Baking with Grandma...

My mom did some baking with the girls just before Christmas.  The girls were so excited to do this with Grandma, and I appreciate that my Mom took time to do this with the girls!

So Purdy...

Not much snow, just a whisper, but oh so pretty...

A Favourite Appy..

Yes, I know, it looks awful.  Trust me sisters, it ain't.  This is one of my favourite appetizers to make, and to eat!  It's always a hit no matter where it is!  I believe it originates from one of my hubby's cousins, but don't quote me on that.
It's called Hot Ham & Cheese Dip.  Here's the recipe:

8 oz. Cream Cheese (1 block) - room temp works best
1.5 cups of sour cream (doesn't work as well with light sour cream)
2 cups grated cheddar
1 cup cubed, cooked ham
1/4 cup onion ( I think I use more like 1/2 cup)
2 tsp red pepper diced (I use a whole, small red pepper cuz that's just how I roll)
1 tsp Worcheister Sauce

Here's the easy part:  throw all of the above into a corningware dish, blend it with your electric hand held mixer, cover and throw in the oven for 1 hour @ 350*.

Hollow out a sourdough loaf, save the 'guts' and cube them up.  I also usually buy a loaf of french bread and cube the whole thing up as well to serve with the dip.

After the dip has cooked for an hour, pull it out, let it sit for approx 10 minutes, and pour into sourdough loaf.  Note:  it will be runny right after it comes out of the oven, but it will thicken up fast!

It definitely ain't fat free, but it smells and tastes heavenly!  Perfect appy for New Year's Eve!

A Favourite Tradition...

Our Annual Church Skate is one of our favourite family traditions.  This year was no exception!  My brother, Dave, came along and we gave it our all.  My only regret is somehow not getting any pictures of Olivia!  She's already forgiven me.  Here's a few shots of the event...

The Ladies Who Brunched...

Formally known as the Ladies who Lunch.  Our group of gals got together for our annual Christmas Brunch.  It was a lovely day.  This year the brunch was at my place.  There was so much laughter and fun and the time flew by faster than any of us thought!
The food was so delicious and plentiful, the cards were special, and the gifts were beautiful! Here's a taste of our time together:

Prezzie Time:  Rhonda recieved some beautiful hand knit gloves from Cindy as well as a few other goodies.  Jill recieved some lovely place mats hand-sewn by Sarah, and Sarah recieved a gorgeous quilt that Rhonda made her!  I had Cindy in the draw this year and I made her a table topper specifically for her bright and cheery kitchen.  I'm so glad she liked it!

And now for my present...this deserves a post all on it's own, but I won't hold you in suspense!  Jill had me in the draw this year and I am still overwhelmed by the beauty of the gift she made me.  This is an advent/family tradition calendar of sorts.  It is a flip style book that has a page for every day of December.  Jill decorated each page individually and it's all ready for me to add pictures of our family traditions.  I have never seen this before and I instantly fell in love with it!  I love anything paper crafted and this gift is so special to me!  I think I will have to make a few of these for future gifts.  Jill put so much love and effort into this gift, and that in itself is such a special part of the gift.  So, thank you Jill.  This is one of the most beautiful, and meaningful, gifts I have ever recieved.

Thanks Ladies...for one of our best memories yet made!

Christmas at King...

The girls' school has a traditional sing-a-long every year at Christmas.  The sing along was on the last day of school for the year and I was working so this year Rob took the afternoon off so he could go with the kids.  Abby's Kindergarten class was being featured so out came the camera!  The pictures turned out a little blurry, but I appreciate Rob taking a few while he juggled Isaac!  Abby's class performed a few numbers and Abby had no trouble belting it out and grooving through it all!  Shane & Angela Wiebe were kind enough to lead the sing-a-long portion.  We will miss them so much when they move out East!  There's nothing like a kids Christmas presentation to get you in the Christmas spirit!

A Christmas Project...TBC

TBC = To be completed.  A friend of mine recently asked me to teach her a quilting/sewing project.  We had fun browsing at the local quilt shop and choosing one of my favorite lines of fabric by Moda called 'Fruitcake'.  We've spent a few evenings over the past months getting together and assembling this cute table topper.  I've done this particular one many times, but usually with the fall theme.  In all the hustle and bustle of the season, we've had to put this project on hold for now.  It's so close to completion, but there are other projects that HAVE to be finished by Christmas for gifts, and these ones will have to wait!  Speaking of gifts, I did, indeed, complete this exact topper as a Christmas gift for a friend recently.  You'll see the finished product in an upcoming post.