Return to Blogging with a Christmas Break to Remember

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I only blogged once during Christmas break, mostly because I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my family doing non-homeschool stuff and somewhat because I was feeling extremely uninspired and sort of blah humbug.

Even though 2014 ended on a blue note for me, I very much enjoyed Christmas break, and I want to recapture a few moments here so my family can remember them forever. :) We didn't do anything super amazing, it was just the little things that made it special.

So, here's to special, ordinary moments that make up our family's story, history, legacy . . . whatever you want to call it:

• Annual light-looking, this time walking the Loop of Lights in San Tan Valley with friends.

• Annual Christmas Eve breakfast of sausage balls (made by dad), monkey bread, apple-cranberry crunch, and pineapple-orange frosty beverages.

• Mr. Giggles - I won't be forgetting the scene any time soon in which my son gave his friend "the best birthday present ever!" It was a much longed-for purple giraffe. :) One day, I just know my son will finally let me post the pics of him in them. (Well, a mom can hold out hope, can't she?)

• Surprised faces on Christmas morning - loved that my boys weren't expecting iPods for Christmas.

• Stuffed animals galore! More to add to Animal Town. So glad I still have one little enough to want "toys." This pic doesn't show all the new additions, but she also got Beanie Boos, a black pony, and a big golden retriever.

• The blue tree - for the past couple of years, hubby and I have put our presents to each other under this tree. This year we even opened our gifts while the kids were still asleep. (First year for the kids to sleep in on Christmas!) Love my lanterns and the new outfit hubby picked out for me. Loved the grey/silver theme he went with as well.

• Countless hours of games (Cactus Games Blink Bible Edition card game, Settlers Of Catan 4th Edition Bundle, Spot It), puzzles with my girl (Ceaco Aqua Shimmer Forest Jigsaw Puzzle), and Studio C. (No, I'm not Mormon, but this sketch comedy is clean and hilarious!)

• New Year's Eve Fun - I think this was the first time we'd ever had anyone over on New Year's Eve. I'm not big on staying up late, in fact, I haven't stayed up until midnight on New Year's Eve since my oldest was a baby. I still went to bed at a decent hour this time around, but the kids had fun staying up late and playing games. I loved seeing their midnight selfies on Instagram the next morning. :)

• Daughter's mini room makeover - while she had a sleepover with her cousin at her grandpa's house, hubby and I fixed up her room. It felt so good to get everything off of the floor! We got a bed frame (her mattress was on the floor), a little desk from IKEA, and some nets for ALL of the stuffed animals. :) Most of the makeover was decluttering, rearranging, and rehanging stuff - getting everything super neat. The challenge for my girl this year is to keep everything neat so I don't have a nervous breakdown when doing homeschool in there. It's actually a lovely room to work in because it's so bright and cheery.

• Purchase of some art supplies - going to try and put some effort into my creative side this year. Maybe learn how to paint with acrylics. I've already learned a few things: acrylic doesn't stick very well to glue from a hot glue gun, I should have bought rounder brushes instead, art supplies are expensive, there's SO much to figure out, and I'm already overwhelmed by YouTube tutorials. Whew! My first project was painting my word from 2012.

• Other memories that didn't get captured by the camera - my boys attended their first ballet, The Nutcracker, to see a friend perform in it. Several walks and carefree outings with hubby. Game night with our lovely neighbors. Celebrating our friend's 13th birthday at Moreno's. Christmas Eve service at church. Lots of hot cocoa. Finishing a fun fiction series -
Beyonders The Complete Set: A World Without Heroes; Seeds of Rebellion; Chasing the Prophecy. Sitting around the fire pit - wish we would've done that more! I'm sure I've left out things, but all in all I really enjoyed just relaxing and hanging out with my family.

