One Smart Little Cookie is a collection of everything that brings inspiration, comfort and beauty into my life and home.
I love to create a beautiful home and enjoy it with my family.
It is sharing
what I love to do; baking and cooking in a healthier way without sacrificing flavor
, crafts,
party planning, activities, organization, and home decor.

Being a "Smart Little Cookie" is not about being perfect, it is about knowing how to enjoy life and family to it's fullest~to your fullest.
Due to my creative process, my home gets messy, my kids play in their jammies-all day sometimes (the terribly relaxed days tend to be my favorite),
and my hubby has become much more patient and supportive over the years with all of this.
In fact, he often has his own creative ideas and we both find ourselves anticipating our upcoming projects together~love him!
Don't get me wrong, I LOVE a clean house, but I've rejected denial, and with a toddler who is a budding creative type herself,
I feel accomplished when the dishes are in the dishwasher before naptime (not mine, hers).
I've accepted the fact that "spotless" cannot mean what I have always
envisioned in my mind, at least not with kids,
and I would rather enjoy my kids and beautiful home, than a spotless, sterile home.
I have learned to take each day, one day at a time, and everyday should leave us feeling inspired and more contented.
The day should leave us, whispering in our ear, "the day has been as well as it could have been done, and it has been done well."

Go ahead and take a bite, indulge yourself and try my recipes and crafty creations in your own home.
I hope to inspire you to feel like the "Smart Little Cookie" you are!




Saturday, January 22, 2011

Under The Sea Birthday Party

My oldest daughter just turned 7 years old and Loves Ariel! So, for her friend party she really wanted to have an "Under The Sea" party.  
I tried to make it as original and sweet as I could.  Something I hoped a mermaid like Ariel would like to attend while on land.



The Decorations


Smart Little Cookie Tip:
Balloon "bubbles" float above the fishies I cut out of cardstock and scrapbook paper free handed.

Fishies swimming through and around the "seaweed" crepe paper.


Party Games

When the princesses arrived, they each chose a hibiscus flower clip (the flower of mermaids) for their hair and a mermaid name chosen by combining their favorite color with their favorite gemstone, 
making them mermaids for the afternoon!

Pin The Flower on The Mermaid

For this game I printed an image of Ariel and mounted it on cardstock.  For the flower, I printed a beautiful coral hibiscus flower also on cardstock 
and used double stick tape on the back so the girls could try to pin it on Ariel's hair while blindfolded.

Feed The Shark

 My hubby made this awesome shark for me.  He did a great job! For this game I purchased the cutest little bean bag fishies at orientaltrading.com.  The girls had so much fun playing, this was hands down their favorite game at the party!
We also played freeze dance to The Little Mermaid Soundtrack, which was also a big hit!


The Party Favors

 These are the adorable party favors I found at orientaltrading.com as well. The cost of a "cake" of ten is the same price as a package of colored paper bags, I had to get it! I printed and cutout starfish name cards and placed them on top of the favor boxes to add to the mermaid theme.


Under The Sea Punch

I mixed 2 liters of Sprite with 2 drops blue food coloring, that easy!


 The Cupcakes

You can make any flavor cupcake your mermaid's heart desires.  Mine loves chocolate, so I made chocolate cupcakes, filled them with lemon creme filling, frosted them with a turquoise "bubble" ring and topped them with a chocolate molded flower.  She Loved them!

Smart Little Cookie Tip:
You don't need to use the expensive chocolate melting wafers found at craft stores.  I prefer to use chocolate chips.  Melt them for 20 seconds at a time, pour into candy molds that fit the theme of your party and freeze until set.


The Ice Cream

 Smart Little Cookie Tip:
This is a great tip I read about somewhere a while back.  The day before the party, scoop ice cream into cupcake cups, cover and freeze.  No messy hands while scooping ice cream at the party, no waiting and no melted mess on the party plates or your floor during cake and ice cream time!
I LOVE this tip!


The Fun!








It was such a fun afternoon with these Little Mermaids!

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Love comes in many forms, even in a sack of potatoes!

My sweet husband found this in a bag of potatoes as we were cooking dinner together. We couldn't bring ourselves to prepare it with the rest of the potatoes, so we kept it!