Red Velvet Valentines Cream Cookies Recipe (seriously, I can't believe I pulled this off) and other Valentines stuff

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Ok, so remember those cookies I shared that I pinned from Pinterest awhile back? Actually they may have been whoopie pies or something like that. I was planning to make my own version by making small heart-shaped cupcakes then smuching them together with icing, but when I bought the red velvet cake and turned the box over I saw a recipe for cream cookies so I adapted it a bit (because my lack of ingredient and skill, not because I'm cool and know how to do that) and they turned out great!

So here's what I used:
1 Box of Duncan Hines Red Velvet Cake Mix
1 Medium Egg
1 Spoonful of vanilla extract
1/2 cup butter
1 Can of cake frosting

Baking instructions:
1. Melt the butter in the microwave. I heated and mixed about 3 times 8 seconds each time.
2. Mix the egg, cake mix, vanilla and butter together. It's going to be SUPER SUPER sticky. Then use your hands and mix some more. Expect your hands to turn red and for it to be unbearably sticky.

3. Make it into a big ball and wrap it in plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for at least an hour. Overnight is ok too. I left it in there for about an hour and a half.

4. Take it out of the fridge, unwrap, and flatting it out a bit, use a cookie cutter to cut out heart-shapes (or circles, or whatever you want, but I did this for Valentines Day of course so I used hearts). Place the cut outs on a greased cookie sheet (or wax paper, but I don't have any).

5. Bake in oven on 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

6. Let cool, then spread icing on one half of the cookie and smush another half on top.

TADA!!

They are so yummy and were a hit at Lil' J's school. I'm honestly still shocked that I made these. Because I don't do so well in the kitchen. Lil' J on the other hand already LOVES to help. She helped me press the cookie cutter into the dough and she even handed one she made on her own to me while I was arranging them on the baking sheet (the one in the middle).

I was so behind I rushed and made her one last Valentines dress to make to school today. I used a thrifted shirt from Goodwill and some clearance fabric I had bought for the occasion. I didn't have time to make a cute sash, but I did made a new record and finished this (with Lil' J in my lap) in about 30 minutes flat. I've never put the pedal to the metal like that but we were in a hurry trying to make it to her school party.

It's not my favorite dress I've made for her. I wanted to add some shirring to the bodice but didn't have time. But it's ok for her just wearing it once. And the top is a 3T size so perhaps next year she can wear it as a tunic top.

I took her to her class party this afternoon and my husband got off work a few hours early so we went out for an early diner date at Olive Garden, and then went to the shooting range. It was my first time shooting a gun but I didn't do so bad.

He bought my my favorite--Chocolate covered strawberries, and there was a sweet red rose inside (of course reminding me of the episode of Once Upon a Time I just watched!!!).

So the day turned out to be a blast. Sadly I couldn't find heart shaped cake pans (ok well I finally found one at Target but wasn't willing to pay $30 for the stupid thing. Why does Target think they can charge so much for the same old stuff?) so I settled for the cookie cutters, but it worked out well.

I'm about to down some more strawberries then climb in to bed early. I hope you had a fantastic day. I'd love to hear about it. If you blogged it link me, or just share in the comments.
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Valentines t-shirt dress: What I'm Makin' Monday

Sorry my Makin’ Monday post is a little late this week. I was hoping to craft more last week but all I had time to make was this Valentines t-shirt dress. Here’s my t-shirt dress tutorial in case you want to make one too. I made the obi sash to match using a pattern from Dizzy LizzieBoutique. I made the matching rosette bow headband too with tulle and scrap fabric. There are lots of rosette tutorials but if you want I can do one for making something like this.

 

I used my ruffle foot for this dress, and it attached the ruffle while ruffling at the same time. Very cool and easy.  I’m making one more Valentines dress for her to wear to her party at school tomorrow, along with some heart-shaped cookie pies today I hope. Lil’ J is going to help me make the cookies. Surprisingly this girl loves to work in the kitchen!

Are you working on any crafts or cooking? I'm trying to get a feel for how many of my readers are domestically challenged like myself.

Toddler Valentines Fashion and Treats

This will be Lil' J's second Valentines Day but her first one at a school. So because this is also a significant "first" I want to make it special and do the whole Valentines shebang for her class.

