Pams Christmas Corner

Mince Pies

2010-10-29T13:19:00.006+01:00

We made some mince pies for the freezer this week with it being half term - India did most of the work and did a pretty good job!

The pastry is made as per the recipe here.

Of course we had to eat some of them but the rest are in the freezer ready for Christmas. We have plenty of mincemeat left too for mince pie buns near the time!

Update

2010-10-17T14:06:00.003+01:00

I haven't posted in a while just with life catching up with me. Though I haven't been neglecting my Christmas planning. I've been picking up Christmas catalogues from all over the place for some ideas for those left on my gift list. In two weeks I have a full day of Christmas shopping planned so I should be able to clear a lot of gifts. We were lucky enough to get £50 vouchers due to a cashback offer to spend in Sainsbury's which will help out a great deal too.

At the moment we are still unsure how many people we will have for Christmas dinner as my brother and his girlfriend now live together and are undecided on where to go for Christmas. I think they will go to her Mums, which of course is fine! I just like to be organised way too far in advance and they just haven't had time to really think about it in October! I must admit though I still haven't decided on dessert or a starter this year, though the squash soup I made last year went down so well I may do that again.

I'm more behind on my cards than i'd like but this is down to a bad back i'm having problems with and I just can't sit and do them right now. Luckily I do have plenty of bought cards just in case.

Mistletoe is waiting in the wardrobe to be checked over and to make sure he isn't missing any bells or eyes! India has been mentioning him a lot recently, she is quite excited that he might be visiting us again. Hopefully next time I post I may have a little more to say!

Belated Rudolph Day Update!

2010-09-29T10:59:00.007+01:00

A little late on this one this month! Though I haven't let the day go by without doing a little something towards Christmas.

I have made my Mincemeat as per the recipe here. I now have 2 1ltr jars in the cupboard ready for mince pies and mince buns, can't wait to make some as the house smelt lovely as I was making it.

On Monday evening I made our Christmas cake - recipe here. Again the house smelt so good it was tough not to eat it there and then. It's wrapped up in a cake tin now and over the next couple of months i'll add the odd spoonful of Brandy to it for a little extra flavour.

Sunday evening was spent making Christmas Cards, I was on a bit of a roll and had to force myself to pack everything away in the end as it was late and way past bedtime! Here are a few of them

I still have a fair few to do and though i'm a bit behind from last year I think I should be ok. Once pay day comes up this week i'll hopefully be ticking a few more gifts of my list too.

Decluttering

2010-09-22T19:44:00.007+01:00

I've spent this week clearing out our loft. It's been on my to do list for the past three years! With India in full time school now and me having a week off it seemed the perfect time. Now I don't like lofts, not been in any yet and not planning to, so instead my husband and stepsons dragged every box and bag down into their bedroom. The theory being that if it goes in there I don't have any choice but to sort it all or else they won't have an accessible bed the following weekend!

So once I had the house to myself on Monday I dived straight in. Mostly the boxes are filled with my books, I have way too many and unfortunately don't have the space to have them out in the house. I was strict with myself and ended up with around four boxes worth of books to go to our local charity shop at the weekend. Plus a few bags of rubbish, a few bits which have already gone via Freecycle. I also have a few items which we will put on ebay.

As I went along I made sure I took note of what is in each box so it will be easy to find once they go back into the loft. The boxes still look scruffy on the outside but inside they are tidy and that's what counts!

They are lined up now waiting to go neatly back into the loft at the weekend.

The only boxes in the loft that didn't need sorting out where my Christmas ones - those 9 stayed where they were - at least for next 2 and a half months!

Christmas Cards

2010-09-15T19:01:00.007+01:00

I have got around to making a few cards at last. I am seriously lacking in motivation and inspiration at the moment though. Mostly I made a huge mess getting all my craft stuff out all over the floor and sitting in the middle of it looking blankly!

So any suggestions, should I buy a magazine, I don't usually but may have to resort to one or two? Is there a good website anyone can recommend which has some ideas?

Rudolph Day

2010-08-24T18:53:00.002+01:00

The countdown begins, only 3 left after this one, which is a slightly scary thought! I have most of my cards still to make though, i've only made a couple and haven't taken any photos yet. I do take a picture of each card I make - mostly because some of them i'm quite proud of and others I can learn from my mistakes! I have stocked up on quite a few embellishments and have lots stuff from last year too. So my goal between now and September Rudolph Day is to make at least a dozen cards.

I have again gone through my gift list and decided to make up some Cookie in a Jar gifts for some of the people on there. I'll be using this recipe from Little Munchkins blog. I need some more ink for the printer though as my writing isn't good so i'll be printing the recipe tags for them.

Over the past few weeks I have also picked up a few books for India, some Dora and Diego ones at 39p each from Home Bargains. Hopefully by Christmas she will be having a good go at reading them herself. I have one or two ideas for my stepsons - itunes vouchers - one collects Monopoly's so i'll be getting him a Coronation Street one that i've found (he likes the soaps too!), some books, they have both started reading a bit more over this past year, which is a great help for presents. They are so tough to buy for even knowing their tastes but luckily they seem happy with whatever we do get them.

I really need to start planning for Mistletoe too. I already have plans for some Christmas Lego to add to what she has -i'm thinking Mistletoe will be playing with it one morning. A quick search on ebay and I can see quite a few different pieces. I think Mistletoe will have a post all of his own very soon.

However you celebrate Rudolph day have a good one!

Friday 5 - Meals to Cook

2010-08-20T09:19:00.002+01:00

Taking part in another Friday 5 this week, one that is quite close to my heart as it's about food! I have to say though that my favourite's change all the time but i'll go with these as they get made throughout the year.

1. Risotto, this is my favourite dish, I could eat mounds of the stuff! I do a basic recipe - onions, garlic, mushrooms, rice, a handful of frozen peas and lots of good home made chicken stock. Then I add whatever I have to hand - turkey, chicken, a little bacon, leeks, butternut squash. I don't think there is a Risotto i've not liked! I sometimes like to add a little grated cheese and chilli flakes on top!

