Shape Up!

I've been stirring on what I want to post for my New Year's Resolution. If I post them, I feel a little more pressure that I have to at least attempt them, so here goes...

*Shape up my buns - technically I could work on my entire body, but this will be my focal point for now as I tried on a bathing suit the other day in Target and about passed out in the dressing room when I saw what rested on my backside!

*Read more with my kids - This is something I always say I'm going to do and yet I can't count the number of times in a week when I'm saying, "In a little bit okay!"

*Continue trying to perfect the skill of breadmaking, buy a wheat grinder, and start adding some wheat - This one's got a long way to go, but it's getting a little better.

*Focus on my spirituality and my church calling - I've let this one slip a bit since my third child was born.

*Stop swishing my credit card everywhere I go - I was doing so well with this for awhile, but lately I've been out of control.

*Create one on one time with each of my children every single day of the week. I went out alone today with just me and my baby and I realized how little I do that and how much fun it was for both me and him.

I want to hear yours!

Pomegranate Sparklers

Just because I take my drinks "virgin" doesn't mean that I can't join in the fun right? You all know how I love Pomegranates and luckily I just received a fresh batch, so I will be decorating my Sparkling Welch's Grape Juice like this tomorrow night. Cheers!

The Slanket

So don't think I'm terrible, but because of the never ending Xmas break, my children have a lot of time on their hands. I swear I've tried to keep them busy with sleigh riding, crafts, and their new toys, but there are just too many hours in the day. So, to fill some of them up, I'm admitting, we've spent a little too much time in front of the tube. Well, thank you now to the fabulous infomercials that fill up all of the children's tv channels in order to sell things to us via our kids...I have now been told that I have to buy each of my kids one of these Slankets! What's a Slanket you ask? Why it's a Blanket with Sleeves of course! Who would have thought. I informed them that we have plenty of warm cozy blankets in the closets that work perfectly well and I really don't think we need to spend $100 for each of you a Blanket with Sleeves! "But Mom, how are we supposed to get anything we need to done with one of our blankets. We cannot use our hands with one of our blankets. The Slanket allows us to use our arms and hands freely so that we can get all that we need to done while still staying warm." Good point children. You know what I think...I think SLANKET needs to hire my kids for their infomercial!

Little Miss Muffet

I think these charming Tuffets from Pixie Dust would make the most lovely reading corner.

Twirly Party Hats

Here's a fun craft idea to do with the kids from Crayola. These Whirl & Twirl Party Hats are perfect for ringing in the New Year.

Do You Fondue?

Last year our family held a Fondue New Year's Eve Party. My sister did it and it was really the first time I have had an entire meal of Fondue. I thought it was a fun idea so I've been gathering some recipes for this year. These ones all sound good to me. If you have any tried and true recipes I'd love to hear them.

The Original Chocolate Fondue

Classic Cheese Fondue

Wisconsin Holiday Fondue (Like Pizza)

Meat & Hot Oil Fondue (This was the only part of Fondue that was a little questionable to me. I wasn't sure if the meat was really cooking. This site has some good tips on how to properly cook the meat.)

Toblerone Fondue (Yes you use actual Toblerone Bars. Yum!)

Butterscotch Fondue

Caramel Fondue

Chicken Fondue

Ice Cream Fondue

The Food Network also had a great list of Fondue Do's

This Christmas

What a wonderful Holiday Season we have had this year. I feel nothing but truly blessed as we set off to begin the new year. Mr. L and I feel so settled in our home and this area and we are so happy. Our children are healthy and happy and bring us more joy each and every day. We live by so many wonderful family members that help us, entertain us, and create such great memories for the kids. Our family has also created some long lasting friendships this year that I am so appreciative for at this time in our lives. The Holidays started off last weekend with a quick visit from Uncle Tom. My kids love him so much and I'm not kidding they talked his ear off the entire weekend. It was so great to have him here.

Next, we had a fabulous holiday dinner here at our home with my husband's brother and sister and their families. We kept our favorite Abe and Lia over night with us just for fun and something so great happened...They became Snowed In! They got to stay a whole extra night because mom and dad couldn't make it down the mountain. Let me tell you, this was not a disappointment to my kids. They love Abe and Lia so much and what a special time it was for them. The pictures shown are not of this week. My camera was out of batteries and I was too snowed in to get any more.

