Category: holidays


Nov
2008

december daily {sunday scrappin’}

categories: holidays, i recommend, sunday scrappin', Uncategorized
here’s my post for sunday scrappin’.

my ta-da’s: advent calendar and the december daily that i’m going to post today

my to-do’s: christmas cards, and some encouragement cards, and a few gifts

my challenge for the next person, (as suggested on sunday scrappin’): scrap a picture from a past Christmas

ok. so, i’m finally finished with my day long project. 

i wanted to make a december daily, as suggested by ali on her blog.  basically, you create a page for the entire month of december.  then, each day of december, you take a photo(s), journal it and create a layout using the page you have already created.  it should help you save time during the hustle & bustle of the Christmas season. 

i am only going to post 8 pictures today, showing how i altered a 3-ring binder to use for it:
  • for starters, i found this cardboard binder on the clearance shelf for only 40 cents!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • then, i cut Christmas-themed paper to fit the front and back.  i then adhered then onto the notebook.
  • after that, i did the same to the inside and the spine
  • then i cut 2 pieces of ribbon that would wrap around each side of the spine.  i ran them through my sticker maker, so that they would be good & sticky
  • the next picture is a chipboard word that i also ran through my sticker maker and adhered to the front of the album
  • finally, i proceeded to make a page for EACH day of december…..all 31 days! 
  • the next 2 photos are just a glance at the edges.  there are so many pages that i think i will blog them each day in december and you can see them, then.  31 pages took most of my afternoon & evening!!!! but, it was a lot of fun and it will be fun to fill it up all month long!

Nov
2008

handmade advent calendar

categories: holidays, simply scrappin, Uncategorized

whew!  i worked on this advent calendar for most of my day.  it was a lot of fun to make. 
  • the above is actually one of the finished project…i just had to skip ahead!
  • this picture is just laying out the supplies.
  • after removing all of the drawers, i then sanded it slightly.  i thought it would help the paint to adhere better.
  • next i put a coat of paint, ‘sandstone’
  • once that layer dried, then i covered it with a thin layer of clear glitter topcoat
  • i gathered all of my Christmas paper, using a template that came with the boxes, i then traced and cut out 25 different drawer fronts.
  • then, using my sticker maker for adhesive, i adhered all of the paper onto the fronts of all of the drawers.
  • next, i placed the drawers back into the calendar.  figuring out where they each looked best.
  • finally, i began the process of finding embellishments to use on each drawer and labeling them with the proper number.  (the number stickers came with the calendar)
  • slowly, i found embellishments for each drawer (it was a lot of fun!)
  • the next few pictures are simply close-ups of the drawers
  • the last few pictures have a red bow & jingle bells ontop.  it needs something to finish it off…..not sure what….i’m not happy with the bow….but i love jingle bells….sooooo i’m not sure what i will end up doing to the top.

so, that’s that!  so happy with it!  so happy it’s done!  hope you are enjoying your saturday!

Nov
2008

taste of home

categories: holidays, i recommend, tasty treats, Uncategorized
had some fun last night….went to the annual taste of home cooking school. 

each year, my mom, sister and i always go.  it’s fun.  it’s a girls’ night out.  we meet for dinner at a local coffee shop, downtown, near where the expo is, then head over to the expo & cooking school. 

this pic is my lap.  you always receive a bag of goodies, including their magazine, which contains many recipes, including the ones that will be demo’d.  (the bag of goodies has changed drastically over the years.  it used to contain kitchen utensils, all sorts of freebies & coupons….now, it’s basically coupons)
lots of yummy recipes were taught with lots of give-a-ways.  LOTS of give-a-ways!  appliances.  groceries.  platters.  gift baskets.  TONS.  (might i mention, that over the years, the 3 of us have NEVER won anything?!  zippo.  zilch. nothing.)
the above picture is only part of the stage, (about a third of it–the far left stage).   it’s neat how they make it look like a home-kitchen-setting.  all appliances, decor, dining room tables etc.  this was taken with my cell-phone, so the pix isn’t the best.
the above picture was directly center stage, but we were in the 2nd row, so the view is kind of looking up…..this is where she stood and cooked, with a camera’s eye view from the top. 

i love the holidays and everything about them.  the cooking show has been a part of the holidays for quite a few years.  we always have a good time.  last night, there was a BAT that decided to fly around and swoop over our heads.  it added quite alot of excitement to the show for a few minutes.  imagine an auditorium full of 95% women, with a BAT swooping over our heads.  YIKES!!!  (have to admit that the cookind instructor handled it like a pro.  didn’t rattle her, cheryl,  at all!)

here is the list of yummy recipes that she showed us:

well, that was my night last night. 

hope you are doing something fun & holiday’ish! 

