Cookie-making With Kids---Silly, Sassy and Sweet!

Christmas, for me, is first and foremost about celebrating a Savior who came quietly to a manger bed and ended up changing the world.  But it is also about spending time with family and making memories together.  

Today I was remembering a fun activity that I did with some of my grandchildren.  I went searching for the pictures to show you and was astonished to see that we did this four years ago!  The years are flying by!  I want to fill them with as many happy times as possible.

This is a quick and easy no-bake cookie---Nutter Butter Santa cookies.

 

You will need: 

  Nutter Butter sandwich cookies, melted white chocolate bark, red sprinkles, miniature marshmallows cut in half, miniature chocolate chips, and red cinnamon candies.

To assemble: 

1.  Pour red sprinkles, red candies (for nose) and chocolate chips into cups or small bowls. Also snip miniature marshmallows in half and put in a small bowl.
2. Melt the bark in microwave or on stove top (be careful not to burn it.)  This is a job for grown-ups or older children.
3. Dip both ends of a Nutter Butter cookie into white bark.  Then dip one end of the cookie into the bowl of red sprinkles--do not completely cover the white chocolate bark but leave a little bit showing for Santa's "fur trim".  If you use a cup or small enough bowl, the sprinkles will be deep enough for you to simply plunge the cookie in to the right level.
4. Working quickly, attach a half-marshmallow to the "hat" for a "pom-pom".  You may need to use a dab of bark on the marshmallow to help it adhere.  We had some leftover icing from another cookie project that we used for the "glue".
5. Use a tiny dab of bark (or icing) to attach two chocolate chips for eyes and one cinnamon candy to make the nose.

This was an easy-for-kids activity that the grown-ups had fun with too!

Don't worry about perfection.  Just have fun.  Besides, it's the imperfections that give each cookie a personality!  Look at these guys--some are silly, some are sassy and some are sweet!

And one other fun thing---eating the cookies!

 Mmmm mmmmm.

Have you done anything easy and fun with kids at Christmas?  Care to share?  I can always use new ideas:)  Hope you're planning to make some fun memories this Christmas!

Loading up the Sleigh for the Holiday Tour of Homes!

 I'm off to Tybee Island for the 2nd Annual Jane Coslick Holiday Tour of Homes which will be held this Saturday, December 7th!  Last year's tour was a big hit with locals and out-of-towners alike who were delighted by the creativity of talented designer Jane Coslick.   The Coral Cottage was on tour last year and this year Doc Holiday will be one of the 
ten cottages featured!  

Jane and I have been working to fluff up the front porch at Doc Holiday in preparation for the big day!  Here's a little taste of what's been happening...more later.

This morning I have been loading my "sleigh" with all kinds of goodies to deck the halls (and the other rooms) at Doc Holiday for Christmas.  (Can you tell I've been listening to 
Pandora Radio?)  

 If you need some relaxing Tybee Time (who doesn't at this busy time of the year?) then come on over and enjoy the tour this Saturday December 7th from 10 to 3.  

The weather is forecast to be warm and sunny this weekend and it will be loads of fun!  FYI the proceeds from ticket sales will go to benefit the Humane Society for Greater Savannah. 

Here are some locations that will be selling tickets:    

Savannah Humane Society Thrift Shop, 7215 Sallie Mood Dr., Savannah; 

Seaside Sisters, 1207 U.S. Hwy. 80, Tybee Island; and 

Tybean Art and Coffee Bar, Tybee Oaks Shopping Center, 1213 US Highway 80 East. (912) 786-0786 

Hope to see you at Doc Holiday this weekend! 

Happy Thanksgiving to You!

I hope you are spending this day considering all that you have to be thankful for and remembering Who you need to thank.

Josey ~ November 2013

 This photo from last year pictures some of my most cherished blessings.  Not all of my family will be able to celebrate with us but as we sit around our table and some are seated at other tables, I think we will all agree that we are thankful for one another--with all of our personalities, talents, and yes, quirks and differences.

