Gingerbread Houses 2022

Ohhhh my goodness! How many times have we made these crazy little houses?!

However, we haven’t actually done one quite like this. Notice the double chimneys. There’s your first hint.

See if you can figure it out.

I worked on this side of the house with my little brick planter and flowers and sweet rock pathway…

and only the stuff I particularly love– on the roof.

Ok, on half the roof.

There was someone else making a whole different building, with a totally different vibe, on the other side of this house.

Think of it like the ultimate Christmas duplex–if you will.

Mrs. Claus on one side and Mr. Grinch on the other. Haha.

It was very him–if you get my drift.

Hazel said that her house looked so good that she wanted to eat it. No one could think of a reason for her not to do it…

…so she did.


I hope we do this every year…

forever.

Crocheted Nativity 2.0

No, noooo. I’m not reposting my sweet little crocheted Nativity set. And noooo you aren’t seeing double.  My daughter Lyndi wanted her very own version so naturally, I made another set!!

This time, Mary’s hair is more blonde and Joseph has a goatee and no mustache. He’s a more modern fellow. Haha.

 

But since Mary and Joseph’s wardrobe that night is a history mystery–I have complete freedom to use my artistic license. Last time it was pink and brown but THIS time, since Lyndi realllllly loves blue, then blue it is.

So there.

Of course, baby Jesus is the same…because, you know– some things should probably stay the same, “yesterday, today and forever,” if you get my meaning. Not tempting fate here.

And so it is.

Candy Turkey Legs

Ok, guys–are these the cutest little turkey drumsticks that you’ve ever, EVER seen?! You KNOW they are!

And  no lie, they taste so good, you’ll be lucky if somebody doesn’t eat them all in one sitting. Ahem.

First, you’ll need three simple things:

1 bag of Braided Pretzel Sticks

1 bag Kraft Caramels

Dipping chocolate– we used 2 large Symphony bars

Here’s how you make them. 

Snap one end off the pretzels or they will be too long and look funny.  You can see that we didn’t break too much off. Just enough to make them the right size.

Next you’ll want to warm up the caramels. You can do this a few different ways. You can soften them up with a few seconds in the microwave–if you have one. We don’t, so we put them in a Ziploc bag and set them in a bowl of hot water. It worked just fine.

We’re not trying to melt the caramels–just make them soft enough to mold, kind of like clay.

Next, wrap the caramel around the broken end of the pretzel. Mold and shape it like a turkey leg–a blob at one end, tapering down towards the middle of the pretzel.

You’ll have a sweet little plate of naked drumsticks when you’re finished. While they sit there in all their skinned, raw, vulnerable glory you’ll need to melt the chocolate. We just put it in a small pan and warmed it on the stove on low.

Once it’s completely melted, dip the little things in the chocolate and let them rest on wax paper. You might want to be smarter than I was and put the wax paper on a pan first. That way you can pop them in the fridge to help them set faster.

I don’t know about you, but I simple LOVE giving someone a surprise that makes them say, “OH, MY GOSH!! How adorable!”

Then they laugh–

which is, of course my all time favorite reaction.

Luckily, I made a million of these.

Guess I’m just a needy little soul.

Ha.

 

 

PS- This recipe was first spotted on Taste of Home Recipes. I only did one minor tweak–using one caramel instead of two and breaking the pretzels.

Three Wise Fellows

It is a peculiar thing to me that I seem to be the only person on earth that knows the song, “Out of the East.”

Of course, my poor children know it too because I’ve drummed it into their unsuspecting little minds since babyhood.

My point is that if anyone besides us actually knew and loved that song–we would certainly be singing it now.

Because, I mean really…

are these not the cutest…

most adorable wise men you’ve ever seen?!

It’s this year’s present for my daughter’s birthday. She’s already had the Holy Family, the Shepherds, the donkey, and a lamb…

so logically, these little dollies had to be next.

with their priceless, precious, button gifts for the little baby.

You can’t hear it, but I’m singing…

“Out of the East there came riding…riding, three of the wisest of men…”

 

 

The Holy Family

The Shepherds

The Donkey & Lamb

The Camel

 

Stained Glass Nativity

I finally finished my latest puzzle and I have to say….

I’m pretty sure it’s my favorite Christmas puzzle of all time.

The colors are so bright and happy and the finished project is positively stunning!

We took the decorations down a couple of weeks ago–

but I still can’t make myself put this last thing away.

It makes me smile every time I walk past it.

Someone asked me why I didn’t just glue it all together and hang it on the wall–but I can’t.

This puzzle is going to be worn out from being put together over and over and over again.