Favorite Christmas Clearance Finds

If you know me at all you know that I love making sugar cookies in vanilla or chocolate. And I also love making them little (like the size of animal crackers, those are Jacks favorites) to Large (like my Christmas cookie party cookies). So when I saw these giant cookie pans on 50% off after Christmas well, I couldn't help myself! I had to have them. And even though Christmas has already been over a week ago, I had to try them out right away!



Oh and in the background is the new VCR my hubby and I bought with some of our Christmas money. Yeah we are so up with the times. Well really we usually are, but we both had a few VHS tapes we missed watching since our old player broke so we sprung for a new one. These things are hard to find now!

The kids had a blast decorating them. And are now enjoying eating them. I have such plans for this one! Congrats on the new home! cookies!!!

This one I thought you could do up in so many ways! But turns out its even more fun to cut. Aiden immediately said "off with its head mom" and Thomas screamed "saw off his leg!" Courtney insisted the head be cut in two! Vicious children!

What else did I clearance buy? you ask. Well I bought the usual wrapping paper, light strands and big pack of tissue paper (white so I can use it all year but it has the Christmas label on the package so they put it in the clearance). I also bought plain red and green gift bags to use for birthdays through out the year. For the gift box in our closet I bought, small toys for birthday parties we are invited to, throughout the year.

For Courtney I grabbed tights in various winter prints. And for the boys marked down Lego sets I will save for their birthdays and stack the savings on top in the form of cash for them to spend how they want.

I also grabbed Rubbermaid Christmas print containers for Jack's lunches by combining coupons with sales I got 8 for just $1 which should keep him going a while (he is not so great at returning them, so the cheaper the better).

But my favorite purchase by far, were these Christmas cookie shaped sheets. Each year I buy one thing I consider really unneeded but oh so fun to have in my Christmas cooking affairs. Last year it was a trifle bowl that I filled with oranges all winter long, loving the color they brought to the dining room. The year before that it was Christmas trays that we have used over and over at potlucks. Next year who knows, and that's the fun part, seeing just what the clearance aisle will produce after Christmas.

Christmas at our Zoo

We start our Christmas traditions on Christmas Eve, when we go to a candlelight service. After the service we take in the light show at both Marion and neighboring Gas city park while sipping hot cocoa (or coke if your Thomas he doesn't like cocoa, then again neither do I, so really Aiden and Courtney sip hot cocoa, while I sip eggnog and Thomas sips coke and Jack, well he is at work). When we get home we put out a cookie and some milk for Santa. Our Santa doesn't like icing on his cookies, and must have 2% milk, yes in our household even the Santa is food picky, but our kids are understanding due to their own pickyness!
Then we mix up a big batch of reindeer food. This year Santa forgot to sweep it up when he got home, um no wait a minute Santa's reindeer were not hungry by the time they got to our house yeah that's right!

In the morning we open presents right away. Now usually I beat the kids up and end up sitting with bright eye anticipation waiting for them to get up! But not this year. Nope this year they all got up at 4 a.m. on the nose.

Sorry for the serious face! She's my mini Mona Lisa!!! But I had to show you Courtney's favorite gifts earmuffs and muckluck slippers!!

The day continued with a 1 pm lunch of ham, homemade rolls, green beans and fried potatoes. Then we made our annual trip to the Whites for a few hours to allow the kids to share their Christmas finds with each other, and to allow us adults to stuff our faces some more and catch up. The White's were our neighbors for several years when we first moved to town and from Christmas one in Indiana we have spent part of the day together, now it's a tradition we all love.

And that about wraps up our Christmas nice and quiet and cozy! Hope yours was just as enjoyable!

A Down Scaled Cookie Party

All 65 over sized Sugar Cookies Baked and ready to decorate
My kids digging into the icing

Aiden getting the base ready for the sprinkles

The finished product (and this plate is dinner sized just to give you an idea of how huge these cookies are)

Last years cookie party although loved by all was pretty hard on our house and yard. We had over 40 children attend. I have always done the party open house style but people tend to stay the whole time, so bodies really start to add up. And we are so blessed to add more and more friends to our lives every year.

So when I sat down to plan out the party this year, my hubby put his foot down, and although I was a bit saddened by his request I already had come to the same conclusion. The party had grown too big for our home and so either it had to be moved or down scaled.

I spent a sleepless evening thinking about how the cookie party all began and realized it was for the kids. So the next morning I sat them down and let them help me decide what to do. And so we ended up with a list of close childhood friends only and managed to cap it at 20 children including their selves.

