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The family voted to bring back the snickerdoodle hot cocoa flavor this year for our annual family hot cocoa bar..and I certainly wasn't going to argue. It's hands-down one of our favorite flavors we've come up with.

It's creamy and delicious, and absolutely "cozy in a cup"...or mug in this case.

I promise, once you've had a mug of this...I'm not certain you'll ever go back to classic hot cocoa mix again - recipe linked at bottom of post.

Since I'd done the "Boho Snickerdoodle Hot Cocoa Bar" previously, I knew I had to come up with ways to make this one unique and a little different.

FOUR DISTINCT DIFFERENCES

Four specific, intentional things I decided to do differently this year was the addition of snickerdoodle cookies to the bar, the creation of cinnamon marshmallows, splurging on some beautiful handmade mugs and plates and the creation of a bulk recipe for Snickerdoodle Hot Cocoa Mix - eliminating the need to add brown sugar and ground cinnamon to your mug like we did last time. Bulk recipe linked at the bottom of post.

THE SIGN

Believe it or not, I started designing the background of this sign November 2018...

I just never had time to finish it for our 2018 hot cocoa season. (just one more reason I had my Christmas decor up by Halloween night this year...so I could ENJOY the holidays this go around). Lol.

Anyway, good thing because the whole vibe of the sign compliments the snickerdoodle theme this year. I'm in love with the subtle snowflake details and the Old World charm. (sign tutorial coming)

Framing out the sign with fresh cedar gives a subtle nod to the Christmas season, which I adore.

Knowing we'd be keeping the hot cocoa bar up through February, as in previous years, I wanted something that would transition seamlessly from Christmas and throughout the winter season. (and allow me to use it for Valentine's Day with a few simple changes - that idea is coming soon).

You'll notice in some of the images, I originally only had greenery on the sign and the hot cocoa mix jar but later decided to add it to the glass dome on the cookies and also chose to lay a piece on the small cake stand holding the wood spoons, paper straws, cinnamon sugar shaker, and the cinnamon sticks used for garnish + decor.  It's simple little touches like that that make the overall look feel finished and cohesive. I'm so happy with it.

Sit back and enjoy the imagery...I'm hoping it will inspire you to create your own Snickerdoodle Hot Cocoa + Cookies Bar this winter season. Resources listed at the bottom of the post.

I love when home decor doubles as a family treat - don't you?
But seriously, could you see a version of this used at a wedding. Gasp!!

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OTHER BLOG POSTS YOU MAY ENJOY

Snickerdoodle Hot Cocoa Mix Recipe - Bulk

Cinnamon Marshmallows Recipe

PS - Let's stay cozy + connected in-between posts...find me on Instagram for daily inspiration.

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RESOURCES:
Glass Dome + Cake Stand - TJ Maxx
Small Marble-Topped Cake Stand - Tuesday Morning
Handmade Mugs + Plates
Cabinet with drawers
Table Runner
Sign - Pen + Paper Flowers
Copper Spoons - Tuesday Morning
Striped Straws - couldn't find striped but here's another option
Marshmallow Jar - juicer jar I had...removed the juicing components.
Glass and Wood Jar for Hot Cocoa Mix
Mini Wooden Scoop for Hot Cocoa Mix
Wood Spoons - Amazon

KEEPING IT REAL
I may or may not have devoured sipped on a ridiculous amount of mugs of snickerdoodle hot cocoa during the month of December. It's just sooooo good.

CHRISTMAS | 25 Days of Christ Advent Devotional

The 25 Days of Christ.

It's an advent devotional ornament kit.

It's purpose? To help keep us focused on Christ through the Christmas season. 

25 ornaments.

25 correlating scriptures. 

25 days to cuddle up with your family for a few minutes each day and connect.

And by connect I mean to your family and to the "reason for the season".

I purchased the 25 Days of Christ Unfinished Ornament Kit from New Tradition Crafts a couple of years ago. I left my ornaments raw, instead of painting them, and added neutral finishing touches to a few of them to keep them really simple and as organic as possible. I love them.

The set comes with a book with a reading schedule to keep you on track with which scriptures to read and which ornament to hang each day.

This year, I discovered New Tradition Crafts has something new available called "The Good Shepherd Illustrated Book" to go along with the kit, so I added it this year for our family to use with our ornaments.

Good news! If you want one for your family, I have a coupon code for you to save 15%: PNP15

I decided to share all of the details of my own ornament set this year to show you how I finished mine. I'm hoping it will serve as a guide for those of you who might need help and inspiration with your own kits.

I also wanted to show you the little tree we use to display our ornaments during the 25 Days of Christ. You don't have to have a separate tree like we do...you can use your family Christmas tree if you like. The idea is to do what works for your family...and for your life.

One of the other things about this advent devotional I love is you can easily gear it towards children of all ages. For instance, you can use The Good Shepherd book with younger kids who thrive on visuals. Or you can choose to read directly from the scriptures for older children who aren't interested in "kiddie" activities anymore. 

Basically, it's something I feel our family will never outgrow since it's so adaptable. 

I hope you are inspired to try a set for your own family.

Or at the very least, find ways to stay focused on the magic of the Christmas season.

Don't forget to use the coupon code at checkout to save 15%  ->  PNP15

PS - Let's stay cozy + connected in-between posts...find me on Instagram for daily inspiration.

Subscribe here to have new blog posts delivered right to your inbox.

KEEPING IT REAL

I failed last year when it came to staying focused on the "reason for the season".

We didn't even do the 25 Days of Christ.

I was so sad about the lack of "feeling" last Christmas I vowed not to have a repeat.

Just another reason why it worked for me to have my Christmas decor up by Halloween night this year. As crazy as that sounds, it's made such a difference already in making sure I have time to "ENJOY" the holidays.

CHRISTMAS | Pretty Woods + Whites hand-painted ornaments

The reason I chose to have my house decorated for Christmas by November 1st??

Time. 

Time to enjoy the little things the Christmas season brings with it.

I didn't have time last year.

Or rather, I didn't plan and prioritize to ensure I had the time.

Perfect example: these little wood ornaments. 

I purchased these hand-crafted beauties at TJMaxx last year with the intention of repainting them and restringing them. The silver details and red ribbon (see below) weren't the woods + whites I was craving. 

I knew all I needed was a little time to sit down and paint over the silver details and restring them with a creamy white ribbon to make them exactly what our woods + whites tree needed.

I just didn't have the time.

So they sat in the bag, tags still on them, unpainted. 

I resented never having hung them...never having time.

With intentional planning and a little goal setting...they are officially painted...and hanging.

And I love them so much.

It's amazing how much a little paint, a little ribbon, and a little time makes!

I really LOVE how they turned out!

However, I especially love that I made the time this year.

It feels so good.

It feels so right.

I encourage you to find ways to find more time to enjoy the little things that bring you joy this holiday season my friends.

xoxo,

Jess

PS - Let's stay cozy + connected in-between posts...find me on Instagram for daily inspiration.

Subscribe here to have new blog posts delivered right to your inbox.

KEEPING IT REAL

So I still have one left to paint - the one I left unpainted to be able to take these pics to show the before and after. But hey...guess what? I actually have time to do it! *wink*

Simple Christmas Decor + Holiday Recap

Hello 2019.
You swooped in so quickly I didn't even have time to give a proper goodbye to 2018.

The months of November and December for me were a complete blur.
So before I forget the details of our Christmas, humor me as I reflect a little bit...

Once again, our home was filled with these beauties. Something about these simple little trees just fills up my heart. My collection grew this year when I found some giant versions of them at Hobby Lobby and some mini mint green trees a friend mentioned on Instagram. The mint ones are just as cute and I really wish I would've gotten a picture of them.

I displayed these pretty little trees on our sofa table as well as on our dining table as part of a centerpiece I created. (the same Thanksgiving Table Garland but just an updated Christmas version of it).

I tried my hand at drying oranges for the first time this year and created a Christmas tree garland using them. I love how it turned out and it ended up being the only thing I even added to the pre-lit tree this year. *gasp*

I absolutely loved the simplicity of the orange and wood bead garland with simple fabric tied on to it. And also, truthfully, I just could not muster up the motivation to pull out any of our Christmas ornament boxes and just left it as-is.

I LOVED the dried oranges and used them throughout the little bit of Christmas decor I put up this year. Not only did I use them on our tree, I tied them on to gifts and even incorporated them into our table centerpiece.

I had intended to add them to our stockings this year but never did.

I had fun learning some things about drying oranges when I tried both the oven method as well the dehydrator approach. The oven produces a more rustic colored orange where as the dehydrator results in a vibrant orange color. I prefer the rustic color for packages and decorating but the brilliant orange would be beautiful for creating homemade potpourri or bath salts + sugars. I also learned that they are no longer fragrant after drying but you can spritz or paint them with my favorite seasonal scent combo: orange + clove essential oils. Adding the oils makes them deliciously but temporarily aromatic.

I definitely love the natural elements the oranges added to the Christmas season. And since you can store the oranges I'll be using them again next year.

All of the dried oranges I was making created an abundance of citrus remnants which was perfect for the "Simmering Christmas" I like to do every year. If you haven't yet tried this easy simmering potpourri...pin this for next year! *wink*

All you have to do is fill a pot with water and add the ingredients above. Bring it to a boil and then turn it all the way to simmer. Add more water as it gets low and turn it off at the end of the day. I'm usually able to get a few days out of mine...replenishing water and spices as needed.

Something else I tried my hand at this year were stamped Gingerbread cookies. AND...my first time making gingerbread cookies at all...if you can believe that with as much baking as I like to do.

These were soooo neat to make and after a couple of batches and testing different recipes I'm confident I've found the perfect combination for successfully making these gorgeous cookies.
I posted these on Instagram and there are friends over there waiting on the recipe so I promised to post it before the end of January! So stay tuned for that.

Of course our annual Cookie Baking was on my list this year...
Unfortunately, my cookies were just "off" for me...for a couple of different reasons.

First, my girls weren't even able to make it this year which really sucked the fun out of the whole process for me.  I believe that's what led to the "second" reason my cookies were "off" - over-baked. My heart just wasn't into it. BUT...frosting makes it all better, doesn't it? It helps hide imperfections and so that helped salvage the cookies somewhat. They aren't as pretty as the Christmas Cookies I made last year BUT I did try a couple of new snowflake designs that I will be using again for next year. (AND...my mom created the cutest little wreath cookies - I'll be stealing it for next year). *giggling*

I'm calling it a "Christmas Surprise" because it sounds WAY more exciting. The surprise was that Jay was on his "Christmas light game" this year and actually surprised me by getting them up on Thanksgiving weekend - I didn't even ask. It was awesome to have them up to enjoy throughout the entire month of December - he knows they are my favorite.

Another surprise was that we did a little something different this year when we made the two hour drive back to Mt. Dora, four days before Christmas, to participate in a 5k with some of our friends. Ella and Jay ran it and I did a nice brisk walk. It was a crisp, cold morning for a 5k but our hearts were certainly warm getting to see our friends and some family for the weekend. We stayed with my mom one night too and then made the drive back home to St. Johns. 

Truthfully, aside from the fact that I nailed the "gift of giving" by shopping early and being done a couple of weeks before Christmas this year...there wasn't enough Christmas spirit in our home. I was really feeling empty and spirit-less on some days and I didn't even do the "25 Days of Christ" to help us really focus on the significance of the season.

It was also the first year, in my whole life, my two older girls were not there with me on Christmas morning. It was a hard pill to swallow and most certainly made Christmas seem entirely different.

Emalyn drove up at noon on Christmas Day to have an early dinner with us and exchange gifts. That made things a lot more tolerable and I was happy to have been able to see her on Christmas.
I hope next year is different...as I'm not sure I can take another Christmas morning without them.

Thankfully my sweet Ella helped bridge the gap of the emptiness I felt in my heart as a mama missing two of her daughters. She woke Jay and I up at 4:00am on Christmas morning when she discovered the new bike Santa left for her by the tree. *wink*

I intend on making a few changes for next Christmas since there were things I didn't experience this year and my heart was really sad about it. I felt I was just watching Christmas float by and all I did was look up for a minute and give it a little nod.

BUT...there were also things that filled up my bucket/heart.
And truth be told, I didn't realize how many "joyful" things I had actually experienced until I started writing this blog post.

So yes...I NEEDED to write this Christmas recap because it allowed me to realize just how many wonderful things were tucked in between all of the disappointment I was feeling.

Thanks for being here friends!
Looking forward to sharing again soon!

KEEPiNG iT REAL
Stuart, our elf, made his annual visit...which is a good thing because Ella, at ten years old, is still very fond of him and misses him like crazy when he leaves after Christmas. It was a little sad this year because Ella and Stuart had been writing letters to each other every day until Stuart slipped on a skittle Ella left for him one night. Oops! He fell and injured his writing arm and "Doc Elf" had to make a visit and bandage him all up. It just so happened it occurred right before I left to go to Magnolia in Waco, Texas. *wink*