Happy 2013!!

I hope that everyone enjoyed the holidays and that 2013 finds you happy and healthy.  We had a very nice Christmas, and last night the boys and I stayed up to ring in the new year together.  This was the first year that they stayed up past midnight.

I took the photo above about halfway through the evening.  You can see that the bags on the table all have a time written on them.  As we made our way through the evening, there were bags to open with a special surprise every hour to start and then every 30 minutes as the night went on.

We played some games, watched a movie, and then turned on "Rockin' New Year's Eve".

Finally it was almost midnight!!  If you look at the photo below you can see that the bags are all opened.  This was when we broke open the bubbly.  It was a lovely 2012 vintage sparkling grape juice.


We counted down with the television and watched the ball drop in Times Square.  We shared a midnight toast, hugs and kisses, and all the bells and whistles.

All that remained was the black box on the table.  That will stay around all year.  As 2013 goes by we will write down great memories on bits of paper and place them in the box.  Next New Year's Eve, we will read them together.  Guess what the first piece of paper says?   Yep!  It's Our fun New Year's Eve party!

There was plenty of snacking all night so after the kids went to bed I had to clean up cookies, popcorn, chips and candy wrappers.  There are still balloons, noisemakers and party hats in my living room!


 Happy New Year!

We Wish You a Merry Christmas - And Our Elf on a Shelf

Merry Christmas!

I hope that everyone who celebrates is enjoying the day.

Do you have an Elf on the Shelf?  

I have had a lot of fun with ours this year, and would love to share some of the fun with you.

(I'm sorry - because of the music, it cannot be viewed on a phone.)  :*(

I wish you all the joys of the season, from our house, to yours.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope that my American readers are enjoying this special day.

Thanks to all who follow along.  I truly appreciate you.  Without your visits, I would never be able to share so many reviews and giveaways.

I'm hosting dinner today, and am looking forward to enjoying my family and counting my blessings.

Wordless Wednesday - You've Got a Friend in Me

Going Way, Way, Back to   

The Toy Story Years

Happy Easter

Happy Easter.  

I'm so thankful, and so unworthy.

Christmas Cookies, and an Easy Recipe for Fudge

Our Family loves Christmas, and we have a wonderful tradition of baking lots and lots of cookies.  We share them with friends, and we put out big platters after our Christmas Eve dinner.



Some are top secret recipes passed down from my Grandmother that I have sworn to uphold for life or longer.  (they didn't have blogs and Pinterest in her day, and everyone guarded good recipes to keep their bridge club impressed)  



 There are others that are so good and so easy that I have to share them with anyone who hasn't tried them yet.



The Gingerbread man cookie pan I used for these cookies is the best.  The kids love these huge cookies, and It's a lot easier on my arthritic hands when it comes time to doctorate them!

Look at the smaller tray of cookies, you'll see whoopie pies.  They are so easy,  and I added a little peppermint to the icing filling, and crushed some candy canes and rolled the icing edges through the pieces to garnish. 

The little round ones are Truffles.  They are also very easy to make!  Just crush a bag of double stuff Oreo cookies, and mix them together with a softened bar of cream cheese.let this mixture sit in the refrigerator for a few hours.  Line cookie sheets with waxed paper while melting a bag of chocolate chips with a stick of butter in a small sauce pan over low heat.  Roll the cookie mixture into balls and dip them into the melted chocolate.  Place them on the cookie sheets, then allow to chill in the fridge for an hour or longer.

Once they have cooled, I warm a small amount of green or red frosting, and drizzle it over the Truffles for garnish. 

If you like home made fudge, you'll love this recipe from Nestle Toll House!

Gather: 
1 1/2 cups of Granulated Sugar
2/3 cup of Carnation Evaporated Milk
2 Tablespoons of Butter
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2 cups of mini marshmallows
1 1/2 cups of Nestle Toll House Morsels
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
1/2 cups of Chopped Pecans or Walnuts (optional)
Garnish of choice 

Prepare an 8 inch square pan by lining it with foil
Combine the sugar, milk, butter and salt in a heavy saucepan and bring it to a boil.  Allow it to boil for five minutes while stirring continuously.  Then remove the mixture from the heat.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir until they have all melted. 

