Santa Brunch, Snow and More!

We had a really festive week this week.  We kicked off the week with a Santa Brunch.  We've been doing this tradition for years.  It's always a favorite event on our December calendar.  We were thrilled when our club announced they'd still be holding a Santa brunch in spite of COVID and assured us it would be wonderful.  They were right.  Things were a little different, but they were able to capture the Christmas magic like usual.

We were assigned a table like always and then dismissed to do certain activities at certain times.  This ensured that we were distanced and gave everyone their space.  No one felt rushed and we got plenty of quality time with Santa, the elf and reindeer and at our table.

This elf was hilarious.  He told really funny jokes and had the parents & kids cracking up.  His beloved reindeer smelled of cinnamon.  That smell lingered on all of our hands well beyond our time with him.  The kids thought it was the coolest.  They retold his jokes and stories all week - What do you call a selfie with an elf?  An elfie.  He also told the kids that Donner stubs his toe every year on our roof so we need to fix that before Christmas.  They were amazed.

Santa was amazing.  He was by far the most genuine Santa that has ever come to our Santa brunch.  He looked like the real deal from head to toe and I was glad that he opted for a face shield vs a mask so we could hear him more clearly.  He talked to eat of the kids.  They wore masks up close and they were mesmerized by him.  

He asked what they were wishing for this year.  He said he'd see what he could do about those army guys, Nerf guns, dolls and crinkly toys.  He was also really great at guessing their interests based on their initial requests.  They were amazed.  Later Olive told me that Santa could finish her sentences and knew just what she wanted.  He did the perfect job of not promising them all of those gifts, but he said he'd pick out something special just for them as well as a surprise or two.  They left feeling more excited about what Santa might surprise them with more than their wishes.  It was precious.  I don't know how much longer we'll have these kind of magical moments so I'm soaking them in 100% right now!

I was really glad that despite all of the craziness of 2020, that we were able to do something normal.

The reindeer came around to say hello and Leo was not sure what to think of him.

We usually stop at the cookie decorating station, but this year, they made each kid a cookie decorating to go kit.  I think it might have been more fun that the cookie station.  We got to take our time, each kid got to decorate their cookies and we had leftover supplies to decorate more cookies with later.  Leo wasn't interested in the cookies.  But he did look super handsome in his candy cane stripes.

I made this kids some Charcu-TREEs for lunch one day.  They loved them!

Indiana Snow!  We woke up to snow on Wednesday morning.  We don't always get the snow that they predict for us so it was a nice surprise to wake up to.

The kids walked out in their pjs to check it out and then bundled up a little more after breakfast.  We discovered Fletcher had outgrown his snow boots that just fit him a month ago when we checked and it took us a bit to locate all of our other snow gear. 

Fletcher loves to help so it's fun to see him doing all this big brother stuff.  Lately he's been asking for more jobs or asking to do things himself.  He volunteered to feed Leo for me.  What a sweet guy!

My parents came in town for a quick visit.  We had a blast.  I always love having them visit and it was fun for them to see the house decorated for Christmas.

Doing school at home with two little brothers is challenging.  Here's Olive Google Meeting with her class.  Asking to hold Leo.  Fletcher wanting in on the action and me here for tech support.  Luckily they were just doing fun stuff - holiday bingo, snowflake facts, and just chatting.  We can't wait for school to resume in person in January!

We ordered the kitten Christmas collars and they are so cute!  They weren't 100% sure about them, but we couldn't get over how cute they looked for Christmas.  Meowy Christmas!

Need an easy Christmas food for your kids - Pizza Trees!  Mine loved it.

Did you see my post earlier this week for Peanut Butter Swirl Bark??  It was easily the prettiest dessert I've ever made and it was SO GOOD.  I'm going to be making a second batch this weekend.

Do you ever buy supplies for a DIY project and then let them sit for 5+ years!?!  I bought this frame with the intention of adding a new Santa picture to it every year when Olive was a baby.  She's 7 now so it was time to get this done.  I gathered all of my favorite Santa pictures since 2013 and had the best time doing this project.  I just love looking back at all of these moments.  I think this will easily be one of my favorite Christmas decorations.  I ended up with 3 blank spots for a few more memories in the years to come.

I would be doing you a disservice if I didn't tell you about these Nerds Gummy Clusters.  They're poppable and so good.  If you like gummy candies, Nerds or the combo you'll love these.  They are much easier to eat than Nerd ropes. 

We've been making an effort to bundle everyone up and get outside.  We'll go on short walks or long walks depending on what everyone is up for.  The fresh air is good for all of us.

Happy Friday!  I hope you have some fun plans for the weekend.  We're planning to do some Christmasy things and watch Notre Dame win on Saturday :)

Linking up with Momfessionals

Christmas House Tour

I genuinely enjoyed decorating for Christmas this year.  Last year, I did the minimum because I was pregnant and tired.  This year, it just felt right to go all out for Christmas.  We didn't buy a lot of new decor.

Here's my PSA for the holidays: You don't have to spend tons every year on holiday decor to love what your decorations.  You don't have to buy in to all the links, swipe ups and affiliate options that are thrown your way on social media.  Just buy a few new things every year that you love and over time you'll end up with a decoration collection that you really enjoy.

