Category Archives: Cupcakes

A Birthday Party for Peanut!

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As I mentioned in a previous post Peanut turned one last month! How it happened is beyond me but we celebrated her special day yesterday. I love to plan parties  and throw them. I was raised in a house where Birthday Parties were always a big to do. So I am going to blame my parents for my obsession with the ‘perfect party’.

I decided a few months ago that we were going to have an owl them for Peanut. She is still too little to really have any true likes. She isn’t in to TV or any certain characters. So I took the liberty of planning her a super special Owl party!

I found a great location at a local community center which worked GREAT! There was a cute Barn in the room and the walls were painted in a barn motif too! The best part it was reasonable in price and would be safe for Peanut. I was afraid of having her party at some other popular locations because she might get smushed since she is such a peanut! :)

It all started with a Google search.. Owl Invitations. The images were endless, but I came up with this super cute one! I called my super crafty sister and asked her if I thought we could come up with something similar.

On the back were all the juicy details! As I mentioned in an earlier post we offer a donation suggestion in Lieu of Gifts. This year we chose The Pajama Program. I included these details on the bottom of the party information section with the needs of the Pajama Program.

I looked a ton of Owl Themed plates but decided on these cute plates from Celebrate Express. I ordered the dessert  plates and a couple of Balloons to match. I used light blue table cloths, bright pink plates, green and orange cups, and purple silverware.

I decided on a party during lunch time. Peanut usually is awake and happy during this time which is key for a one year old. This meant we needed to plan a meal. I thought about pizza but decided I would make it easier on some friends who have a dairy allergy. So I made a make your own sandwich buffet! It went over very well :) It was really easy to do and a great non-pizza option.

Check out the awesome walls!!

We did two crafts at the party! Since Peanut has an older sister I figured that would keep her and her friends busy. They love crafts and all go to preschool. I found this great paper bag owl craft online. She had templates which were AWESOME! So definitely check her out. I used craft paper that I had in my scrapbook stash which made things cheaper. I grabbed some paper bags at the dollar store and the kids really enjoyed it.

The second craft my friend Jennifer from Mosk Momma found at JoAnn Fabrics. During Christmas time they had wood ornaments that could be painted or colored. I got them for a STEAL… Less than .50 a piece. Each kiddo got to make their own. They used good old crayola markers. Here is a picture of Peanut working on her Owl with some help :)

Now I have a love for cupcakes if you haven’t noticed from reading this blog. So I will be doing a separate post on them soon! However, I will give you a peek at how cute they were! It was my first time dabbling with Marshmallow Fondant and I think you will see more soon. It wasn’t as awful to work with as I thought it might be. I made homemade Funfetti cupcakes that were pretty tasty and so  easy to make.

The cute owl on the right was a mouse pad in the dollar bin at Target!!!

A sweet friend made Peanut’s Smash cake. She totally rocks! It was adorable and Peanut did a fantastic job smashing it to pieces :)

Here is the smash cake…

The last detail from the party was the Party favors. I really  wanted to find something that was owl-y and usable. Every kid loves favors but they are usually expensive cheap toys. That is they work out to be about $5-$10 a kid and are toys that don’t last long once they go home. I spent HOURS looking for something and came up with crayon tote bags. Sue from SewnJust4U made my life so much easier! She made the process painless and her work is amazing!

I made a cute little coloring book with Owl images I found online and included it.

We had 3 bitty ones at the party and my AWESOME sister made cute owl crinkle taggies for them!

Inside the crayon totes were these treat bags. I was pretty proud of myself because I was able to recreate the owl face on my own! :) As you can see in the photo above I gave the little one cereal instead of gummy bears.

So there you have it… the ins and outs of Miss Peanut’s first birthday party! She had a wonderful time, we collected a ton of donations (more on this to come) and everyone seemed to leave with a smile  on their face. I call that a success!

 

Surprise!!! Rand McNally’s 30th Birthday Party!

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So I can finally spill the beans since it has come and gone! Let me start by saying this was my first surprise party I have ever planned. It was super hard for a couple of reasons. 1. We keep NOTHING a secret in our marriage. So keeping this a secret for nearly 2 months was a HUGE challenge to say the least. 2. We have a preschooler. Do I need to say anything else? I mean she wants to share every detail about everything with everyone.

But we all managed by the grace of God to keep it a surprise.