Henry and I last year with two of our kids, Jonathan and Meghan, and their families ~ November 2012

Happy Thanksgiving!

"Enter His gates with thanksgiving

and His courts with praise;

give thanks to Him and praise His name.

For the LORD is good and His love endures forever;

His faithfulness continues through all generations."

~ excerpt from the Holy Bible, Psalm 100

 

Talking Turkey About Thanksgiving Table Setting!

Getting ready to set your Thanksgiving table?  I'll bet you already own most or all of what you need to set a beautiful table without spending a fortune.  Let's talk turkey about how to pull this off!  This is what my daughter Meghan and I did last year using what was out in the yard and combining it with what I already had.

   It's easy to do--I'll show you how!

First we put a tablecloth on the table.  I have a golden yellow one that I picked up years ago from Linens n Things or Bed, Bath and Beyond.  This is a good time of year to get tablecloths if you need one--all the stores have a good supply and they are very inexpensive right now especially with coupons (Bed, Bath and Beyond will usually honor even expired coupons).  Or you could use a runner instead--I love the burlap ones I've seen and I think even brown kraft paper would look kinda cool.

Next we added plates...these are my "everyday" plates chosen because they are dishwasher-safe and my fine china is not.  I was trying to keep clean up easy.

Napkins.  I found these easy-care napkins on clearance a few years ago and liked the brown for their autumn feeling as well as their stain-hiding attributes.  Paper napkins can work too.  I put them on the plates to save space because I needed to squeeze lots of people around the table but you can also place them on the left to the outside of the fork.

 For some reason, we stopped with place settings and started working on the center piece next.  We took a glass container and put a pillar candle inside.  Then we added some cranberries--could also look good with popcorn or acorns or whatever says autumn to you--look around to see what you already have. I own some faux antlers that have candleholders on them.  If you have the real deal you could use them or  maybe some pictures of things you're thankful for and then add votives.  Just keep your arrangement low so you can easily see across the table (gotta keep your eye on that last Parkerhouse roll!)

The arrangement, at this point, is like a skeleton---it looks like something is missing so it's time to start filling it in.  I enjoy buying gourds and pumpkins in early October to display in my kitchen.  These "survivors" were placed around.  Don't obsess about everything matching--just try to get them to look balanced so there is an equal weight of things visually 

on each side of the table.

Still looked a little bare-bones so we picked some leaves from the yard.  Most of the prettiest colored ones had fallen already but there were a few left and they filled in beautifully.  They were just placed under the pumpkins and tucked in here and there.  And candles were added.  "The Rules" say candles should only be lit in the evening but I say "throw caution to the wind" and light them if you want to for a festive feeling!

Finally Meghan added glasses and silverware.

Remember the fork goes to the left of the plate.  The knife goes to the right--next to the plate with the blade facing the plate.  The spoon goes to the right of the knife.  I usually place the bottoms of the plate and silverware about an inch from the edge of the table.  I put the glass at the top right of the setting right above the knife.

Mine is just a simple informal table setting.  You can always add in more utensils and glasses--for example if you wanted to put dessert utensils on, they should be added at the top of the plate.  If you are serving wine, those glasses would also be placed on the table.  The rule of thumb is to place items for each course at the place setting in the order they will be used from the outside in. Here's a diagram to help you...

Source

It doesn't matter whether you are seated at a formal or a casual table setting.  It doesn't matter whether or not you eat off of fine china, everyday china or paper plates.  Ultimately, what is important is that you gather together with those you love and those that need to be loved to consider and celebrate the blessings in your life...and to cultivate an attitude of gratitude.

How do you "do" Thanksgiving?  What are some of your cherished traditions?  What are you thankful for this year?  Please take a moment to share.   And have fun getting ready!

  We used my "everyday" dishes and glasses because we wanted to make clean-up easy on ourselves and they could go into the dishwasher.

Happy Halloween From Our Family Characters!

