Sawtooth Star and a revision

Today's block is called Sawtooth Star, according to the calender anyway. I don't think it looks very toothy, but I don't make the rules. I used the orangy/pink batik for the background again. I figure there has to be at least 12 star block in the calender and if I make them all out of some kind of purple and this batik I can get a pretty cute quilt when I'm done. Plus, I don't have any other background fabric and I have 2 or 3 yds of the batik, LOL! This block is 12.5" square, like it should be!

I revised last night's block a little. I decided I wasn't happy with the weirdo size it was and I didn't want to have to cate to it later on (afterall, what makes it so special??). Mom suggested I put some wonky borders on it, and I did. I am much happier now that it is 12.5" like it should be.

Nothing else much happening today. We're watching The Polar Express. I fed my 3yr old chocolate chip pancakes with syrup on them for breakfast. He hasn't stopped moving. Upon request I need to channel my inner Miley and come up with a Hannah Montana-esque bag. Almost makes me a little sick to think the term "Rock star" in the same train of thought. A "Rock Star" is someone like... Steven Tyler, Keith Richards, Chad Kroger, Ozzy, Pink...not Hannah Montana. Bleh. LOL!! Thank God my children are too little for this craze but I am sure there will be others.

Pinwheel Star

Today's block is another star block, yay! This block is a WAY weird size that is really gonna mess with me when I go to set them into quilts after I'm done making blocks this year. It is 9 and 1/8th inches square. My points are perfect. This is because I grabbed up some little charms I had laying around and made HSTs with them. The biggest I could square the HSTs to was 2 3/4", so I did. I guess it would have made more sense to square them to 2.5" but oh well. :oD BTW, I am going with whatever name the calender uses for these blocks. You may see them other places called other names.

Having borrowed my sister Diantha turned out to be a good thing. We got my house pretty much clean today! Hannah is a little better, thanks for those of you who asked. She's still running a fever off and on but that is teething for ya. She's getting 4 top teeth at once, bummer!

Tony got sent home from work today, even though it was supposed to be their first day back. He had a personal day they let him take so he got paid anyway, which is nice. Now he's out of vacation and personal days though so if they make them go home any other days he won't get paid. He doesn't get anymore personal/vacation until March either so we are praying it doesn't happen! He volunteered to work a press tomorrow so that he could ensure he gets to go to work but apparently they were wanting people to take off the rest of the week. We are praying he can volunteer for other things because with no more personal days we can't afford for him not to get a paycheck. All in all, the Lord is good and knows our needs before
we do, so we have no need to worry! Since he is home tonight we are de-Christmasing the house. I was going to do it tomorrow but there is no reason for him to have to miss out on all that fun!

Something fun for today, it's been going around and around the e-mail but I thought I'd post it here with my answers:

SCATTERGORIES!
o Hit Forward (or copy and paste into a new e-mail/comment)
o Erase my answers
o Enter yours
o Send it on to 10 people including the one that sent this to you.
o Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following.
o They have to be real places, names, things.... nothing made up!
o Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st initial.
o You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question

What is your name? Desiree
Four letter word: Dark (HAHA, you thought I'd say "Damn". Oops, I said it)
Boy's Name: Devon
Girl's Name: Danica
Occupation: Doorman
A car: Delorean
A color: Dove
Something you wear: Diapers
Beverage: Draft (beer?)
Food: Dorritos
Something in the Bathroom: Drain
A Place: Dunedin
Reason for Being Late: Deported

Courthouse Steps

I haven't been home since Saturday morning. We came to Mom's yesterday to work on the water heater, went from there to church and ran into my aunt and uncle at church. They mentioned they thought we were going to come over on New Year's to have a little party and had bought something for just that occasion, and Tony and I figured since we were already almost there and their house is closer to Mom's than ours, we'd just go enjoy what they bought and spend the night. Save us a 30 mile trip home and back to Mom's today.

Hannah, in true childish form, has run a fever since we arrived at my aunt's. I got 4 hours sleep last night that was broken up by 2 hrs of being up with the feverish, babbling baby. The couple hours I did sleep I must have slept crooked on my neck so every time I move my head I feel like I get an electrical charge through my neck and head.

