Love is in the air

This year’s Valentine’s Day is extra sweet with two little boys in the house. While I am still on maternity leave I find that getting out of the house more often helps feed my creativity. Staring at the same walls everyday, all day is not that inspiring.

Yesterday I found myself wondering the isle of Hobby Lobby thinking of all the things I could make with 2 more weeks left, but then I had to stop before my checkbook started doing the talking. When I woke up from my dreamy state I remembered I have crafty things awaiting me at home.

Cooper-2months

 

To get Cooper’s attention my husband and I had to howl and bang on the floor. I am pretty sure our neighbors could hear us and continue to think we are loonies. All little man wanted to do was eat his hand at this point but thankfully he cooperated and we got the shot. I am keeping my fingers crossed that when I go back to the office full time I can keep up with his photo each month. It will be so cute to see how much he has grown over the year. Thank you Pinterest for the inspiration!

Like I have mentioned before I am no “Betty Crocker” but thanks to my crafty mom I have picked up some tips. For our 2-year old’s class party I decided to bake and decorate sugar cookie hearts with a cute tag wishing his classmates a “sweet” Valentine’s Day. I find baking and decorating cookies where to be very therapeutic but doing more than a dozen, I think I might go batty. Below are my favorite tips for making baking a little easier but before you scroll…

This Valentine’s Day may you be inspired to add creativity to your day and
stop an enjoy the sweet moments with your loved ones.

Valentineheartsugarcookies

Valentinesweettags2

Valentine_cookie_package

 

Cookie Tips for the non Betty Crocker’s of the World…

Use bagged sugar cookie mix, following cutout cookie instructions! Add some almond extract to give it a nice surprise. Another tip when baking cutout cookies, place your dough in the fridge for 15-20 minutes and then roll it out. It rolls much easier and you get a cleaner cut. After you cut the cookies you should place them back in the fridge for 10 -15 minutes. This helps keep them from spreading and looking like a big blob of nothing. Once in the oven the cookies only take 5-6 minutes. In between batches make sure you cool the pan. I run some cold water on the pan, dry and you are ready to bake some more. Last make sure to use parchment paper to line your pans for easy clean-up.

I used a royal icing recipe found online to decorate, added some almond extract here too. This first part of the recipe is great for lining the cookies. It has just the right thickness that is sets up nicely. For filling in I used what looks like a ketchup bottle found at Michael’s. I added about 5 tbsp of water to get the icing thinned out enough to flood the inside of the heart. Let them dry then store in air tight container, wax paper between layers, and place in the fridge until you are ready to package.

 

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