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FUN/DIY

Holidays/Parties

New Years Eve Inspiration

Happy New Year From New Nostalgia!
Still loving sparkly gold and silver!
I have a clock just like that.  Never thought of sitting it out as New Year’s decor! Looks amazing next to that bowl of balls.  Fun~
These make me want to get crafty and pull out my glue and glitter.
Fun for kids
Love the champagne “bubbles” on the wall.
Simple horns on a platter make an easy and functional centerpiece.
Source: delish.com via Amy on Pinterest
Homemade poppers.
Had to get mason jar in there somewhere.  How great is that?
A great way to display.  Sparklers are so festive!
Source: modcloth.com via Amy on Pinterest
If I were going somewhere fancy, I’d want to wear this!
And my nails would look like this.
For a more casual look, throw on jeans but add a heal.  And some sparkle on the neck, ears or wrist!
Love this.  Nails are a great way to add sparkle without being over the top.
This is the part I’m looking forward to.  No matter if your party is fancy or casual, a kiss is always appropriate on New Years Eve!
Cheers to all of you!  
What are you doing this New Year’s Eve?
My only definite plans are that kiss above.  
Other than that kiss, we are keeping it pretty chill this year!
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Christmas/ RECIPES/ Sweets

Andes Chocolate Mint Cookies – A Christmas Tradition

Andes chocolate mint cookies

It is the week before Christmas, and it seems like sugar is merrily making its way into our home!  My little 9 year old has discovered a love for making recipes, which has been a load of fun. I’m eager to steer her toward more healthful recipes come the first of the year!

{Like this one: Chocolate Bliss Balls–3 ways!}

This awesome Andes Mint Cookie recipe is one that I make every year at Christmastime. It is so easy, and has 2 of my favorite holiday flavors, chocolate and mint!  They are simple, pretty and oh so yum.   I double or triple the batch, make a bunch of balls and freeze them until needed.  I love the ease of baking just a few, right before heading out to our different Christmas celebrations.  I also love that I have them in the freezer just in case a friend pops by, it is fun to have a little treat to bake at a moments notice!

Andes mints

Andes Chocolate Mint Cookies
1 box Devils Food Cake Mix
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
Andes mints, unwrapped and cut in half

~Dump all into a large bowl, beat until combined.
~Roll into one inch balls.  (I just use a pampered chef small scoop and skip the rolling)
~Bake @ 350 for 6-7 minutes. (Don’t over bake, you want them soft.)
~Immediately, push an andes mint gently down in the center of each cookie.
~Wait a minute or so, until the top of the mint turns melted and shiny, then take a toothpick or tip of a knife and swirl the melted mint into a circle, creating swirly beauty. (my girls love doing this part)
~Let cool so the chocolate will set before putting on a platter.

chocolate mint cookie ballsAndes Chocolate mint cookies mixture

Andes chocolate mint cookies

Andes mint cookies

Andes chocolate mint cookies

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FUN/DIY/ Homemade Gifts/ RECIPES/ Sweets

Why I Love Our Babycakes Cakepop Maker!

Babycakes cake pops

Ok, so usually I am all about de-cluttering, so adding what could be considered just another kitchen appliance is a bit out of character for me, but I didn’t have much choice…and now I am quite happy about that!

We opened a few early Christmas gifts, and one sister got the other sister a ‘babycake’ cake pop maker. My first thought was, “oh my, another thing to store and have to get rid of when it just sits there unused” But I think I was wrong to so harshly judge our new appliance friend.

babycakes cake pops

If you are looking for a last minute gift idea, this might just be the thing.  All 3 of my girls were super excited to try it out (age 9, 11, and 13).  We did just that tonight, and I was very surprised at how much I love this thing!

