this weekend.
It kinda looks like she liked my cooking??

So I managed to make tacos, ziti, chicken something-or-other that I just threw in a casserole dish and baked, and on the last night...grilled cheese!  LOL.  "Best mom ever award", I know.  After dinner came clean-up time.  Rob doesn't mind hand-washing dishes....I am a professional dishwasher loader...I can seriously fit anything in there.  The other morning I caught myself daydreaming about taking apart Mia's highchair and putting all of the pieces in the dishwasher.  I bet I could do it.  Anyway, I think I ran the dishwasher 8 times in 5 days and I didn't hand-wash a single thing.  It was awesome. 

I did take on some cookie orders for while Rob was gone...and that kinda scared me because by Mia's 7 pm bedtime I was exhausted!  I didn't really have time to plan out my baking/decorating schedule...so i just managed to get things done when I had time.  I sat down to decorate on Thursday night around 8 pm and my house was silent.  No...like really silent.  The tv was off, I didn't have any music on, Mia was fast asleep and the monitor was absolutely quiet, and even Layla was nowhere to be seen.  She was probably on Rob's pillow crying herself to sleep because she goes into a deep depression when he leaves.  If it wasn't for Mia reminding me to feed the dog I'd probably totally forget because I barely see her when Rob's gone.

So back to the silence....it was weird!  I could hear a clock ticking all the way from my family room to the dining room.  I haven't heard a clock tick in a long time.  I could hear the hummmm of the refrigerator and the furnace kicking on and off.  There was no Sports Center "dun na na  dun na na", no elmo voice coming from some toy, no barking, or screaming....nothing!  You could probably hear a pin drop!  That saying is real!

I do tend to have trouble sleeping when Rob's gone.  I find myself staying up really late and that only makes it worse because the later you stay up the scarier your house gets.  The sliding glass door freaks me out because I can't see out of it at night and I convince myself that someone is standing there looking in.  So I watched some lifetime movies (not the scary ones where some creepy guy is staring at you through the sliding glass door, the happy ones like when a bunch of teenage girls have a pregnancy pact). And while I was watching I decided to do some Pinterest crafts!  I know so many of you are sick of hearing about Pinterest...but it's really amazing.  I have vowed to not only pin things...but really try to follow through on doing some of the things I've pinned.  Except the cooking pins....those are for Rob.

So I made some Valentine decor and it was really fun!  And easy!  This first heart wreath was made from cutting circles and circles....and more circles of felt and then pinning them into a 9 inch styrofoam wreath.  So simple...and when Mia saw it hanging on the door the next day she said "ooooo pretty!"  So that just about made my day :)

just beginning....my hand hurt from cutting out all of those circles!

...so I rewarded myself with some ice cream!

OOOOO....pretty!

My original plan was to make this 12 inch wreath the same way to hang above my fireplace...but I just couldn't. cut. any. more. circles.  So I found some yarn and starting wrapping it around the foam wreath.  Then I went outside and broke some tiny branches off of my dogwood tree and then added three little artificial roses that I found in a random drawer in my living room.  I kind of really like the final product!  And I didn't even need pinterest for the idea. 

So those were my late-night projects and here were the cookies from last week...some Mickey cookies for a 1st birthday, some winter wonderland cookies for a 1st birthday, and some "Thank You" cookies for a friend that has been giving me hand-me-down clothes for Mia.

And maybe you noticed that my blog page has been Valentine-ified.  I am SO excited to work on Valentine cookies over the next few weeks.  I heart Valentine's day!  XO, Katie

Yoga, anyone?

Whew....last week was a fun one.  I baked, decorated, bagged, and tied ribbons on over 200 cookies...all in 36 hours! 

Whenever I get an email with a new cookie request my heart jumps a little bit and I get really nervous...especially if it's some type of design that I've never done before.  This particular email came in a few months ago....six months ago actually...and the project had been on my mind since then.  A friend had emailed and asked if I could re-create a local business' logo onto a cookie for their 1-year anniversary celebration.  I immediately looked up the business' facebook page to check out the logo and I thought "I can do this!"  So I emailed back and we made arrangements for 6 months down the road.




what a great logo, right??  I just love it!


Many orders came and went in that six months but no one else had asked me to do a logo...so this one kept creeping into my mind and I was really nervous about it!  I mean, I know how it is to be a small business and to really love your logo and see it all.the.time. so you just begin to see it differently than everyone else does.  Kind of like after you write a certain word over and over again and all of sudden it just looks....weird?  (For lack of a better word)  Not saying that mine or anyone else's logo looks weird...I'm backing myself into a corner here, never mind.

