Christmas Gifts under $5

I love these little Santa hats ($1 at Bath and Body Works)!  The store displayed them with their yummy holiday scented foam hand lotions...Vanilla Bean Noel and Peppermint.  I thought they would be excellent Christmas gifts for my daughter's friends.

To make sure ALL the friends were taken care of, in a more cost efficient manner, we swapped out the B&B lotion ($14.99) with a small bottle of Sparkling Cider ($1.99).  We also had the thought of reducing costs even more with friends favorite bottle of soda...it's the Santa hat that makes it fun!  

Happy Ho, Ho, Ho to You!

2016 Neighbor, Teacher and Friend Christmas Gifts

Tis the season for gift giving! 

This year for my teacher gifts, I made these cute jars toppers. 

I found the jars at Michaels and Hobby Lobby. 

I found these awesome old 50's cars at Wal-mart. They were in collectable boxes and were about $6 each. Kind of pricey, but I have been looking for years for cute old cars with no luck.

I got the small bottle brush trees on-line at pick your plum, but I have seen them in craft stores also. 

I used E6000 to glue the trees to the car and then the car to the jar. Used a little twine to make it look tied down to the cars, fill with your favorite treats and there you have it!

I also made these fun Pizzookie Baskets for some of our friends. Pizzookies are a favorite treat in our house. 

Here is the tag and directions in case you would like to make them yourselves!

Holiday (Meeting) Brunch

Just a quick idea for a spur of the moment holiday brunch.

I sit on the board of a non profit organization, My Story Matters.  Come to think of it "sit" is a funny word to use because we don't do much sitting!

We had an end of year meeting that included a brunch and I wanted to share what our caterer prepared for us.  

A crepe bar!  

It was delicious and simple. 

MENU

Crepes

The Best Crepe Recipe

Crepe fillings 

[raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries] 

Crepe toppings 

[caramel, chocolate and raspberry sauces, spray creme]

Cubed sweet breads

Carafed OJ

Mexican egg puffs with salsa

We organized, chatted, and ate, all while gazing out the windows at beautiful mountains with a lake view.

For this busy time of year...perfect. 

CTR (Choose the Right) Primary Ornament Tutorial

The Primary theme for 2017 is Choose the Right. For our presidency gifts we decided to make these cute ornaments and give them to the primary children as well as a Christmas CD of songs for next year. They turned out darling and were suprisingly quick and easy to make. 

You begin by getting clear ornaments. I got plastic ones (becuase......primary children) at a doorbuster at Michaels. 25 for $8! You squeeze acrylic paint into the ornament and place a piece of duck tape over the opening and start shaking!

 Keep shaking until the whole ornament is colored. 

 The place in cups to dry. This will take a day or two. 

 Once dry, replace the top to the ornament. I used my silhouette to cut out the vinyl. I was going to do the CTR Shield around it, but because the ornament is curved I couldnt get it to go on straight.

Didnt they turn out cute!

Hand Dipped Chocolate Caramel Pretzels

 

Are you in need of a hostess gift for your upcoming Christmas parties?  Maybe a special gift for friends and neighbors? Caitlyn's pretzels are a definite crowd pleaser. 

I would highly recommend Delaware Dipped

These are not your average pretzels.  They are hand dipped in caramel and then an added layer of rich chocolate.

They are delightful!  

And I have to admit...I have enjoyed one or two for breakfast!

Custom orders and shipping available.

Don't delay, order today!

They're Creepy and they're crawly...

I'm not very fond of spiders.  I just saw a dead tarantula on the road in front of my house today.  We live on a mountain and was told that our neighborhood seems to be right in the middle of a tarantula migration path.  Who knew that tarantulas migrated!

My sister, Connie created a nest of jewel beaded spiders just in time for Halloween.  They are beautiful. And she shared one with me.  In a lamp lit foyer it looks creepy and crawly.    

I've been a little creeped out at first glance and then remembered it's a PRETTY spider!...is that an oxymoron?

Connie used bendable wire, beads and jewels to create.  She initially made a large one to hang off her chandelier.  Looks awesome. 

I added my creepy crawly to the display of Broomsticks, Bats and Toads.  I thought that fitting. 

Can you say EWWWW!

Mom's Meatloaf - MMMmmm Monday

We enjoy comfort food in our home! I have been making this recipe since I got married almost 25 years ago. It's one of the easiest meals and I'm pretty sure every mom has a great meatloaf recipe but my mom's is the best. This meal is served best with baked or mashed potatoes! Delicious!

Mom's Meatloaf

2 pounds Hamburger

2 eggs

1 onion, chopped

1 pkg Lipton Onion Soup Mix

2 Handfuls of Oatmeal

2/3 Tbsp. Ketchup

Mix all ingredients with hands and place in muffin tins or loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 Minutes. 

A Delicious Meal!