Needless to say I have a headache of apocalyptic proportions again.

Here I am, at Mom's, again with my still feverish baby. My son is running wild and slightly cranky from not having had a nap for 2 weeks while his Daddy has been off work. Thankfully Mom has the same quilt block a day calender that I do. Yesterday and today were combined so there was one block between them, a Courthouse Steps block. Mom (the overachiever) made it and a Log Cabin since they are variations of the same block and that gave her a block for yesterday and today. I attempted such a feat but with holding the baby and the headache I got a little befuddled and ended up with a 1/4 Log Cabin block. Humph. It's cute, I'm gonna keep it. Maybe over the course of the year I'll end up with little blocks and I can set them with sashing for a doll quilt or something.


I am totally ignoring the sizing charts on the back of each day's block and doing whatever the heck size I feel like. I think quilters should be free spirits, LOL! The Courthouse Steps block is 9.5" square and the oops block is 5.5" square.

Whilst riding around in the car and sitting around on relative's couches I have managed to finish my FIRST EVER knit sock! I really like how it came out, though now I know some subtle differences I need to do if I should ever knit another pair. I have enough left to get another pair my size out of this same yarn, if I use a blue or lime for the heels so I might do that later on.

And the question for the day is:
HOW does a boy of 8 DESTROY a Rubik's Cube within 48 hours of getting it in his stocking?? Here is a pic of my brother Allen holding my brother Josiah's stocking stuffer. Josiah is the destroyer in question.

Ohio Star

Today is a typical winter day in East Tennessee. It is cold, dreary, gray, wet and damp without actually raining and with no discernable sky to speak of. A great day for staying inside, napping or resting and working on hobbies. I've made pretty good progress on my first sock! I turned/finished the heal this morning and did about 5 more rows but that's it as Friday = payday = shopping day. Made the "mistake" of going to the Oak Ridge Walmart. Everyone in the world was packed in there, having just got their SS/D checks and they were all loaded for bear. I nearly got run over by a shopping cart 3 times trying to pick up some Excedrin.

On a completely unrelated note, Hannah has developed a bad diaper rash over the last couple days. I am using Aveno diaper rash ointment (she isn't allergic to this one) or baby powder with corn starch alternately, but it doesn't seam to be helping. We've gone through about 20 diapers (at $11 for 30!) since Wed night because of having to change her every time her diaper gets even a little soiled so it doesn't make it worse. A clerk at a store once told me to set the baby in a shallow bath of warm water with baking soda in it and it will clear it right up. Does anyone know if this works? I am worried it might cause problems with little girls, if ya know what I mean.

Today's block is an Ohio Star. I really love this block, always have. I have an affinity for star blocks anyway and also for HSTs or QSTs so this one really works for me. I cheated a little, since it's such a lazy day and used left over QSTs from the baby quilt I made for my sister Betsy. Using up stash/ufos and being productive, YAY ME! The block is done out of batiks and handdyes, though the corners isn't the same fabric as the light in the QSTs it matches pretty good! This block is 12.5".

Hannah had her first "big girl" bath last night! She is stable enough now to sit in the tub without slipping and has totally outgrown the baby bath tub. Boy did she have a blast!

And yesterday, all by himself, Jeremiah wrote his Daddy's name on the back of his left hand. He wrote a T all by himself, then a "leetle O" then asked me what "numbers" were next. Pretty good for a 3 yr old! He was so proud, and so was Tony. :-)

Another year here

So today began another year. When I was a kid new years day felt big. Probably it felt like what it is, the cusp of a new year and anticipation for whatever lies ahead. Now that I'm an adult it just feels like another day but I do wonder what'll happen this year. I don't believe in "resolutions". People don't keep them; I don't keep them. However, I do pray to be more patient and loving with my kids, to be more single minded in my crafts and not make so many UFOs. I hope to have a good year of sales on etsy too, so I'm praying about that one!


Last year was pretty good. There were ups and downs. My daughter was born; it's so hard to believe we'll be celebrating her first birthday in April. Time has flown. My son potty trained, what a blessing! I got a lot of quilting done and I have a lot of quilting left unfinished. My husband and I made it through another year of marriage without having a fight. Probably we could've had more sex though, LOL!

