• Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube

Simply Bloom Co.

Where Passion & Purpose Collide

  • About
    • FAQ
    • Media & Interviews
    • Blog
      • Everyday Blooms
      • Marriage
      • Motherhood
      • Recipes
        • Breakfasts & Snack Foods
        • Lunches & Main Meals
        • Desserts & Sweet Treats
  • Speaking
    • Topics
    • Schedule
    • Conferences
    • Enneagram
    • Reviews
    • Podcast
      • Episodes
    • Booking
  • Podcast
  • Books
    • SOZO Book
    • Penduka Book
      • Penduka Shop
    • XES Book
      • Book Reviews
      • Interviews & Podcasts
    • R:EVOLVE Journal
  • Design
    • Client Reviews
    • Investment
    • Book in Bloom
      • Book in Bloom Bundles
  • Shop

Crumbling the Silence {with Cookies}

We’re having a grand ol’ time here in the McMilli-vanilli home. 

I have no idea where that came from.  You’ll have to pardon me, I’m heavily sleep deprived {sick kids, design deadlines, cookies to decorate, you know…the usual} and mildly medicated {it’s that time…and my uterus hates me}.  And apparently my TMI filter is broken.

{sigh}

I wanted to take a quick break from my, well…break…to pop in and share these frosted babies with you! 

Aren’t they darling?

Christmas cookies 2011 (1 of 1)

I’ve never been much of a cookie girl {I just go straight for the chocolate}, and didn’t think I liked sugar cookies at all, really.  As it turns out…I was simply over-baking them and just hadn’t discovered the best-darn-sugar-cookie-recipe-ever yet! 

Might as well get my fat pants back out.

Because, holy mother of pearl, they’re good!

I found the recipe here, at the fabulous {read: incredibly helpful & inspirational) blog of Sweet Sugarbelle {I mean, seriously…just look at these cookies!}. 

This sugar cookie recipe is quick, it’s easy, it doesn’t need to be chilled before it’s rolled…and it’s just so stinkin’ tasty! 

I may or may not have eaten a hefty portion of it before they were rolled.  Don’t judge.

This creative cookie queen also has some great tips for making the process even easier {just beneath the recipe on her site}.

This sweet adventure of mine began a few days ago when I stumbled upon an image of intricately decorated cookies {on Glorious Treats}…and was wildly inspired.  I promptly decided I wanted to be a cookie decorator when I grow up.  If and when that happens.

I rounded up my Christmas money (my hubby’s grandparents gifted early…yippeee!) and, armed with a 40% off coupon, headed to Hobby Lobby for some meringue powder.

What on earth is meringue powder?  Great question.  I haven’t a clue.  But it’s marvelous stuff!

I’ve never made royal icing before, and had only ever heard of this magical powder…so didn’t realize what a treat I was in for.  It totally changes the cookie piping experience.

Do I sound like a cookie freak of nature?  Don’t answer that.

I have never enjoyed decorating cookies as much as I did last night.  I’m hooked.  And slightly scared.  I really haven’t missed my muffin-top all that much.

Here’s the great royal icing recipe I used.  But be warned…creating little, edible works of art might be as addictive for you as I fear it will be for me.

We could help each other.  Create a ‘cookie addicts support group’?

Repeat after me…I will not sample another cookie, I will not sample another cookie…

Christmas cookies 2011 (2 of 1)

On the home front, Bug and Bean are as wild and crazy, and delicious and fabulous as ever.

I am so enjoying this much needed down time with my lovely ones, and will resurface after the chaos magic of the holidays dissipates slightly. 

Christmas kids

Have a lovely one, friends!

Related posts:

  1. Pumpkin No-Bake Cookies
  2. Paisley & Sugar
  3. The Naughty Cookies {viewer discretion advised}
  4. A Sweeter Deal: No Bake Cookies {Take 1}
«
»

Cute Stuff, Family, Food, Home, Photography

Don’t miss a thing! Sign up for the monthly newsletter…

Simply Bloom exists to empower women to embrace their stories, live out their passion with purpose, and leave a legacy of love.
 photo Joy.jpg

Hello there! I'm Joy. Speaker, designer, author & coach, and creator of the #weROARproject. Welcome to Simply Bloom Co., where passion & purpose collide.

