Holidays/Parties Archives • Page 7 of 23 • New Nostalgia

Christmas/ DIY/Crafts/ FUN/DIY/ Holidays/Parties/ Sponsored

Last Minute Simple But Thoughtful Christmas Gifts With Easy Homemade Gift Tags

“This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Sharpie, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #StaplesSharpie http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO.”

I have so many sweet friends, but I only buy Christmas gifts for a select few of them. Every year I try to come up with something simple but personal. This year I decided I could not go wrong with a coffee gift card — they ARE my closest friends after all, so of course they all love coffee! I smile when I think about the precious time I have had with each one of them sharing our hearts over a cup of coffee.

Another thing I know my close friends all love is chocolate. Coffee + chocolate + a fun gift tag, “homemade” by the help of a kit and my love for Metallic Sharpies = a fun & simple gift!

Sharpies have always been my favorite brand of marker– by far! I love that you can always expect them to work long and hard for you. They are dependable, predictable, come in all types of point sizes & colors. My new Sharpie crush is the Metallic Sharpies. Gold, Copper & Silver –they are so pretty!

Right now is a great time to purchase Sharpies. Staples is having an amazing deal. They are selling the 12 pack of Sharpies for only $6.00! I bought a 12 pack of black Sharpies and a 12 pack of multi-colored fine-point Sharpies both for $6.00, and a 4 pack of assorted metallic Sharpies for only $5.00.

I store mine in mason jars (of course!) and they sit out on our art desk so I can easily grab a single marker or a whole set if needed. My 10- year old Avery drew this amazing owl using the metallic Sharpies and some crayons. She is crushing on the metallic Sharpies, too!

On to my fun project. I stamped the tags with white ink, and envisioned how I could embellish them with metallic Sharpies just to make them a bit more special.

I used the metallic Sharpies to add a bit of shiny & shimmer to my gift tags. Just a touch here and there made a huge difference. I also used metallic Sharpies to to write who the gift was ‘to’ & ‘from.’

I got out my ribbon and some jute, stacked the coffee card and chocolates, and tied the shiny gift tags to the gifts.

I had fun finding different ways to tie the gifts together and using different Sharpie markers to embellish and sign the tags.

So festive and fun!

Don’t you love how the gold Sharpie shines? I wish the camera could capture it better. Take my word, it is PRETTY!

These little packages look so cute under my tree. I cannot wait to give them to the special ladies in my life. I hope it reminds them too, of our shared love of coffee and chocolate, and just how much they shine light into my life!

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For a TON of fun Sharpie project ideas, make sure you follow them on:

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Get inspired, then head to your nearest Staples this holiday season and purchase the 12-Ct multi colored pack of Sharpies for &6.00 and the Sharpie Metallic Assorted 4-Ct pack, as well as other Sharpie products for your holiday needs. You will love them!

Christmas/ RECIPES/ Sweets

51 Best Christmas Cookie Recipes

All 51 of these recipes can be found on New Nostalgia’s

Holiday: Christmas-Cookies Board on Pinterest.

Click on this link to find all of these recipes! They are listed below in the order they are found on my cookie board. Mmmmmm!

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White Chocolate and Cherry Macadamia

