Whoopie Pies

I had fun planning a baby shower recently and I was really wanting to have macarons there.  But while researching them, I found they aren't any where close to us at all- and if I were to order online they would be over $50 for not even that many.  I was sad about it until I ran into this amazing recipe for whoopie pies!  These are perfect for a baby shower or even a wedding.  It's a way to have that classic look of macaroons without breaking the bank.  The best part is, they are so customizable too.  You can make them any size or color you want.  Not to mention, they are sooo easy to make and extremely delicious!
So without further adieu, here's the recipe:
Cookie Ingredients:
(maybe I should call it "cake" that's really the texture they are)
1 egg
1 cup sugar
2 cups flour
1/3 cup veggie oil
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
food coloring

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 F.  In a large bowl beat egg and veggie oil.  Gradually beat in sugar and continue beating until well blended.  In another bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda.  In a measuring cup combine milk and vanilla.  Add the flour and milk mixtures alternately to the egg and sugar mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.

Now, I divided the mixture into seperate bowls and added food coloring until I got the colors I wanted.  The cookies will bake a slightly lighter color than what the mixture looks like.  Drop the dough by teaspoons onto a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper, leaving a couple inches between drops.  Hint: if you have cheap pans like I do, and they warp slightly when heated, your cookies wont be perfect circles... mine definitely aren't.  So hopefully you'll have better luck (;  Bake about 5 minutes or until the tops spring back when lightly touched with finger.  Also, if you think you can manage without parchment paper think again!  I was hoping I could (I didn't want to wait to bake them so I could run to the store) but they ended up being brown on the edges without it.  Use it!

Filling Ingredients: 

4 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup butter

8 oz cream cheese

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Combine until well blended.
(this makes more than enough for your entire batch of whoopie pies... don't be skimpy on the frosting!  I tried not to be and I had like a cup of frosting left over)

After your cookies have cooled completely, frost inside and place another cookie on top.  Voila!  So cute, right?

*phew, okay.  I'm done posting for the month (; 

my parents visited us

Like I said my parents drove through and stopped to see us.  They got me a card the night of my birthday (excuse the jammies and my late night rats nest hair) and the next day was filled with chilling at home watching Rio, a trip to staples, and Cheesecake factory for my birthday dinner from them.  We ordered so much food we had a dinner left over that could feed a family of four.  Perfect!

Here are just some pictures from it... my apologies to Tony for the squinty eye picture at dinner.  I made up for it though and put the more attractive one of him and awkward one of me in our couch family picture.  I'm so nice.

hyrum clapping for the first time

The next day they left but before that we

my birthday this year

My birthday was great this year!  Tony had to work but he sure made the day special.  He was going to get me a dozen cupcakes but I was like... I don't really need that many!  So he picked up cupcakes for me, my boys and I got a free donut for breakfast, and we met Tony for lunch at Firehouse for my free birthday sub.  Our usuals!  One thing that was crummy though... they don't really give free doughnuts here!  In AZ they give a free DOZEN!  Luckily though the guy felt bad and gave me and brody one anyway.  How generous.

 Looking at that sub makes me want one right now.  Oh so good.
(i put datil pepper sauce on every bite- remember my condiment love?)

Tony introduced me to Firehouse when we were dating (he discovered it on the mission)

If they didn't have one here, I think I would be miserable. haha

It was such a nice morning while my boys and I were out and about.

Tony left me little notes all around the house.

It was so nice... since he couldn't be with me all day, I still felt 

like he was there saying those things randomly to me.

Tony really spoiled me.. I got tons of stuff on my "wish list" including a cotton candy maker!  (for parties, of course;)  Tony's like, "those balloons are cool".. so when I looked over at them he had taped a gift card to one of my favorite stores on there.  Wahoo!

I opened my gifts when Tony got home and snarfed on a cupcake or two.

I of course had to try out my new cotton candy maker!

