Do you have Christmas Eve traditions? Ours have changed over the years, but I know I’ll be making the dough for our traditional holiday cinnamon rolls. I’ll have lovely help this year—the tiny hands that actually made a much more perfect roll than mine on Thanksgiving. My three-year-old granddaughter was apparently born to bake! This […]
Ruby Caldwell here, owner of Holiday Cheer, which puts on Santa School to train Santa and his Busy Elves! Looking for a book about the big man? Here are some of my favorites. ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas. This classic has shaped the way we think about Santa and what he does on Christmas Eve. […]
It was my idea to write about a sweetest Christmas memory. However, I didn’t really consider when I came up with said idea that I’ve had 68 Christmases, 48 of them as a mother, 28 of them as a grandmother. And I’m supposed to think of one? That’s a problem. Another problem is that I’ve […]
The tendons in a reindeer’s feet slide over the bones and produce a clicking noise when they walk. It’s believed this noise helps them locate each other in blizzard conditions and keep the herd together. Also useful when “rockin’ around the Christmas tree,” since reindeer have no fingers to snap. Reindeer can see ultraviolet light. […]
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could do our holiday shopping in Christmas Town? Here is a shopping guide to some of the fun and fictional shops we’d find there! Looking for holiday themed gifts? Try Boxes and Boughs, Holiday Design and Décor for some upscale ornaments and decorations. Hearth and Home, featured in the […]
Every year when I pull out my Christmas decorations, I get itchy to create something new. The problem is, I never know what I might feel like making or how much money to spend. So I decided to search for some ideas and share them with you, because that’s what the Christmas spirit is all […]
My mother-in-law loved me from the day we met, and she brought all kinds of joy into my life. We both loved her son and her grandchildren. We talked books and hiked over hill and dale, pretty much all over the continental US and Hawaii. And every time she visited, she asked me to make […]
Ruby Caldwell here, owner of Holiday Cheer, which puts on Santa School to train Santa and his Busy Elves! Have you ever wondered what it takes to be one of Santa’s Helpers? Take this quiz and see if you’d make a good Busy Elf! Do you have Christmas spirit year-round? Do you keep a little […]
Counting down the days till Christmas is almost as much fun as the holiday itself. Okay, maybe it’s not quite that good. But at least it helps ease a bit of that Holiday anticipation, especially for the little ones. History suggests that the “advent,” the celebration of the four Sundays leading up to Christmas, has […]
As the holidays approach, I realize more and more how much I miss when my kids were young. Besides the fact that little ones tend to see the world with so much more wonder and excitement, I miss how easy they were to buy presents for. When my kids were little, it was a piece […]
These are always a favorite with my family. Apricot jam is pretty for a Thanksgiving cookie, and I like to use raspberry jam for Christmas. Pecans are my go-to nut, but almonds also work well. -Beth Jam Thumbprint Cookie Recipe: 2/3 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup sugar 2 egg yolks 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 1/2 […]
When my husband and I first became parents, we realized we really didn’t have that many Christmas traditions. My family gets together for a dinner on Christmas Eve, but other than that, we really didn’t have any ready-made events to attend. We didn’t belong to a church, we didn’t have a lot of friends who […]