Sept 14

Hello, How are you doing? Are you getting ready for Christmas yet?  I have been looking around my camper and trying to decide where I'm going to put our little tree this year.  If I can find a local Hobby Lobby, I want to pick up a few small ornaments for my tree and to hang from the hooks I have around the edges of the living room windows.

 

I am thinking of picking up some Pointsetta garland to put on them this year.

 

Ah, the second "recipe" today is both a recipe and a craft.

 

 

* * * * *

 

Christmas Wreaths

 

1/2 c. butter
1 (10 oz.) bag marshmallows
2 t. vanilla
4 t. green food coloring
4 c. corn flakes
1/4 cup small cinnamon candies

 

Microwave butter and marshmallows on high until melted (1-3 minutes depending your microwave). Stir once at halfway point. Stir until smooth. Add vanilla and green food coloring. Put corn flakes in a large bowl then pour butter mixture over them. Stir thoroughly and quickly. Grease hands with cooking spray or butter. Shape 1/2 c. of corn flakes on wax paper to form a cookie sized wreath. Sprinkle with the red candies. Continue on working quickly until all of the corn flake mixture is made into cookies.

 

 

* * * * *

Cookie Advent Calendar

 

A fun way for children to count down the days until Christmas is with
a cookie Advent Calendar. A cookie for each of the first 24 days of
December is attached to a long ribbon. The top of the ribbon holds an
extra special cookie to be eaten on Christmas day.

 

 

 

You'll need:

 

1 1/2 yards of red grosgrain ribbon - at least 2 inches wide.

 

7 yards of red 1/8 inch satin ribbon

 

3 1/2 yards of green 1/8 inch satin ribbon

 

3 1/2 yards of white 1/8 inch satin ribbon red thread small holiday
gift card

 

Construction:

 

1. fold the top of the grosgrain ribbon under 1/2 inch and then 1
inchmore. Fold the bottom of ribbon under 1/2 inch and then another
1/2 inch. Stitch ends in place.

 

2. Cut a 23 inch length from each of the red and green satin ribbons.
Run ribbons through hem at top of grosgrain ribbon. Tie in a bow, and
use to hand calendar.

 

3. To make tie for large cookie, cut a 13 inch length from each of
the red and white satin ribbons. Place ribbons together and fold n
half tofind center. Hand sew to the center of grosgrain ribbon 3
inches from top of calendar.

 

4. For smaller cookie ties, cut remaining satin ribbon into 9
inchlengths. use 2 ribbons of contrasting colors for each cookie
tie.Measure 9 inches from top of calendar and sew the center of the
first small cookie tie 1/2 inch from the edge of the wide ribbon. Sew
second cookie tie alongside first tie, 1/2 inch from the edge of the
opposite side of wide ribbon. Measure 3 inches below the first row of
cookie ties, and sew on two more cookie ties, alternating ribbon
colors.Repeat until you have 12 rows with 2 cookie ties on each row.

 

5. Wrap 24 (2 inch) cookies and 1 (5 inch) cookie in plastic wrap.
Tie the large cookie to the cookie tie at the top of the calendar.
Tie small cookies onto the calendar using the ribbons sewed in place.
Trim ribbons after tying bows. If cookies are numbered with icing,
start with cookie marked 1 at the bottom.

 

6. Sew the center of one ribbon to the top left corner of the
calendar. Punch a hole in a holiday card, insert ribbon, and tie to
the calendar. Use for writing a message.

 

Variations:

 

*you can use burlap and yarn instead of ribbons

 

*you can make all of the cookies gingerbread people with the number
on their tummies

 

*vary the colors of ribbon according to your household decorations --

 

*make one for each of your children and hang them on their bedroom
doors...or make for college students to take back to their dorm rooms
after thanksgiving

 

* * * * *

It Came Upon a Midnight Clear

 

It came upon the midnight clear,
That glorious song of old,
From angels bending near the earth
With news of joy foretold,

"Peace on the earth, good will to men
From heaven's all gracious King."
The world in solemn stillness lay,
To hear the angels sing.

Still through the cloven skies they come,
Love's banner all unfurled;
And still their heavenly music floats
Over all the weary world.

Above its sad and lowly plains
Old echoes plaintive ring,
And ever over its Babel sounds
The blessed angels sing.

Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the Angel-strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong;

And man at war with man hears not
The love-song which they bring;
O! hush the noise, ye men of strife,
And hear the Angels sing.

O ye, beneath life's crushing load
Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way
With painful steps and slow;

Look now! for glad and golden hours
Come swiftly on the wing;
O rest beside the weary road
And hear the angels sing.

For lo! the days are hastening on,
By prophets seen of old,
When with the ever-circling years
Shall come the time foretold,

When the new heaven and earth shall own
The Prince of Peace their King,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

 

 

* * * * *

http://www.instructables.com/id/Recycled-Toilet-Roll-Advent-Calendar/

 

My family loves to make advent calendars each year. But rather than encouraging the gluttony with chocolate (that comes later with all the Christmas eating), we fill our calendar with activities and events that bring our family together and help us share the Christmas spirit with each other, our friends and community. We include lots of fun activities that we always say we "should" do but never get around to during the year. Adapt for your own family or situation.

Some of the things we include are:

* Have fish and chips at the beach
* Give each other a massage
* Cook dinner for mummy
* Watch a Christmas Movie
* Call friends in other cities

with many more suggestions on my website.

This year I've gone with a recycled toilet roll version. We collect all sorts of bits and pieces to recycle, and now that we're past the pre-school and playgroup years, we have fewer venues to donate our toilet rolls. Here's my quick (took me about 2 hours in total) guide to knocking up a recycled (and recyclable) advent calendar.

And please, just use this as a spark to get you going as the variations are only limited by what you have available.

 

* * * * *

Things to do at Christmas time, buy extra gloves or Mittens, share with a Charity. Send to family members who forget gloves or give them to your local school to pass along to a child in need this winter.

 

* * * * *

 

* * * * *

Lots of shopping at this site

 

http://www.christmastraditions.com/

 

 

 

 

 

* * * * *

Billie C.