Monday, December 20, 2010

Be Jolly By Golly Blogfest!

Would you like to know how I decorate my house?
I don't like spending money on expensive decorations that my four kidlets could most likely break. So, here are my cheap, but super awesome, Christmas decorations!

The snowmen were a hand-me-down decoration.  Every year instead of hanging the very breakable glass balls on the tree, I place them around the house for decorations.  They last much longer and look really pretty :)

My mother-in-law made this.  You put kisses in the bag and eat one every night.  The last night is Christmas Eve and then you go to bed and Santa comes!

This is my pride and joy village.  I add to it every year.  The best part?  It's ALL bought at the Dollar Tree.  




My mom sent me this when I was in college.  (Dollar Tree)





My husband and I used to put a puzzle together each Christmas.  We would glue it and either frame it or find some other way to hang it.  The tradition has dwindled since, but we still hang the pictures and have the memories.

I also love to add bows and holly around the house.  

This is the reason I'm celebrating!  I am Christian and I love my Savior!


So, this tree has certainly been through a lot!  This is a hand me down fake 20$ tree that my sister gave me our second year of marriage.  It has been tipped over 5 times just this year.  Many of the ornaments have been smashed and more child-proof ones have been added.  One day I'll get a really nice tree, but for right now I'm perfectly okay with this :)


This is my holiday drink mix.  I call it "homemade wassail," but the recipe says, "Russian Refresher."  It's a recipe from my in-laws.  The thing I love is that it tastes good and makes single servings like hot chocolate mix.  I like it strong and sweet so I add more scoops, but you can always add less if you'd like.  Here's the recipe.
2 cups Tang (yes the slightly tangy orange drink)
1/2 cup lemon mix (lemonaide drink mix with the sugar already added)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
Mix it all together and store in a container.  I add about 2 Tbsp of mix for 10 ounces of hot water.
Enjoy!

This is the drink mixed up and ready to guzzle down.

I am not a baker.  Just had to say that.  I don't bake very much even around Christmas time.  In fact, while I was making these cookies, I got frustrated with the sticky dough and my husband took over to fix it.  The frosting is a basic white frosting mix that tasted very much of Crisco and powdered sugar.  I had a fun time inventing the peppermint middle and toppings, though!  So, although they may look yummy, they were just okay.  I'll spare you the recipe's as I'm sure, if you're a baker, you already have your own awesome sugar cookie and frosting recipe!  

These are our only outside lights.  And even though it's not very much, it still shorted while we were setting them up.  We thought the plug just stopped working so we were shocked two days later when we found our deep freezer without power!  We had no idea the two plugs were connected!  That's the last time we make that mistake.  Luckily, it hasn't shorted out since and we get this pretty view every night :)

Yes, I love to get gifts, but I love even more to give them.  I wanted to post this to show you one of my other hobbies.  I  love to make flower clips.  My new thing is to clip the flowers back to the stem when I give them away.  It makes a fun bow!
In case you're wondering how to feel the holidays, here are a few extra ideas.  Heat up by a fireplace (or sit by the heater), light a holiday candle (I prefer cinnamon), and listen to some Christmas music (I love David Archuleta Holiday, Tran-Siberian Orchestra Holiday, and for the kids it's Chipmunks Jingle Bells station).


Some of my all time favorite Christmas movies (remember that I have a love for oldies) are:  Bishop's Wife, Holiday Inn, The Home Alone's, White Christmas, While You Were Sleeping, Serendipity, the Little Women (those last three are technically not Christmas but we like to think they are), Christmas in Connecticut, and the kids love the Christmas classics like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and Santa Claus is Coming to Town.  Polar Express is also great!  Oh, I also love the Nativity Story.  Man, I could go on forever :)


Be sure to check out the other blogs in this Be Jolly By Golly Blogfest!

By the way, since my kids are out of school, I'm going to take at least this Friday off for Aspiring Author Interview.  But, if I get random writing thoughts and have time to post them, I'll be here for sure.  I plan on tackling my TBR pile and then plan on sharing the awesome reads with you.  

Have a safe and very merry Christmas!

53 comments:

  1. Love your decorations, and thanks for the recipes. Have a wonderful Christmas!

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  2. Awesome decorations!

    Happy Holidays.

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  3. I love wassail! And the puzzle tradition is nice. They will always be a great memory of your pre-kid days when you still had time for puzzles.

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  4. Lovely photos of your festive decor. :)

    Merry Christmas!
    ~Lola

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  5. I loved seeing your decorations. Merry Christmas!

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  6. Beautiful decorations! It just goes to show you don't have to break the bank for some lovely holiday cheer. Most of my decorations are from my mom! She gave them to me when I moved out, and I love them because it reminds me of my childhood Christmases. :) Have a very merry Christmas!!!

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  7. Gorgeous decorations, love the nativity scene and the villages. Your outside tree looks wonderfully glowy too--I always like those kinds of trees decorated that way. Merry Christmas!

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  8. Oh how very lovely your decorations are, simple and sweet and just right!

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  9. Your decorations are lovely. Very tastefully done! Have a wonderful Merry Christmas.

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  10. The Holy Night light is gorgeous! And I love those little villages! Merry Christmas!

