Christmas Cookies Week 1 - Peanut Butter Cookies - Foodie Friday

Today is the first of four Foodie Fridays focusing - boy that was a lot of Fs - on Christmas cookies. Each week I'll give you a new recipe for cookies my family always makes around the holidays.

We'll get things started with my favorite peanut butter cookie recipe.

Enjoy!

As you can see from the photos above - and below - this recipe makes cookies that tend to spread out and become thin. I'm not sure if this is user error of some sort that has passed from my mom to me - her cookies look exactly like mine - or if it's just the recipe. At any rate, I love my peanut butter cookies this way!

Ingredients
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. white sugar
1 c. margarine - softened
1 c. peanut butter
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
2 c. flour
vanilla - the original recipe doesn't have an amount but I add about 1 tsp.

Directions
Mix in order. Chill for 1 hour. Roll into balls - about 1 T. of dough in each ball. Press with a fork. Bake at 350* for 10 minutes.

Because the dough has a tendency to thin and spread, that 1 T. of dough will make quite a large cookie. Use less dough if you want smaller cookies or are using a smaller cookie sheet. Mine usually end up baking together into a jig saw puzzle of sorts.

That recipe is so very simple - and old. It's so old, in fact, that instead of specifying a measurement amount of dough to use for each cookie - like teaspoon or tablespoon - it specifies to make them about the size of hickory nuts.

I'm not sure where my mom got the recipe and I should ask her some day when I think about it. It's the only recipe I ever remember her making them and they always turned out the same way - a little crunch on the edges and kind of smooshy and soft in the middle. After a day or two the middles got harder and they were crunchy just like the outsides.

12 Cards of Christmas #10-12

Today is the last of four days of posts sharing my 12 Cards of Christmas series. If you've missed the first day you can find it here, the second day here and the third day here. All of these cards were quick and easy to put together. With the exception of a few, none required any special or fancy supplies and similar supplies can probably be found at your local craft store.

Card 10:

I love this cute little Santa chipboard sticker I had and I think the red/green background goes perfectly.

"Jingle all the way" is a great sentiment to use on a Santa card, at least in my opinion. I only wish I could have centered it more but that wasn't going to happen given the sticker was already premade and I couldn't really alter it.

I spruced up Santa with a bit of glitter on his beard and the ball of his hat.

Card 11:

 Snowmen are always cute and appropriate for winter holidays and because this one says "Happy Holidays," it can be given to anyone who celebrates winter holidays.

This snowman is just adorable. He's so happy and cheery. I maybe only wish I had given him a bit of glitter, but as you can see in the larger card above, there was already bits of glitter sprinkled around the card.

I love that this "Happy Holidays" sticker is flat and not chipboard as the snowman is. It made it so much easier to layer it under the snowman and really, to me, it looks like they could have been one piece because they go together so well.

Card 12:

I love the color scheme of this card because it's not your typical winter/holiday card colors. The cream and mint green look amazing together and I was lucky enough to find the diagonal striped paper in my scrap pile.

 I glued a row of acrylic gems, aka rhinestones, in varying sizes across the middle of the card to cover the seam between the papers. Few things bug me more than being able to see the seam between two papers, especially when it's not a pretty seam.

I added a bit of glitter to the "snow" portion of the sentiment to make it stand out a bit more, but otherwise I don't think this needed very much sprucing up. I put white cardstock on the back of the sticker so I could then use foam tape to pop it up. This is such a simple and beautiful card.

So now that you've seen 12 very different Christmas card ideas, are you going to start making your own? Have you started making your own? I'd love to see what card ideas you've come up with for this season so feel free to share and discuss them in the comments below!

12 Cards of Christmas - #7-9

Today is the third of four days of posts sharing my 12 Cards of Christmas series. If you've missed the first day you can find it here and the second day here. All of these cards were quick and easy to put together. With the exception of a few, none required any special or fancy supplies and similar supplies can probably be found at your local craft store.

Card 7:

This snowflake/polka dot paper is some of my favorite Christmas paper. I've been using it for 3 Christmases now and I'm on my last sheet - cue tears. I'm pretty sure it's been discontinued as I got it in one of those clear out bundle packs that Hobby Lobby does at the end of the seasons.

I added glitter to the snowflake dots to add a little sparkle - if you haven't guessed by now I love sparkle.

A "Snow much fun" chipboard piece and some polka dot rick rack finish things off. I thought that the rick rack really tied things together and made it even more fun and festive looking even though the colors in the polka dots aren't matchy matchy.

Card 8:

I thought this Santa paper was too cute to not use this year. It's a new paper I got recently at Hobby Lobby - it was in one of those big packs they put together so I'm guessing it was last year's Christmas paper.

Just a few red and green gems around the edges gives it a little sparkle and adds just a little bit of something extra without going overboard.

