Pumpkin or Chocolate?

So which one are you?  Pumpkin pie lover or chocolate?  

My mom loves pumpkin pie any time of the year.  I've heard reports that cousin Craig just may get a little  grumpy if he doesn't end Thanksgiving with a slice of pie and a little cool whip on top (or was that a bowl of cool whip and a little pie on top....hmmmm).

I'll always take chocolate cream pie.  Really though, I'm happier if it has a graham cracker crust.  Not a big pie crust fan.

My husband, on the other hand, doesn't like either.  Know why?  Not enough crust.  Not even close!

For Joe, a proper pie needs: 

   1. A bottom crust  AND a top crust.

   2.  Some sort of fruit filling that looks a whole lot like apples....

   3.  It must be warm.

   4.  There absolutely must be, no doubt about it, don't even think of handing him the plate if there

        isn't, vanilla ice cream on top.

   5.  No whip cream.

He's not a picky eater....he just knows what he likes.

In other words, these cookies are not for him....

Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Cream Pie Cookies!!!

I'm certainly not the first to make these.  Ali Bee's Bake Shop did the first ones I saw a year or so ago.

Hers are ah-mazing, and I've wanted to try them ever since.

I wanted to do something a little different, a little unique, and since they still need to look like pies.....there's not too much wiggle room.

So I tried to think back to the last time I made a pie....

....that didn't help....

then I remembered my grandmother doing this when she'd make lemon meringue pie for my mom.

Did your grandmother do this?  The 'crimp the edges with a fork' thing on the edges?

No?  Oh.

Well, I'm pretty sure mine did.

This was before Martha came around and let us know we were supposed to be braiding and stamping and carving the edges into who-knows-what.

That's what her pies looked like!

So....which would you pick?

Pumpkin?

Or Chocolate Cream?

 Or some of each?

Thanks for stopping by,

Lizy B

Turkey Time!!!

Time for thanksgiving cookies!

These gave me a bit of a headache, because really, when I think of a turkey, I think of dinner.

Pepperidge farm stuffing, some mashed potatoes, LOTS of gravy...

I don't think 'cookie'.....no, I don't....not so much.

So...I had never made a turkey cookie.  Never.  Hadn't even thought about it.

(of course, I did have a turkey cookie cutter, just hadn't used it.)

So here they are.....I'd like to introduce you to...

Tom

and....Tina?....Trish?....Tori?

is there a name for a girl turkey?

Tom and Teresa were made for each other....they decided to run away together!

(How scandalous!)

Teresa's Daddy heard about the plan and put a stop to it!!!

He brought his brothers, Todd and Ted.

So there you go....

Turkey cookies and some bad humor....

...at least I didn't use any fowl language.....

Thanks for stopping by,

Lizy B

Thanksgiving!

Halloween has come and gone.  The spiders and witches have gone back into hiding.

I must say, its nice not to see zombies hanging out in the neighborhood anymore.
Don't really want to think about where they went.....hm.

Next up....Thanksgiving cookies!

Acorns!!!

Lots of pretty leaves!

 We don't really get much of the 'leaves changing color' thing here in 

Southern California.  

So we'll just have to pretend.

Thanksgiving treats....all ready to go!!!

I just have one more picture to share.

Its not of cookies.

This is very self-indulgent of me, I know.

But it's just so darn stinkin' cute I can't help myself....

You didn't know I had a baby dragon did you?

I'm just full of surprises....

Thanks for stopping by,

Lizy B

Thank you notes!

Raise your hand if you know what a Friday Folder is?

One, two, fifteen....that's what I thought.   

For those of you who haven't had the particular pleasure, let me explain.

On Friday afternoons, when kids come home from school, their backpacks contain a huge manila envelope which they need to deliver to their parents.  Parents need to look through the stack, sign the folder as proof that we have discussed the contents with our students, and return it to the backpack before monday morning.

Opening this is folder is like....well, its kind of like.....Harry Potter's Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

You never really know WHAT you're going to get.

Usually, there is a notice or two from the PTA about fundraising.  Lots of flyers for after school programs, reminders about using crosswalks.  I love finding the Scholastic Book order forms, they're my favorite.  

Most of the papers are corrected tests, homework and classwork.  This is when you learn that although your child can spell 'superfluous' perfectly on a spelling test, they can't correctly spell the words 'what, which, when, where or who' to save their lives.

So this morning when I got up the nerve to open it up along with my sunday newspaper ads....

I found a little surprise....

Thank you notes!!!

After making a few hundred cookies for halloween, none of which my munchkins were allowed to eat, I figured the least I could do was bring some cookies to class.  So last week on monday, Jack and I waited at Ethan's classroom door for the bell to ring with big baskets of spiderweb cookies for the kiddos.  (yes, I love this part of being a 'cookie lady')

Then....they all wrote Thank You Notes!!!!!

Look how cute they are!!!

and I read every single one (more than once).

 Would you like to see a few?

I thought so!!!

This one is from Hanna...

I love all her careful sketch lines.

I can definitely see piping bags in her future.

This is one is from my son's friend Max....

"The cookie made my tummy feel good."

That just might be the best compliment I've ever had!!!

Thanks Max!

Here's another favorite....

Love the colors!

"They tasted like heaven!!!"

Thanks Mason!

Look at what Miss Cathy did....

She dotted her exclamation point with a pumpkin!

Love is in the details....

As much as I hate to play favorites.....

this one is from John.

John is another good friend of my son's, 

we've watched him grow up on the baseball field for years.

He just might have the greatest little boy smile you've ever seen.

However, this is why we love him....

....John knows how to get more cookies.

Smart kid.

So thank you Mrs. Potter and her 5th grade class...John, Hanna, Brandon, Beau, Eve, Isaac, Kajal, Tristan, Shandon, Chase, Kayla, Bronson, Cathy, Matthew, Laura, Zoe, Jacob, Chloe, Mason, Katie, Jacob J., Shereen, Alyssa, Ethan, Sabrina, Max, Jordan, Kendyl, Victoria, Bryan and Amber.

I really appreciate the time you took to write and decorate all these notes!!!

Thanks for stopping by,

Lizy B