Christmas Wreath Cookies

Spritz Christmas Cookies

Star Pretzel Rolo Cookies

Dipped Peanut Butter Oreos

Cherry Chocolate Kisses

Candy Cane Kiss Christmas Cookies

Cherry Thumbprint Cookies

Reindeer Cookies

Anise Christmas Cookies

Cran-Pistachio Cookies

Patterned Mitten Cookies

Bourbon Salted Caramels

Red & Green Sugar Cookie Brittle

Sugar Sparkled Gingersnaps

Fudge Brownie Cheesecake Bites

Skinny Cranberry Bliss Bars

Scotcheroos Chex Mix

Christmas Candy Cane Cookies

Turron de Navidad – traditional Mexican Cookie

Fruity Chocolate Bark

Sugar Plums

Raw Gingerbread Cookies

Amaretto Snowball cookies

White Chocolate Cranberry Bark

Salted Caramel Butter Bars

Chocolate Graham Cracker Peppermint Bark

Candy Cane Snowballs

Pretzel Hugs

Peanut Butter Balls

White Chocolate Peppermint Crunch Cookies

White chocolate Rice Crispy Treats

Christmas Cookie Bars

Katie’s Pretzel Wreaths

Candy Cane Marshmallows

Sparkly White Chocolate Lemon Truffles

Reindeer Chocolate Doughnuts

Rolo Turtles

Dark Chocolate Cherry Thumbprints

Holiday Peppermint Chex

Swirled Sugar Cookies

Milky Way Teddy Sleds

Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Cookies

Hot & Spicy Gingersnaps

Candy Cane Kiss Kettlecorn

Andes Mint Cookies

Puppy & Kitty Chow

Christmas Crack

Candy Decorated Christmas Sugar Cookies

Triple White Chocolate Peppermint Blossoms

Mantecaditos-Traditional Puerto Rican Cookie

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What Christmas Cookie recipes do you make every year?

Christmas/ GF, Vegan & Raw/ Holidays/Parties/ HOME/ Organizing/ RECIPES

Raw Gingerbread Cookies

by Teniel Moore {raw foods contributor}

Who doesn’t love a gingerbread cookie at this time of the year?

To me the smell and spices of gingerbread reminds me of Christmas.

I have a wonderful easy raw gingerbread recipe for you that is made from all wholesome ingredients. Nothing highly processed or artificial.

A cookie you don’t have to feel bad about eating. Sounds good to me! This recipe does require a dehydrator. But don’t despair if you don’t have one. This cookie dough is good enough to eat raw.

Here are the delicious ingredients:

How to:

Raw Gingerbread Cookies

1 cup almond flour

1 cup oat flour

1/2 cup coconut sugar

2 tsp freshly grated ginger

1/4 cup coconut nectar

2 tsp black strap molasses

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

Make your own almond and oat flour by grinding nuts and oats in a coffee grinder.

Place all the dry ingredients into a food processor and blend, then add the wet ingredients and blend. Mix should come together in a ball.

Put mix on dehydrator sheet and roll out with your hands. Mix will be sticky. Cut into any shape you like. Makes approximately 16 circle cookies.

Dehydrate on 105 for at least 6 hours, then take off the dehydrator sheet and continue to dry on trays until dried through. Usually it will take at least12 hours or more. Keep in the refrigerator.

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Your mix should come together into a ball in your food processor. It will feel a little sticky but should be firm enough to hold together & ready to be rolled out onto your dehydrator tray.

You can make the cookies just oval shapes, but I love to make stars, large gingerbread men or Christmas trees. Have fun & make use of your Christmas cookie cutters while in the festive season.

Remember these cookies are not going to rise or change shape so they can be placed very close together on your dehydrator tray.

These cookies go nice with a glass of home made almond milk. A good treat to leave out for Santa this Christmas eve.

Raw gingerbread cookie dough tastes great raw too. So if you don’t have a dehydrator then simply roll the dough into balls and enjoy. I also love to crumble up some gingerbread cookies and top it onto some home made gingerbread ice- cream.

I hope you enjoy these cookies just as much as I do.

Don’t Forget To Pin It!

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Raw Foods Contributor

You can follow her here:

{Facebook}{Instagram}

A Health Update & Our Chrismas Decor

I’ve been resting and taking it easy as my body fights this infection. I am not as inflamed and the pain is much, much better…but things still are not how they should be. The skin is pulled so thin where the doctor put the stitch, and I worry about pulling it further as I don’t have nerves in that area. I still have redness, but the area is smaller. I will see Doctor tomorrow. I am nervous. I wonder if he is going to continue his gamble on me or say “that expander needs to come out.” He warned me that 90% of expanders fail once there is exposure and infection, so it is not like I was not warned, but still, it will be hard news to hear. It will mean another surgery, moving backward instead of forwards, losing this awesome feminine shape I have expanded into, healing for 2-3 months, & then starting over.

No. Fun.

I’m trying to keep my thought patterns on the positive. It really helps to remember that THIS IS ALL COSMETIC AND NOT CANCER. I think of those fighting for their lives right now and I find my perspective. I have been there, and yes, this is all long and hard & I’ve cried about it, but I remember that am not fighting for my life and those tears dry up pretty quickly.

I also can’t help but look around and be so thankful. I love Christmas. Love, love love it! I love the focus on relationship.. time with family and those I love, festivity & beautiful atmosphere, nostalgic music….all celebrating the birthday of the God-man I love so very much.

