Thumbprint cookies are the perfect “personalized” cookie because you can fill the center with almost anything – colored icing, jam, chocolate, icing with sprinkles, caramel, lemon curd, and on and on. We’ve always used icing in the middle, so that’s what I’m giving you today, but feel free to experiment with your own fillings! 1 cup butter 1/2 cup brown sugar 2 eggs, SEPARATED 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 cups flour 1 1/2 cups finely chopped pecans or walnuts Powdered sugar…
This past weekend was the first time in a very loooooong stretch of weekends that we had absolutely nothing planned. Zero. The 2 boxes of our calendar were blank. September and October always seem to go by in a blur with birthday parties and Halloween events, so to have a free weekend was really unusual for us. After puttering around the house all morning doing chores and baking cookies, I decided we needed to get out and do something fun….
Today’s Christmas cookie recipe comes all the way from Germany….or at least it did at one point. I got the recipe from my grandma, who got the recipe from her mother-in-law, so at some point it was over in Germany. If you Google Harlequin Dippers, you’ll find the recipe classified as a “Vintage Cookie” but they’ve always been my favorite for the simple reason that they don’t contain eggs….which means the raw dough doesn’t contain eggs….which means nom nom nom…
Christmas lights displays are popping up all over the city now, so we decided to check out the Franklin Park Conservatory Lights Aglow. We are members at FPC and love going year round to the botanical gardens and outside children’s area. However, much to the chagrin of all members, FPC decided to NOT include the holiday lights display with membership admission. It hasn’t been like this in the past, so it’s unfortunate they decided to exclude it this year, especially…
Snow on the ground + Christmas music on Google = Christmas cookie time! Yes, I know it’s only November. Yes, I know there is a turkey holiday coming up before the jolly man in a red suit visits. And yet, I still don’t care that you think it’s too early for anything Christmas. Is there really a defined timeline for baking cookies?? Not in this house! (I won’t even mention that Eli and Ava both have their Christmas trees lit…
If you’ve never heard of “Hygge” before reading this, it’s time to drop everything and pay attention because it will change your life, or at least change the way you feel about taking care of yourself. So, what exactly is hygge? First, it’s pronounced “hue-gah” and is a Danish word that essentially means “coziness of the soul.” It’s togetherness, relaxation, indulgence, comfort, and presence all rolled into one. For me, hygge is cool weather, wearing a comfy pair of leggings…
It’s November – the month of Thanksgiving – and I’ve started seeing the “30 days of thankfulness” posts on Facebook. It made me think about doing some kind of daily thankful project with the kiddos, but I wasn’t sure what exactly. I thought about making a paper tree on the wall and adding leaves every day with things we are thankful for, but I couldn’t find a wall to use. Then I thought about just doing a simple thankful jar,…
The weather is getting cooler here, so we’ve been staying in a bit more. Not to say that I don’t still bundle up the kiddos and get outside, but gone are the days are spending 2+ hours at a park every afternoon. I love the cooler fall weather – long sleeve shirts, a cuddly blanket and book, steaming cups of coffee and tea….but the kids don’t quite appreciate those things like me 🙂 So, I have to be a little…
“Trunk or Treat” (not to be confused with “Trick or Treat”) has become as popular as the traditional begging house to house, probably because Ohio inevitably has AWFUL weather on October 31st every year. So, families start mapping out Trunk or Treat events in the weeks leading up to Halloween. The majority of the events around here are sponsored by churches, and volunteers decorate their car trunks in the parking lot and hand out candy ~ keeps the treating to…
Halloween is over and all that’s left in its wake is a huge pile of candy! Now the question becomes, what to do with it?? Sure, there is the new “Switch Witch” thing where parents take their kid’s candy during the night and leave a toy or something in its place, but that is way too millennial for me ~ A.) I can’t think of an *affordable* toy that would be enough of a draw for a kid to overlook…