Obsessions and Confessions

I have a current obsession...other than cookies...it's hot air balloons.  I mean, I've always loved to look at them.  I think they're fascinating.  But lately, I've been searching the web for pictures of them.  I've found several cool pictures on Pinterest. (ugh.  And, *confession* that's my current addiction! If you don't know what it is, then it's probably for the best.  Pinterest, in a nutshell, is a time machine.  You get on there, and 2 hours disappear.)  

So, to humor my new obsession, I wanted to create hot air balloon cookies.  I didn't (still don't) have an actual hot air balloon cookie cutter.  I went searching through my cookie cutter collection (that is ever rapidly increasing) to find a shape that I could make into a hot air balloon.  I decided to use my diamond ring cutter, upside down, of course.  (I've discovered that I really enjoy re-purposing cookie cutters.  Last week, I used a snowman to create an owl.  I'll share those pictures later.)  For now, I'll share pictures of the hot air balloons.

I gave them to a good friend of mine in Columbus.  Just because.

The hearts were my 7 year old niece's favorites. 

And the flowers were one of the recipient's favorites.

But I think these...

...were my favorites. 

I hope to do these again.  When I have more time to spend on them.  (Cleaning up the wiggly lines.)Using more colors.  Because they were lots of fun.

As always, think cookies.

~B~

My *Sweet* Family Tree

...or The 3rd ALFBE (Annual Lamb Family Birthday Extravaganzzza)...or Christmas in July, because that's what it looked like.

So, if you've been around long enough, you can remember that the inaugural year of the ALFBE was disturbed by whooping cough (You can read about it here...at the bottom of the post).  The following year, the party went on as planned with the theme of Star Wars, inspired by the Williams-Sonoma cookie cutters I found.  It took me some time to come up with the theme for this year's soiree (yes, I'm seeing how many different words I can use for party).  As the official cake and cookie baker and decorator of the ALFBE (I just made it official, just now. It's in print.), I get the pleasure of determining the theme for the get-together.  I have that power...and I kinda like it (insert ominous laugh here).  I take suggestions, but this year, I more or less kept it a secret.  Even when my sis-in-law had my sweet little niece call me on the phone to pry it out of me, I told her it was a surprise! 

So, the theme this year was family.  I know, it's kind of a weird theme for a birthday(s) party, but go with me on this.  I'm not gonna go into all the details, but just know that my family means a lot to me...a lot.  And I love them more than words on a cake can say. 

So, without further ado...our family tree.  Cake style.

This is what it looked like before it made the 3.5 hour trip.  Thankfully, it still looked like this after the 3.5 hour trip.

The presentation. 

The part where I actually made it a family tree!

Fuzzy pic.  Whoops.

And then there were the personalized cookies for each of my 15 family members.  (My last name is Lamb...in case you didn't catch that.)

That's a magic wand on my dad's lamb cookie.  (He's a magician...I'll leave it at that.)

Mom, obviously, is a musician.

My sister's flock.  (Though technically they're not Lambs.)

My brother's flock.

Me and my flo...well, me. ;-)

My little sis and her husband.  (The symbol is for the Appalachian Trail.  They're avid hikers.  And cyclers.  And runners.  And, well, pretty much anything outside.)

My sweet nieces (all but the littlest) patiently waiting for the cake cutting.

There's the littlest!

The damage.

The fam! (Minus Betsy and Kyle...who were in a TRIATHALON!!)

All thanks to these two...

All in all, a fabulous ALFBE! 

I've got some exciting things coming up, I'll keep you posted.

As always, think cookies.

~B~

Cookie Bliss

So, there's this cute salon in the Summerville area in Augusta.  It's adorable.

It happens to be where I get my hair cut.  The exciting thing is that Mary, the owner, knew about Sweet B's cookies even before I started going to see Brittany at her salon.  Isn't that cool?!  People are talking about me!  In a good way! 

Well, Mary wanted some cookies with her logo on them to pass out to the other businesses around the area to let them know about Bliss.  I was happy to oblige!

(Told you is was cute.  It's even cuter inside.  And blissful.)

So...I am extremely proud of these.  I didn't think I was going to be able to put the flower on it without it looking wonky.  (Yes, that's a technical cookie term.  Just trust me.)

But it worked! 

The funny thing is, I did these in the midst of making the 400 Augusta cookies.  So, they were a nice break from yellow and green!!

Thanks so much, Mary, for thinking cookies!  I'll be happy to bring you cookie bliss anytime!

And I'll see you next week, Brittany!

As always,

Think Cookies.

~B~

Think Cookies...aaannnnd GO!

And now begins the segment of my life where I focus on cookies. 

That's right.

I will be thinking cookies, mostly full time. 

(I mean, I've got a few other little side gigs, but my main thing is now this.  Cookies.)

If you haven't noticed, I've already been making some adjustments in preparation. 

Think Cookies.

That's me.

http://www.ThinkCookies.com/

That's me, too.

(The link just brings you back here...I'll have a full website...eventually.)

Oh, yeah.  And you can follow me on twitter.  Guess what my name is.  Thaaat's right!

@ThinkCookies

You might ask yourself, why think cookies?

