Olympic treat

A quick treat that I kept seeing on pinterest for dinner w/ friends and watching the Olympics.

 

 Nothing impressive, but a yummy way to show my enthusiasm!  USA!!!

Baby Shower

I recently got to co-host a dear friend's baby shower!  I am so excited for the Riggins' family and little Nolan is so lucky to be born to such cool parents!  While we're still waiting for his debut, I thought I'd share a few photos his dad took of the celebration.  (You can click on each one to see it in better detail.)

I was having trouble finding baby shower decor that wasn't a pastel bore.  It's really quite a challenge.  I know pinterest and Etsy are filled with amazing suggestions but I needed the convenience of a few store bought items.  So, I was very happy when I stumbled across these Duff Goldman Baby Animal cupcake liners at Michael's.  The color scheme was great for a baby boy and gave me something to work with!

I used the animals as inspiration and we cut larger animals out of cardstock and hung them above the food table for decor.  

We also had a fun idea to hang diapers on a line with his name spelled out over the mantle.  Turned out pretty cute in my opinion!

And at the center of course, the cupcake tower!   I made Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes.  Oh My.  These are sooooooo good.  I am usually not much for devouring my own baking anymore... but I could eat my weight in these bad boys!  I don't do the full on recipe they suggest, but you can check out the general idea on AnnieEat's blog.

I love that Nolan made it into this shot with the cupcakes!  How cute.

Message In Cookies

I realize it's been a dreadfully long time since I've posted any baked goods.  I'm still alive and kickin' just not as bloggy as I once was.  Thanks to a Christmas gift card from a friend about a year ago I was introduced to William Sonoma.  Of course I've known about the store, but thought of it as a high end snobbery outlet.  I had no idea what wonders there were to behold!  Sauces, utencils, and gadgets... OH MY!

One of the special items I purchased were the Message In Cookie Cutters.  I knew these would perfectly compliment the iced sugar cookie recipe I've been perfecting.  I can personalize a message on the cookie!

To add embellishments and icing I also purchased the detailed decorating pen.  

By these powers combined... I whipped up a personalized batch of cookies for a co-worker's birthday.  An edible nod to some of our inter office inside humor.  Lots of fun!  Lots of YUM!