Christmas Cookies!

Royal icing cookies are my favorite cookies to make when it comes to a special occasion or a holiday. These cookies are actually for my preschoolers and some extra for me and my family but I love how personalized they can be. I originally found out about royal icing cookies from Carly the prepsters Valentine's day cookie post. I watch Carly's live Instagram with her reader Collen and I was hooked. It's so fun and I know mine aren't perfect but it's just something that I really love to do and the cookies are delicious. 

Christmas Inspo

All of these photos can be found on Pinterest

I have a fascination with looking at Christmas home decor on Pinterest and fantasizing about what my own home will look like around the holidays. One decoration at my house that always makes it feel like Christmas is the lit up garland. 

Snow Globe DIY

I love to do different DIY's during the holiday season, I recently posted about the pinecone trees that I made and the wreath that we made which is one of my favorite traditions. Today I am back with another DIY, this is a waterless or nonliquid snowglobe which makes it a quick and easy DIY.

For this you will need:

• Hot glue gun
• a small figurine
• a jar big enough for the figure to fit in
• fake snow
• Ribbon or string (optional)

The tricky part about this was making sure that the figure we picked out, fit in the jar that we bought. Once you find the right size you hot glue the figure to the bottom and then fill it with snow seal the lid and it becomes the most beautiful snow globe! 

The string/ribbon can be wrapped around the top especially if it is a gift for someone or to add another touch to the top.

 

Friday Finds (Blogmas Edition)

• This adorable Christmas card: I love when things like this flood the internet to remind us of what the holidays are all about. You have to read this article to read the daughters sweet reaction to the photo!
• Fixer Upper gift guide: I love all of these gifts, especially for that one person that is so hard to buy for there may be something for them on this list. 
• Mallory Ervin: Mallory just started her vlogmas for the 12 days till Christmas and I am obsessed. Her positive attitude and excitement is contagious.
• Royal Icing Christmas cookies: I plan to make some royal icing Christmas cookies to send home with my preschoolers on our last day before break!

Holiday Outfit Inspiration

Every year I look forward to picking out my outfit for the big family Christmas Eve party at my grandparent's house. Usually, I pick a color like red, maroon, navy, that I want to wear and base the outfit off of that. This year nothing has really jumped out at me so I came up with a few outfits that I am really loving that would work for any holiday gathering.

Themed Gifts | For Him

You may have seen my themed gifts for her so now it is time for the themed gifts for him. I think I write about how hard it is to buy for the men in my life everytime I make a gift guide related to them but it is seriously so hard. That's why I like themed gifts so much if I know they like something I run with it. Like my dad loves to fish, my brother loves baseball. Do you know how many themed gifts I have done in relation to baseball and fishing... too many to count. So I really hope these help you out if you have stubborn men in your life like I do.

For the Tech Savvy Man (Fitbit):

Fitbits were the big ticket item last year and to be honest I haven't really looked at their products since but they really stepped up their game. You can now add your credit card and pay through the watch and they have these wireless headphones. One thing I love about Fitbit is how many accessories they have for the straps. 

For the Man Who Likes to Have a Drink:

I love all of these pieces if you have a man in your life who likes to have a sophisticated drink. I also think that this mixer's manual would be perfect for someone who just turned 21, I know when I was 21 I didn't know anything about what was in a real mixed drink. This way he or she can learn what they would like so they can order it the next time they are out.

For the Man Who Wears a Watch:

I think that a watch is a perfect gift for any guy. My dad works in construction and has always said that he didn't want a nice watch. But my mother just gave in one year and bought him one. The man wears the watch literally all the time. Every time he goes out to dinner or anywhere even semi-casual he wears it and loves it.

For the Professional Man:

How cool are these sunglass cufflinks from Nordstrom. I love this theme for the man in your life who has to go to a more professional job every day. I also love this tie and sock set so that way he has a variety of ties to choose from instead of just one.

For the Chef:

I just love the name of this cookbook "The Dude Diet" and this man apron is the perfect pairing. This would be the perfect gift set for a guy in college who is living on his own. One year when Kyle was in college he got a cookbook that had recipes for canned food only it was pretty funny.

Themed Gifts | For Her

I love getting the people in my life two or three things as a gift that all have a common theme. For Kyle, it would be something to do with video games such as a controller, a game, and maybe a video game poster. For my mom who loves to cook, it would be an apron, a cookbook, and a cooking tool. There are so many different themed gifts you can do so I made a gift guide for some ideas:

p.s. if you click on the picture it will take you to where you can buy the item.

For the Person who Loves to be Cozy:

 I have heard nothing but amazing things about these slip pillow cases and the sleep masks. The pillowcase is supposed to be amazing for your hair and anti-aging. They are even recommended by dermatologists which really got me intrigued by them. And who doesn't love a blanket and new jammies.

