Christmas has arrived!

Christmas has arrived a little early at our house! HA! Things seem a little brighter and little more cheery.....loving this little baby grand daughter of ours! She is so sweet! Like candy......well, sort of...and speaking of candy......

Mary See's dropped by today. I was wondering why I have never really gotten into making delicious chocolates at holiday time. Then, it came to my mind......

Our entire family, we are See's Candy fans from way back when! Just look at these beauties!! Yum! Looks like someone has already been enjoying a taste or two...empty candy wrapper. Hmmm! Mary See's, does it again! Delicious!

Happiest of Holidays to you and yours! xoxo

Sydney and Jenna

Winter Wildflowers, Flowers and Growing Things.....

Sure do enjoy the beauty of a winter sunrise. I see this quite frequently from my front porch, during the winter. It is a real treat!

And, these little beauties, too. Aren't these fun and cute little flower pincushions? They sure hit the spot with their bright and cheerful disposition, during the winter months. This pattern was designed by Anna Maria Horner, and was published in Good Housekeeping. You can find it here.... www.annamariahorner.blogspot.com/. Just look at the sidebar under Wildflower Pincushion. There you go.


And, did I mention how much I adore these long pearlized pins? I am not sure if I made the pincushion so that I could use the pins, or bought the pins to enjoy in the pincushion. Most likely a little of both. Ha! They are dazzling!

Tis the season for my Christmas Cactus to bloom and bloom and bloom. This is a cutting from my Grandmother's cactus plant. I would see her original plant blooming in her living room, when I was a little girl. I think a lot of us in my family have starts from Grandma's plant. Sure is bright and elegant.

And, a little surprise. Ha! Just have not been able to let my small, yellow, pear tomato go the ways of the world. I brought it in from off of our back porch sometime in October as the nights were getting toooo cold. Every time I picked the last of the yellow tomato's, their would be new little ones growing. So.......

Hope you are finding winter beauty and lovely growing things in your neck of the woods.
Happy Holidays! xo

Christmas Treats

A perk about living in Las Vegas are the SHOWS!

This weekend we went with our good friends to see Andrea Bocelli on his Christmas tour. SO well worth it. Here we are with him..

There was a violinist alone who made the ticket price worth it as well as 2 other female soloists who accompanied Bocelli as he sang. A great night of music!

On Sunday it was time to get to work...


Time to send some goodie bags with Aaron to work..on the agenda this year was Ginger Snap Softies, Oreo Truffles and "Reindeer Feed" (only instead of white chocolate and peppermint I used peanut butter, chocolate and powdered sugar.
























Apparently, the Oreo truffles were a big success..I'll post the recipe later this afternoon! Or, if you have time now, it's on Sister's Cafe. On the left they have all of their holiday treats so be sure to check those out if you need more yummy holiday ideas.

Weekend Wonders!

What a great way to start the weekend. Fresh juice really hits the spot!

Out to the Christmas Tree Farm to meet dear friends. Nice chilly day to tromp around the tree farm seeking "the perfect tree".Saws and wagons for cutting and hauling "the perfect tree".

Making way.....or making fun along the way!

...and some more fun! Gotta have fun!

FRIENDS!!!!!

Eureka! "The perfect tree"!

Calling out encouragement and support..until it is realized....

...this job is going to take two.

Timmm--berrrr!

"The perfect tree" is loaded up and we begin to haul back to the barn. Job well done!

I so love this next part...the tree is put into this small machine and shook like crazy to get rid of excess nature and such. Prepping for the wrap.

Straight through the tree machine. All neat and tidy and ready for the ride home.

Strapping "the perfect tree" to the car.

Friends head home, my son and I head into the barn to warm-up, look at all the beautiful homemade ornaments, wreaths, etc. We leave taking the cutest small 'free' red apples to munch on as we happily head home.

And then, it happened. Finally. Welcome snow. Wonderful winter weekend!

How was your weekend? Busy times...wonderful times. xo

Top 10 Trends

Betty Crocker released their "Top Ten Trends" of this Holiday season. I was surprisingly thrilled with what they had listed...

Cupcake Poppers
Trend: Bright colors, Playful Food

Indian Spiced Mini Donut Muffins
Trend: Street Treats and Tweets

Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Puppy Treats
Trend: Pet Spot at the Table

Salted Chocolate Almond Fudge
Trend: DIY Gifts for Others

Sweet Swirl Marshmallows
Trend: Food for a Cause

Reindeer Feed
Trend: Kids in the kitchen

(I'm so excited to try this one out! Wouldn't it be a great gift in those little burlap sacks!?)

Gluten Free Fudge Crinkles
Trend: Alternative diets go mainstream

(I think it's pretty with the ribbon added on a stack of regular cookies too)

Three Cheese Fondue
Trend: Retro parties are back in!

Gingerbread Cookie Cocktail
Trend: Mixology Mashup

You could make many kinds of drinks with the flavors in season right now. Add a cookie on a toothpick and sugar on the rim for eye glam!
For recipes and more go to their site HERE

Maybe some of these trends will spark your imagination for neighbor gifts, holiday parties etc!

Christma Gift Guide under $25

Emma the Joy blog HERE