Category: Celebrate
Celebrate, Holidays

Those Pesky Leprechauns!

March 14
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Each St. Patrick’s Day morning our family finds that prankster leprechauns paid us a visit–playing holiday tricks while we slept!  We’re greeted with open cupboard doors & drawers, chairs turned upside down or stacked on table tops, and a trail of glitter and confetti marking the path of those pesky visitors!  This tradition has been a favorite of my kids…even as they grow, they still love to see what those crazy charaters will do next!  An idea inspired by one of their teachers when she had the kids make leprechaun traps to catch those rascals when they came calling!  But, alas, they stayed one step ahead turning the classroom upside down and not a single leprechaun getting captured!  We kept this tradition at home and it’s really fun…with the exception of cleaning the confetti, but that’s what vacuums are for!  The prize for enduring this pesky visit?  Tiny gifts and trinkets left behind amongst the chaos–and the best consolation…gold coins hidden in the shoes of the children!

will the leprechauns pay you a visit?

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Celebrate, Holidays, Savor

Irish Breakfast with a “Twist”

March 10
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It’s always fun to have holiday traditions…one that we love is making Irish soda bread for a toasty warm breakfast on what is usually a cool St. Patrick’s Day morning!  However, sometimes life can get in the way of traditions…I’m sure we can all agree that sometimes there just aren’t enough hours to do those extra things we love!  So with that in mind, we came up with a fun holiday morning celebration that can be just as tasty as tradition and look equally special with a few easy touches!  Who doesn’t love those twisty bread sticks that pop out of a can?  Take a peek at a breakfast treat you can whip up in no time for a whimsical St. Paddy’s Day morning!

serve up some twisty fun!

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Celebrate, Holidays, Savor

Fat Tuesday Fun!

March 3
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It’s almost Mardi Gras!  A time for celebrations & eating yummy, traditional treats–like king cakes and paczkis!  Two of my family’s favorite treats and new traditions!  Just in case you aren’t familiar with either–we’re going to focus on both today since there’s still time to indulge if you wish!  I had never heard of a paczki (pronounced like “poonch key”) until we moved to Toledo–but they’re a mouth-watering pastry stuffed with fruit or cream fillings much like a doughnut.  These pastries are not affiliated with Mardi Gras celebrations but are a Polish tradition of using up sugars and fats before Lent begins and are offered for a limited time prior to Fat Tuesday.  Knowing we can get them only once a year makes them a much anticipated treat!  So if you live in the Midwest, popular with Polish communities, get to your local bakery asap–you might be able to get in on the tasty fun before these treats are gone ’till next year!

powdered indulgence!

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Celebrate, Holidays

At the End of the Rainbow

February 28
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Gold coins at the end of the rainbow can be seriously overrated…especially if you’re the type that loves to indulge in tiny cakes!  So have the best of both worlds…little cakes in gold foil…a fitting St. Patrick’s Day treat that won’t break the bank!  We love to celebrate all seasons with cupcakes…big or small!  They’re so easy, everybody loves them and there’s countless ways to dress them up to fit any occasion!  Take a peek at these tiny cakes…a yummy treat at the end of the rainbow!

lucky day…

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Celebrate

Snow Day Snow Cone!

February 5
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What a winter we’ve had!  We rarely have snow days around here but this year we’ve had several…much to the delight of my children and I’m sure many more!  Today’s post was inspired by a school project that was assigned yesterday in anticipation of our day off!  Kids were told to make a snow cone from the fresh blanket that covers our village!  What a great idea–and a lot of fun!  Here’s a peek at another snow day activity that brought smiles to everyone!

a great way to fill snowy hours!

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Celebrate, Holidays

Chinese New Year

January 20
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January 31st 2014 marks the start of the Chinese New Year!  An ancient family celebration to honor elders and ancestors, rid bad spirits and welcome good fortune is now a popular party theme–whether you descend from those regions or just enjoy the idea of gathering with friends for an evening of festivity!  Each year of the Chinese calendar is represented by an animal in 12 year cycles…2014 is the year of the horse…so you can have fun creating a celebration with traditional Chinese decorations as well as the animal representing the year!  Make it a family affair and invite all ages to experience the excitement of something new!

the year of the horse…

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Celebrate, Holidays

Good Cheer!

January 10
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Now that the hustle & bustle of holiday celebrations has ended, decorations have come down and winter has whole-heartily revealed itself…the rest of the season can seem a tad boring.  Many people confess how sad they are when the decorations are gone and their houses suddenly appear empty…I know both Sarah & I feel that way in our own homes!  And spending so much time indoors during these long, cold winter days doesn’t help.  So I was thinking, why should all the merriment disappear with the the holidays?  Why not invite some cheerful whimsy to hang out in your home a bit longer?  All it takes is a little holiday recycling!  By using some of the decorations from past seasons, the buffet in my dining room is dressed up with some sparkle and cheer!  A very easy way to be ready to accommodate guests on a whim with little preparation…and it looks festive too!  Fill the evenings of winter with warmth and fellowship of friends…

and keep the good cheer going!

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Come In From The Cold!

January 3
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The New Year came in with a little extra “fluff”–and for our family, this was great news!  We don’t always get enough of the white stuff around here and the anticipation of breaking out the sleds is almost the equivalent of Christmas morning! (I do believe that even my husband secretly awaits the excitement of firing up the snow blower that is usually a neglected object in the garage!) Whether you love snow or hate it–are hard at work or hard at play–the best part of frolicking in the fluffy stuff is coming in for a thaw!  From the moment the temperatures begin to fall both Sarah and I set out the hot cocoa in our homes for a quick warm up at any time of the cooler seasons!  Not only does it look cute on the counter, it makes for a super quick set-up to warm the hearts and tummies of those with rosy cheeks and cold noses!  So play in the snow till you can’t feel your toes!  When you come in…

…the best part is waiting!

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Celebrate, Holidays

Set a Holiday Table!

December 27
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The holidays give us so many opportunities to set up our tables with great food and festivity!  We love to share ideas for table settings that are easy and inexpensive so that the focus of your event can be the joy of guests and not so much on the preparations!  Always remember you don’t have to sacrifice elegance to be thrifty! This example of a place setting and centerpiece is lovely for the New Year celebrations to come in a few short days…and created with many common supplies!  If you are still entertaining guests this holiday we hope you can take some inspiration from this easy set-up!

let’s set a table…

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