One of my family's favorite holiday treats is Graham Cracker Toffee. I'm always happy to make it each year...especially considering how very simple it is.
Top 10 Posts of 2011
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This year has been full of big changes for my family and I. Several big changes were a little scary, but they were those things that you just knew in your gut was the right thing to do. It feels good to take a leap of faith and know it's worked out for the best.
One of the big changes I made in 2011 was blogging more. I officially started blogging in 2004. It was a simple blog, just full of daily family things. From there, I progressed and started working on several other blogs, but
How to Make Lollipops (in a mini muffin tin)
Dining Room Christmas Decorating Ideas #KmartHoliday
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Are you ready to see my dining room Christmas decorating? I'm so excited to share it! If you don't recall my first post about my dining room, you can read it here: Christmas Decorating in the Dining Room, but I'll give you a quick recap here too.
Our previous home didn't have a formal dining area, so for Christmas 2010, we had no decorations for the dining area of our new home. Our dining area is right off the of the living room, so having it missing all the usual holiday
DIY: Family Recipe Shadowbox Frame
I love hearing stories about the favorite recipes in families. It's always interesting to ask someone "what was the best thing your mom cooked?" (replace mom with dad, grandma, aunt -- whatever you'd like). Almost everyone has something to share or say about those foods they ate when they were younger. The smells, tastes, and sights of yummy bites that have been etched into their memories.
Shrimp Scampi (accompaniment to Prime Rib holiday dinners)
With Prime Rib being the centerpiece of many holiday dinners, I thought I would share a recipe that accompanies it beautifully. The majority of my family enjoys beef, but I have found having the addition of shrimp to our holiday dinners is not only a special treat, but it also makes some of my guests, who prefer less red meat, happy because they have another option. Shrimp is a great way of doing this, so today I'm sharing my Shrimp Scampi recipe.
Chocolate Chip Cookies (Weighing Ingredients for Baking)
I've been quite interested in the method of weighing ingredients for baking...rather than measuring with cups. Every time I stumble onto an article about why it's better to weigh your ingredients, I always stop and devour the information. It makes perfect sense to me. If you tell two people to give you 1 cup of flour, and then you weigh their flour, you would most likely find a big difference in the amounts. Being precise in baking is important and if you use too much, or too little, of an
Easy Gift Idea: Breakfast in a Can
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As a coffee drinker, I love it when I have friends or family members who also enjoy a good cup of coffee. It's not unusual for me to give these friends gifts for Christmas that focus around coffee and this year is no exception.
This year, I am giving one of my friends (who will remain nameless for obvious reasons), a gift of Peet's Holiday Blend Coffee, as well as some breakfast items that I think she'll like. Breakfast is her favorite meal of the day and it ALWAYS includes
Christmas Decorating in the Dining Room
We moved into our current house last year and when I did our holiday decorating in 2010, I realized our dining room area (adjoined to our living room) didn't look very festive. Our previous home didn't have a formal dining area, so when we did our usual decorating in this new house, it left very little for decorating this "extra" room.
Last year, we left it without any Christmas decorations. My thinking was that I would pick up a bunch of decorations at clearance sales after Christmas. That
Kitchen Sign Craft Project
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I'm was recently one of a few lucky bloggers who was invited to participate in the Elmer's Looks for Less Challenge -- my challenge was to create my own project inspired by a decor item found in catalog. I knew right away what I would do! I've always been a fan of Pottery Barn items and had recently seen a sign on their website that I would love to have in my home. You can see the product that inspired me here.
Elmer's sent me an assortment of items to get started on my craft