Btw, Brody did that football stance all by himself! 

We were at a store earlier that morning.

I think we have a future football player on our hands.

(ignore the beer in the background)

 We went to Red Robin because I'm all for free meals.  But they do it differently this year so I thought I was too late to get my free burger.  It didn't really matter, I was still really in the mood for it, it's been a while.  I got a free sundae, at least! (Man, I really milk birthdays;)

 That night we rented a movie I've wanted to see (I remember hearing about that girl when it happened).. and then when I went to wash my face for the night I found this note by my sink (and Brody's spider haha).  It was so sweet.  Tony sure made my day wonderful!

My parents showed up half way through the movie (they were driving back home after the weddings).  They were hoping to make it for the entire day but that just meant we spread the celebrations out one more day!

our vacation | heading home

So after the weddings and backyard party the next day, we drove back to Arizona.  We spent one more night there and then flew back to Kentucky the next day, later that afternoon.  This time I remembered a binky for the drive (I forgot one for both the flight and our drive out there, oops).  A few of the highlights of that part of our trip you can see in these pictures.  Things like:  Tony making us a delicious breakfast, a lunch date with just Tony and I that last day in AZ, night swimming while kids were in bed, and seeing more family.  Okay, so most of that isn't pictured, my bad.  The night swimming was Tony's idea and it was so fun.  He & I have done that several times together and it's always a blast.  "Oh, if gnomes could tell stories" haha, Tony!  I loved our vacation-even though it went by way too fast.

::driving back, del taco (of course)

::my favorite candy ever (don't you know)

::pics at tony's parents

::hyrum on the plane- his many feelings about the long flight

::louisville airport, about to drive home.

* I took that last pic a minute after Tony told me I "look cute with that backpack on".  He would've been all over me in high school, I guess, then.  he he

Another happy thing about the trip home was arriving there 30 minutes early!  The flight was great, again.

A Brody quote: "I LOVE this trip!"  We all did.  'Till next time, AZ!

our vacation | double birthday + backyard party

So my last day in California was spent in my lovely hometown!  I sometimes miss it but mostly because my grandma and some other family & old friends live there.  I miss my grandpa...

What is cuter than my grandma's backyard?  I can't think of anything.  I literally GREW UP in that backyard.  I broke the spout to the bird bath in that backyard.  I picked oranges, chased my cousins, stained my hands picking walnuts, and poked my fingers on the cacti.  Many life lessons were learned in that backyard.  Lots of parties, family, food, and fruit.  OH THE FRUIT!  (I'm a fruit fanatic, you know.)  In that backyard- oranges, grapefruit, peaches, plums, walnuts, apricots, and pomegranates are found.  It is my dream backyard, really.  She's taken such great care of it.  Furthermore, as previously mentioned, her oranges are TO DIE FOR.  None of this grocery store crap.  Sorry Trader Joes, your oranges are lame.  That goes for you too, Kroger.  heh heh.  Honestly don't get me started on my distaste for store bought citrus.  I grew up beyond spoiled in that department.  And that is all I will say about that.

So as I was originally going to blog, there was this party.  A party for my irish twin brother Mike and I!  It was the day after he got married (they all took late honeymoons, those poor kids lol!) on his actual birthday, and a few days before mine.  We had a cute picnic lunch in the backyard.  It got a little warm so we had to scrunch up under the sliver of shade we could find.  haha.  Don't let my grandma's graying Rottweiler Sheba fool you... she's STILL insanely energetic! I couldn't get a shutter speed fast enough for her haha.  I remember when she joined the family- she bit as hard as Hyrum does.  She's still a ball of energy- and I'm grateful because she's taking good care of my gma.  My grandma, the sweetheart, got me the cutest nail polish and kitchen timer for my birthday.  My parents got me something for my camera!  It was such good times.

this was so cute... Brody and his cousin Xander were taping their water bottles together and saying, "CHEERS!" lol