So usually the hardest part of making these cookies is the icing color mixing.  I'm sure I've complained about it in another post at some point...it's just that the color mixing is the most time-consuming and sometimes frustrating part of the whole process.  Icing colors are much like interior paint.  The color deepens and changes as it dries so you never quite know what the final color will be until it's dry!  To get this aqua-teal color I mixed a few different greens and blues and it actually came out really pretty!  I thought it was really quite close the actual logo color so that made me happy.  And then I thought....this is going way too smoothly...the actual decorating is going to be the problem area here...I just know it.

Now when it comes to decorating, here is one of my super-top-secret hints.  Never practice by drawing what you envision on paper.  In the beginning of this business I used to draw out every design and practice practice practice what I was going to attempt on the cookie.  I quickly learned that (for me, at least) this was the WRONG thing to do.  Icing is a completely different medium than a pen or pencil and their is no way that you will get the same effects and details from icing that you can from ink.  I would drive myself almost crazy trying to match my cookie to my drawing and get really mad when I couldn't do it.  So my current rule is...just go!  Just grab the icing bag and start decorating.  I try not to think about it too much and that's when I get the best results!  Thinking back on some of the early orders where I scrutinized over every little detail and tried to get it as perfect as a picture makes me really mad.  It makes the cookie look over-worked and messy in my eyes.  I should have just found a better way to convert the design to an "icing-friendly" picture and went with that instead.  But...there's no going back!  I've learned from my mistakes...that's for sure!

Back to Yoga...so I just started on cookie numero uno and it went pretty well.  I had the yoga company's logo on my iphone screen so I would reference it every so often and then just keep decorating.  Apparently there is such a thing called a Kopy-Kake (or something along those lines) that projects an image onto a cookie or cake and then you can trace it.  Just so everyone is aware....I do not own this $300 piece of equipment...so there was no tracing involved.  It seriously went so smoothly that I couldn't even believe it.  I had about 25 extra blank cookies on hand for what I thought would be all of my "mess-ups" and you know how many I used?  NONE.  I breezed through the order and just LOVED the final product.  I was so excited to give them to my customer and for her to give them to the yoga studio.  I was just imagining if someone created something like that with my logo on it...how excited and truly touched I would be.  When you have a business with your own logo....it's just a really special thing :)

Make sure that you check out Stray Dog Yoga on facebook here: 

https://www.facebook.com/#!/straydogyoga

and many many many CONGRATULATIONS to them on 1 year of business...I wish you all the very best in the years to come!

And to Jen...thanks for the challenge!

2012 Here we go!

Well I hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas and a spectacular New Year! 

It's 2012 and my cookie business is a little over 7 months old.  That's so hard to believe!  My first major holiday season went pretty well.  I must admit that I was SO nervous about the Christmas cookie demand.  I had to say "no" to some order requests and that really broke my heart.  But I had told myself all along that I could only take on as much as I could handle.  My schedule at work is so crazy in December so I had even less time than usual to devote to baking.  Every minute of every day became quickly scheduled with things to do starting around December 10th.  I was waking up really early every morning and baking late into the nights after work.  I had a written schedule of what needed to be done each morning and evening.  Organization was definitely the key.  Checking off my list each AM and PM made me feel so accomplished.  I'd be going to bed at 2 AM and say "ROB!! I'm on schedule for today!" 

And on the 24th...once the last of the cookie orders had been delivered, picked up, mailed, etc. I actually had about an hour to decorate some cookies for my family.  It was the best hour of the whole season.  Somehow I was able to let go of all of the stress and really enjoy making some cookies for the people that I love the most. 

Christmas was just amazing this year.  Mia was just so much fun...I can't even begin to explain the magic that I saw through her eyes.  She was such a trooper going to party after party...I'm pretty sure that she ate about 2 dozen cookies and maybe 50-60 Ritz crackers over the span of 5 days and 7 or 8 holiday parties.  Oh...and she ate 5 pierogies on Christmas Eve.  She's definitely her father's daughter :)

I had to go back to work on the 26th and then it was back to baking on the 27th.  I still had some holiday cookie orders to complete and a birthday order, too.  And now here it is the new year...and this week is really busy for cookie orders!  I seriously hope that this week is a sign that 2012 is going to be a great year for cookies :)

Here are some pictures of a really fun order that I did the week after Christmas.  My customer gave me a list of her niece's and nephew's initials and asked that I make each of them a cookie to give to them with their Christmas gifts.  It gave me such a great idea that someday I can use letter cookies as gift tags for my kids!  (Note to self:  If I have any children in the future DO NOT give them a name that starts with M.  It would totally ruin this idea).

