ornaments

Tag

Mon
16 ^th

Giggle All the Way: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Posted by Erin — 1 Comment

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SendHallmark #CollectiveBias

I know it is not even Thanksgiving, and typically I don’t like to even think about Christmas until I have stuffed myself full of Turkey. However, when I see something that reminds me of someone I love, it is hard for me to not want to buy it knowing that the holidays are coming. I had wandered into the Christmas decor section at Walmart, and I found some Hallmark Ornaments that brought to mind some funny childhood memories. I knew I had to buy them, and along with them, I decided to bake a little treat that I also hadn’t had in forever too!

Walmart has Hallmark Ornaments in 16 different styles that include resin ornaments of all of your favorite characters like Holiday Barbie and some gorgeous decorative figurines, but what caught my eye were the ones from some of our favorite movies that we watched when we were growing up.

I couldn’t help but think of all the hours we spent watching Star Wars, Caddyshack, and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation together.

In fact, I think most of our conversations to this day are basically spoken in our favorite lines from Caddyshack.

Like Clark Griswold, I might have overdid it.

I even found these adorable Hallmark cards nearby to send with my gift idea.

After my purchase I went home and made a classic cookie recipe: Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, one that I have perfected over time, and have decided to send these ornaments and cookies along to my siblings for a pre-Christmas giggle. In my opinion, there’s nothing better than a good laugh and some cookies.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (makes 3 dozen)

2 sticks unsalted butter softened to room temperature

3/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

3 cups oats

1 cup raisins

1 cup boiling water (I’ll explain)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line baking sheets with parchment.

In a large bowl sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.

In another smaller bowl, add raisins and cover with boiling water.

Set aside for a few minutes. This helps to make the raisins plump up a bit and are extra delicious in the cookies.

Drain the raisins and set aside.

In a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until well incorporated. Then, carefully mix in eggs and vanilla.

Then, add flour mixture and mix until barely incorporated.

Next, add oats and raisins. Mix until all ingredients form a dough.

Next, scoop dough onto reserved parchment lined baking sheets (about 1 1/2 tablespoons).

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool on wire wrack before packing to send.

I cannot wait to send these cookies with the funny Hallmark Ornaments I found. I think my siblings will love them.

What ideas do you have for Hallmark Ornaments at Walmart this Christmas season? Will you decorate an entire Star Wars themed tree? Will you send a fun gift to a pal with golf balls and a Caddyshack ornament? Share in the comments.

Mon
09 ^th

A Miniseries and Chalkboard Ornaments

Posted by Erin — 1 Comment

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, Readers! The house is almost completely decorated, we had our family photo taken for Christmas cards, the baking has begun, and I’ve made my list and checking it twice!

Over the next three weeks, there will be holiday crafts, fun Thirsty Thursday recipes, holiday cooking, and baking, and some great ideas for gifts. I am calling it my Holiday Miniseries, and I am kicking off this week with a great ornament idea!

Chalkboard art is becoming increasingly popular and I noticed a few weeks ago that Martha Stewart makes a chalkboard paint. I wanted to desperately to try it out and see how it works. So rather than painting a whole piece of furniture in chalkboard paint (which I think would be neat), I thought it best to start small.

Supplies:
Wooden Shapes or Ornaments
Chalkboard Paint
Plastic Bag
Paper Plate
Paint brush or sponge
Ribbon or string
Stapler or Glue

I first made sure to remove any labels from the wooden shapes. Then using just a little bit of chalkboard paint, I started painting very thin coats of paint on the shapes. According to the directions, it is important to use at least two coats.

According to the paint directions, it is important to wait an hour between coats of the paint. However, because of painting in thinner coats I only had to wait about 20 minutes between coats of paint. When it was all said and done, I painted four thin coats of chalkboard paint for good coverage.

I let them cure for about 12 hours. Then, they were ready for Holiday messages and hanging on the tree. I didn’t attach any ribbon or string to all of the ornaments because they fit nicely tucked between the branches on the tree.

I did staple some ribbon on the back of a few. You could clue or use other adhesives too. I saw the stapler though and the wood was thin enough not to bend the staples, but not so thin that the staples pushed through the other side.

Now, these ornaments look adorable hanging all over the house with little messages. Perhaps I will keep them out all year long.

Make sure to keep checking back for holiday decorating ideas, Christmas baking and cooking, and gift suggestions.

Linking up at Hi Sugarplum for Holiday Cheer in the Blogsphere!

For more about DIY, gardening, cooking, baking or all other things domestic, become a Home Everyday follower! For blog updates or to see other places I write follow Home Everyday on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

Tue
20 ^th

Something Wonderful is Happening

Posted by Erin — No Comments

We put up two trees in our house every year. One is a big traditional tree with ornaments collected over time. The second tree is a small one my Mom gave us last year. We put it in the corner of our family room since the kids spend most of their time there.

The kids yesterday were a bit antsy with some of the boxes being out so I broke my usual rule of no decorations before Thanksgiving. We put up the small tree in the family room.

Here is how it turned out.

Last year, I bought a package of coordinating ornaments at Lowe’s on sale which is just enough to fill the tree. I love the chocolate brown sparkly ones best. I put a string of red shiny beads that I had on hand from years past and a small star ornament on the top. I set it on an end table covered with a table cloth and made a tree skirt out of some white fabric I had on hand.

We have a teeny bit of Christmas in our house this week. Anyone else started decorating yet?