Happy Halloween from me and all the characters in our family!  And let me tell you, our family is full of little costumed characters excited to go trick-or-treating this evening!  

 

I'm down at Doc Holiday cottage this week to spend time with two little princesses.  Yesterday we had a class party and the children trick-or-treated at a nearby nursing home.

 

Ella dressed as her current crush, Rapunzel aka Tangled.

 

 

 Little sister Charlotte was dressed as Belle from Beauty and the Beast.   She is just beginning to learn about princess power and it was fun to watch her transform into princess mode---she felt so beautiful dressed in her gown and crown!  Her GG decided to go royal too!

If the crown fits, wear it!  Right?

 

Their mom (my daughter) Kristen is the room mother so she organized the party.

 

 

All the kids loved the goodies provided by the parents and the plastic creepy crawlies decorating the party tables!

Now that we are all warmed up, we are ready for the Big Event tonight--candy here we come!  It's good to be a princess :)

 

 

What are you and yours doing tonight?  Are any characters you know dressing up?

Be safe out there and Happy Halloween!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Merry, Merry Christmas y'all!  I hope you are spending this day loving on your family and remembering the love of God that gave us the His Son, the reason for the season! 

Merry Christmas from me, my husband Henry and our grandchildren: Madeline, Josey, Violet, Ella, Charlotte, Tyler, and Anna Kate!

If you were too busy to read along last week then catch up with some of these links:

•  Whine, uhhh Wine and Dine
• Let There Be Light (and Paint and Floors) 
• "Doing Up" the Dining Room  
• Time for Fine Dining!
• Fine Dining Finale!
• Jane Coslick Holiday Tour Pictures

 I'll be back in a few days with more about the Coral Cottage!

Jane Coslick Holiday Tour Pictures

Just wanted to post a few pictures and thank all the patrons who attended the Jane Coslick Holiday Cottage Tour.  We raised over $12,000 for the Humane Society of Greater Savannah to aid in funding a low cost spay/neuter clinic!

The Coral Cottage was all dressed up for Christmas to meet her public :) and we had a great time making new friends!  I'd like to show you all the decorations but I am going to be selective so I don't spoil the surprise when I reveal the other rooms in later posts.

Our very first guest was Terry, the man on the right.  His family previously owned the Coral Cottage (see this post for more of the story).  I was so happy and relieved that he seemed to love the way the cottage looks as much as I do.  In fact, he called Jim Heflin at TybeeCottages.com and made the very first booking to stay one week in the spring!

L to R:  Vicky, Jane, and Terry chatting on the patio

Jane Coslick came by to greet Terry--she and his sister Rosemary were close friends as young girls and she has fond memories of staying in the cottage years ago.

The color scheme on our little tree in the living room was silver and turquoise.  I found some aqua-colored tulle at Michael's and used it with white wrapping paper for the gifts under the tree.

 There were some extra unbreakable ornament balls and I decided to hang them on the coral chandelier!  They made quite a statement and Jane thinks we should consider leaving them up permanently--take a look and tell me what you think about this.  All of my Facebook friends, please leave your comments here on the blog!

To cap off the day, some floats from the Tybee Christmas parade made their way in front of the cottage.  You've gotta love a Santa wearing shorts, flip flops and sunglasses!

 I hope that your Christmas is merry and bright and full of love--and that you remember the reason for the season!   Merry Christmas y'all!

The Coral Cottage on Tour!

Can you believe it--The Coral Cottage is going to be featured in a holiday tour of homes at Tybee Island!

Jane Coslick, who has been working with me to get our cottage party-perfect, asked if we would allow her to include The Coral Cottage on this tour to benefit the Savannah Humane Society low cost spay/neuter clinic.  We were honored and of course, we said "yes"!

It will be a festive way to spend a Saturday, December 8th from 10 to 3, enjoying seventeen Jane Coslick cottages at Tybee decked out for Christmas!  Light refreshments will be included in the price of each ticket at the North Beach Grill.  