Nov
2008

holiday traditions

categories: holidays, my family, simply scrappin, Uncategorized
over at the Internet Cafe Devotions, they are hosting a Holiday Expo, beginning today.  click over and check them out!

today’s topic is traditions. 

  • HAM ROLL-UPS:  my favorite holiday recipe is (& always will be)…Ham Roll-ups…as mentioned here.   they are a simple appetizer, but i looooove them!!  it wouldn’t be the holidays without them!
  • HOLIDAY DRIVE:  i love to drive around and look at holiday lights and decorations.  we all pile into the car, including the dog, drive thru and get our favorite warm drink, pop in a Christmas CD and drive around….if it’s snowing, that’s even better!!!
  • STOCKINGS:  my parents have always gone above & beyond on our stockings.  amazing little gifts- all wrapped- ranging from normal things, like chap-stick, nail-files, candy, to crazy things, like toilet-seat covers to carry in your purse, or holiday themed tissues for your purse….it’s amazing…oh and always, an orange in the toe of the stocking.  even to this day, my parents continue to fill our stockings.  and of course i have carried this tradition into my own home.
  • CHRISTMAS MUSIC:  even though it makes my husband & son crazy, i begin listening to Christmas music at the end of october.  i looooove Christmas music.  absolute love carpenter’s Christmas album, johnny mathis, amy grant, michael w. smith….just to name a few
  • ADVENT:  when i was a child, we always had the advent wreath & candles on the dinner table…when my son was little, we would just do a Christmas countdown, like a lego advent calendar, as mentioned here.  (always remembering to emphasize the real meaning of Christmas, Jesus’ birth.)  now that nick is older, we have our own Advent wreath and we celebrate Advent by reading the devotionals as a family.
  • CHRISTMAS PHOTO:  every year, i love to send Christmas cards.  it’s a great time to touch-base with those that you don’t hear from often.  of course, i love to include a photo of nick and chewy, as you can see here and here.  each year, we buy a silly outfit for chewy to wear and nick is gracious enough to smile for the camera….this year, we might try something different….OH and this year, i am making my cards….around 60….guess i better get busy on those! ha!!
  • EARLY GIFTS:  i have a problem.  i get sooo excited about the gifts that i’m giving, that sometimes, i can hardly wait until the 25th.  over the years, i have been known to give many early gifts.  one traditional gift, is always opened on Christmas Eve….pajamas…sometimes even matching lounge pants and t shirt for dad & son.
  • BAKING:  i love to find different holiday recipes to make, and especially to give as gifts to teachers and neighbors.  one of the most loved recipes are homemade chocolate covered cherries.  they take a while to make, but are well worth the effort.
  • CHRISTMAS SHOWS & MOVIES:  i looooove to watch holiday programs.  my favorite movie is The Christmas Story, Elf and many many more.
Ok. now for a crazy tradition that has been going on since 1988. 

THE TOILET PAPER ROLL:  when i still lived at home, i never would change the empty toilet paper roll, (much to the demise of my mother)…(which as a mom, i know understand why)…..anyways,  one night, after being told a million times to change it, i kept the roll and shoved it under my mom’s pillow.  (why? i don’t know.  just to be silly)…..   well, low & behold, she kept that roll and i unwrapped it under the tree that year!  then, i kept it for a year, and hid it in one of their gifts and so it began.  this SAME toilet paper roll has been passed back and forth since 1988!!!! 

some of the ways its been given:

  1. in a pan of cinnamon rolls (the bakery actually helped out on this one)
  2. in a planter of flowers (the florist helped out)
  3. in the base of a cookie bouquet
  4. covered in chocolate
  5. found after clues, like a treasure hunt
  6. put INTO a Build-a-Bear’s leg

no matter how it’s given, it’s always signed with the year and wrapped to prevent any damage.  i don’t see it in my sock drawer, so it must be dad’s turn this year!!!!

it may sound crazy, but this tradition now even has friends asking about it each year–anxious to see what is done!