I have lots of pictures to share today! First and foremost I got a belated Christmas present (this is what happens when you don't check your PO box for almost 2 weeks!) Gorgeous batik fat quarters from eQuilts.com sent to me by "Santa!" I am suspicious about the actual sender, but since St Nick decided to remain annonymous I will just say thank you, thank you to whoever you are! They are beautiful and feel wonderful and I can't wait to use them!

Second is a picture of another Christmas present from my aunt. I was the recipient of my grandfather's Mother's button tin. What wonderful vintage buttons to use on my quitled bags and other things! I am so excited about this one, not only heirloom but antique! : )

The other pictures are of the fiber Mom and Dad gave me, I finished spinning it last night. It took me a week to spin a pound of fiber. I got 482 yards of thick and thin yarn that I cannot wait to begin knitting myself a shrug out of. I am trying and trying to have patience and to finish up some works in progress before starting it. Not to mention that hubby gave me 4 JoAnne Fluke mysteries that need reading, I have 4 more Janet Evanovich and Mom has loaned me 3 Margaret Lawrence books!

I started my first pair of knitted socks for myself. It is a beautiful blue and green handpainted yarn from Pancake and Lulu off etsy. I had it in my favorites and my parents bought it and stuck it in my stocking, LoL! I am knitting 64 stitches on bamboo needles the size of toothpicks. I am going to make the cuff/ribbing around the top short though, not even an inch, since I favor no-show socks so hopefully these won't take me eons to finish, hehe!


Today's page on my Quilt a Day calender just shows the quilt that can be made from the next 6 days worth of blocks, so I don't start any actual block piecing until tomorrow. Tony is at my parents again working on plumbing, again. The kids and I stayed home in favor of taking a nap and laying around (watching a Bones marathon on TNT!) I am definitely going to do some knitting if nothing else, but I'd like to piece at least 1 "Happy Batik Block" for my quilt I'm working on. I still need 35 blocks so I figure if I do one a day I can get the top pieced before the end of Feb. Maybe I can get the batting and backing with some birthday $$ and start quilting it for my birthday!

Spindling!

Tony's off until the 5th so I've been spindling while he's watched the kids. And I've been spindling while he was off working on the bedframe, whilst Hannah crawled around on the floor under my feet trying to catch fly-away bits of fiber.

My house is still in Christmas turmoil. Boxes everywhere. New baby outfits everywhere. Toys! Batteries! DVDs, blenders! Did I mention I did about 8 loads of laundry before Christmas that didn't get put up in all the hubbub and running around? I'm ignoring it. Actually, I was ignoring it until about 2 this afternoon when the laundry-guilt took over and I started to sort through laundry. Now my house is even more of a mess.

But look at the progress I'm making! I can't wait to get to Mom's tomorrow and use her swift to see how many yards of yarn I'm getting. I still have about half of the fiber too! Ooh, I could just run around in a circle like a chiuahua and pee on myself.

From Tuesday:

From yesterday:

Today:

Bear in mind that Mom spun the bit you see skeined, I think she said it was 68 yards. I've done what is on the water bottle, the mountain dew 2 liter and the spindle. What FUN!

Eccentric Presents

We did Christmas with my immediate side of the family on Tuesday night. My family is a little eccentric. Just a little. And so at Christmas we expect some kind of unconventional gifts. Also, I'm pretty good at guessing what a present is by shaking, squeazing and sometimes just looking at a package. So since I was a kid Mom has tried to get me at least 1 present a year that I don't expect and will totally stump me. Boy did she do it this year.

When I was passed this present I looked at it and said, "Oh you got me a case of toilet paper!" They all grinned and told me that was wrong, to open it. Well, it wasn't a case of toilet paper. It was a really cool retro-chrome diner napkin dispenser and a CASE of 4500 paper napkins. Mom said, "You never have napkins." I will have napkins when Jeremiah graduates. Ney, when he marries. I can get a rubber stamp with his and his bride's name and just stamp them on the leftover napkins for the wedding. LOL! I love it, too funny!