Tickets cost $30 (remember it is for charity) and they are available from the Humane Society Thrift Shop at 7215 Sallie Mood Drive in Savannah and on Tybee Island at Seaside Sisters and The Atlantic Beacon Co-op Gallery.  For more details and pictures of the houses or to order printable tickets please click here.

If you live in the area I hope to see you there and if you live within driving distance--think how much fun it would be to spend a weekend in Savannah getting into the Christmas spirit and helping a good cause at the same time! 

Thanks to everyone who reads this blog and has been so supportive!  I hope you will stay tuned  'cause I have lots of pictures to show you as we finalize the furnishing and fluffing of The Coral Cottage!

Let's Talk Turkey About Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is upon us.  Many of you are already cooking and planning how you will set a beautiful table for friends and family.  And many of you are wondering just what you are going to do this year and  are still looking for ideas.

Let me offer some inspiration...Even if you're all ready for this year's Thanksgiving everyone enjoys looking at something beautiful.  I'm always saving ideas on Pinterest.  (Not on Pinterest yet?  Well that's another post for another day.)  So here we go...

My daughter, Meghan (who blogs at Loquacious Lady), with help from Lisa, my daughter-in-law set a very beautiful table in honor of my birthday.

Just look at a close up of the placesetting:

Don't you like the old-fashioned mason jars decorated with twine?  How about the mini pumpkins she used as place cards?  The paper plates almost fooled me into thinking they were china--they've really improved disposable plates these days.  The table runner was burlap.  The color scheme and rough textures of the burlap and twine mixed in with the candles and other elements made the table have a very warm, welcoming vibe.

The kids' table was not left out of the fun.  She used paper to cover the table and provided crayons for the children to decorate their tablecloth.  There were also toys on the table.  Check out the kids' glasses--mason jars with lids in which she punched a hole and inserted a straw...brilliant solution to contain any spills that might occur!  The kids loved their table and they stayed entertained throughout the meal allowing their parents to enjoy the adult table!

Last but not least, skirted in burlap,  the dessert table...

 Feeling inspired?  I hope so. And I hope you and yours have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Autumn At Last!

I'm a warm weather girl.  I grew up in Savannah and have always loved the climate there but I didn't realize that, having moved to north Georgia, I have grown to enjoy the cooler season of autumn with its glowing colors--I was in Savannah the last week of October and it was still green--green and warm and sunny into early November!

Now don't get me wrong 'cause I've loved being in Savannah and Tybee Island working on beach cottages in the balmy weather but it was making it hard for me to get into the autumn mood.  That is, until recently...

My kids gave me a birthday party recently (click here for more about the party) and Meghan, my daughter, had fabulous seasonal decorations up all around her home!  

Look at this beautiful mantle--she carved the "M" out of a pumpkin she bought at Michael's.

Feast your eyes on the lovely display she had in her foyer.  She placed it on a furniture piece that used to belong to my mom.  Love it!

Now it feels like Thanksgiving :)  I can't wait to show you the tablescape--it is Pinterest worthy!  If you need inspiration for your holiday table then you need to stay tuned for my next post.  'Til then...

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween everybody!  All the little trick-or-treaters have collected their stash and the doorbells have stopped ringing in this neighborhood.  I'm in Savannah this evening and I can't resist showing you the cutest little ballerina--Charlotte, my granddaughter:

Her big sister, two year old Ella, was "Seating Booty" (aka Sleeping Beauty).  Ella is a big fan of Sleeping Beauty ever since our visit to Disney World this summer.

 

Kristen, my daughter, was dressed in hospital scrubs as her costume, and her husband, James, is dressed in scrubs because he just got home from working at the hospital.  They took the girls to a few homes tonight including to Gary and Eleanor's house.  

Eleanor aka Aunt Eleanor is dressed to the nines for Halloween.

 She said that her tights gave new meaning to the term "spider veins".  Lol!  

Hope you and yours had a fun evening.  I'll be back tomorrow with some more of the Coral Cottage restoration.  Happy Halloween!