Category Archives: christmas

Homemade Holiday Gifts that Rock: Easy Chocolate-Dipped Pretzels

November 18, 2009christmas, finances, friendshipKirsetin

Aren’t these chocolate-dipped pretzels just so pretty? Wouldn’t you want to receive them for a gift? So why not make some this year–a few to give, and a few to keep? Dipping pretzel rods is significantly easier than dipping the traditional twisted pretzel, so I suggest you stick with the pretzel rods if you’re a newbie. But if you want to get creative down the road, you can adjust this idea to any sort of pretzel out there. (You can also use milk chocolate, but then you’ll get your best results with a double boiler. Start slowly, try this for a time or two, and work your way up if you want to try the milk chocolate!)

Easy Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Rods

Pretzel Rods (about 4 dozen)
Chocolate CandyQuick (in the bakery aisle at the grocery)
Crisco
toppings: vanilla CandyQuick (or melts) and nonpariel sprinkles are my favorite

You also need: waxed paper and a ziplock baggie (or an icing decorator bag)

Heat the CandyQuick in the microwave, according to directions on the package. If you need to thin the chocolate, add a little bit (just the tip of a spoonful) of Crisco to the heated chocolate and stir. Quickly dip a pretzel rod in and roll around, making sure to coat all sides (but not the part you’re holding!). Hold the pretzel rod up & let extra chocolate drizzle back into the container. Carefully place the chocolate-coated pretzel rod onto the waxed paper. Repeat. Reheat the chocolate CandyQuick as necessary but be careful not to overheat it.

NOTE: IF YOU’RE USING NONPAREILS for your topping, you must sprinkle them onto the pretzels before the chocolate cools. You can still do several at a time, but keep your eye out to make sure you don’t get busy dipping & forget to sprinkle your topping.

IF YOU’RE USING WHITE CHOCOLATE for your topping, no worries. The dark chocolate must cool first, anyway, before you begin getting fancy with the swirly white stuff. Once you’ve finished with the first step, and the dark chocolate has cooled, you can get ready to drizzle.

Melt the white chocolate (CandyQuick or melts) in the microwave. (Again, you can use white chocolate chips, but then you’re better off with a double boiler. This is much easier.) If you need to thin the white chocolate, add a dab of Crisco and stir. Put the melted white chocolate into a ziplock baggie (sandwich size) or icing decorator bag. If you’re using the ziplock, snip a tiny corner off. Drizzle the white chocolate, slowly, back and forth over the pretzel rods.

Let everything cool, place pretzel rods in a container, wrap with cellophane and a festive bow: Voila! You’re practically Martha.

Another Homemade Holiday Gift that Rocks: Homemade bread and jam

If you have additional ideas, leave them in the comments section. I’ll post links to great homemade gift ideas on Friday.

When Is A Shoe Box Not Just A Shoe Box?

November 10, 2009activities for kids, christmasKirsetin

Do you have one of these in your closet? Hidden in the back, maybe, beneath an old sweatshirt?

You could recycle it, or use it to store photos. OR, you could gather your children and, together, you could add a few little trinkets, things like toothpaste,

matchbox cars,

and pretty little barrettes.

You could even throw in a little treat, like this:

Then you could follow the instructions here, for Operation Christmas, and instead of an old shoe box bound for the trash, it could be magically transformed into a joy-giving gift.

One look at these faces tells me it’s true: It’s not just a shoe box anymore.

How to Have A Peaceful Holiday

December 20, 2008christmas, contentment, familyKirsetin

The thing is, life’s all about expectations. I’ve found this to be true, regardless of the situation.

Example: Sibling relationships

Expect top notch. Get bottom rung. Disappointed.
Expect little, other than love. Receive a smidge more. Connected and content.

What a difference an expectation levels makes!

This idea rings true for the holiday season as well. As Christmas approaches, I watch the frenzy around me and sometimes wonder why we get so caught up in the rush. I know, of course, that there is more to do than time allows. If that weren’t true, the Christmas cards I ordered in October wouldn’t still be sitting on my desk. I wouldn’t have been making the hard tack candy to give to teachers early in the afternoon on the very day I needed to give it to them. I would’ve baked those cut-out cookies by now. Needless to say, I’m not exempt from holiday to-do lists, chock full of things I haven’t gotten to yet.

The difference is that this year I don’t feel a bit of stress about it. This hasn’t always been the case; high stress has been the hallmark of many previous holidays. This year, however, something changed. Instead of expecting perfection, I just expected my best—and the two are far from the same. Allowing myself that bit of space created a sense of peace I didn’t expect. Bonus peace! Sure, I wish my cards were in the mail. But the point of the cards is to connect with friends, and I’ve realized that will happen regardless of the day they’re stamped by the post office.

Shopping is another thing that was easier this year. In a complete score, I lucked out and was able to do my black Friday shopping on Thanksgiving night, sitting there in my cozy pajamas with a glass of wine in my hand. A late night e-mail from Amazon advertised the camera I’d had my eye on—the only big thing on my black Friday list—on sale for $50 less than any of the ads I’d seen. SOLD. I slept in, avoided the masses at the stores, and headed for the local tree-lighting ceremony that evening, complete with a visit from Santa and free hot cider. Stress-free, I tell ya.

The other difference this year is that, somewhere along the line, I became truly thankful. I always thought I was, but I guess this year my thankfulness grew up. In appreciating where I am, and not focusing on where else I could be (or what else I could be getting done), I have inadvertently released myself from some of the traditional holiday mayhem. And why, you ask, am I so darn thankful?

Probably for many of the same reasons you are. I am grateful to the core of my being for my warm home. I am elated that my children are healthy. I love that they’re learning to make good choices. My children’s teachers show up day after day and nurture them, and teach them, and guide them when I’m not around. I’m eternally grateful for them. Hunger is just a word around here. When my kids complain that they’re hungry, I’m thankful that they have never known how it feels to be truly hungry. I’m thankful that my world doesn’t involve making a choice between feeding them or buying them winter boots. I’m thankful for my husband, my friends, my family, my faith. And I’m here to tell you, there’s nothing stressful about that.

This post was written for Parent Blogger Network‘s blog blast, which is sponsored this time by FFDA, a non-profit organization that offers support and assistance for folks who are feeling overwhelmed, both at the holidays and all year long.