Category: Holidays

Christmas Crafts & Snacks

The kids and I made some fun snacks for our teachers, coaches, and neighbors… We placed a variety of Hershey’s Kisses on the square shaped pretzels and melted them for a few minutes. After they came out of the oven, we added M&M’s to the middles of them.

I saved our Crystal Light containers for the past few years, and then I wrapped them in paper and added a bow and tag.

We made fun ornaments in my son’s class Christmas party… Snowman, Santa, and Roudolph.

Kids Thanksgiving Treats

One of our family Thanksgiving traditions is making Gingerbread Houses. This year we continued our tradition with mini Gingerbread Houses and Waffle Cone Christmas Trees. I also tried something new this year, I made a Thanksgiving Charcuterie Board with foods that my family enjoys.

Mini Gingerbread Houses

Ingredients:

Directions:

  1. We each chose our houses and gently broke apart the pieces… one of the houses broke in the mail. But we were happy with the rest of our houses.
  2. We helped each other hold the pieces together as we used the icing to “glue” them into place.
  3. Then we decorated our houses with the candies using the icing as the “glue”.

Waffle Cone Christmas Trees

Ingredients:

  • Waffle Cones
  • Royal Icing
  • Green Food Coloring
  • Tiny Christmas Candies

Directions:

  1. We dyed some of the icing green and covered our waffle cones with it.
  2. Then we used the candies to decorate our Christmas trees.

Thanksgiving Charcuterie Board

Ingredients:

  • Wooden Board
  • Small bowls or containers
  • Small spoons, knives, tongs, etc…
  • various Meats and Cheeses
  • various Crackers and Breads
  • fresh and dried Fruit and Berries
  • Candy Pumpkins or Candy Corn
  • Sage or Thyme

Directions:

  1. Place your bowls on your board. We put olives, craisins, frosted cranberries, and roasted pumpkin seeds in our bowls.
  2. Place your cheese. We used a sphere of Gouda cheese and a bacon ranch cheese ball.
  3. Place your meats around the cheese. We like pepperoni and hard salami.
  4. Place your crackers and breads. We used 3 different types of crackers, blue corn chips, and a sliced baguette.
  5. Place some herbs around the edges of the board.
  6. Place your fruit and berries. We used grapes, blackberries, strawberries, and clementines.
  7. Last we placed our candy pumpkins and added the utensils.

Star Wars Trunk-or-Treat

We have been dressing up for Halloween as a family for the past few years. Since the kids are getting older, this year we decided to participate in the Trunk-or-Treat event rather than attending it. We volunteered our trunk at each of the boys schools and also at our church. So we could use our Star Wars decorations more than once! Two of our event were moved in doors due to an early snowfall this year.

Star Wars Sign

Materials:

  • Black Poster Board
  • White Paint and Paint Brush
  • Print out a Star Wars logo
  • Glue
  • Pencil

Directions:

  1. Glue the Star Wars logo to the top of the black board.
  2. I used a pencil to free hand the words on the sign “May the Faith be with You”.
  3. Then I covered the pencil with the white paint.

R2D2 Pumpkin

Materials:

  • Oval orange or white Pumpkin
  • White and Grey Spray Paint
  • Blue, Black, and Red Sharpies

Directions:

  1. I spray painted the bottom half of the pumpkin white and the top half of the pumpkin grey.
  2. Let it dry VERY well, or the paint will come off with the Sharpies.
  3. Then I used the Sharpies to decorate the pumpkin to look like R2D2.

BB8 Pumpkin

Materials:

  • Large Round orange or white Pumpkin
  • Tiny Flat orange or white Pumpkin
  • White Spray Paint
  • Orange, Black, and Silver Sharpies

Directions:

  1. Spray paint the pumpkins white.
  2. Let it dry VERY well, or the paint will come off with the Sharpies.
  3. Then I used the Sharpies to decorate the pumpkin to look like BB8.

Star Wars Trunk

We decorated the trunk with a black table cloth hanging in the background. Then we hung white Christmas lights all around. We added some Star Wars Light Sabers with our sign and pumpkins. We passed out glow sticks instead of candy.

Star Wars Costumes

  • Chewbacca (My older son had a Chewbacca onsie costume that he wore).
  • Luke Skywalker (My younger son wore his Martial Arts top with a belt, some khaki pants, and wrapped some old white socks around this ankles. He also took one of his toy Light Sabers.)
  • Princess Leia (I braided my hair on the side and wrapped it over my head. I also wore a white button shirt with khaki pants and boots. I had a tan jacket that I wore too. My son gave me a toy gun as well).

Independence Day Foods

Our family LOVES lighting fireworks in the backyard. Occasionally, we also have fun foods too. This year I tried some new recipes for taco dip, and fruit desserts.