Gotta end this post to go and play Settlers of Catan. :)

*affiliate links included in this post

 

Super Fun Family Game - The Settlers of Catan

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I'm interrupting my relaxing Christmas break to tell you how much I (and my whole family) love the game The Settlers of Catan! I'm extremely surprised by this, too, since I didn't think I would like it that much. I usually go for fast-paced games or games that take about 30 minutes tops. The Settlers of Catan is long - usually takes about an hour to an hour and 30 minutes to play, but it's pretty fun. Even my 9-year-old daughter loves to play. Goodness, we've probably spent over 10 hours playing this game on our break. :)

The Settlers of Catan is only for up to 4 players, but 3 days after Christmas my son had already bought the 5-6 player extension. It's been fun for all 5 of us to be able to play all at the same time.

The gist in a jiffy - you collect resource cards (wool, wheat, ore, brick, and wood) in order to build roads, settlements, cities and buy other development cards. All of these things give you points which you need in order to win the game. Be the first to reach 10 points and you win!

Obviously, a lot more goes into this game. The instruction booklet is quite a few pages long. Not a plus for me, BUT don't lose heart yet . . . There's a handy dandy app you can download on your phone that will walk you through an introduction game. Made everything so easy!!!

If you've been wondering if this would be a good family game to buy, I highly recommend it!!! Probably best for ages at least 8 & up.

Here's a link to a video that explains the game in a nutshell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kw4tIC_cJiE


  *You can order the original game and extension separately or order both together! Thanks for using my affiliate link. :)



Linked to WFMW, Tuesdays with a Twist

TBT: Three Years of The Hobbit

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Wondering if our journey has finally come to an end . . .

 

 

Holiday Aromas With Essential Oils

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Artificial scents and most perfumes tend to bother me. I get headaches and/or my nose gets stuffy. An alternative that works for me for the holidays and everyday are essential oils.

I typically use Young Living oils, and I use them exclusively for internal use. However, in order to be able to afford to make my house smell Christmasy using my diffuser, I browsed the internet for some other essential oil companies. I ordered 3 oils from Plant Guru: vanilla, frankincense, and myrrh and one oil from Eden's Garden: cinnamon.






I already had Young Living peppermint on hand since that is one of my absolute favorites! I use it quite frequently. I also recently received Young Living pine in the mail. In fact, as I am writing this post, I am diffusing a peppermint/pine mixture which smells like a candy cane forest!

Both non Young Living companies have worked out just fine for diffusing. The cinnamon and vanilla blend well together and create a wonderful Christmas aroma. Frankincense has always been a favorite, and I am even using that one in my skincare routine. Every so often I mix a drop of oil in my face moisturizer. This was the first time I had ever smelled myrrh; it reminds me of black licorice a little bit but not as strong. I haven't diffused this one because the smell doesn't wow me and it's a little thicker than the other oils. I am currently finding other uses for it. :)

I really loved that Eden's Garden sent a detailed product guide with my order. The guide explains who they are and why they are able to sell their oils for amazing prices and how they give back to the community. They claim that all of their oils are therapeutic grade as well. An included insert contained 101 Ways To Use Essential Oils.

I am completely happy with my holiday essential oil purchase! If you're looking for all natural scents for Christmas, see the links above and order yours today!

Linked to Works for Me Wednesday

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Classic Gingerbread Cookie Cut Outs {Recipe}

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My hubby likes gingerbread men. No frosting. Just classically plain and simple. And they really do have a holidayish feel to them, don't they? I've used a couple of different recipes, but this one is my favorite. The recipe is very easy to make. The dough rolls out well, and cutting out shapes is a snap. Major Christmas baking plus right there! (I can't say these things about my Prize Sugar Cookies, though.)

 

 

Tiny gingerbread men make perfectly festive cupcake toppers, too! We took these yummy creations to our homeschool Christmas party. They were totally adorable until my oldest son said it looked like the gingerbread men had been shot with their guts spilling out all over the place. Boys.

 

 

My daughter crushed red hots for sprinkling the tops of the cupcakes. Gave the vanilla cake and buttercream frosting a little cinnamon zip!

 

 

We've also used these little gingerbread men to adorn gingerbread houses, but we didn't make any this year. Of course, it's always fun to give them frosting faces and cookie decoration buttons. :)

 

Linked to Try A New Recipe Tuesday, Works for Me Wednesday