Coral Island Cookies

One of the great things about the holidays is traditions. You all know how much I love our cookie tradition. Well, in the blog chatter Kate Sanner told me how much she enjoys her annual tradition of baking all kinds of Christmas cookies. Kate’s tradition has been handed down through the generations along with some great recipes and she has been kind enough to share one of her favorites with us.

So if you love to bake and are looking for a new recipe, or if you are ready to create a great new tradition, give these cookies a try! And remember that cookies make great gifts. Just box them up, arrange on a plate or in a great container (Flee markets and garage sales are perfect for finding great plates and containers for giving baked goods!)

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‘Twas the Week Before Christmas

‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through the house reigned stress, frustration and total chaos….

Christmas is only one week away and everything is building including excitement and stress. So, to help you not only get through this week but also enjoy it, I’m going to ramp things up a bit. I’ll be putting more info on Twitter and Facebook AND I’ll be adding daily blog posts.

For today, the first thing I want you to do is take a deep breath and just know that all is well. You are fine and the important things will get done.

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Are you a Little Drummer Boy?

As I was driving around I was listening to the Little Drummer Boy and it got me thinking about gifts. I started thinking about this little boy and how he used his talent to give a gift. He didn’t go to a store, he didn’t ask for a wish-list, and he didn’t worry about how it would look to anyone who might be watching. He just opened up his heart and gave of himself, freely and without reserve.

How often do we actually do that? How often do we share our creativity and our talents with those we care most about? Or do we waste our opportunity by stressing about getting exactly what they want, being certain we get the best deal, and making sure it looks good under the tree?

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The zone

I’m enjoying the blessings of “found time”. The kids had a snow day and got to stay home from school today so I decided to tweak my schedule too. As I thought about what I wanted to do this morning I decided that although I need to do some work today, my highest priority would be creating a relaxed, happy, Christmas mood. So early this morning I turned on the tree and worked on Tom’s Christmas present (and it’s almost done! woo hoo!).

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It’s all about time

What do you give the person who has everything? What do you do when you just can’t find a gift that expresses what you really want to share with someone special? You. You give them a little bit of you.

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Mrs. Butterworth vs. Hungry Jack

We’re experiencing the battle of the syrup in our house. Everyone is taking sides and making lots of noise about which brand they want Dad to buy. But as I listened to the debate I made an interesting discovery… it isn’t just about the syrup.

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A gift just for you – Vicki Heise

No matter what holiday you celebrate, this time of year is notoriously hectic.

Have you had a holiday where you reached a breaking point and things didn’t turn out the
way you planned? There might have been a few tears and some hurt feelings. Were there
words spoken in anger that you wish you could take back?

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