mickey cookies (and minnie too!)

I got a new cookie cutter!  Mickey Mouse!  (I ordered it from the Disney Store so that makes it authentic right?!)  I got it because I am planning on making Mickey Mouse cookies for Tyler's birthday party at school.  And since his birthday is over a month away, I decided to do a practice run :)

Good thing I did, because this was not an 'easy' cookie cutter.  The ears kept wanting to shift around when I transferred the cookie from the table to the pan to bake.  So I had a couple Mickeys with lop-sided ears, until I figured out how to keep the ears from moving in the process. 

But for a first attempt at Mickey's I think they turned out pretty well.  I think my favorite is Minnie with the bow!

landscaping

This morning I dragged my mom over to do a little landscaping in our backyard.  Our backyard has definitely been a work in progress.  I think the previous owners did nothing so we are starting from scratch.  And yes I know we have been here almost 4 years and we are still working on it!. 

We have some places that have pretty bad erosion, due to the slope of the land.  So after much deliberation, I figured the best way to 'fix" the erosion was to create a wall. 

And the best way to create a wall is with railroad ties!  Thought I was going to say wood.  Well, wood is expensive, especially if you start looking at treated 4x4s or 6x6.  And railroad ties are free ... if you have connections!

So here is the final product .....

flowers and ladybugs!

I made cookies for my momma!  Well actually they were for her church group, it was her turn to bring snacks.  I think they turned out great.  I had full control over what to make ... which was really nice!  I started with the flower, then remembered I had some cute 'bug' cookie cutters.  I went with the ladybug.  I think they were a big hit!



Final product!



 

up close picture of the ladybugs

I decided to add a small ladybug on some of the flowers to tie the two cookies together. 

up close picture of the flower, with a ladybug!

Uncle Mikie is home!

The good thing about Uncle Mikie is that he can be wild and crazy ......

but he can also chill on the couch and watch Chuggington!





a creative outlet ....

I am the type of person that needs a creative outlet. Maybe it is because my work tends to be on the not so creative side (i.e. engineering). But looking back on it, I have always been this way: art classes in school, drama class, dance. And more recently: scrapbooking, crocheting (a little bit), and now cookie decorating.

From sitting on the counter when I was little watching my momma bake, to being in charge of the desserts for Thanksgiving, I have always been involved in and enjoyed baking. BRAG ALERT: I even won 2nd place for my pound cake at the SC State Fair when I was in the 8th grade.

Anyways .... back to cookie decorating. I started last Mother's Day when I saw a cute idea ... make flower cookies (with icing ... like you see on the fancy cookies!) and put them in a flower pot! So I researched and read and then attempted. Lets say the attempt was .... OK .... at least these were going to my momma, who I know would love them! (I mean isnt that what Momma's are for!!) It is probably a good thing that I don't have pictures of the very first attempt.

So fast forward a year (and many cookie attempts and holidays later: Tyler's birthday, Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day), and I feel like I have come a long way. I am really proud of my easter cookies!

These were for Tyler's Easter Party at school!

The new additions to our family .....

Meet the new additions to the Ostrander family ......

If you can't tell what these are (sorry for the poor lighting ... I was afraid to use the flash so close to them, and since my photography skills are lacking ... this is what you get), anyways, these are water frogs.

The Easter Bunny came to MiMi's house (my momma) and brought these for Tyler. His very first pet!

They are supposed to live for 2-3 years. So please wish us luck, in our new adventure!

And in case you missed them the first time ... another not so well lit picture!!!

Lost and Found

We had a crisis this past week. We lost 'Moo'. What is 'Moo' you ask? Well this is 'Moo'.

This is Tyler's favorite stuffed animal. He has had it since he was born, and sleeps with it every night.

We were getting Tyler ready for bed Thursday night, and we started looking for 'Moo'. We couldn't find him anywhere. We searched and searched. We looked in all of the usual hiding spots: Tyler's bed, our bed, between the cushions of the couch, and in the clean clothes basket. But no luck. We managed to get Tyler to bed that night without 'Moo' (and I am still not sure how that happened). I think we were just hoping that 'Moo' would just show up the next morning.

The following morning ... still no 'Moo'. We really started to look everywhere. All of the dirty clothes baskets, the cars, the trash cans, under the couch, out in the yard ... name it we looked there. We were really starting to worry now. I was even making plans on how I was going to get a new 'Moo'. That night, Tyler went to bed again asking for 'Moo'.

When I came back into the living room (from putting Tyler to bed), this truck caught my eye. And it was like I had a flashback .... it was a memory of Tyler putting stuff inside the seat of the truck and riding around.

It was a long shot, but I went over to look in the seat of the truck, and ... ta-da .... there was the missing 'Moo'. I was so excited. I really felt like I had solved some great mystery!

So now Tyler has his 'Moo' back and the crisis is over!