2. Shepherds Pie, a good comfort food (though technically mine is Cottage pie as it's with beef!) I use beef stock cubes, tomatoes, mince, onion, Worcester sauce, I add peas and carrots and then add mashed potato to the top with sliced tomatoes and cheese on top of that before it goes in the oven - yum!

3. Turkey & Noodles, this one is just a really simple meal, mostly it's a favourite because it's quick and easy! I cook carrots, green beans, baby sweetcorn, frozen peas, pack choi and turkey in chicken stock, soy sauce and Chinese five spice and add medium noodles a few minutes before serving.

4. Sunday Roast, what can I say, can't beat it, roast beef or chicken with stuffing, Yorkshire puddings, mash, roast potatoes, veg and gravey.

5. Soup - any kind, I love to make soup. Our favourite is the squash soup which we had with our Christmas meal last year. Though right now I have some broccoli soup in the freezer and before that white bean.

Friday Five - Christmas Wish List

2010-08-13T11:01:00.002+01:00

Thanks to Dawn over at This is Me i'm taking part in the Friday Five this week!Though it's a tough one - only 5 things!! The first two are a little indulgent but then I guess it wouldn't be a wish list otherwise!

1) I think the top of my wish list would be the Kitchenaid Artisan Food mixer. I have wanted one of these for years. Despite not having a huge kitchen, this would be one item that I would be happy to have out on my worktop permanently. Not sure it would be so good for my waistline though as i'd be whipping up a cake every other day!

2) A new laptop - one with plenty of memory and a couple of USB memory sticks for back up. Purely for all the photos I take. I have had to back up (twice) most of my photos and take them off our pc as they take up too much space. I'd love to have them all in one place to browse whenever I like - photos are a bit of a passion, I have thousands!

3) Birds Britannica by Mark Cocker, birds are my secret (not so much now!) passion. I'm a bit of a birder and this book has been on my wish list for a while. It's a bit more than the usual guide and I can't wait to read it.

4) Binoculars - for reasons as mentioned in no. 3! My binoculars are big, bulky and you have to squint to see properly through them!

5) This one is purely for entertainment - CSI box set DVD's any series any season, love them all!

Baking Day

2010-08-09T12:22:00.010+01:00

We spent a day trying out some new recipes last week with some good and some not so good results! First up we made an old favourite - flapjack - knowing this always turns out good and we all love it.

India got quite excited!

India received a lovely recipe book from Pip over on OCE and we tried out a couple of recipes from there. We made sweet treat biscuits using cherries in the middle though you can use nuts also. These looked great and were easy for India to do too. They tasted very sweet but very nice too. Big thumbs up for them and they are going on my list for Christmas.

I made up some Honeycomb, now this melted lovely, we added the bicarb and it frothed really well - we were impressed. Tipped it into the really well greased tin (India did it, she used loads!) and it stuck in there! I ended up just bashing it into pieces to get it out of the tin so it was just a mess of broken bits and crumbs in the end. However it tasted just like cinder toffee, which is one of hubby's favourites and he ate the lot! I'm not sure on this, it definitely tasted good but how do I get it to come out of the tray better?

Peppermint Creams - now these I have also made before but not for a few years. I added some red food colouring once the dough was nearly done so the colouring was streaky rather that a solid colour - thought it may look a little more festive? This was something India could easily help with - which is why most of the creams are different shapes and sizes!!

Last of all we tried an Easy Fruit Cake from the Bero recipe book, which as most people in the UK will be aware is a bit of an institution here. It involved simmering the fruit first on the hob, which i've never done before.

It wasn't as nice as my normal fruit cake recipe and was really crumbly but it was certainly easy to do and didn't taste too bad. I don't think I will make it again.

Sweet Treats

200g Ground Almonds
100g Icing Sugar
100g Golden Caster Sugar
Grated Lemon Rind
1 Egg

1. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Preheat the oven to 160C
2. Mix all the dry ingredients
3. Add the egg and mix to form into a ball
4. Divide into about 12 small balls
5. Push a hole in the middle and place a glace cherry, a nut of choice or jam
6. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes

Christmas in the Kitchen

2010-08-01T08:49:00.006+01:00

After receiving this cute ornament in my Christmas swap last week I have decided to think about what sort of theme I can have in my kitchen this year.

I don't have a huge amount of space for decorations but always have some. I normally use silver baubles in vases, a silver star with baubles on ribbon for the door, then some wooden ornaments that hang from the handles on the cupboards.

What I'm really wanting is items that are kitchen based for decor rather than leftover baubles and beads, which is what I use right now (if you know what I mean!).

So I have already picked up a Christmas salt and pepper pot that I think I will just use as decor rather than for actual salt and pepper.

Then i'm thinking maybe using some cookie cutters to hang from the handles - I already have some large ones but I'm sure I remember seeing all sorts of different shapes and sizes in the pound shops or bargain shops we have around here. Of course i'll have to wait for the stock to come out - which is usually after the kids are back at school in September. I should mention I can't afford to be buying lots of new ornaments so I am looking for the cheap or home made options!!

Over the pantry doorway we have a curtain that is mostly just for show (we never close it) and i'm wondering if I can get some material from ebay to make a Christmas curtain. I'm not the best sewer but I could do a curtain if I can find some nice (and cheap) material.

My next step is to browse the net for some ideas, see what I can come up with - of course if you have any suggestions they would be welcome too!

Christmas in July

2010-07-25T10:14:00.006+01:00

Happy Rudolph Day (Christmas in July!).

We are having a great day so far. We just finished watching Christmas in Wonderland on the Movies 24 channel, we had cinnamon and sultana muffins followed by popcorn. Not the healthiest breakfast but a fun one. The film was a bit silly but still had a magical ending, which brought a tear to my eye (especially with Patrick Swayze in it), but i'm a softy!

I may be able to watch another later if I can finish my gardening (not very Christmassy but needs doing). Later on this evening I will be making some cards, all my stuff is piled up in the dining room ready. I'm looking forward to that.

