A GIFT IDEA AND MORE GLIMPSES OF CHRISTMAS AT OUR HOUSE

For a quick gift, how about some Hot Chocolate Mix?

This is what you need:

1 (8 qt. size) dry instant milk

1 (8 oz. size) non-dairy creamer

18 oz. hot cocoa mix

1 lb. powdered sugar

6 oz. instant chocolate pudding mix

Mix everything together. Package up in a jar and decorate with instructions to use 1/4 cup mixture per 8 oz. cup of hot water.

I like to give the mix with 2 mugs made by a local potter. These great mugs were made by Dan Masimer. They have nice large hand-warming handles!





Here are some glimpses of more Christmas decorating around our house!

May your preparations for Christmas be a joyful experience! In all of the scurrying around, take a few moments to reflect on the reason we celebrate.

Thanks for stopping by,

Sally

GINGERBREAD BOYS AND GIRLS, AWARDS AND TAGS

It's time to make gingerbread boys and girls at Grammy's house.

We're getting the hang of it!
The flour is flying now!

It's time to frost, and that means lick your fingers!!


The boys need eyes and buttons; the girls get eyes and a belt.


We're done - time to lick the bowl!


Grammy has done her job - filled them full of sugar! Now it's time to take the kids home to their parents.

I've been tagged by Robyn at There is always thyme for to list the things that reflect my love of Christmas. Along with the tag, came this great Christmas Spirit Award. Thanks, Robyn.

My love of Christmas ----

1. I enjoy my house all decorated with the mementos of past Christmases. They invoke so many memories of when we were first married, of our children when they were small, and all of the friends and family that have visited during the Christmas season.

2. I love my grand children around the house cooking with me in the kitchen, checking out the trees and their goodies, and playing with the Fontanini Nativity set with Baby Jesus and all of the animals. The joy of Christmas through their eyes is wonderful!

3. Christmas is not complete without going to candlelight services at church on Christmas eve. I'm amazed how good and quiet little children are when the candles are the only source of light. Their eyes sparkle like nothing else.

4. I can't forget the food. We experience new tastes with the gifts of food. There are always new recipes to try and old ones to make again. It ALMOST makes me like to cook.

5. I love the cold weather and the snow at Christmas. Unfortunately, we usually don't get that until January; but I can dream.

6. Anytime of the year, I like to shop; but at Christmas it is special shopping for others especially our little ones and those children less fortunate.

7. My kids have never missed coming home to our house at Christmas since they have become adults. I enjoy their company!!!!

8. And the best thing -- my faith in God is always renewed this time of year. I become so aware of my blessings.

Also, Carrie at Oak Rise Cottage has honored me with this award.

It states, "This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships! These blogs exceedingly are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!" Isn't that beautiful? I have so much to live up to!!!!

I appreciate all of the awards I have received in the few months I have been blogging. But more than the awards, I'm appreciative of your friendships. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Have you noticed how independent most bloggers are? I, too, am not too good at following the rules. So, I have dispensed with them!! If you read my blog or are on my blog roll, please accept one of these awards. I treasure all of you!!

Thanks for stopping by,

Sally

TRIM THE TREE THURSDAY

It's Trim the Tree Thursday hosted by Brett at The Hostess with the Mostess. Check out her blog for a list of wonderful Christmas participants.

This week I want to share our Christmas tree that is set up in our living room. But, first, I want to show you our very first Christmas tree. The year was 1958, and we had been married for three months. We were college students living on nothing, but we bought this little real tree. To decorate it, I made some red things (?) out of some red net fabric I had and strung some popcorn and cranberries for garland. Then we bought ONE red ball, which we painted the year on it.

And, thus, began our very own traditions. Every year since, we have painted the year on a red ball to add to our tree. That makes 51 balls this year!! We have, also, had popcorn garlands on our tree every year. As a matter of fact, Bob and the grand kids finished stringing popcorn for this year's tree just last night.

Of course, in addition to the red balls, we have added lots of ornaments to this tree from our travels, kid's projects, and gifts from friends.

Here is that very first 1958 ball next to our 2008 ball.


About 30 years ago, I found these old-fashioned type of candle holders that clip on the tree. We have always been afraid to light the candles, however!!!



Twenty-five years ago, I started a Hallmark Christmas ornament series of houses and buildings. I never had any idea that the series would go on this long. I have all 25 in the series. We also are on the 13th in the series of the train ornaments, plus there is a completed Santa Claus series on the tree.


My parents brought this Holy Family made from corn husks back from Santa Fe, New Mexico to us one year.


A Teddy bear in a basket with his very own pieced quilt that I made.

There are four of these gingerbread men that Bob brought back from a business trip for our son's first Christmas 40 years ago.

I've only shown you a small portion of the hundreds of ornaments on this tree. It takes the two of us all day to hang all of the ornaments. If we have help from the grand kids, it takes even longer!! We always relive what was happening during a specific year when we hang the red balls. New baby years, new house years, no money years; they have all been joyful years!!!!

I love this tree probably even more than the tree I showed you last week with the blown-glass ornaments on it. I can't imagine a Christmas without it!!

I hope you enjoyed it, too.

Sally

VINTAGE VIGNETTE #5 FOR CHRISTMAS

For my vintage vignette this week, I wanted to show you the Christmas village with the bottlebrush trees that was always on my Grandmother's mantel at Christmas time.