For the Beauty Guru:

This is a really great price for the dry bar kit for the amount and quality of products that you get. I've never been to a dry bar because there isn't one by me but it has always been on my bucket list. If you're like me and don't live by a dry bar this may be the next best thing.

For the Cook:

The pioneer woman is hands down the best show on the food network, if you don't want to live on her farm with her family what are you even doing with your life. I love how her show really ties together food and family and her food is absolutely amazing. 

For the Tech savvy:

Last year for Christmas Kyle got me the Lume case, it is the biggest conversation starter whenever I use it out in public. Every time I use it I get at least one person say "omg you have one of those". The quality of photos that it takes in a dark setting is unbelievable. If you are someone who takes a lot of photos this is definitely worth the money.

For the One Who Loves Jewelry:

Jewelry is a gift that you really can't go wrong with, right now I'm into a small petite jewelry phase but also love pieces like these Kendra Scott statement earrings. The amazing thing about these earrings is how many colors they come in and Kendra Scott comes in so many other designs so there is something for everyone.

Wreath Making!

 Making wreaths is one of my favorite Christmas traditions. My mom has always made the wreath for our front door for as long as I can remember. Every year I love to watch her theme come together as we pick out all the goodies. This year she went with a vintage inspired look. Usually and like this year the theme starts off with one piece which this year was the old station wagon which I think is so cute. Most of the stuff we got this year is from target and the rest is from Michael's. This years may be my favorite one so far. My mom always uses a real wreath and it is honestly so fun to go and pick it out with her. It really is something that I look forward to each year.

DIY Pinecone tree

I saw this DIY on pintrest and fell in love with it. It was actually pretty simple to do and looks so adorable on my TV stand. The only down fall that I found was that the pinecones I found outside were to small for the pots that I had gotten so I had to use fake ones, but other than that it was pretty simple. 

First I painted the pinecones evergreen, I made sure to get inbetween all of the little peices and all of the sides. While that dries I painted the pot sliver, which was just a brown planting pot. This took a couple coats of paint. Then I painted the little star silver for the top of the tree. 

To stick it all together I tried to hot glue the pine cone to the pot but it didn't stick very well so I just placed it in there becuase I figured it would be easier to store after Christmas. Next I hot glued the silver star to the top and it was complete! It is such a fun and easy DIY and so inexpensive.

My Favorite Youtubers That do Blogmas

            YouTube is my favorite thing to scroll through and watch during my downtime. I can get lost into the videos and never get bored. Once December 1^st hits the obsession gets even worse because some of my favorite vloggers begin vlogmas. If you are not familiar with vlogmas it is similar to blogmas (blogging Christmas content every day in the month of December about Christmas) but they vlog every day instead of blogging. I have a few that I watch every year and I have to share because they will get you right into the holiday spirit.

Alex and Michael: This couple is PREGNANT and I am so excited, I love to watch their everyday lives and I can’t wait to watch their family grow. Alex and Michael show the most gorgeous holiday décor and they do the best gift guides for the women and men in your life. Maybe this year they will do a baby gift guide too!

Zoella: Zoey is a vlogger out of England and she is the cutest thing ever. Zoey has her own line of products and she has the best Christmas line filled with amazing gifts. She also has an amazing attitude and gets so excited about anything Christmas.

Juicystar07: Blair used to be one of my favorite vloggers she was actually the youtuber that got me addicted to beauty gurus and vloggers. She recently took a break from youtube but it now back and better than ever. I am so thrilled that she is doing vlogmas this year she is so fun and has the cutest puppies!

You should really go watch any of these vloggers they will put you right into the holiday spirit.

Friday Finds (Blogmas Edition)

Found on Pinterest here

The Best Gifts for the Foodie in your life: These gifts are all perfect if you have someone in your life who loves to cook and use new gadgets. My mom would love any of these gifts and my family would love them too when she uses them!

Doctors Fix an Elf on the Shelf: I love to see articles and post like these around the holiday season. This is such a cute video and I'm sure it made some little boy or girl so happy that their elf was fixed!

This Toddler Elf on the Shelf: I love this time of year when stuff like this floods the internet with cuteness overload!! If this doesn't make your day and make you smile then I don't know what will.

The Christmas Tree Frappuccino: I'm not sure about this drink I think I want to try it just out of curiosity but if it is anything like the unicorn one I will not be a fan.

Stocking Stuffers for Him and Her NEW

I love stockings, as a kid and even now my mom and dad fill our stockings with candies and chapstick and hair ties, its all about the little stuff that you forget you need but are so grateful that they remembered those things.  Every year my mom would get fake chocolate coal and my little sister would get so upset cause she would think it was real. I love little traditions like that which we can look back on and laugh at now. 

There are sometimes good treasures in our stockings, like another gift that was stuck in there, so I made this list of stocking stuffer ideas that could fit any man or women in your life. 

For Her:

For him: