Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Elf Kisses {Free Printable}



Hi Guys!


A few years ago i shared my free Elf Kisses printable, but with the holidays coming up i thought now would be a good time to share it again.


IMG_4807

I think this makes a great addition to the holidays, plus this would be a great way to introduce your elf on the shelf too!


Want to make some for your kiddos? Here's how...


You'll need:
  • Hershey Kisses
  • Ziploc Bag (or any other kind of see through bag)
  • My Elf Kisses label
  • Stapler (or tape works too!)
Here is an up-close look at my Elf Kisses label.


elf kiss

Included in the Elf Kisses label..
  • Green version
  • Red version
  • To/From Labels
I hope you enjoyed this fun holiday printable!

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

Thanksgiving 2018


I wanted to get this post up yesterday, but as luck would have it i came down with a nasty cold over the weekend. Right now it's 10 o'clock in the morning and as i'm typing this up i have a freshly brewed pot of coffee and a box of tissues next to me. But i do really want to write up this post if not for anything else, but to remember this Thanksgiving, because it was pretty eventful.


So here is a look back from Wednesday (November 21st) - Sunday (November 25th).



Thanksgiving 2018


Wednesday (Day before Thanksgiving)

Morning time i realized i needed a few things from the grocery store, so i loaded up all the kids and we ventured out to the grocery store. We came back home, put away groceries and started cleaning up the kitchen so we could get started on baking pies.


Once i pulled out all the ingredients for the pies, i realized my evaporated milk (which was to be used for the pumpkin pies) had expired like years ago. Oops! There was no way i was going back to the grocery store, so i googled what else i could use. Luckily i had some heavy cream on hand and was able to use it in place of the evaporated milk.

20181121_133600


The kids and i were able to get all 4 pies baked and 36 rolls made up for Thanksgiving.


We also did some cleaning, as my niece was planning on coming over that night to spend the night with us.


Thursday (Thanksgiving Day)


I woke up around 7 o'clock and started cleaning up the kitchen so i could get the turkey ready for the oven. I was able to get the turkey in the oven by 9:30.

Shortly after that i started getting the appetizers ready. We did an appetizer lunch around 11:00.

20181122_105225(0)


We played some games, and got the rest of our Thanksgiving meal made.


Around 4 o'clock i tried to take the turkey out of the oven, to check and see how it was cooking. In doing so i spilled turkey juice all over the oven and floor of the kitchen. This caused the house to be filled with smoke and the smoke alarms to go off. Which then led to my 4 year old going outside to get away from all the noise.

IMG_20181122_161715_062


After opening all the windows in the house, turning the oven off, cleaning up all the juice that spilled inside it, and mopping the kitchen floor we were back on track.

We finally ate our Thanksgiving meal around 5:30, which was a whole hour and a half later than i had originally planned for us to eat, but that's ok.

The rest of the evening was just spent relaxing together as a family.


Friday 


We had a 9:30 appointment for our dog, Bear, with his veterinarian's office. He had been limping for 2-3 weeks and it wasn't getting any better.


20181121_085116 (1)


We had to leave him at the vet's office all day, for them to get some x-rays done.


While Bear was at the vet's, my husband was told about this dog that was going to be thrown out on the streets because his family couldn't care for him anymore. We couldn't let that happen, so my husband went and picked the dog up.

20181123_153552

He is 8 months old. We aren't sure what breed of dog he is, we were told he is a lab/poodle mix, but based on just googling images of that dog i really don't think he is. I'm fairly certain he is an Irish terrier, but mixed with something else. We did not care for the name he was given, so we are still looking for the perfect name for him.

We got Bear back from the vet's office and it turns out his joints haven't grown as fast as the rest of his body, so he is on pain pills and joint supplements for the next 4-6 weeks. He also has exercise restrictions for the next 6 weeks. We are just really glad nothing was broken and that we have our Bear back home.


Saturday

My 10 year old and i went to get Bear's medicine at the pet store. We had a fun time looking around at other things in the store.

20181124_103207(0)

That night we went over to my sister's house to see her and have dinner with her family. Once we got back home, my daughter was complaining that her throat was feeling scratchy, and my oldest son also wasn't feeling well.


Sunday

I woke up not feeling so great, and my daughter and son were feeling worse. I still went to Walmart to pick up my online grocery order. Came back home and relaxed.

My husband went out to pick up more Christmas lights for the outside of our house, and while he was out he also picked up a Christmas tree.

20181125_114100


That's pretty much it for our Thanksgiving weekend. I hope all that celebrated Thanksgiving had a wonderful day!
 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

*Stock photo provided by Unsplash.*

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Thanksgiving Traditions


I can tell you about a handful of Christmas traditions my family had growing up, however I can't think of one Thanksgiving tradition we had other than eat the normal Thanksgiving traditional foods.


Immediately, once i started my own family, I knew I wanted to have some Thanksgiving traditions for my family. Although, we haven't come up with much, I thought i would share our family's Thanksgiving traditions.



thanksgiving traditions

  1. We make pies the night before Thanksgiving; Pumpkin, Lemon meringue, and Chocolate pies.
  2. On Thanksgiving, we eat a light breakfast, and snack throughout the day until the main feast which we serve around 4:00 in the afternoon.
  3. We play games, either board games/card games or video games, together as a family.
  4. We get outside, we usually take a walk to burn off all the food we have eaten.
  5. The day after Thanksgiving we put up our Christmas tree.
That's it, those are our family's Thanksgiving traditions. What are your family's traditions?


 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

*Stock photo provided by Unsplash.*

Monday, November 19, 2018

Holiday Stock Up Guide {Free Printable}


The holidays are fast approaching, and if you are anything like me then you often go to make a holiday recipe only to realize you have forgotten something, or with the extra company you've been having you don't realize how low on hand soap you are, or toilet paper, yikes!!


In an effort to make the holidays go a little bit more smoothly this year, I've created a holiday stock up guide.




holiday stock up guide

I've added the basics to this guide for all your holiday baking (sugar, eggs, flour, etc.) and for all extra guests (toilet paper, hand soap, etc.).

I've also left empty spaces for you to add in your own needs.

You can download my Holiday Stock Up Guide for free, HERE!!

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

Friday, November 16, 2018

Gift Giving List {Free Printable}


With next Friday being Black Friday, i know a lot of you will be getting a jump start on your holiday shopping. And in hopes of making gift giving a little bit easier this year I've created a free printable where you can write down who you are buying for and what you are giving them.


gift giving list

My Gift Giving List has 6 different boxes, for you to write down 6 different people you are shopping for.

I've also included a notes section to help make your planning even easier.

You can download my Gift Giving List for free, HERE!

I hope it will be a blessing for you and your family!

Happy Shopping!

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

Thursday, November 15, 2018

10 Thanksgiving Themed Books {for kids}


Only 7 more days until Thanksgiving, which is enough time to hit up your local library {or Amazon} for some great Thanksgiving themed books for kids.


IMG_5112


My personal favorites are; God Gave Us Thankful Hearts, Thankful, Thank You Stinky Face, and Thanksgiving in the Woods!!

What's your favorite Thanksgiving themed book?

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png
*This post may contain affiliate links.*

Wednesday, November 14, 2018

Thankful Bible Verses {Free Printable}



"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." - Colossians 3:17 (NIV)


thankful bible verses


I've created a free printable with some thanksgiving Bible verses, in preparation for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. This would be a great time of year to memorize these Bible verses.


thankful bible verses 1


You can download it for yourself, HERE!

Enjoy!

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

*Stock photo provided by Unsplash.*

Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Thanksgiving Turkey Tips {Free Printable}

Hi Guys!

Every year I call my Mom up with the same questions "when do I put the turkey in the fridge to defrost?", "how long will the turkey stay good for in the fridge?", "what if it's not ready in time for Thanksgiving?"... and every year she answers those questions for me without ever saying "I told you last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.." she's awesome like that!


However this year I decided to pick her brain on all things Turkey and finally write it all down, so that way I can pass the information down to my children some day, and their children, etc. etc., and pass the information on to you guys as well.



Turkey Tips 1


You can download my Thanksgiving Turkey Tips printable, for free, HERE!


I hope this helps you and your family!


 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

Monday, November 12, 2018

Traditional Thanksgiving {Menu, Shopping List, and Recipes} FREE

Hi Guys!

Only 10 more days until Thanksgiving, can you believe it?! Are you prepared yet?! I was able to get a little bit of my Thanksgiving grocery shopping done over the weekend, but I still have more to buy.


Pretty much every year I forget at least one thing at the store, and so I thought in order to help me with all my planning and shopping I would type it all up. And today i'm going to share what I have created with you all.


Traditional Thanksgiving 1


I've written up the menu, the shopping list, and the recipes. I've even divided the recipes into appetizers, main course, and desserts in an effort to make things even easier.



thanksgiving traditional 4

You can download my Traditional Thanksgiving pack for FREE, Here!!


I hope it will be a blessing to you and your family!


 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

Thursday, November 8, 2018

Themed Learning {Apples}


This past week we learned almost all there is to know about APPLES!!!


themed learning apples


And today i'm sharing all we did during our themed learning week.


Books we read:

IMG_5100

Fun Stuff we did:


#1 - Science Experiment

IMG_5069


We put apples slices into 4 different jars. One jar had just air, the next had water, the next had oil, and the last one had vinegar. We observed them all day to see what would happen to the apples and we put our results in our journals.

IMG_5090


#2 - Bobbing for Apples


IMG_5082


This is such a fun activity to do with the kids, all my kids loved it! My 10 year old has even requested that we do this activity on his birthday!


#3 - Worksheets


IMG_5077


Life Cycle of an Apple, Apple Pop ArtApple Unit,  and Pattern Block Puzzle Apples. All of these are free downloads on Teachers Pay Teachers.


Food we ate:


Apple turnovers - Super easy and delicious!

IMG_5053


Fun lunch - Apple shaped sandwich, Apple Pie Oreo, Applesauce, apple slices, and apple juice.

IMG_5105


That's it for our Apple Themed Learning week! I hope you enjoyed it!

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

*This post may contain affiliate links.*

Thursday, November 1, 2018

November Reading List

How is it already November?! I swear, it's true what they say, "the days are long but the years are short".

Anyways, since it's a new month you know what that means, a new reading list!

Here are all the books we are reading this month...



November Reading List


Samuel {13 Years Old/ 8th Grade)

81mANZ+8g7L

Summer of the Woods (The Virginia Mysteries)


Dasean {10 Years Old/ 5th Grade}

9780824956851

Race to the Ark (The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls, Book 2)


Karina {7 Years Old/ 2nd Grade}

9780545727648_mres

Amelia Bedelia Hits the Trail 


Cruz {4 Years Old/ Preschool}

81PT560Px+L

Thank You, Stinky Face 


Veronica {me}

51DVvySduAL._SX330_BO1,204,203,200_

The Song of Achilles: A Novel - I was actually recommend this by a reader of mine (thank you!), I can't wait to read it!


That's everything we have planned to read this month. What book(s) are you reading?

 photo Signature1_zps25c33e22.png

*This post may contain affiliate links.*