One of my other AWESOME presents from Mom was a thousand pounds (okay, probably somewhere between 15oz and 20oz) of various red, more red, black, white, and sparkly wool and a drop spindle of my very own! I immediately had to spin just a little bit since I knew I wouldn't be able to until today. This morning I spun some more and have the spindle quite full. I'm almost to the point where I want to borrow her swift and set the spin in this and start some more.

Hannah got a wonderful, gorgeous silver chain with a cross hanging from it for her first Christmas. The links in the chain are heart shaped and as serendipity would have it, she also got a wonderful, beautiful anklet of heart shaped chain links with little bells hanging from it. Very gypsy. My brother in law joked (since upon arriving at my inlaws, Hannah's clothes immediately came off since it was 80 degrees in there!) that in only her diaper and fancy jingle bells her stage name was "Bambi". LoL!

Jeremiah recieved a play electric guitar and a chainsaw, among other things. I think these two are at the top of the list. He fell alseep Tues. night holding the chain saw and Wed. night holding the guitar. He asked his Nana and Papaw if they had ever heard Nickelback on the radio.

Tony was blessed with a small shop-vac of his very own, so he can be a wonderful husband and clean out my car. MUAHAHAHA!

We had a wonderful Christmas, 6 or 7 times by the time we were done this year. We are blessed with a large and loving family so it takes a lot of miles and a lot of presents before we're done making the rounds but it is so great to be able to see everyone and we are thankful for having had a safe, happy and healthy Christmas!

OH YEAH, we also recieved these SUPER cute magnets from my parents. Mom got them from Polpette Clay on etsy. The lady custom made Tony's with a gotee and Jeremiah's as Darth Vader. Mine is getting the other peas tangled in red yarn and Hannah's is cute and pink.

The Heart Quilt

My Mom used to make all my play clothes. She'd make dresses, button down shirts and shorts, dresses for church, halloween costumes, jackets, etc. Apparently when I was about 2 I started picking out fabric from her stash, then picking a pattern out of her other stash and saying 'This.' As well all know kids outgrow things quickly, and I have a couple of my old dresses saved and put back incase Hannah wants them. Some of the others though, got cut into squares or cut into hearts to make a quilt for me when I was 7.

For Christmas 1993 my Mom made me this red quilt, because red is my favorite color. She put a heart in each square because I was born on Valentine's Day. And on Christmas eve my Granny Judy Swartzbaugh sat around and sewed buttons in the center of each heart to tie the quilt. I love this quilt. I am thinking of doing the same thing for Hannah, although since most of her clothes are store-bought knit I wonder how that would work for a quilt. Mine were mostly cotton that could be used for quilting since they were handmade.

The quilt hangs in my kitchen and has since I got married. Before then it hung in my bedroom. The flowers you see hanging from it are ones that people brought to the hospital for Hannah when she was born. I've dried them but haven't found a box or something to put them in. Not quite sure what to do with them, but for some reason I thought I should keep them.

A Knitter's Christmas Eve Poem

Goodmorning Internet!
It's the last weekend before Christmas. Thankfully, we only have about 4 presents to hunt down and 2 of them are gift cards so that will be quick! Jeremiah is sleeping in and when he awakes he and Tony will go off and do manly things, like buy me some presents. Jeremiah has been stressing about the fact that I don't have any presents under the tree yet. He had me write him a list the other day and said he was going to get me "everystuffs" on it and wrap it up when I went to bed. Bear in mind my son is 3 and cannot read and also goes to bed before I do, LOL! Still it is very cute and all spoken with a very southern accent. I keep having this little southern babies who come from the womb saying things like "my-say-elf" instead of "myself" and wanting to mainline SWEET tea and biscuits and gravy. *smiles* Isn't it great?

I got 1 shirt for my Dad all done except sewing buttons on it! We decided instead of giving him 2 shirts like I'd planned, we will give him one now with something else and give him the other that I cut out for Father's Day in June. I'll make it soon though before I forget and have to have Mom walk me through all the sewing in babysteps. I am a trial, I'm sure. : ) But Mom makes such wonderful clothes! She's won ribbons in fairs for suits she's made my Dad and she made my wedding dress (3 times, actually)! I started to sew a seam on the shirt and she was like, no first do this, this and this. I said, "This is seamstress crap huh?" And she told me that was the difference between a shirt that looked handmade and one that looked like it came from a store. Whatever you say, Yoda. Thankfully the buttons and 3 more handprints on Granny's quilt are all the handmade things I have to finish up for Christmas. I actually got everything done!!