And those 20 kids had a blast. Decorating cookies and then eating pizza and enjoying hours of play together!

And yes I am still sweeping up a sprinkle or two!

My Very Own Christmas Stars

Courtney and her rapping mates! hanging out at the mall
Mr. Biggington a very important businessman with no time for anyone else but his work

I love helping out with our churches children's Christmas play every year. It always looks like it is going to be such a disaster till the performance night when it turns out beautifully.

I am just one of the helpers in this event the main lady is amazing, she pulls things together with style and ease. When she asked me if I thought Aiden could pull of Mr. Biggington I was a little concerned. You see the part required a solo song and I wasn't sure Aiden could pull it off. He can be so shy and quiet at times.

Well the choir director knows my sons talents better than I do it turns out. Cause that boy can sing, in perfect pitch the entire time while dancing out a tap dance act with a cane, and he is loud and clear!!!!

You could have seen Jack's, and my own shinning faces of parental pride for miles.

Courtney also did a great job. She just had a little part just 3 lines but she really hammed it up!

Can't wait till next years!!!

Grabbing the Perfect Hill Conditions

As I mention in my post below Indiana does not get a lot of snow in the winter, at least not deep snow. So when we are blessed to receive more than 2 inches, I have learned the hard way (by putting sleighing off for a day only to wake up to it melted and 3 crying kids on my hands) to grab the sleighs and go whenever that deep snow comes.

So one morning the conditions were just right. Now sleighing here is not as easy as grab your sleighs and go, cause the only hills big enough around here for sleighing are in the local school yards and they don't take kindly to a bunch of homeschooling famlies hooting and hollering down the hill while their students try to concentrate on their studies (hmm. wonder why).

So I have to hold the kids off till the local school bells ring, and then we tear over to the school and go for it. On this day we were the only 2 families. Which I am sure others are regretting cause we have not had a good sleigh day since (in fact right now its sunny and no snow on the ground at all).

Aiden was cautious at first. If you remember he broke his collar bone the last time he sleighed. But he had one of his best buds with him so after his first slide he seemed to be just a big of a dare devil as ever.

I enjoyed fellowship with another homeschooling mom while drinking Starbucks and knitting in her heated vehicle. The kids lasted 45 min's. before wanting to go home for hot chocolate.

Oh and that reminds me if you are ever out of hot chocolate I have discovered a cheap yet healthy quick version

1 cup milk

2 tablespoon cocoa

2tablespoon sugar

place it in a pan and whisk it together, and put it on the stove top on medium, keep a close eye on it stirring frequently.

My kids love it!!! and it has no added ingredients you can't pronounce which means I love it too! If you want it stronger add in more cocoa and sugar.

Snow in Indiana

Once again I got the order wrong! Uggh you think after several years of blogging I would remember that the first picture I put in becomes the last and the last becomes the first Oh well.

Indiana is not a snow bountiful state. I think in the eight years I have been here the deepest I have seen it is at the bottom of my calf's. Yes it does get cold, yes we do get ice storms, yes the snow does drift and get deep in some areas, but as far as day to day winter goes, snow is usually an inch or two at best.

I personally like it that way, but then I am a coastal girl, and grew up having snow for a day, then waking up the next day and having it gone. You got out in it you had fun in it, then before you could even get bored of it, it was gone! And that kept snow exciting.

Now I understand the years are jading me, I use to like snow more, so I try to dig deep and find that gal when the snow falls here and get the kids out in it.

Courtney does not need to do any digging, at the first sign of snow she is out the door trying to build a snow man, even if all she's got to work with is an inch.

Don't ya just love her outfit in the bottom picture. Its the modern layered look, gumboots, and sweatpants under her dress!

Our Christmas Photo

Okay so over the years the Christmas card list has become pretty much family only and included the latest best family picture from that year. Now family may have noticed the lack of the picture this year and let me explain. You did not recieve photo due to my melted mommy heart!

Courtney loves to help out with gifts and letters and cards. She overheard Jack and I discussing which "picture" to choose for the card, she immediately piped up and said "I will do the picture mommy". Well I couldn't exactly say no to my inspiring artist so I gave her the index cards that fit in the cards and let her go at it.

Next year I will have her make the cards and will use the word "photo", that way you all should end up with a family pic. and Courtney will end up with the enjoyment of creating, and that's a win win.