I also took part in a Christmas in July swap over on Organised Christmas Elves. I had a lovely parcel to open this morning (thank you DelveD) and had some very cute Christmas things. I think my favourites are the Christmas Album, all set up scrapbook style ready for photos and a Gooseberry patch recipe book. I love Gooseberry Patch and have a few of their Christmas Cookbooks.

Sneaking up fast!

2010-07-19T11:12:00.002+01:00

Well I can't quite believe it's almost the end of July. I don't know where this year has gone? Luckily despite it flying by I haven't done bad with keeping up with the Christmas planning though.

Thanks to a poker win my Husband had I have bought a few Christmas presents over the past month and have pretty much got India covered now apart from a Kidzoom camera that she has been asking for. I've got some pots to make pots of gold again for people who didn't get them last year as they went down so well. Again we are going with the vouchers for the boys for the local shopping centre, they have done well with the ones we got them last year and have saved them for books or games that have come out during the year and didn't just waste them on stuff straight away.

I have started stocking up on fruit to make my mincemeat, which i'll be doing towards the end of next month. I will have a look through my Christmas dessert recipes and pick out what i'll be trying this year and write a shopping list for that too so I can pick up something each time I shop.

So we have on Sunday, Rudolph Day, which for many is known as Christmas in July, even QVC and one of the movie channels has picked up on this now in the UK and we have a month of (mostly made for TV) Christmas movies. I already have plans with India to watch Christmas in Wonderland when we get up and hopefully be sat down in time to watch another in the evening!

I'll be posting again on Sunday and hopefully a bit more frequently after that as we move into the second half of the year.

May Rudolph Day

2010-05-25T13:44:00.003+01:00

Well this poor blog is being neglected, luckily my Christmas planning isn't! My gift list is up to date and I have a lot of ideas for the people on it. I've even bought a few more stocking stuffers for my little one.

The boys are going to be the hardest to buy for as usual and I think we may just be going with vouchers for our local shopping centre again as they went down very well last year. They can be used in all the shops in there and they have spent them well. Even getting stocking stuffers for them is hard now, at 14, 16 and 20 with no hobbies as such i'm thinking very hard!

My Christmas notebook is all up to date and I would highly recommend this site Christmas Planner to help out with printables and ideas for making your own - I wouldn't be without mine! It even has a section where you can browse other peoples notebooks for inspiration.

I've even had the time to make a couple of Christmas cards too though i've cut my list down this year after checking who was sending them back and who wasn't!

Food wise I am already thinking that I may do something different this year instead of rolling out the turkey but i'm not sure how well it will go down with the rest of the family if I don't stick to the traditions! I'll be digging out my recipe books to look for starters and desserts to try out over the next few months.

I hope you all enjoy your Rudolph day (only 6 to go before the real one!).

Easter Fun

2010-04-01T19:26:00.005+01:00

In case you hadn't noticed the abundance of chocolate eggs and Easter bunnies around the shops by now I just thought i'd let you know Easter is just days away!

I found these pretty little eggs in our local Poundland. I'm going to use them in an egg hunt for India on Sunday morning.

She always gets loads of chocolate from familyt and friends so I try to get her something she can keep. This year I found a lovely little bucket which i've filled with little eggs and small toys. She loves things she can carry - bags, baskets and hopefully buckets!

In the meantime we have these books to keep us occupied over the next couple of days!

Rudolph Day

2010-03-24T10:37:00.007Z

Well i've been a little lax in my postings the past couple of months and am vowing to do better! My Christmas thinking has been non existent.

I save stamps with Morrisons every year for my Christmas food shopping and have only got £2 right now - I cannot get into the routine of asking for them at the till and staff appear to have stopped checking if you need them. I'm determined to get back into this habit as these stamps come in very handy and have in the past paid for our food over the Christmas holiday.

My folder has been buried away in the wardrobe and I've dug it out and placed it in the way in the living room so I can't avoid it. I've updated my Christmas card list and address list, they are printed off and read to put in. I also printed a new gift list for 2010 and have put on the bits and pieces I got in the sales, which doesn't amount to much.

So today I am going to be making some Mince Pie Buns to use up my leftover mincemeat and i'll be drinking my Christmas tea to get me into the spirit of things. I really need to start picking up some more gifts and try and fill out the list a bit more.

Thought i'd add this picture from Christmas last year for inspiration!

Next thing I need to do is check on my supplies for my card making, I don't think i'll have as many to make this year after redoing my list and I did pick up some embellishments in the sales, I think an ebay shop may be in order!

Lots to think about and hopefully by the next Rudy Day i'll be adding to my gift list!

Hope you all have a good Rudolph Day.

First Rudolph Day of 2010

2010-01-25T10:18:00.002Z

Happy Rudolph Day to all.

I have to say I am not organised at all for Rudolph Day. I was planning on printing of various lists to update my folder including a final gift list for last year and an updated Christmas card list. Unfortunately life has taken over and i've not managed to even get the folder out of it's hiding place in the wardrobe!

We did however have a lovely family party yesterday to celebrate India's fourth birthday, which is tomorrow. So planning and preparing for that took up a lot of my time this weekend. So I think I will have a belated Rudolph Day this week and hopefully I can sit down and sort through some paperwork on Wednesday.

In the sales just after Christmas I managed to pick up a few small bits and pieces for Christmas 2010 so I need to make sure I make a note of them so I don't forget what I have. I kept out my Christmas Mickey Mouse mug just for Rudy Day and have some lovely hot chocolate to try too.

I'll try and update again later in the week.

Snowed In

2010-01-05T15:59:00.008Z

Well the snow never ends here, I can't remember the last time we had this much snow! Here are a few photos out and about this morning.

Back to Reality

2010-01-04T12:06:00.002Z

Well today is back to 'normal' for us - work and school. Over the holidays I have not been on the internet often hence not posting on here but I hope everyone had a wonderful time and would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year.

