7 things

Today/ tonight I wanted to share a couple of truly lovely things with you all.  Some of these I found 5 minutes ago, others I found long ago and continue to reread and/or re-watch many many times.

1- A post on The Curvy Carrot that is very thoughtful, and very grounding.

2- A post about the Truth about Santa that is adorable.

3- My favorite youtube video.  Jessica's "Daily Affirmation"

4- The Good Women Project.  One of my favorites is an article entitled "When it isn't a skinny day".  Great reminders of faith.

5- A post on Joy the Baker about turning 21, that is very sweet, and grounding.  It has many good tips that all women need to hear, no matter how old they are!

6-  Leading With Lollipops.  Its a 6 and 1/2 minute tedX talk that revolutionizes how to think about leadership, and the impact of one person.

7- A story corps animation that makes me cry everytime I watch it.  

Enjoy your night!  Think happy thoughts!

Sugar Cookie Bars

So I apologize, that I have been away from blogging for so very long, BUT I have a treat to share with you tonight.


I found this recipe on a food blog that I do not follow, and I am currently realizing that I have NO IDEA how I found this recipe, which I made over a month ago, which probably means that one of two things happened; either I found it off of a food blog I do follow OR I saw it on Pinterest, but I can not remember.


These were SO simple to make, it was perfect.  And they are delicious.  Who doesn't love sugar cookies?  You are going to want to make these.  And eat them.  LOTS of them.


Also- the original recipe calls for frosting with shortening, and because of a terrible baking experience that I had with shortening, I refuse to use the stuff.  Its might be a phobia, but I avoid the stuff as much as I can.  So I went to one of my favorite food blogs -Annie's Eats- and looked for a frosting recipe- sans shortening- and luckily enough I found one!


Sugar cookie bars- A little Bit Crunchy A little bit rock and roll
1 cup unsalted butter

YUM.  Butter sugar and eggs.

2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
5 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda


1- Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy. 
2- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
3- Meanwhile, mix the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl. 
4- Add the vanilla to the creamed mixture and then slowly add the dry ingredients.
5- Press into a greased 13 x 18 inch pan and bake at 375F for 10-15 minutes.
6- Cool and frost (see directions below).


Frosting- adapted from Annie's Eats
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 T melted butter
2 t vanilla
roughly 4 T milk
optional- food coloring and sprinkles


1- Mix powdered sugar and butter.  Add vanilla.  Add milk until desired consistency is reached.  Add food coloring and sprinkles, and frost away!

The Final Product

YUMMY.