It heats up quickly and the red light turns green when it is ready.  You add a tablespoon of batter to each hole, and in 4 minutes, you have cute little cake bites.  It comes with a great recipe book full of different cake recipes & donut hole recipes, a handy tong tool to get the hot holes out of the baker when done, a cooling tray, sticks, & an injector to make little jelly filled babycakes. I love that you don’t have to heat the oven up, which means more baking when summer comes!  I am eager to experiment with more wholesome ingredients.

Tonight we made Glazed Lemon Cakepops and Apple Cider Cinnamon Sugar donut holes.  Both were amazing.  There are directions on how to use a simple cakebox mix, but also recipes to make from scratch.  I was super impressed with the Lemon Cakepop recipe.  It called for real lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon extract.  It was so moist and delicious.  It made 24 pops, which is perfect.  I love that you feel like you are getting a decadent treat, but really it is only a bite–if you can stop at just one.  I like that it only makes a small amount, as I don’t really want these sitting around the house for too long!

apple cider cinnamon sugar donut holes

The Apple Cider Cinnamon Sugar donut holes were perfection.  Super easy to make, and right when they are done baking you toss them into a paper bag of cinnamon sugar mixture. The recipe made 36 donut holes. I am having my family over for Christmas brunch and these beauties are going to be served!  They would also make a great homemade gift for the neighbor.  We are in the middle of a winter storm here in Nebraska, so I think it would be quite fun to put on our snow boots and dig our way next door to deliver hot, homemade donut holes to our neighbors.  We just might!

You can purchase your own babycakes maker here at Amazon.  

They are also sold at Bed, Bath & Beyond & Target.

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FUN/DIY/ Homemade Gifts/ RECIPES/ Sweets

Chocolate Blackberry Brandied Truffles

chocolate blackberry brandied truffles
{Don’t you love the homemade, stamped gift tag?}


I have a handful of what I call ‘heart friends.’ You know, the kind where you feel that your hearts are literally knit together and could not imagine life without.  Well, that is what I call my friend Ann.  We have known each other for years, and being her hairstylist for years has kept us getting together regularly every 5 weeks.  Thank goodness her hair takes at least 2 hours, because we always have so much to share and it takes at least this long to get caught up!

Thanks to these regular hair dates, and thanks to how very dear Ann is to me, she knows me.  She knows all my junk and loves me anyway.  We joke that our hair dates are therapy for us both.  


A form of ‘therapy’ that Ann brought this last visit was a beautiful Christmas gift of Homemade Blackberry Brandied Truffles.  Oh. My. Yum.

I cannot tell you how delicious these are.  The nuts are crunchy, the chocolate deep & creamy, a hint of blackberry.  They are amazing.

She handed them to me sheepishly knowing I usually eat pretty healthy.  I reassured her that when it comes to dessert I do it right!  I may not do it often, but you bet I’m gonna eat her homemade goodies and enjoy every, last bite.  Cancer survivors learn how to live fully, and I think eating a real dessert once in awhile fits perfectly into living fully!

The minute I bit into one of these truffles, my eyes got big, and I knew I had to share this little treasure of a recipe with you all!  Enjoy…every last bite!


Blackberry Brandied Truffles 
 
1/2 pound chopped bittersweet or semisweet or milk chocolate (don’t use unsweetened!) (I like the dark chocolate the best 🙂
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted real butter
2 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons of blackberry brandy 

COATING CHOICES:  coconut or almonds (either sliced or crushed) but definitely toasted!  Toast in the microwave 30 seconds at a time, stirring every 30 seconds.  The presentation is beautiful when you use different coatings!

SURPRISE IN THE CENTER CHOICES:  nothing (great as is!) or tuck a well-drained maraschino cherry inside or a whole almond.
 
Directions:  
Melt chocolate & butter together in the microwave until hot, being careful not to scorch the chocolate.
Wisk in the egg yolks until mixture is shiny.
Stir in the brandy.  
Put in the refrigerator until cool enough to form into soft balls.
Use a teaspoon size cookie scoop, leveled off, for each truffle.  If desired, tuck in a cherry or almond & roll into a ball.  Coat the ball as desired.  Put each truffle in a miniature muffin liner or paper nut cup (can be purchased at Hobby Lobby in the cake decorating section).