 I really had fun with the different patterns on each letter

LOVE the J

I think the K was my favorite in this group :)

I texted this to Rob and he thought that I made them for him.  LOL....oops!

Here are some other pictures of cookies from the season.  I didn't take pictures of 90% of the cookies that I made simply because I just forgot :(  But I do have some pictures so here ya go....

And for those of you who haven't seen Mia in awhile...here's my little baker-in-training:

LOVE OF MY LIFE

Christmas is almost here!

Hi everyone!  I don't know about you but December has gone so fast for me.  I've been trying to balance my time between working a lot of hours, taking care of Mia and my household, and baking, of course!  I've spent a lot of late nights and early mornings baking and decorating all kinds of cookies lately.  Of course I've been making Christmas cookies as well as some other really fun designs, too!  Make sure to keep checking the facebook page for new pictures...I try to post them as often as I can.

So it's actually a miracle and I have no idea how this happened....but Rob and I have been totally done with our Christmas shopping for almost a week now!  That's right...DONE shopping by December 15th.  I can't remember a year where it's felt so stress-free and fun.  And it's funny because I've got more going on in my life this year than any other year before.

I took a break from gift wrapping on Saturday to whip up a batch of cookies that I've actually never made before.  I found this bag of red/white Hershey kisses at Target and thought they were so pretty!  I didn't think that the mint flavor would go well with peanut butter cookies (ewww!) so I used a chocolate cookie recipe that I had and adjusted it just a little bit and VOILA!  A soft and chewy and VERY chocolatey cookie with a mint flavored white chocolate kiss on top!  You know what's funny?  I wanted to make these because I envisioned them being so pretty...but I don't even like chocolate and mint flavors together.  So I made a few dozen of them double-chocolate kiss cookies by using milk chocolate kisses on them.  They don't look nearly as pretty....but this chocolate-lover was IN LOVE with these cookies.  I don't think that there's a bakery item out there that is too chocolatey for me!  I enjoyed a few(maybe more than a few) cookies and then it was back to the ribbon and wrapping paper!

And here's a sugar cookie that I designed for Mia's 1-year old classmates.  It's a 2-pack of cookies that look like starlight mint candies!  I'm obsessed with the simplicity of this cookie and the cute packaging and how it all came together. 

Let me take this opportunity to wish each of you a very Merry Christmas.  I hope that your holidays are filled with many cookies and sweets!  I'll be back to blogging more regularly right after the holidays.  Until then...HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!! 

(Please excuse any and all grammatical and spelling errors in this blog entry.  Honestly, I'm exhausted.)

Borrrrrrn in the USA

Rob is a huge Springstein fan...hence the title. lol.

This blog post is really an important one...so pay attention!

I don't know if you've been watching ABC world news with Diane Sawyer lately but they've aired several segments about products that are manufactured right here in America and how important it is that we, as Americans, support these businesses.  We are giving billions of our hard-earned dollars to China and other countries for the products that fill our homes.  ABC news surprised a family a few months ago and instructed them to empty their home of all items that weren't American-made.  You know what was left in their entire living room?  One vase and some fresh flowers.  That's it!  If you don't believe me just take a look around your own home and try to find 5 items that are made in the USA.  It's really quite shocking.

Now I know what you're thinking...how can we help it?  Big Box stores like Walmart and Target have the best prices and the easiest availability on most everyday items....I get it.  Trust me, I really do.  I don't have a lot of extra money so I'm always searching for the best price and usually the best price is on items that are made overseas.  But usually the best quality is in the American-made products.  Just something to think about!

Here's the next dilemma.  I have a child so I'm well-aware that the Christmas gifts that kids love are the Sesame Street, the Super Heroes, the Disney stuff, etc.  And it's pretty much inevitable that all of those items are manufactured in China or somewhere overseas.  Just like most of you I want my child to have those toys that she's sees on TV or in the toy catalogs and I'm 99% sure that she'll have some of them under the tree this year.  What Rob and I have done, and what I challenge you to do, too is just to try to find one or two gifts this year that are American-made.  If every American spent just $64 of their estimated $700 Christmas shopping budget on something that is American-made it would help to create something like 200,000 U.S. jobs.  (Info. taken from ABC news.com).  I don't always believe in these types of statistics but I think it's obvious that your effort would certainly make a difference in this case.  Any time that consumers choose to buy American-made products it's a win for our country in one way or another. 