This was on a knitters list I'm on today and I thought I'd share.
A Knitter's Christmas Eve
A poem written by Nancy Massaroni.

`Twas the night before Christmas and all around me
Was unfinished knitting not under the tree.
The stockings weren't hung by the chimney with care
`Cause the heels and toes had not a stitch there.
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
But I had not finished the caps for their heads.
Dad was asleep; he was no help at all,
And the sweater for him was six inches too small,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter
I put down my needles to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tripped over my yarn and fell down with a crash.
The tangle of yarn that lay deep as the snow
Reminded me how much I still had to go.
Out on my lawn I heard such a noise,
I thought it would wake both Dad and the boys.

And though I was tired, my brain a bit thick,
I knew in a moment it must be St Nick.
But what I heard then left me perplex-ed,
For not a name I heard was what I expected,
"Move, Ashford! Move, Lopi! Move, Addi and Clover!
Move, Reynolds! Move Starmore!
Move Froelich –move overPaton, don't circle 'round; stand in the line.
Come now, you sheep will work out just fine!
I know this is hard; it's just your first year,
I'd hate to go back to eight tiny reindeer."

I peered over the sill; what I saw was amazing,
Eight wooly sheep on my lawn all a-grazing.
And then, in a twinkle, I heard at the door
Santa's feet coming across the porch floor.
I rose from my knees and got back on my feet,
And as I turned 'round St Nick I did meet.

He was dressed all in wool from his head to his toe,
And his clothes were hand knit from above to below.
A bright Fairisle sweater he wore on his back,
And his toys were all stuffed in an Aran knit sack.
His cap was a wonder of bobbles and lace
A beautiful frame for his rosy red face.
The scarf 'round his neck could have stretched for a mile,
And the socks peeking over his boots were Argyle.
The back of his mittens bore an intricate cable.
And suddenly on one I espied a small label,
"S.C." was duplicate stitched on the cuff,
And I asked, "Hey, Nick, did you knit all this stuff?"

He proudly replied, "Ho, ho, ho, yes I did.
I learned how to knit when I was a kid."
He was chubby and plump, a quite well-dressed old man,
And I laughed to myself, for I'd thought up a plan.
I flashed him a grin and jumped up in the air,
And the next thing he knew, he was tied to a chair,
He spoke not a word, but looked in his lap
Where I'd laid my needles and yarn for a cap.
He quickly began knitting, first one cap then two,
For the first time I thought I might really get through.

He put heels in the stockings and toes in some socks.
While I sat back drinking scotch on the rocks.
So quickly like magic his needles they flew
That he was all finished by quarter to two.
He sprang for his sleigh when I let him go free,
And over his shoulder he looked back at me,
And I heard him exclaim as he sailed past the moon,
"Next year start your knitting sometime around June!"

I am starting my knitting earlier this year. My sister Diantha's birthday is in March and I have something knitty in mind so I've already got the yarn ready to go! See me, I'm thinking ahead. Way to go me! LoL!

Major cookie, minor quilty

Before anything else, when Mom got to my house today she brought me HOMEMADE CREAM PUFFS. Miniature eclairs. Bits of HEAVEN. Whatever you want to call them!

Boy did we bake today. We baked 5 batches of cookies. 1 Chocolate chip, 1 Chocolate snow cap, 1 peanut butter and 2 batches of Snickerdoodles. See my chocolate chip cookies!

While all that was going on Mom and I began to work on my Granny's quilt. Oops. Her half was bigger than mine by 3" all around. The nearest store that sells fabric is 35 minutes away and neither of us was feeling like a trip to Knoxville so I dug around in my stash and found a red in my box of Shakespeare in the Park fabrics that matched well enough. Thank God there was enough! We added borders, pinned it out and Mom quilted it while I worked on cookies. Then while she worked on cookies I did the binding. Then we through it in the wash while we made corndogs for dinner, LOL!

When it FINALLY came out of the dryer we painted the kids that were still here's handprint on different squares. Still need to add my cousin Dana and my brothers Allen and Artemas but then it is ALL done and can be wrapped.