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  11. Your tree is the cutest! And I also love the O Holy Night light. My favorite part about Christmas decorations are Nativity sets. Such a wonderful reminder of the real reason for Christmas :) Cheers, dear.

    ~ Bess

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  12. Absolutely beautiful post -- especially your "reason for the season."

    Merry Christmas!!!

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  13. Loved your post! Wonderful pictures. Merry Christmas!

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  14. Your decorations are fab! I feel like a hack now! Have a great Christmas :)

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  15. I need to try some "Russian Refresher."

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  16. My mother always called that Russian Tea. It's yummy. Thanks for sharing.
    Nancy
    N. R. Williams, fantasy author

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  17. Wow! All so magical! I love it!! The light up town and tree are my favorite... I love a good holiday light show :)

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  18. I really like your decorations. Sometimes the inexpensive one's are the best. The snowmen between the "SMILE" was a great idea. =D

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  19. wonderful decorations. You're very creative. Happy holidays.

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  20. Beautiful decorations!!! Very lovely!!!
    Merry Christmas!!

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  21. I love your decorations, especially the kisses one! (And DollarTree!) I didn't know you could buy a whole village there, though. So cool! I'm a new follower. You're my kind of peeps.

    Merry Christmas!

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  22. Love your decorations. So glad to have found your blog. Have a wonderful holiday!

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  23. Wow! You have bunches of beautiful decorations. Thanks for sharing so many photos. I am definitely going to try your drink recipe! :-)

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  24. Mmm, wassail. We should all sit down and have one together this week. :) Happy Holidays!

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  25. You have a whole little Christmas village. That's so cool.
    beth-project52.blogspot.com

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  26. Fantabulous decorations!! Loved the little holiday village! You definitely know how to celebrate the season.

    Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! :)

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  27. I've never tasted wassail before. It's not very well known where I live :-s

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  28. All of your decorations are so cute! Thanks for sharing all the pictures. The cookies look so yummy!

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  29. Your decorations are wonderful. I love the little holiday village.

    Have a wonderful Christmas.

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  30. Lovely decorations, I love your little village and especially the nativity scene. And I love candles, especially aromatic ones. Merry Christmas to you and your family! ;)

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  31. Stopping by for the blogfest...

    I love your little town. You have LIGHTS! I'm jealous! =)

    Your place looks great. Way to rock the awesomeness.

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  32. Your decorations are awesome! It's nice to know how much you can do and how good it can look without spending a ton of money! Happy Holidays!
    ~Kelley

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  33. Aw, your decorations are so pretty!! You did a fabulous job. I hope you have a Merry Christmas!

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  34. The dollar store tis the season is too cute! Love that. And those cookies look awesome too!

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  35. What beautiful decorations! Have a Merry Christmas!

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  36. You've got some wonderful decorations! And some lovely traditions, too. Pretty amazing what you can do with a $1 ~ :) Thanks for sharing! Happy Holidays to you and yours!

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  37. I love your charming decorations. When I was younger, I used to make all my decorations. Now with so many time restraints, I don't have that luxury.

    Merry Christmas Michelle.


    Michael

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  38. I love your village! I have a church that lights up - I inherited that from my grandma. I need to add to it this year after the holidays when they are on sale. Have a Merry Christmas!

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  39. Wow. You are IN the holiday. I feel like such a slacker! Thanks for stopping by my blog!

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  40. Love the village (it looks expensive) and your home looks warm and inviting with all the decorations. Thanks for sharing and Merry Christmas! :D

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  41. I'd never know your decorations were cheap if you hadn't told us. They look lovely. And so smart of you to have the breakable glass balls away from the kiddies!

    The recipe sounds delicious!!!! Thanks for sharing.

    Thank you so much for participating in our blog fest!

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  42. The tree is beautiful; I love the idea that it has been looking over years of Christmases. Look closely at mine - we have a that's-£30-saved attitude to trees :) You have so many lovely and personal decorations. A real homey Christmas.

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  43. Nice tree. I had no idea you could get a holiday village at Dollar Tree. I've been wanting to start one for a few years, but the pieces are so expensive whenever I see them.

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  44. Now I totally want to go to the Dollar Tree. You seriously got your entire village there?!? And I love the reason for the season. Merry CHRISTmas!

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  45. Beautiful decorations and I love the kisses idea. Happy Christmas to you and your family.

    Be Jolly By Golly

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  46. Wonderful! I love your decorations. Have a very happy Christmas!

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  47. I've never had wassail, but it looks incredible! And your tree is adorable--love all the fun decorations!

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  48. Your decorations are gorgeous! I love that you add bows and ornaments all over your house! I also love White Christmas! Merry Christmas!!

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  49. That drink recipe sounds awesome! And I love all your pics... I am not a baker either, so I feel you there :)

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  50. That is such a cute idea, the board that your mother-in-law gave you. Sort of like the family's own personal advent calendar. Though I'm not sure I could show enough restraint to only eat one kiss a night. ;o)

    Merry Christmas, Michelle!

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  51. Beautiful pictures, and I love the puzzle picture you do each year. What a wonderful tradition!

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  52. Lovely pictures! I love the puzzle! What a wonderful idea... I love that you have a story behind so many of your decorations. That makes them so much more special.

    Thanks for sharing!

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Thanks so much for visiting! I appreciate your comments and feedback.