GooGoo’s 3rd Birthday

GooGoo is 3.

Three years ago GooGoo joined our family and our life has been quite an adventure ever since. GooGoo is feisty, stubborn, sweet, and beautiful. Despite the bedtime battles that have raged ever since she entered the world and her tendency to throw fits, gnaw her fingernails, pull out her hair, and say “no” a lot, she is still becoming more and more fun all the time. She can talk to us, she loves to help in the kitchen stirring food and wiping tables, she sings Jesus Loves Me and Jingle Bells and loves to look at books, “reading” them to herself. (Somehow the sentence “Jesus a comin’ to trailer” always manages to get into any story she might be “reading”.) We wouldn’t trade her for any other little girl. She keeps us on our toes. She loves her little sister.

For her cake, I was inspired by this pin. I had made the dress earlier this year and it was too big at the time, so I figured she could wear it for her birthday and, of course, the cake had to match. I did two layers of cake: vanilla and chocolate gluten-free from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, using mint extract in them, and filled and frosted the sides with chocolate frosting. (I’ll talk more about the cake when I review this book next month.)

I had to frost the cake at least partly in chocolate because I don’t like white-frosted chocolate cake.

She had a nice party with some great-aunts-and-uncles, grandparents, and of course us.

gggggqrtejjjjjjjghfddeeeefghrdeey42 <—This is GooGoo’s message to you.

Gingerbread People and Felines and Phantoms, Oh My!

How to turn gingerpeople into gingercats.

These gingerbread cookies were a yearly Christmas tradition at my house for many years. They are very soft and tasty and a great hit with everyone who has tasted them.

Erik, the Phantom of the Opera: This was the first year I went all-out on these, I think, in 1999. My camera was lousy in those days. Sorry.

1 1/2 c light molasses
1 c packed brown sugar
2/3 c cold water
1/3 c shortening
7 c all-purpose flour
2 tsp soda
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Mix molasses, brown sugar, water, and shortening.

Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.

Heat oven to 350. Roll dough 1/4″ thick on floured board. Cut with floured gingerbread cookie cutter or your favourite shaped cutter. Place about 2″ apart on lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake 10-12 minutes. Cool.

I made a pattern out of brown paper bag for these angels and cut them out with a sharp knife.

To decorate, use a mixture of icing/powdered sugar and non-dairy milk or water. Usually about 3 c sugar to 2-3 tablespoons of the milk or water. Use a small round tip on an icing bag.

One year the pirates (and one dunce and his duck) took over completely.

This is what I think of being eaten.