I challenge you to think of an occassion that cookies would NOT be good for...(aside from things like a Diabetic Convention or a Gluten Allergies Anonymous meeting)

But your regular occassions...

Birthday gifts 

That's right.  As a gift for the person who has everything or you don't have a clue what to buy.  Perfect for any age.  I mean, come on, who doesn't love cookies?

New Baby

What new mom doesn't deserve cookies? 

(Don't leave out any older siblings! They need special cookies, too!)

Party Favors

Who needs a bag full of stuff?

And after all you spend on everything you put in there, you could probably get a delicious, home-made, personalized cookie for less money. 

Thank You/Hostess Gift

Whether it's for party hosting, house-sitting, or just being there, it's a perfect way to say "Thanks!"

House Warming Party

You may not know what their kitchen colors are to buy them towels to match , or if they prefer red or white, but chances are, someone in that house likes cookies.

Thinking of You

Regardless of why they're down, a jar of home-made cookies says, "I care about you."

Congratulations

The fun part about cookies is that you can say congratulations for anything! "Congrats on the promotion!" "Congrats on your engagement!"  "Congrats on shaving your mullet!"

Your Logo On a Cookie
Have a logo or theme for your business that you want to see on a cookie?  Cookies are a perfect give away for prospective or current clients/customers.
Holidays

For your neighbors, for your kid's teachers or bus driver, for your in-laws that you never know what to give.

The list really could go on...tailgate party, Bunco night, christening, dinner party, baptism, tea party, wedding shower, retirement, farewell, bar/bat mitzvah, girl's beach trip...

Obviously, I've been doing a lot of thinking...about cookies. 
I just want you to think cookies, too!
And when you think of a reason for cookies (listed or not), email me! At ThinkCookies@gmail.com.
(Yes, there will be bumper stickers, t-shirts, koozies...)

As always,
Think Cookies.
~B~

Happy Easter, Y'all!

I hope that your day has been as wonderful as mine...

I put on a pretty dress...went to sing and fellowship and hear the meaning of Easter...ate lots of food, cooked by loving hands...took a nap (sigh)...enjoyed watching my sister work, while I just sat on the couch, playing my new addicting game on my phone...caught up on some of the blogs that I've been missing, while watching my nieces play in the front yard...and now, I'm sitting here writing, on the front porch, with the sweet sounds of nature around me.  (The cicadas have quieted for the moment.  They were so loud earlier, I had a bit of trouble taking my nap.)  It's been a good day.

And now...enough about me. Here's what you're really here for...the cookies. (ha.)

I won't be sitting around much next week, so I'm enjoying it while I can!

As always,

Think Cookies.

~B~

Earth Day - Plant a Tree, Eat a Cookie

So, I think on Earth Day, everyone has a green thumb - like everyone's Irish on St. Patrick's Day.  See. 

Now, before you get to amped up about me jumping on the "green" wagon because of my special Earth Day post, let me explain. I'm not a radical.  But I do believe in conservation.  I recycle because it makes me feel like I'm helping out for the future.  (Don't want the earth to end up like in Wall-E.)  I use re-usable bags when grocery shopping - mainly because they're so much easier to carry.  The boxes I package my cakes and cookies in are recyclable.  When I go on walks, if I see trash and it's not too yucky, I'll pick it up.  And probably my favorite way I conserve is my fuel efficient Honda Fit.  I love it! 

But now, let's get down to the real reason I'm doing a special Earth Day post.  To show you these -

I actually made these a coupla weeks ago for my friend Joanna's birthday.  The icing isn't the super smooth icing I usually use, which I think adds texture to the trees.

I searched high and low in my sister's house for something "organic" to display the cookies on for their photo shoot.  All I could come up with was a plastic plate shaped like a flower and a bamboo tray.  Oh, and one of my terra cotta pots.  What can I say.  My older sister isn't exactly the "organic" type.  (She'll probably fuss at me for saying that.  I think she thinks I make her sound not-so-smart when it comes to creative things on my blog.  But let me just take the time right now to say - I wouldn't be where I am in this Sweet B's endeavor without her love and support and the use of her kitchen.  She is such a constant encouragement to me and I appreciate all of her input - she's my business consultant, you know.  Woah, didn't realize this was going to be Sister Appreciation post, too!)

Enough of that mushy love stuff and back to the cookies -

Here they are in their natural habitat.  Tee-hee.
If you know anything about me, you know I love trees...

So, if I were a cookie, I'm pretty sure this is what I would look like.

So, Happy Earth Day, Sweet B's style!

My mom thinks I'm weird

So, I'm making cookie dough at my mom's house, scraping the dough out and wrapping it in Saran wrap, when my mom comes into the kitchen. She says that's the part of making cookie dough she hates - scraping out the sticky dough. And that's the part I LOVE. She said that's why I'm the baker. My cookie dough is so soft and pretty, I love flattening out the balls and wrapping them in plastic wrap. And then I LOVE the way the dough feels through the plastic wrap. So, I let my mom feel it. She doesn't love it like I do. In fact, she just laughed at my enthusiasm. Oh well. She does love my cookies though!