First Annual Cookie Exchange

So, I've always wanted to do a cookie exchange. About 4 years ago the Relief Society in my ward tried to do one, but it didn't go very well and I ended up just taking my own cookies back home. Weird, huh? The beginning of this month was nuts for us with The Boy's birthday and my parents in town, so I didn't have it as early as I would have liked, so some of the people I wanted to come have already left town for Christmas, but we carried on.


I ended up with 2 sister in laws, my mother in law, my cousin and two friends attending and swapping cookies. Will's Grandma, his youngest sister, and his sister's friend also came and enjoyed the storytelling and tasting portion.

We had a great variety of cookies. I made egg nog creams - they are SUPER tasty and probably in my top 5 favorite Christmas treats. We also had Peanut Butter Blossoms, Gingerbread Men, Sugar Cracks, Heath Bar Chocolate Chip cookies, Pinwheel cookies, and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies.

First we munched on hummus, bean dip, rolls and jam. Tasty! Then we went around and shared how we chose our cookie and one of our favorite holiday traditions. Then, the swapping began. we decided to take 10 from each person and that would leave you with some of your own to keep. Then we tasted a little bit (well, some of us started out eating the whole cookie and then figured out that wasn't the best choice when you had 6 cookies to tast) and voted for our favorite.

We took a group picture, but started out a little wacky. One of the girls said, "Tell me if my gut is hanging out" and right at that moment my cousin put a gingerbread man on her head (instead of bunny ears) and I said, "Or if there is a gingerbread man on my head!" This was the ensuing photo.

We had to take another one because J was acting all crazy in this one.

Finally.

Once the votes were in, this J was declared the winner with her Gingerbread cookies. They were super cute! So she won the flirty cookie baking apron.

(Yes, I made it. Yes, I take orders. LOL)

The guests were also instructed to dress festively. This J really got into it and she won a cute pair of earrings.

I can't wait for next year and the 2nd Annual Cookie Exchange. However, if there are more people, does that mean we have to make more cookies or just exchange less? Hmmm . . . decisions, decisions . . .

More Halloween Fun

We've been having lots of Halloween fun at our house. On Sunday we started some sugar cookies - see previous post - and on Monday morning The Boy and I finished baking them all up. I have a get together on Friday and I wanted to bring some of them with me. Plus, they will make a fun treat for my VT ladies, too! I got a fun little poem from a college friend that will go perfectly with them. Yea!


Then on Monday night we made jello popcorn balls. I asked Will on Sunday if he had ever had jello popcorn balls and he hesitated and then said, "No, but they sound kind of gross, actually." I just started laughing. I had to explain that the Jello is used to flavor the popcorn balls. Then he got it. He said he picture soggy popcorn floating in Jello. Mmmmm . . . sounds tasty! I made them with orange Jello - in honor of Halloween - even though strawberry is my favorite flavor. We'll have to make some at Christmas too!

He was so excited about them!

Until it came time to eat them. He wasn't that enthused and I had to make him take a few bites for my pictures:)

The finished product!

Last week we made this cute little spider after I saw my SIL made it with my niece. The Boy loves it! However, he didn't especially love that I made him put it on his shoulder so that I could take a picture of it.

I had to include this picture because it looks like he had a few too many sips from the sippy cup the night before!

Today he had a play date with a friend (THANKS BROOKE!) and they made this darling spider cookie. He still hasn't eaten it because he likes looking at it instead. I so hesitate to send him to play at anyone's house - this is probably like his first play date (excluding with cousins) - because I always worry how he will behave and I don't want to burden anyone else with his antics. He's so rowdy and going through the Terrible Threes (I know you all think it's 2's, but it's really 3's) and so I just get nervous about what he'll do when I'm not around. But when Brooke offered to have him over in the morning and I could get some sewing done on his costume while Baby T slept, I couldn't pass it up. I hope he listened and wasn't too crazy. However, I think I need to let him start doing more of this so that he'll get used to being with someone that isn't mom (or an aunt) to kind of prepare him to listen to teachers at preschool next year. What do you think?
ETA: Here is the recipe for Jello popcorn balls. I forgot to add it:)

1 c. karo syrup
1 c. sugar
1 small package of Jello
1 GIANT bowl of air popped popcorn
(at my mom's house it's the "green" Tupperware bowl and I used my white Tupperware bowl. Sorry I don't have a more exact measurement. Our air popper is broken, so I used natural microwave popcorn and it took 3 bags to fill my white bowl.)

In a sauce pan combine first 3 ingredients and bring to boil. Let boil for one or two minutes, until it loses it sugary look. Pour over the popcorn and stir to coat. Butter (or Pam) your hands and roll into popcorn balls when you're able to touch it without getting burned to death. Let balls cool on wax paper. Once they are cool, wrap them in plastic wrap. Good luck!