Our Christmas went quite smoothly and all the planning and preperation helped a great deal. We also officially had a white Christmas here too, which is a first in a long while. Once i've got back into the swing of things i'll post some more on how our Christmas went.

Christmas Eve Eve!!

2009-12-23T12:59:00.004Z

Well it's nearly here, just two more sleeps to go! I think I am pretty much on track, I have two Pots of Gold to finish off after I realised I didn't have enough scratch cards. That I will do tomorrow it won't take long.

I have just made cheese straws and Dampers. The Damper recipe is here, I can't find the exact one I use online, I think I copied it from a library book. I use chedder cheese, cooked onions & chives in mine and make them into small balls. We have them with our soup. Cheese straws are something my Mum always made for us at Christmas and I can't not have them!

So if I don't get chance to post tomorrow I shall wish everyone a Merry Christmas and hope you have a happy holiday wherever you are celebrating.

First Snow of the Winter

2009-12-17T20:57:00.003Z

We had our first snow today - not a lot but there it's still coming down out there right now. The odds for a white Christmas here in the UK have been slashed and my fingers are crossed!

Pots of Gold

2009-12-16T10:24:00.004Z

Just a quick post on these gifts i've put together for a few of my friends and family. I made 7 in total all bar one with Christmas scratchcards in. The other one we spend a little more on so I put in a Next Gift Card. Thats what I like about these you can make them up in so many ways.

I used pots from Ikea and various sweets in gold wrappers - coins, large Quality Street caramels, Werthers Original's, fun size Twix's. I had plenty with those but could have used mini Crunchies or Wispa Golds.
I bought some cellophane with gold swirls from ebay and various gold ribbons from Poundland. They were easy to put together I think (even though I say so myself) they look quite good!

Everythings Coming Together

2009-12-10T18:59:00.006Z

I've have been wrapping some of my presents by tree light the past couple of nights. I've also made up my 'pots of gold' which i'll post more on later. We are swapping presents with some of my friends this weekend, then we just have family left. I've made three different lots of cookies today, some for the weekend and some for the freezer. My Squash soup is made and also in the freezer. I have my final list written for the grocery shopping and will be getting a lot of it tomorrow. My cards are posted though I do still have some to deliver by hand too.

India keeps bringing home cards by the bagful, it's my first time having to think about cards for her classmates. Unfortunately she doesn't know all the names so its a bit hit and miss making sure she doesn't miss anyone out. She has her school party next Wednesday and on Thursday I get to see her nativity concert. She tells me she has been singing in the big hall but I don't think she quite realises what it's for yet. I can't wait for that.

On Saturday i've organised a craft day for India and some of her friends. I'm letting them loose with the glue and glitter! I have quite a few simple ideas for them to do and plenty of Christmas stickers and sparkles for them.

I feel pretty much on top of things right now though I'm sure there will be something glaringly obvious that i've missed!

Here are a few more photos of my décor. The little snowmen in the corner light up pink and purple - I do like my lights!

These guys are hanging from the keyrack in the kitchen.

These India was very excited to help with, dropping baubles in glass is obviously very entertaining for a three year old!

So much so she went and got this vase out of the cupboard to do, causing me to have a 'slight' panic as she appeared with it in her arms - it's half the size she is!

My Tree is Up!

2009-12-06T15:41:00.012Z

I made an early start yesterday and got out all my decorations. We bought a new 7ft tree last year as we realised our 5ft was no good in this home - looking like a pea on a drum! I didn't realise at the time that all the branches came separate from the tree and you have to build it from scratch, hence starting early this year.

At first once I'd got everything down I really didn't know where to start.

But once I dug out the tree I soon got in the flow, India kept occupied by watching lots of new Christmas episodes of her favourite shows on Playhouse Disney - it wasn't such bad background noise for me to work to either!

This is the tree with some of the branches in.

Finally an hour later is was all put together - India had been begging to put the first decoration on so she did that. Then I realised that I needed to put the lights on - we have 150 white lights and 80 twinkling coloured lights. They took some doing - could have done with an extra pair of hands.

I have a very large collection of Disney tree ornaments which I have collected over a number of years. Unfortunately Grolier no longer issue any new ornaments so now I make sure I visit the Disney Store every year for new ones. We got a new range of 'forest' coloured ornaments last year as we needed more for the bigger tree, these are in shades of browns and greens. I have to say though I don't really have a theme as such and my tree is filled with ornaments I love including one India has made and her first Christmas ones.

These are some of the ornaments we put on - India was eager to help and put a lot of them on, she did really well at handling them carefully though not so hot on the placement :-). The lights still need a bit of work too.

This is our tree topper (Disney really is a passion of mine - can you tell!).

Finally with the tree done I could put our train underneath, this was a new addition last year and It takes me a while to figure out the track - in the end hubby came home from work and did it for me! It runs right around the bottom of the tree.

Finally finished and started on the other decorations but I'll leave that for another post.

Mistletoe Update

2009-12-05T17:29:00.006Z

Mistletoe has been a big hit this week, India just loves him. When she got up on Wednesday he was having a tea party with her teddies.

The next night he was tired out after his party and was snuggled up in bed. He did have a video to watch so India could see his home.

He also brought India some nice cosy Christmas socks but had to try them out first.

We caught Mistletoe making a crumby mess finishing off his breakfast.

Whilst Mistletoe wasn't looking Christmas Mickey had a snooze in sleeping bag!

This morning India discovered he had put a small pink tree in her room and decorated in himself. He also left a book for us to read - Mr Willoughby's Christmas Tree (I saw it recommended on another blog I read!) - he must have know we were decorating our tree today!

Mistletoe Merryweather Jingles

2009-12-01T11:33:00.004Z

Our little Elf arrived overnight and was found by India snuggled up in his sleeping bag on the sofa this morning when she got up!

She was very excited to see him and after i'd read her his letter she tried to read it too but mostly just said 'I love you' a lot :-) Of course as it's the 1st December he also brought an Advent Calendar too and India was pretty happy to be having chocolate before we even had breakfast.