Let's get this tour started from the moment you walk up to my house.  You'll notice that I love traditional red and green for Christmas.  I'm not a neutrals girl.  So every year I try to add new classic red and green pieces to my collection.

I love my blue door and berry wreath.  

We picked out the perfect real tree for our house.  It's such a pretty tree and smells great.

The kittens are very curious about the warm lights and love to bat around the ornaments.

We moved our tinsel tree from the playroom to the bay window this year.  It looks so pretty here.  It's filled with silly ornaments, kid ornaments and ornaments from my childhood.

Kevin's Nana made him this Christmas tree and Santa when he was a kid.  I love having these vintage items in our decoration collection.  I made sure to put them in a new spot where they'd get lots of attention this year.  They look great with my bottle brush trees, galvanized houses and I think they've found a spot where I'll leave them every year.

I really love our mantle this year.  It came together perfectly.

The kittens have been very well behaved little ladies.  Snuggling baby Jesus and overall very interested in all this Christmas decor business.  The big front window is always a cat hot spot.

I'm added some sentimental holiday decorations this year.  This sled was always on display growing up.

The big kid zone.  I decided to have them share a tree this year.  And it was a tough sell at first for Olive.  Thankfully, she came around and their rainbow tree is a favorite.  They really love their room.  I'll have to give you a proper tour of it in the new year.

Leo's first Christmas tree came together perfectly.  it's so sweet!  I smile every time I walk into his nursery. 

Merry Christmas!  It's such a cozy time of year.  We've got snow in the forecast for the week and everything feels so festive.  I'm excited for the rest of the month. 

Peanut Butter Swirl Bark

As I've gotten older, I've started to LOVE dark chocolate.  I used to think it was gross, but not any more.  My mom used to always tell us our taste buds would change as we got older.  I guess she was right.

I was inspired by this recipe from Skinny Taste Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl

I used her tips and adapted the recipe to work with ingredients I normally buy for the quantity I needed.  It's only three ingredients and so easy.  I couldn't believe how pretty this turned out.  Is there anything better than peanut butter and chocolate?!?

 

My ingredients:

2 cups Nestle Toll house dark chocolate chips

1 c creamy Peter Pan peanut butter

1 t coarse sea salt

 

My directions:

Melt chocolate chips in a glass measuring bowl.  2 minutes melted mine.  

Melt peanut butter in a bowl.  

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  

Pour out chocolate and spread it into a thin rectangle.  Keep the edges neat.  Pour peanut butter out of bowl in lines across the melted chocolate.  The thinner the lines better.  Big chunks of peanut butter take a long time to set.  Use a thin knife to swirl the peanut butter into the chocolate.  Sprinkle sea salt on top.  Refrigerate over night.  Break apart.  Eat!

There's a million ways you could customize it - milk chocolate, white chocolate, mini M&Ms, add in nuts, dried fruit, pretzels, etc.

This bark makes the prettiest holiday gift!  I gifted some to my friends and neighbors. I put some in cellophane bags and others in glass jars with a bow on it.  Both were perfect!  My favorite way to enjoy it is to keep a jar in the fridge and eat a cold piece at a time :)

Who could you make this for this holiday season?

2020 Family Pictures

I was determined to get our family pictures taken early this year giving me plenty of time to order Christmas cards.  I debated using a local photographer, but ended up getting creative.  We have two babysitters that we adore and a nice camera so I booked them to take our family pictures.  I scoped out the location, picked the best time of day for good lighting, selected our outfits and we were set.  The whole shoot only took about 20 minutes and I love the results.  They used my camera and the whole process couldn't have been easier.  We'd definitely go this routine again in the future.

We ended up with a few great family pics and great new head shots for the kids.  Our babysitters took the family pictures and I took the pictures of the kids.  I paid them for their time and then they left once the whole family pictures were done.  Teamwork!

I usually pick out Olive's dress first and then plan our outfits around her.  However, I found Fletcher's flannel first and planned the outfits around his shirt.  It worked out great.  Everyone had an outfit they loved and even though the temps were unseasonably warm, it worked out just fine.  When I am selecting our outfits I usually opt for a couple different patterns, a few different neutrals, accessories and colors/patterns that all mix nicely.  I loved these outfits!

Let me show you my favorites:

The winner!  Christmas card approved!

Olive loves leopard so she was thrilled to wear it for pictures.

Fletcher has a big personality and I wasn't sure he was going to settle down enough for some good head shots.  Spoiler alert: In between a zillion silly pictures, I got some sweet ones of him.

And a selfie of the parents as they wrap up family pictures.  Sweaty.  Exhausted.  And heading to McDonalds drive thru because that's what the kids picked out for their special dinner - ha!

Tip: Before you have your family pictures done, lay out all the outfits together to make sure all of the patterns, colors and textures work together.  

Did you get family pictures taken this year?  

I love having a photo ready to use for Christmas cards and updated pictures.

I wish I could send all of you a Christmas card!  Merry Christmas from my family to yours!