Do you have special memories of your grandparents when you were young? I remember both my grandparents and great-grandparents very well. I have such fond memories of all of them.
A cliche’ thought about grandmas are that they spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking and baking. My grandmother and great-grandmother were excellent cooks, and they did spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking, but they didn’t bake all that much. Oddly enough it was my great-grandfather who did most of the baking (and he was very good at it). He’s most popular thing to bake were scones. Mmm… I miss his scones.
My mother in law was also a fabulous cook, but never did much baking. I guess this all explains why I can’t bake at all. I’m a horrible baker, even when it comes to using pre-made mixes.
My husband is the baker in the family. He’s the one who bakes cakes, and I”m the one who decorates them. After all, decorating cakes and cookies is more fun than actually baking them. Of course, eating them is the most fun of all.
I used to buy “blank” Gingerbread men for my kids to decorate around the holidays. I have also purchases pre-made sugar cookies from the bakery at the grocery store and a variety of candies and frostings to let them decorate their own cookies too. It was a lot of fun. I miss those days with my kids (they are young adults now).
I know that the internet is filled with monthly subscription box ideas, but there are a few that stand out and are worth noting. Once such box is Gramma in a Box, which takes the idea of decorating cookies, making sweet treats and crafts to a new level.
Gramma in a Box includes baked cookies with frosting and sprinkles as well two easy candy crafts to make – enough to make at least 20 finished products in each box. Step-by-step instructions with illustrations are included.
Imagine a child’s delight to receive THIS box in the mail each month. Like me, they would be stalking the mailman (ha ha).
Each month you will receive a fun filled box of treats to make. Your box includes almost everything you need to make and decorate up to 20 cookie and candy treats, including fresh homemade cookies, a variety of sprinkles and colored frosting, two easy candy crafts, detailed instruction sheet with photos, as well as decorating ideas. Some months will also include holiday theme candy and cookies, such as the Valentine’s and St. Patrick’s Day photos below.
On the brand’s website they suggest that these boxes would be fun to do with grandma (and grandpa!) when they come to visit their grandchildren or even over Skype. I think that is a fabulous idea and a great way to create lasting memories with the grandparents.
Of course, families can do the boxes together too (no grandparent needed). I know that not everyone has the luxury of spending time with their grandparents due to distance, illness or passing on.
I received a sample Gramma in a Box to check out for myself. The box contained everything we needed to decorate cookies and make two different candies, among other things.
Everything you need to make these “projects” is included in the box with the exception of things like butter knives, toothpicks and other odds and ends that can be found in every kitchen.
I neglected to take a photo of the front of the box. It had some stickers and the expiration date for the goodies inside. Some things are OK past that date, like the jelly beans in the box I received, colored sugar and sprinkles. The other items such as the cookies and frosting do have to be used before they expire. There was ample time between when I received the box and the expiration date to get things done.
The first project was decorating cookies. The box came with several fun shaped cookies (in this case it was Easter cookies because it was around Easter when the box was received). Please note – I couldn’t track down my photos which is why I took so long for me to post this.
I received duck, egg and flower shaped cookies. In addition there was frosting (pink and blue), sprinkles and colored sugar. You could add in an other items you might have around your kitchen too.
Please excuse the egg shaped one. I was going for a rainbow/tie-dye look to the cookie, but I didn’t execute it as well as I had pictured it in my mind.
I LOVE the colored sugar. It’s sparkly like glitter, but you can eat it.
The cookies themselves tasted delicious. I tried one of them before decorating just to get a sense of what they tasted like. They were great on their own. Yummy!
The next project was making candied “flowers” out of chocolate melts and mini-marshmallows. This was super easy to do and they tasted great.
You needed to make these with wax paper so you could easily pull them off when they were cooled.
I love marshmallows so I appreciated this sweet treat.
Lastly, the box contained the supplies you needed to make “nests” using mini-cupcake wrappers (they reminded me of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup wrappers), cereal (Fruit Loops), melting chocolate and colorful jelly beans.
Mine turned out a bit messy, but WOW! They were so good!
All of these projects were easy to make and didn’t require anything laborious like baking, and they weren’t messy to clean up (I did spill one of the containers of colored sugar, but that was my fault). Plus once you know how to make some of these goodies you can try making them again another time.
I appreciate that everything you needed was included in the box. It wouldn’t have been as fun if I needed to color my own frosting or look for my own colorful cereal.
As a mom, I think this is a great activity to do with your children, especially on a rainy day or when the cold winter comes about.
For grandparents, this would be a super fun activity to do along with your grandchild/children. It’s a great bonding activity.
If you are interested in learning more about Gramma in a Box visit GrammaInABox.com. The brand can also be found on Facebook and Instagram. Those links are found on the top right of their website.
What do you think about the idea of Gramma in a Box? Is it something you would like to try with your family?
Kimberly
*I received a free sample to review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.