Store in refrigerator.

//
 

Tips: 

To make orange flavored truffles, you can use Gran Marnier in place of the blackberry brandy. It is more pricey, but I just read online that you can go into your local liquor store and ask for an “airline bottle” of Gran Marnier.  The commenter said she does this all the time for recipes that call for small amounts of liquor.

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Books

What’s True About You? A Giveaway


This book is what God
says is true about US!
God speaks blessing over each of us. The best gift we can give to our children is to teach them to listen to His truth about them!


The Story of “What’s True About You?“ 


What do you tell your children when they say that someone has said shaming or negative things about them? 
Well, I asked my sister Angie this question one day and found an answer
that has taught me the most vital thing I know as a parent.  My sister said, “I always ask my children, ‘Is that true about you?'”  That phrase stuck and I started telling all my friends.  
One friend in particular, Mindy McNeiece said, “You should write a book
called, What’s True About You, Kennedy Sue?”  Well, that is my daughter’s name and it was a great idea.  Mindy illustrated the book with beautiful watercolor that brought the words to life.  
Once it was written I realized all my friends and all their children need to
hear these words so I made generic versions for girls and boys, and added the option for a personalized version.
I pray it is a blessing to your whole family, too.

-Kristan Farley, Author of What’s True About You?


{girl version}

This book is really precious.  The watercolor illustration is soft, sweet and draws you in.  The message is priceless.  I love that you can personalize the book with a child’s gender & name, and that is just what I did!  A certain little someone in my life is going to get it for Christmas, and I know he is going to think it is pretty neat to see his name in a book!

//

I’m excited to be giving away 3 copies of this book, one being a personalized copy!  Just follow the easy steps below & GOOD LUCK!

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Decorating/ Frugal/ FUN/DIY/ HOME/ Homemaking

My Bathroom Makeover Makes Me Happy!

I really can’t believe I finally got this done.  I sure wish  I took ‘before’ pictures!  I’ve wanted a grey bathroom for awhile now.  The paint color I had before was an awful brown/green color – blech!- and my shower curtain was small vertical stripes, in rusts & golds and greens, which I’ve had for over 12 years.  This was a much needed & big change!
Besides wanting to get rid of the prior green/brown paint color, what motivated me to do this was the never-ending loads of towels I was doing with 3 girls in my house!  We had one towel bar for 5 people–not good.  Not anymore.  Each girl has their own hook and their own color of towel.  If their towel is not put back o the hook and they need one, they drip dry…no joke!  This Mama is serious about cutting down on laundry!  There are 2 more hooks on the back of the bathroom door for Mom & Dad’s towels.  Our towels are white.  Nice, fluffy, spa-like white.  Ahhh. It has worked beautifully and I don’t know why I have not done this sooner!
I also was motivated by really wanting a new shower curtain.  I had the old one for over 12 years, so it was time!  I love this simple, horizontal striped shower curtain.
I added a few minimal holiday touches.  A little touch of sparkle.  I always have a candle in there, even when it is not Christmastime.
I think every room needs a touch of natural green, and these succulents on the back of the ‘throne’ were just the thing.  They are super low maintenance.  The clock was given to me by a friend–when I stand in front of my mirror, the time is reflected which is super helpful on late mornings.