Sat next to MMJ was a little doggy in a Santa suit that has gone to the childminders with her today. Of course she wanted to take the elf but I said he probably needed some extra sleep after travelling all night!

We can't wait to see what he will be getting up to over the next few weeks.

Rudolph Day

2009-11-24T13:27:00.004Z

Well, here it is the last Rudolph Day before Christmas Day. So are everyones plans going well?

I have a big shopping trip planned for Saturday and have printed out a couple of lists of what I have left to buy and who for. I have a rough list for the food and drinks shopping. I have been buying Morrisons saver stamps through the year and will also be making use of their £25 voucher offer too. Last year the stamps and voucher paid for my Christmas food shop with about £1.40 for us to pay on top so it worked out very well!

Mistle Merryweather Jingles arrives on the 1st and I have been collecting bits and pieces for him to suprise India with including a Elf video, a Unicorn sticker book (she wants to be a unicorn when she grows up!) and some craft stuff too. No doubt he will be getting up to all sorts of mischief which i'll post about through December.

We are posting India's letter to Santa tomorrow. The Royal Mail offer a special service for Santa letters - details are here - it's not something i've used before so we will see if we get a reply!

Next week we are having our carpet cleaned and then on the Saturday i'll be decorating the house - I can't wait!!

Mince Pies

2009-11-12T22:27:00.003Z

Today I made a just over two dozen Mince Pies to go in my freezer for Christmas. I have to say not all of them made it to the freezer. We just had to try one each to make sure they were ok, India told me they were yummy so she got to have another one!

I used the following pastry recipe, which is the one we all like best. It originally came from the recipe section on Organised Christmas Elves.

1lb Self Raising Flour
1/2 lb Butter/Margarine
4oz Caster Sugar
1 Egg lightly beaten
A little Water

1) Rub the fat into the flour until it looks like breadcrumbs, then mix in the sugar
2) Pour the egg in and a tiny amount of water to form a dough, add a little flour if it's too sticky
3) Roll out quite thin as the SR flour causes it to rise more than normal
4) Cut out rounds for the base, fill with mincemeat (as detailed here), put tops on if required, brush with a little egg
5) Bake for around 15-18 mins at gas 180

Here are some of the finished pies, which are now safely frozen so we can't eat them all before it even gets to December!

Holidays are Coming....

2009-11-11T11:39:00.003Z

I had a nice surprise on the way to work a few days ago seeing a giant Billboard with the Coca Cola holidays truck and Santa fixing it with the words Holidays are Coming next to it. I love this advert and I got quite excited to see it, just watching out for the TV advert now which is rumoured to run this weekend!

My Christmas Cards are now all written, bar my cousin who is expecting a baby this week so I need to wait to hear from her! Stamps are bought for the ones I need to post. I'll be posting my overseas cards tomorrow, which is in plenty of time to meet the Royal Mail last posting dates.

At the weekend I defrosted my freezer and got my smaller freezer up and running so I can stock up. I'll make some cookie dough and mince pies tomorrow to go in there. Doing the mince pies and keeping them in the freezer worked great for me last year, saved a lot of time especially as I like to make the pastry from scratch, during December and I always had some to hand. I've decided to order my turkey from Morrisons this year instead of buying a frozen one. I'll do that tomorrow also. It will be the first time in a while i've ordered fresh instead of frozen.

My Christmas list is updated and I have a new 'to buy' list. My Elf letter is printed and ready for Mistletoe to arrive on the 1st. India has been wondering if he'll come again this year already. I have a shopping trip planned for the 28th and I should be able to finish just about everything on my list - fingers crossed.

I found a great idea on the Money Saving Expert forum on this thread for Pots of Gold which I am going to be doing for some of the people on my list. The idea is for a little pot filled with gold chocolates ie gold coins, Wispa Gold, Ferrero Roche and Scratch cards - gold if possible. For my husbands step daughter I am going to put in a Gift card instead of a scratch card. I have a lot of the chocolates, the cellophane to wrap the pots up is ordered from ebay, i'm going to try Ikea for the pots next week and the scratch cards I will get a few when I put my own lottery on over the next couple of weeks.

So far so good with my Christmas planning, i'm feeling quite happy with what i've done and what's left to do!

Shopping

2009-11-01T10:48:00.005Z

I spent yesterday shopping for Christmas presents and managed to get just about everything on my list and a little bit more besides. We shopped at the White Rose Shopping centre, which is decorated beautifully and all the shops have their Christmas stuff out now of course. The Disney Store (my favourite) had a special offer on their large soft Christmas Mickey's, which I just had to buy, he will look lovely sat on my fireplace - if India ever lets go of him!

So now I'll have to update my list and see who I have left to buy for. The list should now be fairly short. Plus my cards are all made and I will start to write them over the next couple of days and get stamps I need for them ready to be posted.

I hope everyone had a lovely Halloween yesterday we had lots of fun here!

Belated Happy Rudy Day!

2009-10-26T15:12:00.004Z

I'm a day late I know but I was just didn't get the chance to post yesterday. I hope everyone enjoyed their day and managed to get some Christmas plans/gifts completed!

With a shopping trip planned later this week I have been working on a gift list and have quite a few things on it, which should clear the majority of my gift buying if I can get everything on the list. I cleared out my 'Christmas' shelf in my wardrobe and updated my list with the gifts I already have and all the extra decorations I've picked up this year. So now I know exactly what I have in there. I keep my wrap bag in there too and know that all I need is some wrap for India's presents but I have more than enough for all the other wrapping I'll need to do.

Also been doing a few more cards as well and only have a few left to do to cover this Christmas. I might take a look at the birthday's I still have in the run up to Christmas now.

I tried out the Mars Bar Mousse recipe this afternoon. It was very easy to do and turned out looking like the picture - which doesn't often happen when I cook!

It is minus the chocolate shavings though as I didn't have any other chocolate. The mousse has gone down very well, very very nice and not too rich with it not being dark chocolate. So this is what I will do for dessert on Christmas Day. I can make them the day before and they can stay in the fridge till we need them.