Quickly transfer the mixture to the pan, garnish, if desired, and place in the refrigerator to cool for at least two hours.

Remove from the pan by lifting the foil, remove the foil, and cut into pieces.

If you are adventurous, try different flavors of morsels and combinations of flavors.

Wordless Wednesday - Easter Decorating, and Memories

I always use the boys' craft projects from when they 

were little for Holiday decorating.

Peep Wreaths are So Fun For Easter!

One of my favorite Easter projects is the Peep Wreath.
 

These are so easy to make, and you can eat them, too!   =)

You Will Need:

• A Wreath Form (Styrofoam or Straw)
• Peeps in Spring Colors
• Sturdy Toothpicks
• Pastel Ribbon

1. To make the wreath, I begin by wrapping the wreath form with ribbon that is easy to poke a toothpick through.
2. Next, I use some ribbon to make a hanger and affix it to what will be the top of the wreath.
3. Now I can start to pin the Peeps to the Wreath by sticking a toothpick through it, usually in the back of the neck, at a slight angle so they don't slide off.
4. Mix the colors and directions of the Peeps.
5. When the wreath is well covered, make a decorative bow from your ribbon.  Here, I used some white ribbon and some purple ribbon.
6. Occasionally, a Peep will slide off, and may need a second tooth pick to stay put.
7. Note that some sugar coating will fall off the Peeps, so sweep the floor below it daily.

These are super cute, simple, and they make a great conversation piece.  

Easy to Make Keepsake Handprint Snowman Ornament

Isn't this an adorable ornament?  

That is my son's handprint!  

These are so easy to make, and they make a great keepsake. 

To make these ornaments, you will need:

• Clear, Ball Shaped Ornaments
• Acrylic Paints
• One Large and Several Small Paintbrushes
• A Sharpie Marker
• Your Choice of Decorative Pieces for Inside the Ball
• Your Child's Hand
• Newspaper or a Protective Table Cover
• Some Wipes or Wet Paper Towels
• A Medium Sized Cup
• A Hook or Ribbon to Hang the Ornament

1.  To begin, clear your work area and lay down newspaper of protective covering.
2.   Assemble paints and brushes.
3.   Remove ornament from packaging, and place it in the cup, using to the top of the cup as a stand.
4.  Using the large brush, paint your child's hand white, and be sure to cover from the heel of the palm to the fingertips.
5.  Pick up the ornament and have your child gently hold it, with his palm on the bottom, and fingers, slightly spread out, facing the top.
6.  Have him carefully open his hand, without smudging the paint.
7.  Using just your fingertips, gently place the ornament, top down, back onto your cup stand, while the child cleans the pain from his hand.
8.  Allow paint to dry.
9.  When the white paint has dried, allow your child to decorate the snowmen using paint and small brushes.
10. Place the ornament back into the cup stand, and allow the paint to dray again.
11. When the paint has dried, remove the top of ornament, and carefully add decorative items to the inside.  I used some bright red and green beads, a few small holly leaves, and some tinsel.
12. Replace the top, and add a hook or decorative ribbon.
13.  Using a Sharpie marker, add the child's name and date.


These make a great gift for grandparents, and are a nice keepsake for your own tree, too.  


Keep in mind, smaller hands may need to hold the ball slightly higher for the snowmen to show up nicely.


Merry Christmas to you!!  

I’ve had an Epiphany!

This painting by Giotto di Bondone is titled Adoration of the Maji. 

With the advent of the Epiphany, the Christmas season comes to a close.

An Epiphany is a moment of comprehension or sudden realization.  That which was unknown becomes known.

When the Maji arrived, their eyes were opened.  Let our eyes be opened, too, and let faith be the bright star that guides us.

It’s time to take down the decorations – but I pray that Christmas stays in my heart all year.