The black display boxes on the wall have been a great addition to our bathroom.  Ball jars hold cotton & q-tips.  I have room deodorant spray on the top shelf, another candle, a Christmas tin for pretty storage, & shelves for wash clothes.  I LOVE having a space for an extra roll of toilet paper.  It is noticeable when the shelf is empty, and I can refill it when I notice it.  Sure beats hearing “MOM, I NEED SOME TP!!” which was the case WAY too often before.  I got a great deal on these shelves on black Friday…they were only 9 dollars!
I really, really like our new rug.  It feels so lovely on our feet & covers a crack in our tile which used to drive me nuts!
I had a very willing little helper.  It only took about 2 hours to paint the bathroom…one hour per day/coat.  Easy!  Why oh WHY do I procrastinate.  It feels so, so good to have this done.
//
Paint-Sherwin Williams Intellectual Grey ($40)
Towels-Bed Bath & Beyond ($8 each)
Shower Curtain-West Elm ($40)
Black Shelves-Shopko ($9)
Hooks-Target ($7 each)
Rug-Target ($20)
Washcloths-Target ($5)
Clock-gift (free)
Planters-garage sale ($3)
Plants-Walgreens ($5 each)
= about $175.00  
Not bad for a bathroom makeover!  I love my new bathroom.  I kinda want to go just sit in it now… 
🙂
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FUN/DIY/ Homemade Gifts

My Homemade Gift Plans

{This is what I did today. Notice I took the easy way this year.  Pretty boxes, NOT wrapped.  The only wrapping paper I used is the “Naughty” and “Nice” packages.  I also skipped ribbon this year and just slapped a bow on.  So easy, so fast & I AM DONE!}
Want to see the rest of my tree?  Click here to see photos on Instagram.
 
//
I was not sure if I should write this post or not because the recipients of my homemade gifts read this blog!  But, I decided to go ahead and just not be too specific with who I am giving what.
Most of the gifts I bought this year were from the store.  I participated in Black Friday for the first time and I LOVED IT.  I got some of the best deals and really feel excited to give away the great, quality gifts I was able to purchase.  The gifts you see under the tree are for Grandparents, Aunts & Uncles; Cousins & to our own girls from ‘Santa.’
The three groups of gift recipients that are not under the tree and that will fall into the ‘homemade’ category are:
~Teachers
~My Amazing Girlfriends
~My Husbands Co-Workers
~Neighbors
Here is what I have decided to make:
Festive Packages Full of Cookie Dough Balls
I am using these festive Chinese takeout type containers to hold freezer Ziploc bags full of frozen cookie dough balls. The idea is it lets the gift recipient choose when to bake the cookies instead of overloading them with homemade goodies.  It also gives the gift of a home that smells like freshly baked cookies!  They are bigger than the picture portrays. If it is an individual or a couple that I am giving them to, they will get just one container.  If it is a larger family they will get two.
I got the idea off this pin on Pinterest:
Coconut Lime Sugar Scrub + Homemade Lip Balm
These are two of my most favorite things and I use them almost daily, so I know some special ladies in my life will love them, too.  The Coconut Lime Sugar Scrub will come with a little card of directions that will tell them how to use it and and tip them off to a shaving technique for incredibly soft, silky legs. Click here to read more about that.

 

The Homemade Lip Balm is another fav of mine.  I made my first batch back in the summer, and it made a lot and has lasted a long time!  I am on my last little container, and it is just as luxurious as it was when we first made it.  I like it better than any chapstick- type lip balm I have ever used.  I will not buy store bought lip balm again!  If you have teens in your life, they would love this as a stocking stuffer.  You can add essential oils for flavor and scent, and even add a bit of color to it if you would like.  Click here for directions on how to make it!

 

DIY Personalized Canvas
I have made one of these for myself and for a special friend, and plan on making a few more to give away at Christmas.  I love how personalized you can make these, and since they are such a simple design, it goes with just about every type of decor.  I plan on making one that says “Be Still” & one that has some snowflakes in the background – you can get all kinds of wooden letters, fonts, & shapes at your local craft store –  and that says “Let It Snow.”  The possibilities are endless!  Click here for step- by- step instructions.

What about you?  Are you making any homemade gifts this year?  If so, please share in the comments!
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My Past Homemade Gifts:
An Awesome Collection of Homemade Gifts:

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