Homemade Frosted Sugar Cookies... Are they really worth the effort?

I'd planned on baking yesterday in preparation for my younger son's classroom Halloween party. He'd requested sugar cookies (with frosting) in the shape of pumpkins. No sweat. I had it covered, or at least I thought so, until I went to gather ingredients from the pantry and refrigerator. I quickly discovered I had no Crisco, an absolute necessity for my beloved and much-revered sugar cookie recipe, the one my family has been baking for generations. First of all, I ask you, how does any self-respectin' southern woman get by without some form of "shortnin'" (a.k.a. lard) in her cupboard? I seriously need to get my act together.

Mind you, I'd only been to the grocery store at least 3 times this week already, but I'd failed to add Crisco to my list of items to purchase. If it's not on a list, honey, it simply doesn't exist in my world. I will never, ever remember to purchase anything not on the list.

So... I had to go pick up Crisco and decided to go to Dierbergs real quick (By the way, there's no such thing as real quick in Dierbergs because they have way too many tempting goodies.), and I really should never have gone there, except I'd already been to Target, Schnucks and Wal-Mart earlier in the week, and since the commissary is a little out of the way, and all I needed was Crisco, I opted to go to Dierbergs. Let's just say I spent a considerable amount of time there and left approximatley $150 poorer. But I got Crisco!
Before heading home to begin my day of baking, I made a quick stop at the Starbucks drive-thru for a Pumpkin Spice Latte, my all-time favorite beverage at Starbucks. It's a seasonal item too, so I have to take advantage of its availability while I can. Keep in mind that I moved here just 3 months ago from overseas, where the Starbucks on base (which really is sort of Starbucks wannabe) did NOT offer this favorite beverage of mine, so you can understand how excited I am to be back in the Land o' Plenty where such things can be purchased and enjoyed, at least for a couple of months before it goes away until next fall.

I purchased my Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte, even tipped the drive-thru employee, and was about halfway home when I decided it was time to sample my beverage. I took a sip and quickly surmised it was NOT a Pumpkin Spice Latte, but a Skinny Caramel Latte. It wasn't even the right size, but I hadn't noticed in time to do anything about it, and I didn't have time to turn around and go back. I had baking to do... pronto! You know what they say about the drive-thru anyway (Cue Joe Pesci's character, Leo Getz, in "Lethal Weapon 2").

Note to self: Either go inside to order or check my order BEFORE LEAVING the drive-thru. I drank the Skinny Caramel Latte, but it just wasn't the same experience.

I baked cookies all afternoon, but had to wait until they'd cooled before frosting them. My son didn't want them to be jack o'lanterns, thank God! He just wanted orange pumpkins with green stems, certainly saving me from a severe case of carpal tunnel syndrome. I kept having to take breaks to run taxi service for both boys 'cause that's what I do. I'm thinking I have a bright future in taxi driving at some point, since I get to drive all over town and have learned the streets quite well.

I walked inside my oldest son's school at 9pm to retrieve him from the gym after basketball practice and discovered I had cookie dough and frosting all over my shirt and one wrist. Hmmm... I only have like 5 aprons, but for whatever reason I can never remember to put them on when I'm working in the kitchen. I even have a couple hanging on the back of the pantry door, for heaven's sake.By the way, this is not a photo of any of the 5 aprons I own, but I do love bacon. Am I speakin' to anybody here?

I finally finished the cookies around 10pm last night. They were time-consuming, but looked dadgum good and tasted even better.They were a hit at my son's party today and he seemed very pleased. Several kids asked if I'd made them and others commented they looked "awesome." I suppose in this convenient world of ours, where we can drop by the bakery and pick up already-made cookies, it surprises folks when we actually make something ourselves. One little boy asked for seconds and later thirds of our pumpkin-shaped sugar cookies and said, "These cookies are amazing!" Of course he said that about the pizza and everything else served too, but still... I beamed and handed him that third cookie. Yep, homemade frosted sugar cookies are most definitely worth the effort!