My "Punny" Valentine

Large Valentine's Day Gift Box
(1 dozen)

Medium Valentine's Day Gift Box
(6 Cookies)

I have always been a sucker for puns!  I love them!  So, when Valentine's Day rolls around, you can be sure that you'll get some "punny" valentine's out of me.

This year, my daughter's school auction hit the weekend before Valentine's Day, so nothing was more appropriate to donate than Valentine's Day cookies.

I created these "I Love You a Latte" cookies based on my cute Lil' L., who ran around this fall saying "I love you a latte!" It was so adorable!

Then, I also made this set, which I turned into a gift basket (see below) to donate.  I thought that they were so fun!

I got the inspiration for the two signs from my friend Stephanie Seeney at Ice My Biscuit in the U.K.!  Thanks, friend, for letting me use your idea!

I made a few extras for us play with... ;^)


Happy Valentine's Day from the Roses!

Cheers!

Sarah

Valentine, You've Got Class

Reader R's Class Valentines

I am not quite sure when it happened, but somewhere between 1986, when I stopped giving valentines to my classmates, and 2007, when our family reentered the world of Valentines, something drastically changed. When I was little, it was so fun to get a shoe box full of those cute paper valentines that you got 32 in a box for $2.  Now, it is all about the STUFF.  I did not realize this when my oldest daughter entered preschool.  Yes, someone should had mentioned something... but yes, my daughter showed up with just the cheap valentines from the box. Yes, I was mortified when she brought her box home and I realized we were the ONLY ones who had been left in the 1980's Valentine's Day time warp.

"Friend, We Go Together Like Milk & a Cookie!"

 Well, enough said, we would not be caught empty handed again!  Honestly, most years, I have opted for the still cheap, "day-after-purchase, hold-it-all-year pencils or bracelets plan."  But this year, Pinterest and resourcefulness got the best of me and I decided that we would make our own treats.   I decorated the cookies and made the topper, and Reader R wrote each of her classmates names on them with food color marker and helped package them!  Success!

Now, poor Curious K, she got the left over cheap valentine's that I had had in storage for a couple years, and because I was too tired to go to the store... we stuck marshmallows in popsicle sticks and dipped them in chocolate.  She did a great job drizzling them with pink and red candy melts and adding sprinkles.  I loved that she helped and that I had everything on hand. ;^)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Cheers

Sarah

Happy "Belated" Valentine's Day!

Hello friends! 

These are half of the cookies I wanted to make for Valentine's Day, but didn't get done until today.  (The other half, I have put in the freezer, with the languishing cake pop cakes and the Christmas cookies I still haven't had time to decorate, for the the time when I have more  time to do what I really wanted to do... by then, nobody will want to eat them, but they will be BEAUTIFUL! ;^)

They would have turned out better with Royal Icing, but I just didn't have the energy for that this morning and had a ton of fluffy frosting left (because I didn't make the cupcakes for Reader R's class.  Yes, I am still feeling guilty about that...).

"My Fuzzy Valentine" Monster Sweets! 
Thank you, Georgeann, at LilaLoa for the inspiration.

"Forever LOVE Stamp"
My first attempt at a sprinkle stencil. 
Would have been better with RI.  Oh well. 

And a few Hugs and Kisses!

Simple "Conversation Hearts" can say so much.

I also just wanted to share this word of truth:

"In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another."   1 John 4:9-11



That is the reason we celebrate this fun holiday!  Thanks, Tracy for the reminder.

Happy "A Few Days Late" Valentine's Day!

Sarah

Happy Valentine's Day!

My Valentine's Day baking is a little off track this year, since my family has been hit by the plagues (since Halloween between the five of us, we have had bronchitis, pneumonia, sinus infections x4, an ear infection, influenza, strep, the stomach flu, and the mysterious five-day fever,  (and Curious K, who is usually the "sick" one has avoided them all...) and that doesn't count the conversation heart I had to remove from Lil' L's nose the other day.  Stick a fork in me, I am DONE with this winter.

SO, that said.  I have only been baking when we are HEALTHY, which is hardly ever.  But, last week in a fit of baking flurry, I decided to try making "Cake Pops."  Whoa, Nelly! 



For the girls' teachers.



I admire anyone who can make a zillion beautiful cake pops.  I now understand why in her book, Bakerella, says to start with 12.  I couldn't decide which to make, so I made cherry chip with vanilla frosting, red velvet with chocolate frosting, and red velvet with chocolate frosting.  (For you non-cake-pop-bakers, that is enough cake to make 12 DOZEN cake pops, not 12.  WWIT -- What was I thinking?)  Not really a wise choice.  (I now have three half cakes in my freezer, just in case anyone else wants to try to make cake pops... ;^)

My first cake pops. 
Funny thing, the very first one, the wrapped one, turned out the best. They went downhill from there.

What I decided is... cake pops are for kids, but are not made by kids, and I will only make cake pops for someone I really LOVE!   (My 4 year-old, Curious K, has requested "bake pops" for her birthday until she is 10! ) Oey!

For my "sweet" family! 
(Note: Lil' L. will not be allowed anywhere near the regular-sized conversation hearts!!)

And I did squeeze in one cookie order, for a friend who is working to raise money for orphans in Haiti through the Global Orphan Project.  Her daughter, Anna, has a heart for Haiti.  She has also created a CD to raise money and awareness.  Check out Anna's Heart for Haiti website.  Be sure to listen to her CD too!  These treats were a special "Thank you" for her to give some of her recent encouragers and supporters!  Thank you, Kari!

Needless to say, the cupcakes for Reader R's class didn't get done... but at least no one threw up today. ;^) Ah, it is the little things in life...

Happy Valentine's Day!

Sarah