I'm feeling quite organised at the moment, a lot of planning is done and I know pretty much what gifts I have to buy for people - I'm just waiting for pay day now!

Christmas Planning

2009-10-12T11:20:00.006+01:00

I thought i'd give an update on my card making - i've made about 38 of the 50 I need to do. I am really loving making them and wish i'd started doing them before!

A lovely friend I made through the Organised Christmas Elves website visited a couple of weeks ago and very kindly brought me a very large box of craft things, which she doesn't get time to use herself. We spent the afternoon making cards (and chatting non stop!).

This was my dining table after we'd finished!!

Unfortunately I don't have any space to create my own craft area so I have most of my craft supplies in a large drawer in my bed and the rest in a large plastic tub. I just get out what I need then, though my dining table is still a huge mess by the time i've made a few cards as I never know quite what I need and bring almost everything!

I really need to remember to start stocking up on stamps now too, i'll try and get a book each time I go to the shops.

Lots of the stores have their Christmas stock out now and I really do have to restrain myself from buying more decorations - I have so many! Some of the items are such bargains though it's hard to resist - such as this cute wooden sign I got for 59p.

Of course it's not just decor that's in the shops now but gifts too. I bought a few more stocking stuffers for various people. A friend has arranged for us to go shopping at the end of the month so I have a list prepared of things I'd like to buy. I've been going through some gift catalogues for ideas for some of the tougher to buy for people on my list.

Also we shall purchase our turkey at the end of this month. I usually get a frozen one and bought a small freezer a few years back that we use just around Christmas for the turkey, cookie dough and just to stock up on food we'll need. It comes in very handy.

So far i'm quite pleased with what i've got prepared for Christmas, i'd like to have a few more presents finished but hopefully I should do that by the beginning of November.

Christmas Cake

2009-10-05T11:47:00.006+01:00

I spent Sunday afternoon making my Christmas cake with a little help from India. She likes to help so she can lick the spoon at the end!

I use this recipe - Golden Christmas Cake - that I originally saved from their instore magazine several years ago and have used it every year. Everybody loves it especially my hubby who wanted me to make an extra one to eat right away! I didn't as I think a fruit cake matures over time plus you need time to add a little extra brandy too.

So I prepared my fruit on Saturday and the house just smelt gorgeous with the oranges, I left it to soak overnight. On Sunday I got the rest of the ingredients together and had the cake in the oven in no time. It's very easy to put together and the smell was just so Christmassy.

It's wrapped up now and in my Christmas cake tin. I'll open it up a couple of times to add a spoonful of Brandy but that's another thing ticked off my list. I don't usually decorate my cake as we just like to eat it with cheese and we prefer it without the icing.

Not the greatest photo but i'd already put the cake away when I uploaded the photos! It's not burnt it's just a dark photo!

Soup!

2009-09-29T10:03:00.005+01:00

It looks like I've already found my soup for our first course on Christmas Day! I made a version of this Butternut Squash & Apple Harvest Soup. I did just use this as a guide though. I didn't use Leeks or nutmeg only because I didn't have any. I added extra carrot and used 2 apples - I used Royal Gala not Granny Smiths. Oh and I used mini pumpkins instead of Butternut Squash though we like that too.

The mini Pumpkins were too cute and I couldn't resist using them.

Missed the cream out too partly because my husband isn't too keen on cream but also I thought it might be a bit rich alongside a full Christmas dinner.

Anyway with all the tweaks it turned out great, we all loved it. Hubby said it was just liked 'proper soup out of a can' - he meant it as a compliment in a round about way! It's something that all my family should enjoy so that's my first course sorted.

Now I think I've already found a perfect dessert - mars bar mousses! I'll have a trial run and let you know how they go!

Rudolph Day

2009-09-25T11:03:00.002+01:00

Happy Rudolph Day!

I hope everyone is enjoying their day and managing some time out to catch up on their Christmas Planning. I'm working today so i've already been printing off my updated lists to go in my folder. I have a shopping list for various shops both online and local stores for gifts. I have got a list prepared for ingredients for my Christmas Cake and various other baking i'll be doing so I can start stocking up now.

My planner for December has been updated and tentatively has a craft day planned for India and my friends children so i'm hunting out easy crafts for them and making sure i'm stocked up on supplies. I'm really looking forward to this one!

I've also had a look at my menu for Christmas Day and am trying to find a soup to suit all tastes as our starter. We've had tomato in the past - not homemade and potato & leek - homemade. So I'm going to search through my recipes this evening and see what I can come up with, then a trial run will be in order.

I'm looking forward to cosying up on the sofa with a big mug of chocolate and my folder and lists tonight, i've had a cold the past week or so and i'm counting down the hours till 8 tonight when the house will be quiet!

Autumn Decor

2009-09-24T10:45:00.006+01:00

Well it's now officially autumn and last year I decided to try and decorate for autumn after seeing so many beautiful photos via Magical Holiday Homes fall tour. A lot of the decor here though is more for Halloween than Autumn so it's not easy to find.

I did find these cute scarecrows at a local Charity shop and they are now sat on my mantelpiece.

We have been collecting lots and lots of pine cones for to make into Christmas decorations. We have so many I decided to use them right now too.

I'll be replacing the cones with baubles once it gets to December. In the meantime I'm on the look out for other items I can decorate with so if anybody has any suggestions or has seen any autumny things in the shops let me know!

Autumn is on its Way!

2009-09-17T14:29:00.007+01:00

So the temperatures have dropped a little this week and the feel of Autumn is in the air. Some of the leaves are already turning red and yellow. I spotted this small one this morning, nearly all the leaves were red - it's only a mobile phone photo so not the best but you can see how gorgeous the leaves are.

I love this time of year for so many reasons - the colours, the brisk nature walks with India, the activity from the birds in my garden - always great to watch from a cosy house. Of course it also means Christmas is just around the corner. We are under 100 days to go now!