Last but not least, we had a wonderful Christmas Day once again. The kids got what they were wishing for and more of course. Wade was definitely the funnest to watch this year. He loved his rocking horse and all of the attention. We spent the day opening and playing with presents, sleeping, and playing with the new Snowball Launchers. We finished off the night with one last dinner at Nana's and some dancing to Mamma Mia.

Merry Merry Christmas

I wish I could take a quick day trip over to get a glimpse of this magnificent tree, but it will have to wait until next year. I'm taking a blogging break until after Christmas so that I can focus and get everything in order. I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas!

Snowglobe Soaps

Alright, this might just be the best thing I've seen yet this year. Brenda Ponnay of the Once Upon A Holiday Blog at Alphamom.com has come up with these handmade Snowglobe Soaps. Fantastic! I love it!

Treat Boxes

Just ran into a huge assortment of beautiful Martha Stewart gift boxes at Walmart. They are so pretty this year. I especially love the Santa Boxes. Now I am seriously rethinking my neighbor gifts. I guess there's always next year, right.

Holiday Party Etiquette

Let's say your were attending a Holiday Party tonight and you were asked to bring CHILI (not as the main course but as a topping for potatoes), do you bring homemade or canned? I don't really care about the time involved with making chili because I love to cook, it's just that for some reason I can't picture homemade chili atop potatoes. I only think of canned. Why is that? I want the truth on what you would all really do!

Free Gift Tags

Who doesn't love something for FREE, especially at this time of year? Well, delight.com is offering everyone this free printable set of darling Holiday Gift Tags. Just download the file and print them out. How sweet is that!

*As Seen on Creature Comforts

And here's another one I thought was cute from Every Little Thing. Perfect for your Holiday Goodies...

New Room

Alright, I need some serious blogger help here. I want to create a new room for my Paige. She is pretty much good with anything, but she is certain on two things. First, she wants it PURPLE! Second, she either wants a bed with a bed underneath it for her friends to sleep on or she wants a canopy bed. I am definitely leaning towards the trundle because of prices, but I'm good either way. Here is where I need your help. I've been wanting to do this for a long time, but I change my mind every single day on colors and bedding so I'm really scared to make the purchase. I know I need to just get it over with and then I can't change my mind. So right now I'm leaning towards the Audrey Bedding from Serena & Lily. Why? Well, for one thing it's really the only purple bedding that I can find so far that I like because it's not too little girly and it's also 30% off right now through the end of the month. My other dilemma with that decision is that they are giving away a $150 gift certificate to Serena & Lily over at Kirtsy, so do I wait and see if I happen to win? So I want to know your thoughts on what I'm leaning towards here and if you have any other suggestions for cute purple rooms.

*The duvet pictured reverses to a white with green polka dots on the other side. Just thought I'd mention that since you can't see it that well. Also, I would go with lavender walls, not bright green.

Gumdrop Friends

I've been meaning to post about these little Gumdrop Pops for awhile. If you're not up for making homeade candy, here's a simple solution that even the kids can help with. Use them for gifts or for a wintry decoration.

Game Geeks

Calling all Game Geeks, if you're looking for a really great last minute Xmas gift for your husbands, brothers, fathers, or I guess girls would like it too...This game, Scotland Yard is Superb! We were introduced to it the other day by Dean's brother and can't stop playing it now. They've come over the past two nights just to play again. It's not too complicated, which is good for myself, but still very exciting. I finally gave in and played Mr. X tonight and about had a panic attack, but came out alright. Seriously, one of the best games I've played yet.

Cheesecake Pops

There is nothing I love more than Cheesecake, so when I saw these sweet Cheesecake Pops from HWTM I just knew they were for me. Of course because they are cheesecake they sound a little time consuming, but to me...Cheesecake smothered in chocolate and sprinkles is always worth it!

Hideaway

This weather proof Snow Dome looks so fun to me. You can keep it out all winter long with no freeze damage...

