Merry Christmas!!!

Caroling and Birthday!

Wednesday evening, we went caroling with some people from church. It was quite warm outside, but it was fun! :) After we went caroling, we went over to Darren and Regina's home to celebrate Faithie's first birthday. She is getting so big!! :)

Here are the pictures:
(Click the photo to see the album.)

Faithie's 1st Birthday

Finished and Delivered!

This poncho for Gracey's Christmas present and this jumper for Faithie's Birthday/Christmas:


I made the jumper first, then had a whole other skein leftover. So I decided to make this poncho for Gracey so they could match. It fit her just perfectly! I love the way it turned out! :) The poncho is super easy too... well, I tweaked it a little, so I made it a little more difficult. It is just two rectangles put together. A simple version would be two garter stitch (knit back and forth) rectangles and then sew them together. (view demo video here.)

Here is the little angel modeling her poncho!

I don't have a picture of Faithie modeling her jumper yet. Her birthday party was just last night after caroling. (More pictures of those to come!!! ) But here is a picture of me with my other little "adopted neice."

Happy Birthday, Sweetie!!!

Christmas Program

Last night was our Christmas program for kids. I rewrote The Candymaker’s Gift by David and Helen Haidle. I wasn't sure how many kids we would have until rehearsal that night. We didn't have a lot of practice and the kids just read their lines, but it turned out really cute! Bro. Ron was our Candymaker and did a great job! Gracey sang "Away in a Manger" so beautifully! Thanks to everyone for their hard work!!

Church Kid's Program

Church Christmas Dinner

Today was our church Christmas dinner. We had lots of great food and enjoyed visiting with everyone. We also had a white elephant gift exchange - a lot of fun and laughs! A big thanks to Bro. Rocky and Sis. Wanda for opening their beautiful home to us. It was so cozy and Christmassy! The weather here has turned cool, so it feels much more like Christmas! :)

For the pictures and more click on the picture below:
There aren't a lot of pictures, but enjoy!

Church Dinner

More Christmas Goodies

Yesterday I got a little Christmas baking done. Basically, the sugar cookies that I make every year. This is my Great-grandmother's recipe. They are really easy to make with my handy cookie press! Someone gave me this a few years ago and I love it! It is sooo much faster than rolling and cutting each cookie by hand, and they look great! Also, I had made a quick batch of brownies for Mark to take to his office party. There were several left so I cut them up and decorated them to take to our church dinner.

I cut a Christmas tree shape out of wax paper, put the shapes on the brownie bites and sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Also, I copied Melissa's idea for a cheese ball snowman! He was really fun and easy to make! Everyone liked him... I guess he's pretty likable! :)




Here is the recipe for the cookies:

1 1/2 C flour
3/4 c sugar
1/2 t baking powder
1/8 t salt
1/2 c butter
1 egg
1/2 t vanilla

sift dry ingredients
mix in butter and add egg and vanilla
roll thin on floured board and cut into desired shapes, dough may be colored with food coloring.
bake 8-10 minutes 350 degrees

I have to have a less stiff batter for the cookie press, so I add a couple of tablespoons of butter and all the butter I melt to a liquid. I have to keep the batter from getting too cool, or the press is cantankerous! :)

And the cheese ball recipe... super easy
1 package cream cheese
1 can of ham
1 t powdered ranch salad dressing mix

mix together and form in desired shape. Decorate as desired! :)

By Special Request...

more pictures of the ornaments. Most if not all of the supplies I got at Hobby Lobby - and those ornaments are half off this week! :) (love that store!)

They need to "cure/dry" for at least 24 hours before you insert the hanger back. Also be sure and store them in a cool place for the rest of the year - not in an attic or shed. The lady that was demonstrating them in the store said that the paint will just flake off if left in a hot place.


The green and red one I did this afternoon and the other red and white I did last night at Kid's Club. The white is a metallic pearl and looks really pretty - a little extra sparkle. Also on the one with a cap, the first one I did, I used a little silver to help fill in the holes, but it all dumped out, I have thought about reapplying it. Gold would probably be really pretty with the green and red.
Like I said, they are soo much fun to make! Hmmm... I think I'll go make another one! :)

Christmas Goodies

I did get the fudge made Friday night! Both recipes turned out yummy! I make both of them using the microwave - I worry about burning things on the stove. They are both creamy smooth recipes, and so good!
The ornaments to the right are a craft Mom and I saw demonstrated at Hobby Lobby. You buy the plain ornaments , these are iridescent, and drip paint along the edge inside, then tap it against your hand. "Divide" the ornament into thirds with your main color and then add the contrast. Continue tapping until the paint coats the inside of the ornament, then turn upside down in a disposable container for at least 24 hours for the paint to drain and dry. The dripping gives it a more swirled effect. I did these at kids club last night and the kids really enjoyed them. They are a lot of fun to make!