Patriotic Taco Dip

Ingredients:

  • Tortilla Chips
  • Grape or Cherry Tomatoes
  • 2 cans Refried Beans
  • Black Olives
  • 1 1/2 cups Guacamole
  • 2 cups white Shredded Cheese
  • 8 oz. Cream Cheese
  • 16 oz. Sour Cream
  • Taco Seasoning Packet

Directions:

  1. Place refried beans on the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
  2. Place the guacamole on the beans.
  3. Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, and taco seasoning. Then place it in the dish.
  4. Place the shredded cheese on the top.
  5. Next place the olives in the top left corner like the blue field of the American flag.
  6. Last place the tomatoes in stripes on the cheese to look like a flag.

Berry Angel Food Cake

Ingredients:

  • 2 Angel Food cake mix
  • Blue and Red Berries
  • Cool Whip

Directions:

  1. Bake the angel food cake according to the directions for 3 baking pans and let it cool.
  2. Wash and slice the berries, we used strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries.
  3. Spread some of the cream on one of the cakes and add a few berries.
  4. Place another cake on top of the berries and spread some more cream and berries on that cake too.
  5. Then place the last cake on the top and spread some more cream.
  6. Last place the berries in randomly or in a fancy pattern if you want!

Captain America Fruit Platter

Ingredients:

  • Cherries
  • Marshmallows
  • Strawberries
  • Blueberries
  • 1 package Cream Cheese
  • 1 jar Marshmallow Cream
  • Large Round Platter
  • Small Star Dish

Directions:

  1. Mix the cream cheese and marshmallow cream and place it in the star dish.
  2. Place blueberries around the star.
  3. Place a circle of marshmallows around the blueberries.
  4. Place a circle of strawberries around the marshmallows.
  5. Place another circle of marshmallows around the strawberries.
  6. Last place a circle of cherries around the marshmallows.

4th of July Tie Dye

My youngest son and I tried to tie dye some 4th of July shirts for our family.

Materials:

  • Tie Dye
  • Paper Plates
  • Rubber Bands
  • Plastic Bags
  • Something White to Dye
  • Bucket of Water
  • Plastic Gloves
  • Paper Towels

Directions:

  1. Place the shirt in the water and squeeze out all of the water.
  2. Twist or tie the shirt with the rubber bands.
  3. Put on gloves and pour different colored dye onto the shirt.
  4. Place the shirt in the plastic bag and keep it there for 2 hours.
  5. Rinse it out in the sink before washing alone for the first time.

Independence Day Fruit Pizza

Ingredients :

  • Crescent Roll Dough
  • Cream Cheese 8 oz.
  • Marshmallow Cream 1 can
  • Banana’s, Strawberries, Blueberries

Directions:

  1. I spread the Crescent Roll dough on a rectangle baking pan.
  2. Then I baked it according to the directions on the can.
  3. Mix together the Cream Cheese and the Marshmallow Cream to spread on the Crescent Roll.
  4. Slice the fruit and place it on the pizza in the shape of the American flag.

Christmas Cakes & Crafts

I participated in a Christmas Craft & Bake sale this year at a local church. Here are some of the things that I made and sold…

Snowy Wonderland Trees

I baked a cake and some cupcakes according to the directions on the box. Then I made my own buttercream frosting; 1 cup butter, 1 cup Crisco, 4 cups powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla, 1 tablespoon milk (if too thick). I frosted the cake and cupcakes and added coconut to look like snow. For the trees, I got thin dowel rods, candy melts, and sprinkles. I melted the candy melts and placed in piping bags; then I placed the dowel rods on wax paper and squeezed out the melted candy back and forth across the dowel rods to look like trees. I added the sprinkles before the melts hardened.

Hot Cocoa Cupcakes

I baked Devils Food Cake box recipe into cupcakes. Once they cooled I topped them with my buttercream icing. Then I added mini marshmallows, chocolate chips, and crushed candy canes. I placed a small candy cane on the side to look like a handle to a mug full of hot cocoa.

Peppermint Lollies

I placed the hard peppermint candies with a lollie stick on some wax paper on a cookie sheet. Melted them in the oven at 250 degrees, waited for them to cool and put them into bags with a cute red ribbon.

Candy Cane Forest Cake

I baked a white cake according to the box directions and placed a few drops of peppermint extract in the cake mix. I topped the cake with my buttercream icing and then added crushed peppermints, and candy canes.

Holiday Pretzels

I covered pretzels in white chocolate and milk chocolate. I used hot glue to attach buttons and a scarf to my Snowman Jar. And I attached eyes, red nose, and antlers to my Reindeer Jar.

Melted Snowman Ornament

I filled clear glass ornaments with fake white powder snow. Then I added buttons, a carrot nose, tiny twigs, and a red scarf in the ornaments. I used letter stickers to spell out, “Some People are Worth Melting For”, on the outside of the ornaments. These turned out soooo cute!

Poinsettia

I added gold stars and cute poems to these poinsettia’s and gave them as gifts to co-workers and neighbors!

Christmas Tree Cake

I made a chocolate cake with my Giant Cupcake pan. I dyed my buttercream icing green and used it to decorate the top of my Giant Cupcake. I used yellow and red candy melts to make a star and bows to decorate the Christmas Tree Cake.

Santa Hat Cupcakes

I decorated cupcakes with red buttercream icing. I added a mini marshmallow to the top and white icing around the base of the icing.

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