Allison: Christmas Card Books

Hello, and Happy New Year! It feels like forever since I've posted and I figured it was time to get back in the routine.

I have many resolutions this year, but one that always seems to make the list is to stay organized. I thrive in an organized environment and usually feel completely lost in mess and disorder. Needless to say that with a two-year-old, I usually find myself in the later situation.

Post-Christmas is usually a time I feel a little stressed as the house is overflowing with new toys and gifts, and a plethora of decorations that need to be stored. I always feel a little sad as the cards and pictures from family and friends get taken down. Last year, I stumbled upon a fun way to keep those special cards organized and cherished for years to come: Christmas Card Books.

I simply organized the cards of each year by size, punched holes, scrapbooked a cover and held them together with rings. To personalize them a little further, I added a significant event or two from the year to the cover. I then store them with my other Christmas decor and now we can see how our friends have grown and changed each year.

Look at Sara's adorable family!!  :)

I hope you all had a great Christmas and are looking forward to all this new year will bring. Have a great week!


Allison

Allison: White Chocolate and Candy Cane Popcorn

Hello again!  Just dropping in for a quick post.  I just decided to make some goodies on a whim.  Not really a good idea if you're home all day, and trying to lose baby weight.  Hmm...  But I have to share this treat with you!  I made this last year too, and it is so addictive:  White Chocolate and Candy Cane Popcorn.

Here's what you need:

*popcorn
*white chocolate chips
*candy canes

Pretty tricky, huh?  I don't exactly have the amounts, as I kind of eye-balled it.  Remember how I'm always talking about how lazy I am?  Well, I cheated and used microwave popcorn bags, and made the whole process that much easier.  The funny thing, is that both times I've made this, I've only had the single-serving-sized bags of the Orville Redenbacher's Kettle Corn (the low-fat/calorie kind).  It still worked great, and even added a little more flavor.  I think I used three bags (after burning one).

I then used a double broiler to melt about 1/2 a bag of white chocolate chips.  Once that was done, I poured the chocolate over the popcorn in a large bowl and used a rubber spatula to mix it together.

To allow the chocolate to cool, I poured it onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.  Finally, while the chocolate was still melted, I sprinkled crushed candy canes over the top.  I always have crushed candy canes in my pantry.  Never know when you'll need it!

Lastly, give it away quick, before you end up eating it all yourself.  I think the whole process took maybe 20 minutes (and that was with some snacking).  Enjoy!!



Allison

Allison: Christmas Projects and Ornament Books

Hello again!  I've meant to post various times the last couple of weeks, but it just hasn't happened.  But I have a few posts planned for the next week.

Christmas projects are in full swing here at my house, so I thought I'd share what I've been working on.  Since we've been married, I've wanted to make our own family stockings.  So this year, I finally started!  I've completed Brent's stocking and my stocking so far.  Two more to go!  Here they are:

Brent's stocking (left).  Allison's stocking (right).

Each ended up being such a quick project and so fun to make.  I'm excited to see all 4 hanging above the fireplace.

I've also completed an ABC book that I gifted to my sister, Sara.  We grew up with a similar book from my Grandma Golda, and Sara and I have talked for years about creating some new ones to give to our siblings.  I'm planning a post in the next week or two to share the great text with all of you so that you can make your own.  Start collecting Christmas cards!  Here are a few pages:

I've also been working on our immediate family's presents.  Both my family and Brent's exchange presents with one other sibling's family each Christmas.  I decided to add a little more stress to my life by making them myself.  I've wanted to make some kind of quilted project for my sister-in-law, Tammy (Brent's sister), so I made her and her family a Christmas tree skirt.  It turned out so cute and I hope their family enjoys it.

I'm currently working on a gift for the family of my brother, Briant, but I'm not ready for pictures yet.  And of course these cuties have kept me mildly busy.

See why I haven't posted lately?!  But the project I wanted to share this week, are these family ornament books.

Does your family buy special ornaments each year?  Or maybe you have ornaments that have been handed down.  I saw the idea on Pinterest to create a book with pictures of each special ornament and the story behind it.  That way, years from now, the story of each ornament can be passed down.

Making these cute books was super cheap and easy.  I found these little photo books for a dollar at Joanns, allowing me to change out the cover pages.  Then I simply scrapbooked a small page with the title of the book.  Easy!

Next, I took pictures of each special ornament, and through Powerpoint inserted the year and wrote out a simple description of the ornament and its significant.

I also think I might include a "family picture" of Christmas morning each year.  I'm excited for the day that my kids will look through their books each Christmas, as they hang their special ornaments on the tree.

I hope you're all enjoying your Christmas projects, and not stressing out too much.  Don't forget to remember the reason for the season.  Have a great week!


Allison