I have managed to slowly get our Christmas decorations out. I minimized them last year and kept just my favorites and larger decorations. I got rid of a lot of small knick- knacks that take work to dust and put away. That stocking candy dish is one of the very few small items I kept. I am so glad I got rid of the excess. Christmas decorating has been easy & a joy.

Instead of my usual hot cocoa, I sipped on immunity building fresh juice. It was really tart and good!

~one beet + green leafy tops & stems

~two carrots

~one green apple

~one lemon

{Paper Snowflake How-To}

My 10 year old has been so busy looking at my Pinterest boards and getting all kinds of ideas for homemade decorations. It has been a delight to see what she comes up with and using her creations to make our home feel so festive. I decided to go for a more whimsical look this year, decorating with her homemade snowflakes & ornaments, putting our nutcrackers front and center, & decorating with our children’s Christmas books. Our traditional tree is usually in the basement family room, with a fancy tree in our main living area, but not this year! This year I only have the energy to do one tree and it will be our traditional tree with all our meaningful family ornaments on it in the main living area. It is not done yet. We keep making plans to get it done and then plans fall through or I need to rest. Again, I’m learning to exhale & take my time…setting it up with lights tonight and on our Friday family night we will all decorate it with ornaments.

A forced-slow Christmas. I will take it!

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To get the whole scoop on my health, click on the MY CANCER STORY button in the left sidebar. To get firsthand updates, follow New Nostalgia’s Facebook page.

Cancer Journey/ HEALTH/ Music Renews/ Thanksgiving

Giving Thanks in the Midst of the Unknown + A Health Update

Happy Thanksgiving to all of YOU! I am so very thankful for each and everyone of you. Your faithful reading of my story here at New Nostalgia is such a blessing to me. I feel so surrounded by love and supported by such an awesome community. I am so grateful.

Today I am having 16 family members over for Thanksgiving meal. It will be very laid back with paper plates and comfy clothes. My family is bringing most of the food and I can’t wait to just relax and enjoy the precious moments of just hanging out and feasting!

This week I have been practicing giving thanks in all circumstances, and what peace and joy I have found in doing this! I am able to do this only through God’s help and His faithfulness. He has proven to me over and over again that He holds all of me together, that He has purpose for everything that happens & will not waste pain and suffering. He gives it meaning & brings beauty from it all.

This song has been on repeat in my head and heart all week. It says all that I want to say.
He. Is. Faithful.

Health Update:

Tuesday I went to my weekly Dr. appointment to get filled. I had a few dissolvable sutures that were not dissolving and were looking inflamed. Doc removed them, and became very concerned, as immediately there was drainage from the small hole it created. Not good, a sign of possible infection. I had noticed a pink area, but the nurse had taken some steri strips off that area the week before and commented on how I had reacted to them and that my skin was inflamed. I have very sensitive skin and often react to the adhesives in bandages. Because of this, I was not concerned about the pink and neither was she. I guess we should have been!

Doc was not happy about what he saw, and was quite concerned. He put me on an antibiotic right away and said if I spike a fever or if it gets worse I will have to have surgery AGAIN! I have been having burning/aching/pain on that right side, but no fever. I am really hoping the pain is from the stretching of the muscle and not infection.

I am on day 3 of antibiotics. I am really hoping to stay healthy and avoid surgery! This would be a huge setback, as they would have to remove the expander and wait to do any more reconstruction until the infection clears up, which can often take a long time.

Despite the unknowns of what is going to happen, I have a peace and joy that I know is a gift from above. I SO don’t want complications, but I also KNOW that God is faithful and holds me and my life story, and knows every moment of it. I am so THANKFUL for this reassurance. He has been so good to teach me this, and continue to show me that I can trust in His goodness.

Never Once

Matt Redman

Standing on this mountaintop
Looking just how far we’ve come
Knowing that for every step
You were with us

Kneeling on this battle ground
Seeing just how much You’ve done
Knowing every victory
Is Your power in us

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Never once did we ever walk alone
Carried by Your constant grace
Held within Your perfect peace
Never once, no, we never walk alone

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Every step we are breathing in Your grace
Evermore we’ll be breathing out Your praise
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful