Today is my birthday! I love my birthday. I’m a big fan of getting older - it’s so much better than the alternative. But it’s also fun! A day to celebrate me! With everyone I love. I’m so lucky to get to have a birthday.

In honor of my birthday, I’ve put together a bunch of my favorite things so you can celebrate along with me!

Very Cherry Birthday Punch

Literally the best champagne punch I have ever made. It’s my absolute favorite. My birthday cake every year is a Black Forest Cake - this goes perfectly with it!

Spaghetti with Clams

This is the best dinner ever. I order it every time it comes up on a menu - it’s almost all I ate when we were in Italy. I’m obsessed with clams - and in pasta with delicious olive oil - I’m extra obsessed.

Birthday Cake Cookies

These are actually perfect. They’re fluffy, filled with white chocolate chips, and covered in sprinkles. I cannot get enough of them! They’re perfect for those of us who don’t care about cake - but LOVE cookies.

Leave a comment if you decide to celebrate with me! I love to celebrate with all of my friends and you are some of my favorite friends.

It’s my birthday week! And I can’t think of anything I would want more for my birthday (non-alcoholic) than a good cookie. And this is a good cookie. I read about a cookie that was made with pudding mix and it seemed mandatory that I give it a shot.

This cookie is basically a cheap sheet cake in cookie form. If you aren’t tempted by that then we are probably not friends. Or you need to try cheap birthday cake again. It’s delicious.

Let me know if you try these. And if you try them for a birthday, light a candle and sing!!

Birthday Cake Cookies

1 cup butter, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

3.4 oz package of vanilla pudding mix

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup assorted sprinkles

12 oz white chocolate chips

STEP 1

In a bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat until combined.

STEP 2

Add the eggs, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat well until the mixture gets lighter in color and is fluffy.

STEP 3

In a small bowl, combine flour, pudding mix, baking soda, and baking powder. Add it to the stand mixer and blend until mostly combined.

STEP 4

Pour in the chips and turn the mixer back on. Let it run until the dough looks like a cookie dough. Stir in the sprinkler gently so they don’t run too much!

STEP 5

Scoop onto a baking sheet and bake 10 minutes. Let cool on the sheet for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to continue to cool.

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If I ever need to perk up my kids I bring out the sprinkles. There is literally nothing that seems to lift spirits like a healthy dose of sprinkles. I keep a jar in the pantry to add to waffles, hot cocoa, and - it turns out quite often - cookies. This snickerdoodle recipe is perfect on it’s own, but rolled in sprinkles seems to take it totally over the top. And that’s my favorite place to be.

SPRINKLE-DOODLES

makes 2 dozen large cookies

2 cups sugar

1 cup butter, room temperature

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

5 ½ cups flour

 STEP 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream together sugar and butter.  Blend in eggs, milk, and vanilla until completely incorporated. 

STEP 2

In a separate bowl, mix together all dry ingredients.  Working in three batches, add the dry ingredients to the wet incorporating fully after each addition.

STEP 3

Roll two ounce balls of dough and press into sprinkles.  Bake 10-12 minutes until golden brown on the edges.

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Last year, for Judson's first birthday, we hosted an Ice Cream Social in our backyard.  For a summer birthday, an Ice Cream Social is a charmingly simple way to entertain.  The party is featured in this month's issue of

425 Magazine

that's available on newsstands in Western Washington now - or your iPad!  

The only 'over the top' thing that I did was created cakes in pointy ice cream cones.  The recipe + instructions are in the magazine!  

Pearl turned three this month and we celebrated with a charming little party.  She loves pink - like to a weird obsession - but what ever.  I assume she'll grow out of it one day.  Until then, viva la pink.

We hired a songleader to entertain the children and she was amazing.  We had cake, balloons, tiaras to color, and candy necklaces.  All in all, it was everything she loves best.  Pearl seemed to dig the bubbles too.

Happy Birthday Princess P!

Lars turned five earlier this month and we hosted a charming little art party at the fire house to celebrate.    I highly recommend this party for anyone who has to host a crowd of kids and wants to do something fun.  Each child got a small canvas when they walked in the door that we wrote their name on the back of.  They lined up at little tables and painted to their hearts content.  Most of them turned out amazingly awesome little 'modern art' pieces.  A few were not.

Happy Birthday Lars!