Happy New Year!

I want to wish you all a happy and healthy 2012.

We've had quite a busy two weeks over here, and right now, Our Village is a Little.. tired.  But I am starting to recover from travel, sun and fun, two birthdays, Christmas,  New Year's Eve, our wedding anniversary.  (and all all with a sprinkle of Asperger Syndrome for flavor!)

I have lots of fun reviews and giveaways coming up, and hopefully plenty of joy and happiness to share with the blogosphere as well.

And some wise words form Mark Twain:

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." 

Blessings and Best Wishes,

-

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to You! 

From Myself, and the Villagers.  =)

Best Wishes For a Wonderful Day,

#Advent 2011 – It’s Already the Third Week!

This Advent Season, Two of my favorite bloggers, Trish and Laura have been hosting a weekly meme  with an Advent theme.  I was really excited about this one when I saw it, because I love the Advent Season so much!   Today, as I lit the pink candle, it almost surprised me!  We are beginning the THIRD week already!

I certainly haven’t forgotten Advent.  It would be impossible in my house!  I’ll show you why in this post.  The problem is, I have been so busy switching blog hosts, and preparing for Christmas in real life, that I haven’t had the time to write about it!

I don’t have an advent wreath. I use this candle holder.  It is shaped like a scroll and has the nativity scene on the base.

We also use this Advent storybook calendar which has twenty-five little booklets.  Each day, a small part of the Christmas story is read by one of the children, and then the book of the day is hung on the tree.




The Children also have little paper pop up calendars.  Behind each door of the calendar is an Advent reflection.  Our daily devotional books also follow the Catholic readings for the season.

For fun, we have this hanging decoration.  Each day we move the marker one pocket closer to Christmas.   And the ones with Santa on the front hold chocolate treats behind each numbered door.




Finally, there is Kermit.  Kermit has been with me for a very long time!   We change his tiles every day so that his presents reflect the countdown to Christmas, too.



There is certainly no way anybody around here will forget that Christmas is coming!!

Prepare ye the way of the Lord!

About the Santa Picture

While it sums up the Love/Hate relationships the boys felt about Christmas and Santa, I should probably give the back story to the photo I used in my last post..

The boys were very happy that day, sitting there on Santa's lap.  They were thrilled by the soft suit, and the beard, the colors and the twinkling lights.

Then, it happened.  The photographers thought the boys should look at the camera and smile for their photo.

They tried to get their attention....  By ringing a startling bell and making a mechanical bird start flapping its wings.

The result?  

(Startling any kid is not a good idea.. but especially not an Aspie - or two!)

No worries, they forgive easily.  Two minutes later -

A candy cane made everything better.  :)

Merry Christmas,

Happy Thanksgiving

To All of My American Readers, Happy Thanksgiving!

To those of you in in other places, I hope you have a wonderful and blessed day.  :)

Memorial Day Thoughts

I am so grateful for all of all the brave men and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice in defense of this great country and our freedoms.

Happy Spring?

I was so happy last week, enjoying the warm weather, being outdoors, seeing all the green sprouty things...  We woke up today to snow, and ice, and some slushy rain mixed in.  LOL.

We marked the equinox by balancing an egg on the counter.

Of course, I have only ever tried this on Spring Equinox days, it could be entirely possible that eggs ALWAYS balance on the counter, but it was fun, and I impressed two ten year old boys.  They were amazed to see it still standing this morning.

I Hope the Groundhog was Right

For the past few days, we have had temperatures in the 50's and things are starting to melt a little bit. There's still a nice hard pack of ice coating everything, but it's been nice to hear the drip, drip of melting, and see the nice bright sun.

Our poor back yard! It's usually an oasis of fun for kids. Now it looks like this:

(I probably should have taken those during daylight hours and not while the sun was setting.. LOL)

Hopefully, it will become a fun place to play again. We're all kind of tired of the ice rink, and would like a little bit of fresh air! I'm hoping that the groundhog was right, and that soon we'll see the crocuses and tulips.