Mom's side of the quilt was a W/U entry for the N2Quilting list. Or a round robin. I can't remember. I am so tired my brain and fingers are fuzzy.

Diantha is spending the night so Mom can work on her Christmas present tomorrow. BUAHAHA. She doesn't know she's been gotten rid of for the day, LOL, she just thinks she was left here. Maybe tomorrow I can work on laundry a little.

My husband wants to make cupcakes to take to work tomorrow. Red velvet for Christmas he says. I don't think he understands that is it 12:22 AM. He said he'd make them (I just didn't get to it today) but he keeps hinting that I could make them. Stuff like, "You didn't start on the cupcakes while I was in the shower did you? Oh." And to Jeremiah, "I'm gonna have to help Mama help me make cupcakes a little...she's really good at that." *sigh* Sometimes I'd like to not be so freaking wonderful. Hannah is asleep, the first time this week she's gone to bed before 1:30AM! Sheesh. I don't know what her deal is. But she is alseep. I could be asleep.

But, I am wonderful at making cupcakes.

BONUS: Snickerdoodle cookies

Here's a bonus cookie recipe for the day!
I think these cookies are fundementally flawed in that there is not a snippet of chocolate anywhere in this recipe. HOWEVER, they are delicious and are terrific with a nice cup of coffee.
Another recipe that calls for the dough to be rolled into balls, these were a favorite to make as a kid due to the hands-on factor. And they are quick. :-D

I think these are another of the recipes we're going to make tomorrow. Now I just need to finish cleaning my kitchen so we have lots of room! I will make sure I post pics of the cookie making (and eating!) processes!

Snickerdoodle Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, beat the butter on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add the 1 cup sugar, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in the egg and vanilla until well blended. Beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer, and stir in remaining flour.

Combine the 4 tablespoons sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Shape the dough into 1 inch balls and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture to coat. Place balls of dough 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 to 11 minutes or until edges are beautifully golden.
Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.

Note: If your kitchen is exceptionally warm and the dough gets too sticky to roll into balls, simply cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.

Chocolate Snowcap Cookies

I am really excited about making these cookies tomorrow. My kids are too, can you tell?

Once baked and cooled these cookies will last a week in an air tight container. Only, they won't last a week. Trust me. They might last a weekend and that's if you have no company and a lot more self control than I do.

Chocolate Snowcap Cookies:

Makes about 11 dozen

Ingredients:

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled slightly (2/3 bag choc. chips)

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/3 cups light-brown sugar, firmly packed

2 large eggs

4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

1 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for rolling

Directions:
Heat oven to 350°.
Chop chocolate into small bits, and melt over medium heat in a heat-proof bowl or the top of a double boiler set over a pan of simmering water (or microwave on high, stirring every 30 seconds until melted). Be sure not to get even a DROP of water in the chocolate because if you do it will ruin it! Set aside to cool.

Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.
Beat butter and light-brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until well combined. Add the melted chocolate.

With mixer on low speed, alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk until just combined. The last addition of flour you will want to switch to a stiff spoon.

Dust hands with powdered sugar. Using a t-spoon dipped in powdered sugar, dip up balls of dough and roll them in more powdered sugar.

**Alternately or if your kitchen is warm, on a clean countertop sprinkled generously with powdered sugar, roll each portion of dough into a log approximately 16 inches long and 1 inch in diameter, using more confectioners' sugar to prevent sticking. Wrap logs in plastic wrap, and transfer to a baking sheet. Chill for 30 minutes. Cut each log into 1-inch pieces, and toss in confectioners' sugar, a few at a time. **

Using your hands, roll the pieces into a ball shape. If any of the cocoa-colored dough is visible, roll dough in confectioners' sugar again to coat completely.

Place the cookies 2 inches apart on a foil, parchment, or waxed paper-lined baking sheet. Bake until cookies have flattened and the sugar splits, 12 to 15 minutes.

Transfer from oven to a wire rack to let cool completely.

Note: I always end up having to chill the dough in the refrigerator for a few minutes before I roll them into balls. Otherwise the dough will stick to your hands like no tomorrow! But these are totally worth every bit of "trouble".