Subscribe for Updates

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
Praise isn’t pretending everything is fine, it’s r Praise isn’t pretending everything is fine,
it’s remembering who God is, even when it isn’t.
It rarely changes our circumstances,
but it always changes our perspective.

What could shift in you
if you praised God for even one thing
you’ve been tempted to complain about?

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #WonderOfWorship
Sometimes praise is the most rebellious act of hop Sometimes praise is the most rebellious act of hope we have left.

🎙️ Episode 3 of Oh, Good Grief | The Podcast is live.

In this week’s episode, The Sound of Surrender, we’re talking about what happens when we worship through the wilderness, and the way gratitude reshapes our view of God, of ourselves, and of the desert we’re walking through.

🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

#OhGoodGrief #FaithInTheFire #WondersOfTheWilderness #PraiseThroughPain #FormationOverFame
God is never careless with the pruning knife. If H God is never careless with the pruning knife.
If He allows something to fall away, we can trust His heart,
that it is ultimately for our good,
and for His glory.

#AllisGrace #OhGoodGriefPodcast
Sometimes God prunes what is still alive. Not beca Sometimes God prunes what is still alive.
Not because He is cruel, but because He is kind.

It’s unbelievably hard to walk away from something that was once deeply fruitful. But when a season ends and God lifts His grace from that role, relationship, or project, lingering often hurts far more than leaving.

Trust His heart for you in the pruning. 🌱
He cuts with purpose, and always with love.

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #SimplyBloomCo
I stumbled across the word I chose and lettered fo I stumbled across the word I chose and lettered for 2023. Held. I thought it might reopen old ache. Instead, it reminded me of the deeper song beneath our hardest seasons: even in the unraveling, we were held.

And as a new year unfolds, that truth feels like a steadying hand.

Here’s to beginnings that hum with mercy...
sunrises, blankets of white snow,
seasons turning quietly toward hope. 

Dream bravely.
Plan loosely.
Take the next small step.
Try again.

Be tender with yourself.
Honor the slow work of becoming.
And step into this year knowing—
you are held.
As we stand on the edge of a new year, remember th As we stand on the edge of a new year, remember this:
God doesn’t prune to prove a point;
He prunes to produce fruit.

Trust the precision and the heart
of the Master Gardener.

What felt like loss this past year
may have been His clearing away of the old
to make room for the new.

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #SimplyBloomCo
For the person who doesn’t love journaling but doe For the person who doesn’t love journaling but does love growth…the R•EVOLVE Journal was created to make the practice simple, sustainable, and meaningful.

Five lines a day - small enough to fit into real life, yet rich enough to capture the joys, struggles, prayers, answered prayers, and all the quiet in-between spaces.

Some seasons change us so subtly we miss the beauty of what’s unfolding. This little rhythm helps you notice it, and hold it.

All seven cover designs are available on Amazon or in the Simply Bloom Co. shop
📚 simplybloomshop.org/product-page/r-evolve-journals

If you live in Central Michigan, I'm happy to connect with you and get one into your hands so you can start journaling sooner.
Sometimes God prunes what’s still alive. Not becau Sometimes God prunes what’s still alive.
Not because He’s cruel — because He’s kind.

🍃 Episode 003 of OGG is live: Making the Cut | When Love Looks Like Loss.

We’re talking about the difference between punishment and pruning, and how the wilderness can be proof of love.

🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

#OhGoodGriefPodcast #SimplyBloomCo
When we fail, when we flounder, when our fragile f When we fail,
when we flounder,
when our fragile faith starts to tremble…
we can trust His heart for us.

His love remains unchanging,
and His purposes remain unshakable.
Follow @SimplyBloomJoy

Copyright © 2026 · Designed by Simply Bloom · Theme from Restored 316

Copyright © 2026 · Darling Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Unfortunately it does not contain chocolate chips, you cannot eat it and there is no special hidden jar.