I really like the bow in the center because it covers up the seam between the papers and it also makes it look like a "gift card" that I wrote about/made in one of the previous card sets.

Card 9:

I'm so glad I've been able to find more uses for this text paper. It's hard for me to find ways to use papers like this since they already have a sentiment essentially and in order to be able to read that sentiment you don't want to put too much on top.

I kept it simple with a little ribbon around the top and bottom.

And added some chipboard stickers to ribbon to make it look like the mittens are hanging up. It's simple, yet cute and festive.

12 Cards of Christmas #4-6

Today is the second of four days of posts sharing my 12 Cards of Christmas series. If you've missed the first day, you can find it here. All of these cards were quick and easy to put together. With the exception of a few, none required any special or fancy supplies and similar supplies can probably be found at your local craft store.

Card 4:

This card came together really fast. I just took a strip of red paper and layered a rectangle of patterned paper and yellow paper on top.

I added small red gems in each of the corners to add a little sparkle and interest. Since the paper says "Merry Christmas," I didn't really feel there was a need to add anything else.

The "JOY" part of the card is just some Christmas stickers I had. I put white cardstock on the back so I could use some foam tape to add some dimension to the card.

Card 5:

The background paper for this card is one of my favorite Christmas papers. To me, it looks fairly elegant yet you can dress it up or down as you can see here. This card is by no means fancy - unless you could the glitter on it, and sometimes I do - and yet it looks well put together and coordinating.

The sentiment is just a sticker I had from last year's Studio G Christmas collection from Walmart. Like all the stickers I want to pop instead of just laying flat I put some white cardstock on the back and then used foam tape to pop it up.

I also added a little glitter around the edges to give it some more interest and sparkle. Everything's better with glitter, right?

Card 6:

This card didn't quite turn out the way I had hoped, but I went with it and well this is what I got. I like the design, layout and supplies I used, I just wish the it had been a bit different in the execution of everything together and the final product looked a bit more polished.

I used acrylic gems (rhinestones if you want to call them that) to mimic Christmas ornaments. After doing this card I have concluded that I need to invest in some straight line stamps - or even curvy lines. I had to use the edge of my Versamark pad to make lines, which is why they ended up uneven in both thickness and straightness.

The sentiment I chose is one of my favorite Christmas sentiment stamps - actually it may be my only now that I think about it. But at any rate I love it. It stamps very cleanly every time and it's just great.

12 Cards of Christmas - #1-3

Today is the first of 4 days of posts highlighting 12 Christmas cards I have made. All of these cards were quick and easy to put together. With the exception of a few, none required any special or fancy supplies and similar supplies can probably be found at your local craft store.

Card 1:

This card is so simple and easy to make and the layout can be used for so many different occasions. If you end up using the same, or a similar, layout, be sure to choose paper with a pattern that lines up obviously.

I think It's really neat to see the tops of letters cut off in one bar at the bottom of the one above it. It adds interest and you don't need to be too flashy about embellishments.

For the embellishment I chose a simple snowman stamp and embossed him with silver embossing powder on light pink paper. Ideally I wish I'd had a pink closer to the patterned paper's background, but I still think it looks ok.


Card 2:

This is quite possibly one of the easiest cards ever, seriously. I had this Christmas colored patterned paper in my stash and decided to bust it out.

The sentiment is really just a sticker that I got at the end of the season last year. I stuck it on white cardstock, cut around it and put it on foam tape to add a bit of dimension. A red ribbon tied around and some glitter to the "holly jolly" part makes it complete.

Card 3:

This card is made to look like a gift, complete with a tag. I just chose somewhat simple paper and dressed it up with a red bow and a plastic circle tag that I embellished with an acrylic gem.

I also wrote a To/From on the tag to really make it look like a gift. However, since I'm not quite sure who the recipient will be, I just left it a generic you/me.

This would be very easy to replicate with many different paper/ribbon combos. It would be adorable to see a bunch of "gift cards" all together under a tree or something.

What to do with Holiday Leftovers - Foodie Friday

If you're like many Americans, your fridge is probably full of leftovers from yesterday's Thanksgiving meal. You've probably got some turkey, veggies, dressing/stuffing...The list probably goes on. And if you're still like many Americans, your capacity to appreciate Thanksgiving leftovers as they are is probably about to run its course by about tomorrow. Below you'll find some great ideas for all those delicious leftovers. Hopefully none will go to waste!

Source: laurenbrapp.blogspot.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Cheesy Chicken Pot Pie Cups - Instead of chicken, substitute turkey. This would also be a great way to use up some of the leftover veggies as well!

Source: closetcooking.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese - Again, sub turkey for the chicken and voila! It also calls for some celery and carrots which could be a great way to use up leftover veggie tray items.

Source: budgetsavvydiva.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Chicken Enchiladas - Sub turkey! Yes, the taste is a bit different but in the end it will still taste just as delicious.