She always had this little round mirror to simulate a pond for the deer to have a drink. At a young age I was concerned that the deer were much too large for the houses. I was told that they were in front; and things close to you always appear larger. Thus, my first lesson in perspective!!!

Each building as a hole in the back to put a light through. Some of the bottlebrush trees have had a bit too much loving over the years. Grandma always let me play with the village and move things around. I've set this scene up on a low chest, so that my grandchildren have access to it, also.



See the Christmas decorations in the tiny windows.





The deer are made of celluloid.



Lots of fluffy snow this year.

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoyed your visit to my Grandmother's house.

Sally

BLUE MONDAY

It is Blue Monday once again hosted by Sally! Please check out SmilingSal for a list of more Blue Monday posts.

A few years ago, when our granddaughter, Caitlin, was first learning the 'paint' program on our computer; she drew this for me to use as a screen saver. I love the blue she chose for Joseph to wear, while Mary wears brown and purple. And, every angel should have a teal dress!! I've cherished it ever since, even though sometimes I have to dig deep into the computer to find it!!!!

DDDonD
Don't you just loDon't you just love children's art? - they get right to the point. It reminds me that things such as technology may change, but some things manage to remain the same.lly

SNOW ON THE MOUNTAIN CHOCOLATE CHEESECAKE

Snow on the Mountain Chocolate Mini-Cheesecakes are a staple around here during the month of December. I keep them in the freezer for a quick dessert or snack.

This is what you need:

About 18 tablespoons of crushed up chocolate graham crackers

2 - 8 oz. packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup of milk chocolate chips, melted

1 - 8 oz. container of Cool Whip, thawed

Put about 1 tablespoon of the crushed up chocolate graham crackers in the bottom of each lined muffin pan cup.

Combine cream cheese and sugar, mixing at medium speed in mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Blend in melted chocolate chips.

Fill each muffin cup almost full.

Bake in 325 degree oven for 25 minutes.

Cool before removing from pan. As they cool, they will shrink a little. Top with Cool Whip.

These freeze well. Thaw slightly before serving. Makes 18 mini-cheesecakes.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I have had a request for the recipe for the Peppermint Sandwich Cookies, also. It is one of those recipes that you almost hate to share because it is so easy and, of course, not all that good for you. I got the recipe a long time ago from a Betty Crocker Cake and Frosting Mix cookbook. Sorry no pictures, but here goes:

You will need:

2 eggs
2/3 cup shortening or oil
1 package cake mix (I've tried both chocolate & white mixes)
1 can prepared white frosting
Crushed peppermint candy

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Blend eggs and shortening in mixer. Add half of the dry cake mix. Beat at medium speed. Add remaining cake mix. Blend on low speed.

Form dough into 1-inch balls. Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes. Allow to cool on sheet 1-2 minutes before removing.

To the prepared frosting, add a drop of red food coloring and crushed peppermint candy. Frost 1/2 of the cookies. Top with the other 1/2 of cookies to make sandwich cookies. Makes 2 dozen sandwich cookies.
My family's favorite is probably chocolate cookies with the peppermint; but I have made them with just plain chocolate frosting. My new favorite is using Dot's (at ) peanut butter frosting.

Thanks for stopping by,
Sally

TRIM THE TREE THURSDAY

Brett at The Hostess with the Mostess is hosting Trim the Tree Thursday. Please check out her blog for a list of participants during this Holiday season!!

I like the saying, "I don't decorate, I accumulate!" That sums up the stories of the two Christmas trees we set up each year.

The one I'm showing you today is a tabletop tree in our dining room. It is covered with blown-glass ornaments both old and new. There are ornaments from both Bob's and my childhood trees. Plus, over the years I have bought the newer ornaments when traveling and received quite a few as gifts.

The tree topper is an old one and quite fragile.


All of the glass roping belonged to my parents; and is composed of 1/4" little hand-blown balls, except for one rope where the balls are about 3/4" in diameter.

Sheila - see that rooster! I bought that in the Strand District in Galveston.


I love all of the bird ornaments on the tree. There is a legend that the original glass blowers in Germany kept birds in their studios while working to alert them if there was a gas leak from the equipment. In honor of the birds, they would blow bird images as an ornament for the Christmas trees.


This little horn was on Bob's childhood tree.

Some of the balls have cardboard hangers indicating that they are from the World War II era when metal was scarce.

A hummingbird!


The orange round ornament to the left of the pheasant was my mother's. She loved orange; I always think of her when putting this ball on the tree.

The grand kids love looking at this tree; but have always been so good since babyhood to look and not touch!


Check in next Thursday to view our other tree that is full of memories, also.


Thanks for stopping by,

Sally

TABLESCAPE TUESDAY

Once again it is Tablescape Tuesday hosted by Susan at Between Naps on the Porch. Please stop by her blog for a list of all of those participating in showing their clever tablescapes!

I've set the table for a snack on a cold afternoon using my snowmen dishes from Debbie Mumm. I purchased them several years ago from Target.

I always giggle when I see snowmen (or snow women) with feet!!

For a snack today, we are having Snow on the Mountain
Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes and also Peppermint Sandwich Cookies.



Each snowman plate is different!



For a hot drink on a cold day, how about Hot Chocolate with a snowman 'Peep' marshmallow?



Thanks for stopping by, and please check out the other tablescapes.



Sally