When planning this party I thought it was awesome at first… Then I panicked and thought “oh no what if he HATES surprises” (In nearly 7 years of marriage I haven’t really done anything this huge!).  I figured my saving grace was that his best friend from his childhood was in on it. Rand thought they were coming to use up free airfare mileage and rental car points :) .

The Plan:

Rand McNally and his friend ‘D’ were going to a brewery WAY across town. I told ‘D’ I don’t care what crazy excuses/lies you have to do… but don’t get back until 5! I stayed home with D’s wife and our kids  (who actually napped!). Once, he was out of the house it was time to get busy!

The Menu:

Earlier in the week I had dropped ingredients to be cooked at several friends houses. Most were crock pot recipes because I figured that would make it easier for transport and less work on my them for cooking!

Apple Cider Punch -I made this kid friendly because it was easier since there were a bunch of Munchkin’s friends coming over.  (side note: I wanted to make Ecto cooler but could NOT find tangerine Kool Aid?!?!)

Brie En Croute- OK this is must have for pretty much any party, well if you like Brie. It was easy to make and tastes amazing!! Brie, pecans toasted in some butter, brown sugar and puff pastry sheets!!

Bacon Appetizers- Now this is a Pioneer Woman Recipe! I love her stuff… seriously she is amazing! These are apparently a recipe from circa 1980 which worked well with my 80′s theme party! Bacon, club crackers, and parm cheese… slow baked… they were SO good! Thanks to my friend ‘A’ for your help!

Crock-Pot Meatballs- This is usually a crowd favorite kids and adults love them! I was lazy (ok I had  like NO time!!) so I bought premade meatballs but they were still great! Meatballs, Chili Sauce, and grape Jelly cook until warm! Thanks ‘L’ for your help on these!

Crock-Pot Mini Wieners Now this is seriously another favorite. I used my Mother-in-Law’s BBQ sauce recipe and put it over two packages of cocktail wieners.  Thanks to my sweet friend ‘N’ for taking care of this appetizer for me!

McNally Family BBQ Sauce

1 cup Ketchup

1 cup Brown Sugar

1 tb horseradish

1 tb cider vinegar

i tb prepare mustard

Stir and use on anything that BBQ sauce tastes amazing on!!!

Apple slices with caramel dip

Carrots with Veggie Dip

Cupcakes- stay tuned for the post on them!!

Here is a look at them though!!!

Mocha and Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with White Chocolate Pac Man pieces

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So all in all the party was a huge success and I did manage to surprise him. He didn’t hate it and a good time was had by all.  I am so blessed to have had so many friends help out and attend! Thanks everyone!! :)

Food all Ended up on Here! Notice the timeline all things from his birth year.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

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There are two  flavors that scream FALL to me! Apple and Pumpkin Spice.  I recently started getting into making cupcakes from scratch. Honestly, I don’t know why I didn’t make them before. They really are no more difficult than baking cookies from scratch!

These cupcakes scream FALL I have made a couple batches (including about 40 for a friend’s party!) They are so moist, and the combination of cream cheese and pumpkin spice is to die for!

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

Adapted from For The Mommas

 

Pumpkin Cupcakes

 

  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated white sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup  canned pumpkin (pack it in the cup solid)

 

Cream Cheese Icing

 

  • 1 block of cream cheese (I always use the 1/3 less fat variety)
  • 2 tablespoons  unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 2 cups powdered  confectioners sugar (give or take)
  • Mix a small amount of  sugar and cinnamon in bowl

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

 

Directions for the Cupcakes

 

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda,  cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt.

 

In a large bowl,  cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add in the vanilla extract. Mix in the sides of the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and pumpkin puree, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

 

Fill 12 muffin cups evenly with the batter using two spoons or a cookies scoop. Place in the oven and bake for about 18 – 20 minutes, or until firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool. Do not frost until cool.

 

Directions for Icing

 

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer. With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar a cup at a time until smooth and creamy. Beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in cinnamon. Beat until desired consistency. Add more powdered sugar to thicken. If icing becomes too thick add a splash of milk.

 

Sprinkle cupcakes with cinnamon and sugar and let icing set.

Cupcakes are always their best on the day they are made. If you can’t make them the same day then make them the night before. Never refrigerate… they get sweaty and sticky!

Enjoy these… they are just to die for… Perhaps I should make some more!