...and to all, a good night.

Boy, have I been busy!

I, in my infinite wisdom, decided to make gift baskets of baked goods and give them as gifts this Christmas. I'm not a baker, and I don't claim to be but I can follow a recipe and I know what tastes good, so off I went. I asked my husband what he liked and he decided that he wanted butter tarts, sugar cookies, and short bread. To that I added some recipes I wanted to try; chocolate butter cookies, peppermint bark, molasses cookies, white chocolate candy cane popcorn, and peanut butter blossoms. It nearly killed me, but I got it all done.

This was 5 baskets worth of goodies. 

I finished everything the night of the 23rd because I started giving them out on the 24th. Sadly, I had none for me. *sadface*

Beaner attended the children's Christmas party put on by my husband's work and was enthralled by it all. She was so very excited to see Santa. That is, until she ran into the life sized version of her favorite bear. The company mascot was there, greeting people and walking around the facility. Beaner adores her small stuffed version, and sleeps with it and basically carts it around the house all day. She spent the entire party following this bear around, getting hugs and telling it that she loved him. Reindeer, crafts, bouncy house, petting zoo, Santa! treats...none of it compared to meeting her favorite teddy bear. She was a little confused at to how he got out of her crib, but she quickly accepted my explanation that this was her bear's big brother.

She was so proud of her snowman.

Many crafts were completed, zoolights were seen, and Beaner enjoyed her very first cup of hot chocolate. She's hooked for life! She was introduced to the Grinch, Rudolph, Curious George, and Charlie Brown. I got all the gifts on my list, did it all on time, and without an ounce of energy to spare. Was it worth it? You bet! Will I do baking as gifts again? Not a chance, and if I suggest otherwise, I give you permission to give me a virtual slap or 6.

I hope you all had an incredible holiday and I'll talk to you again soon!

'Tis The Season

As a child, my little brother and I would look forward to the annual Santa Claus Parade. It didn't matter how cold it was, we'd be out there on the route freezing our little behinds off. Mom sure was a good sport about the whole thing, given how much she dislikes the cold. I have many fond memories of warm hot chocolate and candy canes at the end of the parade while we excitedly discussed our favorite parts, and whether or not Santa wore a good jacket while making his deliveries on Christmas Eve.

For the last 3 years we have not had a parade due to construction of the new Encana building downtown. I was disappointed last year, but understood the reasons behind it. This year, however, I am not so forgiving. Why is it that the Stampede Parade can go through, with no restrictions, but the Santa Claus Parade can't? They both follow the same route! If we had more oil & gas sponsors, would that make a difference? I'm betting it would.

Bean is at the age where we're teaching her about Christmas and all it's traditions and it really bothers me that we're going to have to watch the Toronto parade on TV, instead of being at one live. It's a tradition I want to start with her and I'm frustrated that I can't right now.

Now that I've had my say about it, I can move on to traditions that I can control, like stringing popcorn, baking holiday treats, and making reindeer out of candy canes.

What traditions are you going to be passing on to your children?