Just today I have picked up a few stocking stuffers for my daughter and a friends daughter. Plus some bits and pieces for our Christmassy swaps over at Organised Christmas Elves. Lots of the stores are getting their Christmas stock in now and it's fun to browse through it all.

Of course before Christmas we have Halloween to celebrate too. We were checking out Halloween stuff today and picked up a couple of cute items that I can't wait to put out. Halloween is becoming bigger here each year and the stores are stocking more and more decor for the house rather than just costumes and sweets. I love this and have started to build a little collection of things.

Here are the latest items. Four spice scented pumpkin candles for just a £1, they smell gorgeous.

A very cute sign which cost just 89p, a real bargain.

99 days to go folks, I hope your plans are going well! Oh and Hi and thanks to my first followers, hope you enjoy!

Chocolate & Beetroot Cake

2009-09-10T19:22:00.004+01:00

I know a strange combination, not two things you would normally put together! I like to have a cake on Christmas day, some dessert other than the traditional mince pie and fruit cake, which not everyone likes. The past couple of years we have had apple cake and carrot cake. I wanted to try a few new ideas in the run up to Christmas to see if I could find something different. I saw the recipe in the latest Morrisons magazine Beetroot Chocolate Cake and had the beetroot from my parents garden, was wondering what to do with it so I gave it a go.

It was very easy - apart from the beetroot, which I think is the worst food ever to prepare! Thank goodness for aprons, glass chopping boards, rubber gloves and dark worktops! I think I did pretty well not to stain everything in a five foot radius!

It smelt gorgeous as it cooked and only took about 35 minutes.

India 'helped' with the frosting once it had cooled down. I got a Galaxy chocolate bar to grate on the top (meant I could have the rest of the bar to myself).

So the verdict. We all liked it, you couldn't tell there was beetroot in it, just like you can't tell there is carrot in a carrot cake. It is quite moist and the frosting is gorgeous. So it is on my short list for Christmas for now but i'm still undecided as it may be a bit too heavy and rich for Christmas Day.

Mincemeat

2009-08-31T15:48:00.005+01:00

We've had a busy bank holiday weekend visiting friends, family, getting my hair cut (short for the 1st time in 15 yrs!), having an end of summer barbecue and eating way too much food!

Today we finally got to have a quiet day and after a visit to Ikea for some storage jars I've made my Christmas mincemeat. The recipe was originally posted on Organised Christmas Elves. I tried it last year and it went down very well. It made so much - just under 3 ltrs - I gave two jars away and it lasted us into the New Year.

So this time i've halved the recipe and have just over 1 & 1/2 ltrs.

Prune & Brandy Mincemeat (this is the full recipe - I used half of everything)

Ingredients

500g Ready to eat Pitted Prunes
500g Bramley Apples, peeled & Cored
500g Currants
500g Raisins
500g Sultanas
200g Tub Mixed Peel
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 tsp Mixed Spice
350g Dark Muscavado Sugar
300ml Brandy plus extra for topping up
250g Packet Suet Method

1) Roughly chop the prunes in a processor, tip into a large roasting tin. Chop the apples in the processor and add to the prunes. Add the rest of the fruit, peel, spices and sugar. Pour over 200mls of the brandy and stir well. Cover with tin foil.

2) Sit the tin over a very low heat - use the two smallest burners and leave for 15 minutes, stirring every 5 until the sugar has dissolved and the mix is glossy. Leave to cool completely.

3) Mix in the suet then add the remaining 100ml brandy. Spoon into steralised jars and seal. Can be kept for upto a year.

This doesn't take long at all to do and I think it's definitley worth the effort rather than buying from the shop.

Now I'm looking forward to making (and eating) my mince pies, mince buns & blondies yum!

Rudolph Day

2009-08-24T12:02:00.004+01:00

Well Happy Rudolph Day all!

I've been doing little Christmassy bits over the past few days as I don't always have a huge amount of free time on weekdays.

Of course i've been making up Christmas cards when I can and after going through my list I would need to make about 40 to cover everyone. I've made 16 so far so not doing bad at all! I'm also going to get together some bits and pieces for India to make cards for Grandma and Grandad and Daddy too (though she just likes to do big x 's over the cards normally!). I have just received a big bunch of new embellishments from ebay today & will get some more card blanks and i'm set to go.

Last night I spent a while shopping for gifts on the internet, so I now have a few more people sorted out. My gift list is updated and in my folder. I also printed off a planner for December so I can fill in what needs doing and when. Along with a planner for my elf. I need to start checking through our craft stuff for any projects he might bring with him!

Later on this evening i'll be enjoying a nice mug of Hot Chocolate. I keep my Disney Christmas mug out especially for Rudolph Day.

I noticed one of our pound stores had put out Halloween stuff yesterday, the Christmas stuff won't be far behind. Morrisons started putting out their Christmas sweets in September last year, once the kids were back at school so i'll look out for that. Once they do i'll start adding some to the weekly shop to spread the cost, I keep a list of what i've bought so nothing goes astray.

It's a long weekend this weekend for the August bank holiday. Monday I plan to make my mincemeat and will post the recipe later. Hope you all enjoy your day!

Card Update

2009-08-21T12:11:00.006+01:00

I'm on a roll with the cards this week and have made another 6. It doesn't sound a lot but I don't have lots of time to spend on doing them and i'm a bit slow too! Most of them have turned out good but i'm not too happy with the star one, not sure if I will use it yet.

I have really enjoyed doing these this week and i'm on the look out on ebay for some more embellishments so hopefully I can make nearly all my cards this year.

We have a Rudolph Day coming up next Tuesday too so a perfect opportunity to go through my card list and see how many i'll need.

Christmas Cards

2009-08-17T21:16:00.002+01:00

I have finally got around to making a start on some Christmas Cards, after getting all the chores done and having a night with not much to do! I'm not particularly crafty and got a card making kit from a friend a couple of years ago. It was pretty basic - using outline stickers and gel pens but I made a fair few Birthday, anniversary and wedding cards too.