You may or may not know that Rob works for a local company called Channel Craft, a manufacturer and distributor of authentic American toys, games, and puzzles.  And what could be better than a "Made in the USA" company? Well duh....they're located in Pittsburgh which makes it even more awesome!  Channel Craft was featured on the ABC world news a few months ago where they toured the factory and interviewed some employees.  You can view the segment at the Channel Craft website http://www.channelcraft.com/ 
Also on their website you can purchase some classic toys for your kids or some really cool puzzles for anyone on your shopping list!  I think it's important for kids to play with toys that aren't electronic and that spark their little imaginations.  Do you want your kids to grow up without knowing how to play jacks or jump rope?  I didn't think so.  :)

Also...please tune in to the ABC world news with Diane Sawyer this evening and every evening this week.  Channel Craft employees (including Rob!!!) will be showing Christmas purchases that they made of products that are American-made. Rob and I bought Mia a Step-2 playhouse that is American-made!   A lot of "Little Tikes" products are made in the USA, too.

Here is an article that gives some great American-made gift ideas: 
http://madeheremadewell.com/journal/10-holiday-gift-ideas-made-in-the-usa

Here's a link to the Channel Craft Facebook page.  Like them!! 
https://www.facebook.com/#!/ChannelCraft

If you have any great American-made gift ideas, please share them in the comments section!!!  I'd love to hear 'em!
Thanks for reading and Happy Holiday Shopping to all of you!  Please remember to be nice to store employees and fellow shoppers :)  A smile goes a long way!

USA! USA! USA!

2027

No....2027 is NOT the number of cookies I've made this week...although it absolutely feels like it. 

2027 is the year that Mia will be turning 17.  Why am I writing about this you ask?  Well....last night I was working on an order for a girl's 17th birthday and my mind just started to wander...Will I still be doing this when Mia is 17?  Wonder what she'll be like or what cookies she will want for her 17th birthday.  Will she even like cookies???  Will she be an employee of my bakery?(I'm dreaming, I know)  How old will I be when Mia is 17?  45.  Will I have arthritis in my hands by then?  Probably.  I hope I can make her some nice birthday cookies even though I'll be so busy at the bakery and dealing with my ailment. 

So I yell out to Rob..."Do you think I'll still be doing this when Mia is 17?"  His response:  "I don't know." (Real communicative, Rob...thanks for participating in this conversation.)

Anyway....this customer requested girly shoes and purses for her daughter's birthday dinner.  I just couldn't make purses without matching wallets...and I've had these lipstick and nail polish cookie cutters that I've been waiting to use so I made some of those, too. 

Maybe these were my favorite....

Love the little clasp on the wallet

Wait.....I think these were my favorite :)

A very rushed and non-researched attempt at a Louis Vuitton logo. 

Fun!

I also worked on some football cookies yesterday so here are the pictures of those...

 

AND....I made angel cookies this week and forgot to take a picture of them :( 

(Imagine a picture of beautiful angel cookies here:)

Hope everyone has a great rest of the week!

on cloud 9.......

How does the time get away from me so quickly?  My last blog post was BEFORE Halloween and here it is November 14th already.  Is it just me or is November seriously flying by?

Well ...it's been a really exciting couple of weeks for me and for Give Mia Cookie.  I was so honored to participate in the "Knockout Cancer" event at the Galleria mall last night which was hosted by 96.1 Kiss FM.  If you've visited the facebook page then maybe you saw some of the pictures...did you see that super-awesome picture of me and Theresa from the Real Housewives of new Jersey?  No?  OK, I'll post it again here:




Don't we look like bff's??  LOL



I'm just so excited that I got to meet her!  I'm not ashamed to admit that I watch every season of "The Real Housewives" religiously.  

Anyway...back to business...I was so completely overly nervous for this event....you don't even understand.  I've done countless events like this for the chocolate store but never for my own business!  I was scared that it wouldn't look professional enough, that the cookies wouldn't show well, that the samples wouldn't be well-received, etc.  You name it....I was nervous about it.  In the end I was so happy with how everything went.  The location of my table was great, the display came together really nicely, and most importantly everyone seemed to love the sample cookies and designs!  At one moment about an hour in to the event I just had to catch my breath and hold back some tears.  I just couldn't believe that MY business was being introduced to so many people. 

The wonderful comments and encouragement from everyone were truly overwhelming.  I need to thank Amanda and everyone else at the radio station for giving me a chance, thank you to all of the patrons for stopping by and supporting my business, thanks to my mom for babysitting Mia, and most importantly thanks to Rob for being such a huge part of the whole night.  Not many husbands will stand in front of a pink and purple business and hand out pink and purple cookie samples in support of their wives.  Hearing how he talked about my business made me feel like he was really proud of me :)  And hearing him talk about Mia is just the sweetest thing ever :)

And now it's onto the busiest 2 weeks of baking that I've had scheduled yet.  Wish me luck!  Here are some of the Thanksgiving designs that will be keeping me quite busy next week!