Cookie Cutter Christmas Ornaments

I make Christmas ornaments every year for my kids and a few family members. It all started as making ornaments only for my kids, but then I started making two or three extra to give as gifts, and that has now grown into a yearly family Christmas Ornament Exchange!

It usually takes me lots of thought and planning to settle on just the right ornament to make. 

A few I've made in the past are Vintage Paper Ornaments,   Beach Ornaments with sand and shells from St. Augustine, Florida, a Flag of Ohio ornament, and Felt Snowman ornaments.

Easy Homemade Rice Heat or Cold Packs

This is probably one of the easiest sewing projects I have done, right up there with pillowcases. 

These packs can be heated in the microwave for a heat pack or placed in the freezer for a cold pack.

And they can be made in any size you want. 
I made them large enough for placing on a shoulder, knee, or another similar area with aches and pains. You can sew long thin ones to place around your neck or wrap around an ankle. 

Easy Baby Burp Cloths

We had a new little granddaughter born in December!

She is so precious and her name is Lilly.  She's the daughter of my youngest child, Daniel. 

Late last summer we came up with our own design for their Pregnancy Announcements which we think turned out great and quite unique.  

 

With the new baby, I'm getting my sewing machine back to work!

State Flag Christmas Ornament

Besides our large Christmas tree full of homemade and travel ornaments, every year I put up a smaller tree in my dining room. This tree has evolved and changed themes and decorations somewhat over the years. It started out as a nature tree. Then I started mixing in cardinals (our state bird), which then led me to make the tree a Nature Ohio tree.

I have added buckeyes, cardinals, morel mushrooms, pine cones, bird nests, and various other things that can be found in and around our state.

We started a Crafting Circle and have an ornament exchange with family and friends every year, so I decided to make an Ohio flag as a Christmas ornament. 

 

Felt Snowman Ornament

This is a cute little felt Christmas ornament I made for our ornament exchange one year.

We have a really large family so instead of having a gift exchange, we started an ornament exchange. It's not mandatory so not everyone participates. 

It's so wonderful to receive the little gift boxes in the mail containing each homemade ornament. And many of us add other small gifts like specialty coffee or tea, candy, fudge, cookies, jams, bookmarks, or other goodies.

Many family members live out of state but for the ones close to me and who want to make crafts for Christmas we started a Crafting Group. It's a great way to stay in contact with friends and family while enjoying time set aside just for a hobby we love.

Grand Champion Pumpkin Cake

It's November already (yikes! how did that happen!?) and I just finished packing away all my Halloween decorations.
I've been busy making a list for our Thanksgiving dinner and corresponding grocery list. I usually try out a new dish or dessert every year at Thanksgiving so have been scanning through a few cookbooks for ideas.

I found this recipe in a Pumpkin Cookbook I purchased way back in 1992. The cookbook was put together by The Crusader Sunday School Class at Calvary United Methodist Church for a fundraiser. 

 

Thanksgiving Paper Craft

I got my idea for a Fall Decorated Christmas Tree a few years ago after seeing my sister Kathy's tree while visiting her in New Jersey.  
My fall tree is just 4 foot tall and in my kitchen bay window. 

I decorate this little tree for fall with autumn leaves, acorns, pumpkins, etc., and then add Halloween ornaments towards the end of October.  In November I use a Fall/Thanksgiving theme.

Since my Christmas Vintage Paper Ornaments turned out so well last year, IMO, I decided to make Thanksgiving ornaments too!

 

Start a Crafting Group

I usually make Christmas ornaments every year and give them out as gifts to a select few friends and family. 

And now some of my sisters and I and other family and friends also have an ornament exchange.

To me, it's wonderful to see all the talent and hard work put into each home-crafted ornament and I cherish them as keepsakes throughout the years.

My daughter Alexis and I, my son's girlfriend Jennica and a couple of our friends decided to start a Crafting Group meet-up.

Blueberry Lemon Jam

Blueberry season is fast approaching! 

The blueberry-picking season depends on the geographical location of your blueberries, but most blueberries are ripe in June and July.

I purchased my blueberries while on one of our trips to Michigan.  Once home I froze them until I could make blueberry jam and syrup, add to muffins or mix up a batch of blueberry pancakes.  

Besides Michigan being a beautiful state, it is the leader in highbush blueberry production.  Michigan farms produce approximately 220,000 tons (490,000,000 lbs) of blueberries, accounting for 32% of all the blueberries eaten in the United States.

Aunt Janey's Sour Cream Coffee Cake

My daughter Jami met her husband Donnie, fell in love and got married a few years back.  (Seems like yesterday!)  

We are really pleased with her choice for our son-in-law, just a great guy.  We also have had the pleasure of meeting many of his family members, which, happily we love too!

Donnie's mother Julie and grandmother Mary are wonderful cooks and I'm still trying to get their Apple Pie recipe (best I've ever tasted) and homemade Chicken and Dumplings recipe. 

Donnie's Aunt Janey and Uncle Eddie live in southern Ohio in a beautiful hilltop home.  Aunt Janey shared this recipe with me after bringing it to one of our fall parties. She told me she originally found the recipe in a magazine years and years ago.
It is absolutely delicious!

Lemon Bars

I usually bake cookies to give out as gifts during the Holidays.  Some years I have made as many as 50 to 60 dozen cookies!
Each year I get the most requests for this cookie recipe.  And I have to say it is one of my favorite cookies too.

Many Lemon Bar or Lemon Cookie recipes call for lemon zest or grated lemon rind added to the cookie.  I have found that the zest or rind added makes the cookie slightly tarter.  Without it, the cookie is a perfect delicate lemon flavor with a delicious crust.

These cookies are best kept in the refrigerator but after tasting them they may not last long enough to worry about it.  If giving as gifts, I suggest you wrap each individual cookie bar in Sarah Wrap so they store better, do not stick together and do not absorb the odor or flavors from other cookies.

Cranberry Nut Granola

Homemade Granola

Last year at Christmas I received a jar of homemade granola. It was a basic granola, great for putting on cereal and yogurt and eating right out of the jar as a snack. It didn’t last long!

That gift got me thinking all year about making my own granola, and now that Christmas is right around the corner, it’s a perfect time to try it.

What is granola?  Granola is a breakfast or snack food consisting of oats, nuts and honey. Raisins, dried fruits and dates are sometimes added. Some even have puffed rice. The granola is baked until crisp.

Besides serving as a breakfast and snack food, granola is often eaten while hiking, camping or backpacking because it is lightweight, high in calories and easy to store.