Here are the recipes for the fudge:

Milk Chocolate fudge
1 bag milk chocolate chips
1/2 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 to 1 cup of nuts (optional)

Melt the first three ingredients together in microwave safe bowl until smooth. Add vanilla and nuts. Pour into 9x13 pan lined with foil or wax paper and chill until firm. (about 4 hours) cut into desired size and serve.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Fudge
3 Cups white chocolate chips
1 1/2 cup miniature marshmallows
14 oz. canned sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons orange zest (or a little less for a less citrussy taste.)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup toasted, chopped macadamia nuts (I used 1/2 cup)

Melt first three ingredients together until creamy smooth. Add zest, vanilla, salt and nuts. Pour into 9x13 pan lined with foil or waxed paper (and sprayed with a little cooking spray) Refrigerate four hours or until firm.

Family Christmas

Every Christmas, my dad's family has a Christmas dinner at the home of his uncle and aunt, Bobby and Peggy. We really enjoy the time getting together with relatives we haven't seen often. It is a wonderful tradition that has kept the family close and helped to unite the generations. I think it is great that I get to know all these wonderful people - my Grandpa's siblings and their families. Saturday was the day for the annual get together. We had LOTS of great food and a good visit with everyone. :)

Family Christmas Dinner

(Click on the album above to see the pictures.)

Here are some vintage family pictures... I love old pictures and it is so neat to have these. Dad spent HOURS last year scanning all of my grandparent's old pictures, he then burned cds to share with the family.

Vintage Family

Christmas Decorations

We have had our tree up for over a week, but I finally took pictures of it last night! :)

Here is the tree!!

Mark and I both had our own set of ornaments when we got married. His parents and mine both gave us an ornament every year. When we got married, we already had plenty of ornaments for our tree! :) I think it is a great tradition to do for your kids.

I enjoy putting together different table arrangements. Here is the arrangement on my coffee table.

Pillows were half off at Hobby Lobby this week (Love that store!!) so I got matching Christmas pillows for our couch. Behind the pillow is the afgan my Grandmother made a few years ago. She made sure each of her grandkids had one of her blankets, it was one of her last Christmas gifts to us!



I haven't even started my Christmas baking yet! Hopefully I will get some fudge made tonight! Tomorrow is my dad's family Christmas dinner, so I will be taking some fudge along with some other stuff. YUM! :)

@ Home for the Holidays

Happy December, everyone! I can't believe that it is already the last month of the year! Christmas is quickly on it's way!
With that in mind, I thought I would review a Christmas fiction book. I bought this book at the book sale a few weeks ago. The book is @ Home for the Holidays by Meredith Efken. It is quite different from most fiction books. There are no chapters, it is entirely made up of emails from one character to another and to those in the Stay-At-Home-Mom (or SAHMs) email loop. The format took a little getting used to for me, as well as the fact that it is a sequel and I wasn't familiar with the characters, but I adjusted and really enjoyed the book.
Speaking of characters, Meredith does an excellent job with hers. At first they seem a little far out, but they are actually representative of different personality types and different personality extremes. Probably, a reader will find a little of herself in each character. The polarity of the characters adds to the humor.
And the book is quite humorous! I found it to be very enjoyable. The format is more lighthearted, and is a rather quick read, despite the book's almost 400 pages. However, Meredith does deal with some serious topics, such as marriage problems, adoption, and over commitment.
One of the points that the author is making through this book, is her opinion of the War on Christmas. I'm sure you have heard of different aspects on this topic. Such as, how some stores no longer use the word Christmas in their holiday advertising.

I am too tired tonight to wax eloquent, but I did want to pose a question... What do you think about the War on Christmas? For the perspective of Meredith Efken click here. I had heard more of the opposing view to hers, but what she has to say did make me think. It is important to keep all things in balance. As for me, I want to wish someone a "Merry Christmas" and to put "Merry Christmas" on my Christmas cards, because that is the day that I am celebrating. I will probably be more likely to shop stores that support the celebration of Christ's birth. But is this "war" something to get so bent out of shape about? What do you think?



Faithie says that it is a great book to read before going to bed... just cuddle up in some nice warm jammies and grab a sippy cup of milk! :)