Source: realsimple.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Chicken Pot Pies - Another great use for leftover turkey and veggies. That's the beauty of pot pies - you can toss in just about anything, cover it with some pie crust and it'll still taste delicious.

Source: thekitchencookbook.blogspot.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Corn Nuggets - Many people have corn for Thanksgiving and this would be a different way to use up any leftovers. It's not what I would consider a traditional food at all, so it might be a nice break from all the "usual" ways to use up leftovers.

Source: justputzing.com via Jessica on Pinterest

Loaded Mashed Potato Cakes - These look so good and I don't know about you, but we always have leftover mashed potatoes and no one really likes to eat them re-heated just plain.

A few other ideas I couldn't find/didn't need a specific recipe for:

• Add leftover cranberry relish to your morning oatmeal. It adds an unexpected surprise and is delicious!
• Add anything to Ramen noodles. Ramen tastes great with just about anything tossed in.
• Shredded hot turkey sandwiches. Just make them as you would shredded hot chicken sandwiches. It also works to make turkey salad sandwiches as you would chicken salad.

I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving and can put some of these ideas to use for Christmas as well!

ThankVember Week 3

Every day this month I'm sharing something I'm thankful for on Facebook/Twitter. If you'd like to know what these things are daily, you can become a fan on Facebook here. Otherwise, you can read the weekly posts I'll put up telling what I was thankful for the week before. Week 1's post can be found here and week 2's post here. The rest will be up today and December 3.

Day 15: Today I'm thankful for opportunities. I have been given so many and given so many to others. They're chances to do better, different and/or just do something.

Day 16: I'm thankful for people who actually listen when I talk instead of letting things go in one ear and out the other. Sometimes just having someone to talk to means a lot.

Day 17: I am thankful for Uno (the card game). It makes for fun times.

Day 18: I'm thankful for the music we listen to at church. The songs are so upbeat and they get stuck in my head all week.

Day 19: I am thankful for my weight loss. I've gained a lot of weight in the last several years for various reasons and it's good to finally be losing some of it and feeling like my old self more.

Day 20: I'm thankful I have support. There has been so much going on in the last several years and I don't know where I would be without all the support I've had.

Day 21: I'm thankful I was raised the way I was. I have manners, compassion and more patience than one human should really have.

What's in my November 2012 Birchbox

This month's Birchbox theme is Giving in honor of Thanksgiving. According to the info card "This month's box is all about giving: giving thanks, giving back, and of course giving treats." I'm not entirely sure I see how many of these things in my box are about giving to be honest.

Atelier Cologne Rose Anonyme Petite Cologne Absolue - Full size $75 for 30ml - Sample $3.70 for 1.48ml

 

I can already tell you that I don't like this. At all. The minute I popped off the top all I could think of was old lady Avon. It's supposed to have ginger and bergamot as the notes and so I'm guessing maybe it's the bergamot that makes it smell like old lady. Either way, I'm not a fan.


Miracle Skin Transformer™ Vanish Instant Imperfection Corrector - Full size $58 for 1oz - Sample $5.80 for 0.1oz

According to the info card, this is a serum-infused primer with optical diffusers. Apparently that means it's supposed to mask imperfections. It's supposed to improve wrinkles, dark spots and even skin tone. I'm actually pretty excited to try this since my current primer (by Rimmel) isn't doing much to cover dark spots. Even with primer, a few acne scars that I have still show through my foundation and even concealer after a few hours. Hopefully this can help.


Oscar Blandi Pronto Texture & Volume Spray Travel Size - Full travel size $11 for 1.5oz - Sample travel size $7.33 for 1oz

If there's two things my hair needs on a daily basis it's texture and volume. I typically wash my hair every other day and on day two it has much more texture than day one it seems. It also gets more volume from the dry shampoo I use. I kind of hope this can help my hair on day one when it's flatter and lacking in the texture and volume. I also love that it's a travel size sample, which doesn't mean it lacks in product, but that it's more portable and could easily go in my bag or be stored easily with my other hair products.


stila all over shimmer liquid luminizer try-me-set - Full size $20 for 3 different shades - Sample $6.67

So far I haven't been one for too much shimmer on my face because it tends to get oily as the day goes on. However, after swatching this on the back of my hand I think I might actually like it. It didn't have too much shimmer and seemed to be more glowy than glittery. As much as I love glitter (when it comes to crafting), I hate obvious glitter on my face.


Chuao Chocolatier Assorted ChocoPod - Full size $7.95 for 7 assorted flavors - Sample $1.14

I'm really, really anxious and excited to try this. A local store sells chocolate covered potato chips by the pound and I've always been tempted to try some, but haven't actually taken the plunge. The flavor I got has "crisp kettle cooked potato chips and a hint of sea salt" with milk chocolate. Sounds delish to me!

The box also came with a gift box meant to be used to give someone special a surprise.

Box Total: $24.64