Good news is I have Mondays and Tuesdays off, which Valentines Eve and Valentines Day fall on this year. So it'll give me a chance to pretend like I'm an awesome Suzie Homemaker and make treats with her, for her class.

Here are a few ideas I've been scoping off Pinterest:

Valentines Whoopie Pies

Happy Valentines Day for "Crayon" out loud. Vday Crayons

Kisses and Hugs Cupcakes

 

Lovely butterfly suckers

There's more where that came from, and cute outfits I want to try to make on my Mini Love board. The suckers seem like they involve more drawing/writing than cooking, which is good, and it has traditional candy, but I don't know what all of the parents will think about the candy. Cupcakes on the other hand... that's not so bad right? And whoopie pie (is that seriously what those things are called?)! Yum! I can just picture the messy hands and smiling faces chowing down on those things. But I have a feeling it wouldn't be the easiest to make, or shape as cute as the ones pictured.
The crayons are just perfect, and I think I'll do that for the cute factor, and have Lil' J help me put them in heart-shaped pans. Maybe I'll do those and the whoopies since we'll have a pan to make those shapes and she loves "cookin" (she says this now when we're in the kitchen and she wants to put something in the oven. I can't believe she's my child).

When it comes to clothing, we're getting there. I was hoping she'd wear Valentines outfits to school from mid-January through Valentines Day but that hasn't quite happened. I've only had time to make her one dress so far so I've called on reinforcements.

Lil' J's first tutu was from Cutie Pa Tutu, and now dozens of tutus later, I still haven't seen any made like hers. We got these this week and the first thing she said when she saw them was "BALL" (in her thick country accent it sounds more like "bawl") cause of the the little puff balls enclosed inside the tulle.

When she walked into school wearing this her teachers squealed and said they were wondering when she was going to start showing up in all of her Valentines gear.

All she wanted to do was blow bubbles when we were outside and I couldn't get her to set the dang thing down. She did take a break from blowing bubbles to blow me a kiss though.

SWAK Sealed With a Kiss Tutu and Lovely Lipstick Top

And of course you need to have just as much pink as you have red:

 

I had to take photos of her pink outfit before she wears it to school cause I'm sure she'll come home in a mess.--Which is ok because it means she's having fun.

Cutie Pa Tutu is having a Sweetheart Sale, so everything she's wearing and holding (aside from the bubbles) are on sale there.

In case you're wondering where to find it all here are links:

Sweet Pinks Pa Tutu

SWAK Sealed with a Kiss Pa Tutu

Pink Hearts Ying Yang Top

Pixy Tail Pony

Pink and Hot Pink Bow

Poofy Pom Pom Magic Wand

Pa Tutu Tights

Lipstick Love Top

Now between this and a few other things I'm working on, she should have something pink and LOVEly to wear until the 14th.

Are you loving these outfits? What are you plans for Valentines Day? Going to make something yummy or cute for school or work treats? Share the love in a comment and you'll be entered to win a Valentine Pa Tutu Outfit w/matching wand and Pixie Tail or Bow.

Since Vday is around the corner we have to make this quick so this giveaway ends midnight Tuesday February 7th. Enter using the Rafflecopter widget (below). Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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First Valentine All Over

I got home exhausted from a very long hard week of work but decided to stay up late after everyone went to bed to make a Valentine's Day tutu dress for my daughter.

She woke up around 3am, not long after I went to bed and she had a hard time going back to sleep, probably from more teeth coming in, so I was up most of the night. This morning I ran around getting things together before our professional photo shoot.

Right before I ran out the door I grabbed a teddy bear I've had for exactly six years. It was the bear my husband gave me for Valentines day six years ago. "Our First Valentine" it says on the heart it holds. A perfect prop for my daughter's first Valentine with us.

We were married two months before Valentines day, and had met just eight months prior. Things are a lot different now.

Forever Bliss Photography

I snapped a few photos myself while we were there for my 365 project, but I'm so glad I had these done. It took her a while to get into it and show us her breathtaking smile, but Mr. Teddy helped us pull out some laughs from my little girl.

Forever Bliss Photography

We put her to bed early and ordered from our favorite restaurant to go (Olive Garden). And hubs got me my favorite treats for celebrating: chocolate covered strawberries and sparkling cider.

Our first Valentine with our daughter was much different than it was for us six years ago, but one thing's for sure--There's a lot more love going around.