Snowmen Sugar Cookies and a Snow-Themed Military Care Package

Disney songs have a way of getting stuck in my head; a single phrase can play an entire movie scene in my imagination. While decorating these Snowmen Sugar Cookies, I found myself humming along to little Anna from Frozen. Would you like to bake a snowman?

Snow was the theme for my January military care package. I’m not a fan of dangerous winter driving, but I do love the nostalgic, childlike feelings snow can bring: snow days off from school, building snowmen, sledding, and sweet seasonal treats. With that in mind, I boxed up a few snow-themed goodies and some homemade cookies to lift the spirits of Soldier B. and his buddies.

Care Package Contents

For holiday-themed care packages, the Dollar Store, Target, and grocery stores are full of affordable items that fit a snowy motif. I planned ahead and gathered supplies for both December and January at once, which made packing easier.

My goal is to include inexpensive, disposable items that are fun, slightly silly, and guaranteed to bring a smile. This snow-themed box included foil-wrapped chocolate snowmen, packaged snowball cupcakes, hot apple cider mix, hot chocolate mix, snowflake decorations, a Pez snowman, a snowflake-shaped candle, Snickers minis in a snowflake tin, and puzzle books. Packaged snowball cupcakes were one of my favorite finds—such a clever way to send “snow” to someone far from home.

To make the inside of the box feel festive, I line it with wrapping paper and glue it in place. I also tape the recipient’s full name and address to the inside of the lid as a backup in case the outside label is damaged during shipping. Covering the outside label with packing tape helps protect it from weather and wear. So far, this method has kept packages arriving safely.

Iced Snowmen Sugar Cookies: Decorating Tips

I decorated chocolate sugar cookies to look like snowmen. The design is simple: mostly white icing with small colored details added using sprinkles and a little orange icing for noses.

I made one batch of chocolate sugar cookies and one batch of glaze icing. From the glaze I reserved slightly more than ½ cup of the thicker white icing for outlining and placed it in a piping bag with a small round tip. I set aside about a tablespoon of that thicker icing, colored it orange for the noses, and put the orange icing into a small piping bag (or a plastic sandwich bag with a tiny corner snipped off).

Start by outlining the outer edge of the cookie and drawing a line across the center to separate the face from the hat. Let the outline set for about 30 minutes, then flood the face area with the thinner white icing.

Two handy tools for decorating are a toothpick and a pair of tweezers. The toothpick helps with small adjustments in icing, while tweezers make placing tiny candies and sequins easy. Right after flooding the face, use tweezers to add mini M&M eyes (or similar small candies) and black sequin sprinkles for mouths. Pipe a small orange triangle for the nose; if you prefer, you can use half an orange M&M (cut side down) for a three-dimensional nose—but for shipping, a piped flat nose packs more neatly.

When the face icing has set (about an hour), finish the hat. Flood the hat area with white icing, hold the cookie over a bowl, and sprinkle colored sugar over the flooded hat. Catch and reuse excess sugar from the bowl. Add additional sprinkles or a snowflake trim with tweezers for a neat finish.

Always allow iced sugar cookies to dry overnight so the icing hardens before packing. I wrap cookies in pairs (bottoms together) with plastic wrap, then place the wrapped bundles snugly in a freezer-weight, gallon-size zip-top bag. This keeps them fresh and helps prevent damage in transit.

Additional Snow Treat: Cinnamon Snowball Cookies

To round out the snow-themed treats, I included two dozen Cinnamon Snowball Cookies. These cookies are sturdy, stay fresh longer, and have a delightful cinnamon crunch—perfect for mailing and for sharing around a cookie jar. Their texture and lasting freshness make them a reliable choice for care packages.

Between the Iced Snowmen Sugar Cookies and the Cinnamon Snowball Cookies, a snow-themed care package can deliver a little childhood joy without the cold. Thoughtful packaging, simple decorating tricks, and a few inexpensive themed items make it easy to send cheer and comfort to someone far from home.