A New Recruit?

Arghhhh, Matey.  Who would guess that we'd be doing a second round of pirates so soon?  It seems my daughter (and Kimi's sis) had a class reunion coming up, and offered up some XOXO Cookies for the party. The high school mascot is a Pirate.

Unfortunately, my partner was off backpacking with her hubs and the grandpup, and I knew I couldn't single-handedly pull off an order that big, that quickly, alone.   So I accepted the offer of her sis to help out with the order. Little did she know. . . 

Two cups of instant hazelnut coffee and a whole lotta hours later, sis realized what she had gotten herself into.  But she is an ex-Lady Pirate herself, and she knows how to burn the midnight oil when necessary. She stayed with it until the bitter end, and worked until the very last pirate was bagged.

She did a great job, and managed to do it with good humor, a worthy attribute for this any future employer. . .      ;-)

I did ask if she would like to help us out in the future.  Her eyes smiled and her lips murmured something (I believe it may have been "You Betcha, Mom").

From what I hear, the party that celebrated ten years of life beyond high school was a huge success. I'm very glad that I was able to share several sometimes delirious, but fun long hours with another daughter and possible future recruit!    Love ya' Linds.

Mom

YoHo, YoHo, A Pirate's Treat For Me!

A very special "Pirate" just turned 5!  His mom wanted to throw him a fun, activity filled, pirate themed birthday for him and his Mateys to enjoy.

She had already planned this party down to the very last detail, from the eye patches and a treasure chest,  to walking the plank and hand decorated loot bags. What more could you want?  Cookies of course!  Pirate Cookies! Argggh....

We were very excited when she asked us to help out with this very special party.  But pirates were another first for us, so we called on every resource we had for inspiration, including a Play Mobile Pirate set we had as kids.  (Not exactly girly-girls I guess.)

When we finally finished, we loved these cookies so much that we had to bring out our own pirates to join in on the fun for the photo shoot.  

Mom shared this picture of the party boy.  I think it is safe to say, this little pirate had a great birthday, got lots of good loot and enjoyed every last bite!

Happy Birthday Dane! 

from

XOXO Cookies

Just A Spoonful of Sugar

Grandma Joycie's birthday is in July, and we knew she would enjoy an evening at the theatre seeing the Musical Production of Mary Poppins.  It was playing in Orange County so we bought tickets, gathered everyone together, and headed through the tumultuous traffic of So Cal.   Arggh.

We spent the weekend on beautiful Balboa Island, across the bay from Newport Beach.  Once you park your car on the Island, you don't get into it again until you go home.   Or in this case, until you leave for the theatre.  

The afternoon's summer sun was not wasted.  We sat on the beach soaking up the healing rays as we enjoyed the passing yachts and the young families walking dogs and pushing strollers along the promenade.

We took the opportunity to enjoy our birthday treats while we were enjoying the sun.  The breeze was a bit strong and we didn't light the candles on these brownie pops, so we wished Grandma Joycie a happy birthday and bit in.

Many of my children's summer days were spent along this gently lapping waterline, and I couldn't resist getting a shot of my brownie pop enjoying the same cool water.   Almost more fun than creating these little treats is photographing them.  

And look at the little person footprint!  So cute.

Chatting away with Grandma, daughter number three demonstrated that these treats are worth repeating in the future.  And the musical later that evening?   As I expected.  "Mary Poppins, practically perfect in every way."  

Happy Birthday Wishes to Grandma Joycie!

From your family and XOXO Cookies

It's in the Water!

To say that every time I turn around at work I am either bumping into a baby "bump" or hearing about disposable vs. cloth diapers would be no exaggeration.  How exciting to have FIVE babies on the way, all within one month of each other!

We had an in-office baby shower for our five expecting parents.  This was a celebration worthy of colorfully decorated cookies and cake balls!

"We" have three boys, one girl, and one surprise "we" like to refer to as Baby Apple Seed :)  I know everyone is very excited for the expecting parents and we have enjoyed hearing about these little ones all along the way.  I know I have!

The first thing everyone says when they find out about FIVE babies on the way in one company is, "It must be in the water!" The funny thing about that is that we spend most of our time working in an area where we are not allowed to drink the water!

I am so excited for all of the babies soon to come! It shouldn't be long now. . . 

 Congratulations to Amber, Alyssa, Alison, JP, and Robert!

Kimi and XOXO Cookies