It's My Day...Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange

I'm so excited that Carol brought back her holiday staple...

Her Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange.

You know how much we all love seeing what's happening in our friends kitchens.

There is always coming good to be found!

So grab a cuppa of your favorite and join me while I share some "cuppa's" myself!

This is Angie Padilla's "Holiday Mugs" design.

It spoke volumes to me. Let's face it, there is nothing better than a cuppa of your favorite holiday beverage. I did a little adjusting on the border and rather than piecing it, I chose to use assorted Christmas fabrics and made prairie points instead.

Full disclosure...there are no snowy photos here. November was a completely crazy month, so I knew I had to get my project done and the photos ready to go early, for this hop. As you can see fall was in full bloom. It really is my favorite time of the year. 

The festive cups do bring out those wonderful holiday "feels" still.

Now to go along with all our cuppa's, I have our newest, most favorite cookie recipe to share. I know some of you have peanut allergies, so these aren't for you unfortunately. But if you don't,  you won't find a better cookie around.

These are Snoop Dogg's "Rolls Royce Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip" cookies.

Even if you aren't a Snoop Dogg fan, you're going to love his cookies.

Unfortunately for my diet, they are a family favorite and seldom not in the cookie jar around here.

LOL!!

Diet??? What can I say...I have fallen off the wagon and right now, I'm not even sorry about it.

Thanks Snoop, I am blaming this on you!

Make sure you stop in and visit my fellow bloggers today. Leave them some sugar with a sweet comment, too

December 5

MooseStashQuilting (you're here)

Scrapdash

Sew Many Yarns

Happy Cottage Quilter

Days Filled With Joy

That Fabric Feeling

I want to thank all of you who participated and our readers for our 2 fall favorite hops. 

Carol and I sure felt the love.

Wishing you a  blessed and wonderful holiday season!

 

It's my Day: Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange Blog Hop

 Welcome to my day on the Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange Blog Hop and I want to start, by thanking my hop co-hostess Carol, for being the best anyone could ever ask for. She is pivotal, in keeping us all going, on this crazy fun "hopping" ride! Thanks for another great blog hop year Carol!

This plate of virtual cookies, is thanks to McKenna Ryan's "Gingerbread Lane" pattern. It's an oldie but a goodie and has been in my pile of must do's since 2007. Scary, just how big/old that pile is, isn't it?

It's part of an 8 block pattern, I fell in love with so many years ago.

There are a zillion pieces to it, which is probably why it stayed in that to-do pile for so long, but what a fun project, once I got going on it.

I have a big tub of batik scraps that I can't bear to throw away. 

Some are really pretty tiny.

                 

     

But they were perfect for the details on this project.

It was a cumbersome job, but I worked it through, one block at a time and bagged up the tiny pieces as I cut them.

While it doesn't show up well in the photo, the champagne bottle wrap, is 3-D. That was an interesting technique to play with.

What I didn't realize until I was well into it, was that this pattern set wasn't met to be put together as a quilt. (I really need to learn to read better) LOL!! That explains why I only found 1 photo online, of it done as a quilt. 

I had to regroup and add to some of the blocks and cut down others.

It was quite the learning experience, all the way around but this sweet treat will remain calorie free forever!

Now as for the real deal cookies...well, I've put a lot of time and energy into loosing weight, and while it's a struggle right now, I am not making cookies this year. It's just too darn tempting and my will power is failing me right now. LOL!!

But I do have a couple of recipes to share with you. This spring when my youngest got married, I made cheesecakes for the rehearsal dinner and they were a hit.

I have an old cheesecake recipe that I've used for years. It's so old, I have no idea where it came from but a friend named it "Cheesecake Ala Joan" and that name has stuck.

You can download that recipe 

HERE

Next was an Amaretto Cheesecake an adaptation from my recipe. 

The Amaretto Sauce recipe can be found 

HERE

You will want to make extra, it's great on everything!

Last but not least...

German Chocolate Cheesecake (my new favorite)

This photo was borrowed from the recipe itself and yes, it tastes as wonderful as it looks!

You can find the recipe

HERE

Even though they are not cookies, they promise to bring much jolly to your holidays.