Or you could have a really cool uncle who builds totally awesome Snow Caves for you...

*Look closely at this last picture for a very big laugh!! (Okay, if you can't find it, look at the entrance to the snow cave...I think someone's stuck)

Snowy Friends

I saw these cute little Snowman Marshmallows on Kattitudes. They'd be perfect for your kid's warm cup of hot cocoa.

Snowball Fight!

I think I'm in a snowy kind of mood today. I walked into Costco the other day and noticed these fantastic Snowball Launchers. You can get two there for about $39 (I think). I'm still debating on the purchase because of the fear I have for my daughter, but I know there is nothing G and his friends would love more.

Cool Bobsled

I've been eyeing all of the sleds in the stores the past couple of weeks. Maybe it's because I can feel a big snow coming, maybe it's because we don't have any sleds, or maybe it's because I have 2 kids finally old enough to really love it this year. Who knows, but how awesome is this bobsled? This is the Zipfel Bobsled from Hammacher Schlemmer. The joystick handle allows kids to steer the sled with ease. I can see some possible broken bones coming our way.

Can't Catch Me ...I'm The Gingerbread Man

So our family will be constructing Gingerbread Houses this Sunday night. I thought I'd post a few of my favorites from this year's National Gingerbread House Competition. I can guarantee however, ours will look nothing like these. Some people are truly amazing!

*The top picture was this year's winner and the train was created by a child.

Holiday Swirled Brownies

So I picked up some of these Nestle Holiday Swirled Brownies today just thinking they'd be good and fun for an after school snack. Well, let me tell you...they were delicious. Of course I ended up eating half the pan before school was even over. The little striped morsals were so melt in you mouth yummy and the brownies were perfectly moist. So I'm totally good for you buying this pre-packaged version, but I found another recipe using the same morsals that looked so tasty. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Baking Cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter or margarine
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups (10-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® SWIRLED™ Holiday Morsels, divided
2 cups thawed, frozen whipped topping

Directions
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease 13 x 9-inch baking pan. COMBINE flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. Microwave butter in large, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 1 minute; stir until melted. Stir in sugar and water. Stir in eggs and vanilla extract. Gradually stir in flour mixture. Stir in 1 cup morsels. Spread into prepared baking pan. BAKE for 18 to 25 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Spread with whipped topping. Sprinkle with remaining morsels. Refrigerate until serving time. Cut into bars.

Merry Christmas

Here is my Holiday Card for those of you who's addresses I don't have, or just in case I never get them sent out. Have a Merry Christmas!

Designs By Ash

Ice Cream Ornaments

These Ice Cream Ornaments would be a "Chilly" addition to your Christmas dinner. I saw these in a Walmart ad and thought they were just to cute to pass up. Even if you don't make these ornaments, just check out the Breyers website. It's so much fun.

Body Scrub

Here is a wonderful gift idea for those hard to buy for girlfriends, sisters, mothers, and grandmothers in your life. It's easy to make and cheap too. All that you need is some Epsom salt, essential oils, and food coloring and you can print out the cute labels on Martha Stewart.

*I've done a little research on the best way to buy essential oils. You can find them at some grocery stores but supposedly they aren't as good. They say the best place to find good ones with the best scents are at health food stores. Amazon also has a lot for pretty cheap.

Christmas Village

We took the kids down to Christmas Village today. Now, I must first say before I start this post that the kids had a great time. They thought the little houses full of working elves were magical just as I did as a little girl. They ran from house to house full of excitement with smiles on their faces. However, from a mother's perspective...no offense to my favorite O-Town...not quite the magic I had remembered. First off all, I'm sorry to say, I was a little bit frightened for my life. I didn't really feel safe there. Second, the outside of the little houses were as cute as ever and they had done such a good job on all of the lights, but it honestly looked like they just threw a bunch of old toys into the houses. It was really disappointing to me. It made me a little sad because I'm all about supporting local activities that help to clean up the city, but I don't think I'll be rushing back to this one. Have any of you been this year? What did you think?

*Miss K was with us today but was in no mood for pics.