It's that time of year!

Last night was the Annual Cookie Decorating Party for the Wagner family. They've had this party for family & friends for 19 years and I've been lucky to be a part of it since my freshman or sophomore year in high school!

The rules of the party are quite simple. Decorate sugar cookies using any of the many colors of icing you want and any or all of the sprinkles provided! I've won many awards in the past for great cookies:

My "Teacher Set"

I won the Lifetime Achievement Award for this beauty below in 2006.
Here is Miss USA, complete with coke under her nose and a beer bottle in her hand. I've learned that if you decorate a cookie as something big that happened in the news that year, it might hold up in the judging. I also know the judges well (Emilie, Mr. Wagner, Em's bro-in-law & cousin and Mr. Tobin), so that helps.

Last year I won the People's Choice Award for this OK Magazine cover! It took me FOR-EVER! I used toothpicks to place each one of those tiny sprinkles.

Other good cookie entries have been a Plaza skyline, complete with lights, and I've also had great competition. Kristin always goes all out with one cookie that takes her most of the evening. She's made Priest Holmes, Napoleon Dynamite, Coach Mangino, Cat in the Hat, etc, etc, etc. First time contestants are also notorious for winning: Mark's billiards balls & cue, Sandy's 3-D tree, etc.

This year, I came in with very few ideas, which was my problem to start. My entry (see below) made it into the top 20, but then, I was out of the contest. I guess I need to start thinking of ideas for next year's party!

Here we are after all the decorating and awards have come and gone.

This was my one good entry. I also made a gingerbread man missing a leg. There were a few other Obama logos, but mine was the only one with the motto on it.

This is Megan's 1st place winner! Megan is also quite the decorator. She's had many awards in the past with Fruit of the Loom characters, a to-scale KU bball court, and McDonalds fries & burger.

This was Kristin's winning entry for this year. She took my idea to the next level. I think she won 2nd runner up.

Here is a sampling of some of the cookies. Look closely at the Miss Pac Man in the top right, the Mexican-themed entries (this year's party has a Feliz Navidad theme), the other Obama log, and on the bottom right is a hand in a popcorn box.

Here are Kristin, John & Meg decorating.

And Julie pretend eating Mike's 1st entry. This was his first year at the party, and Julie's come-back after several years of being OOT. Mike decided just to pile as many colors of frosting and sprinkles on the cookie as he could.

Kristin was the one who got the pinata to finally crack! No surprise there!

And this is at the end of the evening. I was taking Julie & Mike home, and Matt asked if he could have a ride, too. I told him, "Sure, but I'm not sure that you'll fit!" Turns out, I wasn't too far off. This is why I am never asked to be the driver. Poor Matt was practically eating the windshield and Julie and Mike were packed like sardines in the back seat.