Pleas visit my fellow bloggers today

DECEMBER 7

MooseStashQuilting (you're here)

Ms P Designs USA

Quilt Doodle Designs

Quilted Snail

Sew Many Yarns

Just Sew Quilter

The Life of Grammy

You can find the complete schedule for the hop

HERE

Wishing you all, a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.

Oh, and I wanted to make a shout out to "Domestic Felicity" who made the sweetest hat for the "Turkey Trot" hop last month. You inspired me more than you know...

While this one loves her new hat, brother is not impressed. It comes off quicker than it goes on.

LOL!!

In fact these were so much fun to stitch, they got Christmas hats as well.

Yep, little man is not in love with being mugged by his sister or the hat, it seems!

 til next time...

 Keep on Stitchin'

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It's My Day on the Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange Blog Hop

 

Quilting and cookies! Seriously, what doesn't go better than those two? Carol really knows how to bring out the best of the holidays with them, that's for sure.

This year is very different for this household. There is a wedding coming up next spring, and this girl has finally gotten her act together and really buckled down on this diet thing, so there are NO cookies around here this year. No candy either. LOL!! Just to keep hubs happy, I will make him, his all time favorite Chex Mix". There is just so much I can expect him to give up at the holidays.

I really have been good about sticking to the plan, I'm down 38 pounds and honestly, I'm finding it very easy to do. But it is a cookie exchange hop, so I do have cookies to share!

There was "that" little trip to Vegas to visit with my friend Carol last month...

She took me a place named "Pop Drinks" just for a cookie. I would love to tell you I was kicking and screaming all the way there, but I would be a big ole liar if I did!

Oh my goodness, they are to die for!

I borrowed these photos from their web site.

So many incredible choices, it looks like I am going to have to go back many times to try them all!

(Heads up Carol, you best lock your doors or just move! tee hee hee) 

Along with these incredible cookies, they have customizable soft drinks, and popcorn. 

Be still my heart!

If you are lucky enough to live in Las Vegas NV, St George UT, or Farmington NM, you need to check them out. There are new ones coming soon in Utah, Idaho and Arizona.

http://ilovepopdrinks.com/

We had a howling good time that weekend, and the best way to commemorate it was to pull out a pattern that has been in my "to-do" pile for a very long time. 

Introducing, in Christmas card form...

"Oh Howly Night"

The is a "Java House" quilt pattern. I absolutely love their whimsical designs.

These sweet guys just warm my heart.

The background was very interesting to piece. The stripes were pieced, and the circular center was an applique. It was kind of mind boggling how they put it together, but the instructions were great and if you follow along, step by step, it comes out beautifully. It was definitely something out of my wheelhouse and a fun little challenge.

As a blogging quilter, I share the good, the bad and the ugly. It's keeps me humble.

LOL!! 

 So, I must confess...I am on a "use it up" kick, in my sewing room and I found an old bolt of polyester batting that was the perfect width. I spent hours quilting it on my domestic machine and love the dimension it has. But it's polyester batting and nothing I do, will make it lay flat. I should have known better.

So, I think the rest of that bolt is going to have to find a new home or the trash.

Well, it's a big ole poop (lets call it reindeer poop) for this project, for me!

It's a perfect for a Christmas card photo...

...maybe won't irritate me nearly as much if it's a bed runner.

On the bright side, I use a machine I bought 2 years ago and never really made friends with. We have finally bonded and I love it!

After seeing a pillow at the Garden of Quilts with Carol, I remembered a hop in 2012, when we made  pillows from a "Jillily Studio" pattern "Holiday Lane". The free pattern is still available HERE.

You can find a kit on her website as well.

This pillow now lives with friends up in Alaska.

Oh what a blast to the past and yes, poor Carol has had to deal with me a lot this year!

:-)

Please visit my fellow bloggers today and see what's cooking in their virtual kitchens!

December 6

MooseStashQuilting (your here)

Just Sew Quilter

Ms P Designs USA

Beaquilter

Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life
Stitchin At Home

You can find the entire schedule for the hop HERE.

Wishing you happy holiday season, filled with joy!

Merry "Christmoose"!

til next time...

Keep on Stitchin'