I've picked up a few bits and pieces over the past few months for card making and scrap booking too. So I've given it a go, I kept them pretty simple seen as these are my first ones but i'm quite pleased how they turned out (they do look a bit warped but they aren't they are on the box lid with a bend!!).

So now i've only got a couple of card blanks left, hopefully i'll be able to pick up some more tomorrow and get some more made. I really enjoyed doing it and i'm hoping to at least make my own cards for family and a couple of friends. I've got plenty of bought cards in the sales just in case!

Recipes for Easy Living - Curtiss Ann Matlock

2009-08-15T21:02:00.002+01:00

I have to say this is not usually my type of book, I like crime and thrillers but I'm trying to broaden my reading! This was on a Christmas reading list which was posted on Magical Holiday Homes Forum. I happened to see it in my local library and decided to give it a go. I'm very glad I did as it is one of the best books I have ever read.

It's set through the month of December in a small town in America called Valentine. Centred on a young girl called Corrine who lives with her Aunt and extended family. Her mother whom she hasn't seen in a while comes to stay bringing up many emotions. It is very beautifully written and I just wanted to climb through the pages into the town - it's how I imagine Christmas to be! It even has the odd Christmas recipe in and secret Santa too. I won't say too much else as I don't want to give anything away.

It made me laugh and cry and I didn't want it to end. It is part of a series all set in the same town, which I'll be getting hold of as soon as I can. It was that good I had to post and suggest that for everyone with a love of Christmas you must read this book!

Magical Elves

2009-08-12T13:03:00.011+01:00

Elves as we all know are Santa's little helpers. Santa has been sending out these little helpers to stay with family's in the run up to Christmas to keep an eye on the children. Now elves are quite mischievous and cause quite a lot of mayhem - ours certainly did last year!

To let you in on the secret I had a hand in the elf antics!! Elves are very difficult to get hold of in the UK and eventually I enlisted my Mum's help with making an elf from scratch from this website Canadian Living. My Mum did a brilliant job and Mistletoe Merryweather Jingles was born. There is some more information on Elves on this site too Elf Magic

Mistletoe Merryweather Jingles (MMJ)

He arrived with a letter from Santa and a chocolate advent calander for my daughter, India on the 1st December. My daughter was almost 3 and was quite excited to see him. Not sure quite how much she got it but we had fun.

I made him a sleeping bag and pillow out of Christmas material (bought from ebay) and a sponge (for the pillow!). We tucked him up in bed each evening. He didn't always stay in bed though during the night. We found him one morning watching some of the Christmas videos that he bought for India with popcorn scattered about him, another time he hung her socks all over the Christmas tree. I found a Santa set for the Little People so one morning he was found playing with those, India was so excited to see the Little People Santa and still plays with it now. The best thing MMJ did was set up a small pink Christmas tree in India's room while she slept one night - she loves pink.

MMJ having a snowball fight with the teddies

MMJ 'decorating' the tree!

Playing games with Christmas Minnie & Mickey!

This year I have just started elf planning and found some lovely little Christmas storybooks - Care Bears, Mr Men and Little Miss for MMJ to bring with him, now and again India finds these hidden in his sleeping bag! I've also found a Mr Potato Head Santa outfit so one morning we will find the elf playing with this when we get up. I'll post more when I have a few more ideas.

My Christmas Notebook

2009-08-10T11:16:00.010+01:00

I cannot live without my Notebook, it has everything I need for our Christmas to (hopefully) run as smoothly as it can. Mine is in a two ring binder, I decided not to put anything on the outside to help prevent prying eyes and it's functional rather than creative! I have so many sections in there and i'll list them below. The idea for this came originally from Organized Christmas and the site has many printable forms which can help out with your notebook.

So the sections I have

Gift Ideas

Gift Lists for Previous Years
Magical Elf
Christmas Card List & Address List
Decorating Ideas

Décor Inventory
Christmas Movies
Christmas Reading
Carols
Christmas Traditions
General Info - eg. local Christmas Craft Fairs & Markets
Holiday Grand Plan & Houseworks Plan - see Organized Christmas
To Do Lists & Planners
Swaps
I keep some pockets at the back for receipts for gifts

I have another folder for Christmas Recipes & Crafts.

I do keep lists on my PC and update those regularly and then print them off to go into the folder every so often. I also keep a copy of my gift list in my notebook I carry round with me. (You can see why my friends call me Monica!!).

Organising is a big part of my life, I write lists about lists and am not happy unless i'm planning for something!

Rudolph Days

2009-08-09T15:16:00.003+01:00

For anyone who has not heard of them these fall on the 25th of each month through the year. It's a day to try and do some planning for the coming Christmas. Things like making gift lists, checking addresses for Christmas Cards, making any Christmas crafts or cards that you have planned. Even watching a Christmas movie or listening to Christmas music for a bit of inspiration.

July 25th is extra fun with a 'Christmas in July'. This is quite a big deal across the pond and is very slowly taking off here too, with even QVC having CIJ sales of decor! It's the half way point of the year and the where some people concentrate more on their Christmas plans.

The lovely Christmas forum I'm a member of - Organised Christmas Elves - hosts as CIJ swap which gives us fanatics a extra Christmas boost! It involves swapping a box of Christmas related gifts with another forum member and opening on the 25th. Just like a mini Christmas!

So the upcoming 'Rudy Day' will involve updating my Christmas Notebook (something i'll post more on later), drinking hot chocolate in my Christmas Mickey Mouse mug and hopefully making a few cards!

Intro

2009-08-08T21:55:00.004+01:00

This is my first post and just a bit about why I decided to do this blog. For as long as I can remember I have loved Christmas. I know when you are a kid it goes without saying you love Christmas, but my love of it has carried on through my adult life. It is now bordering on an obsession! I plan for Christmas most of the year and have lists and notes galore. I carry a notebook in my bag permanently to jot down gift ideas, recipe ingredients, shopping lists and all things Christmas.

So I thought i'd share and maybe I might just be able to inspire someone out there towards a more fun filled and less stressful Christmas!

Over the next few days i'll post a little more on what i've already planned for this year.