Blogmas 2014: Day 10: Show us your cookie recipes

On Day 5, I shared that to me, Christmas means kolackys and poppyseed roll!

Today, I would like to share with you the recipes for these great treats!  

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KOLACKY (from Grandma Rezabek)

1 lb. butter (2 cups)

4 cups flour

1 cup sour cream

pinch of salt

4 cans solo filling

Mix all ingredients,except the filling. 

Wrap in foil and refrigerate dough for 1 hour. 

Roll out dough a little at a time and cut into small squares. 

Fill centers of squares with solo filling, fold over and pinch dough in center. 

Slightly grease cookie sheet and bake at 375degrees until browned (8-10 minutes). 

Let cool. Dust with powdered sugar. 

Enjoy.

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source

POPPY SEED ROLL (from Grandma Rezabek)

2 and 1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup butter

4 egg yolks

1  cake yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm buttermilk

2tsp. sugar

Solo poppy seed filling

Dissolve yeast and sugar in milk. Let rise. 

Rub butter into flour. 

Add slightly beaten egg yolks and milk mixture to flour. 

Mix well and divide dough into 2 parts. Let rise. 

Roll out dough and spread with solo poppy seed filling.

Roll up dough as you would a jelly roll.

Brush with egg whites.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Let cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving. 

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These recipes were ones that my Grandma Rose got from her mother who was Czech. I love having them every year around Christmas! I hope you enjoy them as well! 

Blogmas 2014: Day 9: Winter Items You Can't Live Without

There are 2 items that first came to mind when I was thinking what winter items I can't live without...

#1....FUZZY SOCKS 

The view of my feet today! 

I love, love warm fuzzy socks on a cold winter day. The house we rent is all hardwood floors and since we don't have rugs down due to Bill's dust allergy, I live in fuzzy socks most of the winter. As I get older, I don't like cold feet...and there is something very relaxing about fuzzy socks! 

#2....TALL BOOTS!

I have a pair of tall black boots that I wear almost daily to work, sometimes over jeans or khakis, sometimes under my pants. But, I have been looking for flat, tall brown boots for over 3 years that will fit my shoe size. I have a large shoe size for a woman (size 11 wide) and I need a larger calf size for tall boots. They have been hard to find in brown. Well about a month ago I found them. (on sale with free shipping from Payless.com) and I can say that I LOVE THEM! They are perfect for what I have been looking for!

I love, love, love fuzzy warm socks and tall boots in winter, so for me those are 2 things that I can't live without in winter! 

The Legend of the Candy Cane

The Legend of the Candy Cane

Book Description

One dark November night a stranger rides into a small prairie town. Who is he? Why has he come? The townspeople wish he were a doctor, a dressmaker, or a trader. But the children have the greatest wish of all, a deep, quiet, secret wish. Then a young girl named Lucy befriends the newcomer. When he reveals his identity and shares with her the legend of the candy cane, she discovers fulfillment of her wishes and the answer to her town's dreams. Now will she share what she has learned? Warm, lavish illustrations by James Bernardin bring to life a timeless tale by Lori Walburg, a story that will help families celebrate the mystery and miracle of Christmas - for many Christmases to come.

MY THOUGHTS:

The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg is a very cute, inspirational story that is perfect for kids young and old in the Christmas season. The story shares that a candy cane is not just a piece of candy, but rather there is unique Christian symbolism behind the shape and coloring of the candy.  I have seen similar versions to this story around the internet and on little cards that you can make to add to a candy cane as gifts. However, I feel that this is the perfect way to teach children about the symbolism of the candy cane. 

The version that I am reveiwing is a hardcover board book, which I feel will hold up to many years of reading for both the younger children and older. This book is illustrated by Richard Coundrey and both adults and children will enjoy his colorful artwork throughout the story.

I highly recommend adding this book to your home's Christmas collection. 

DISCLAIMER: I was sent this book for free from booklook bloggers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Blogmas 2014: Day 8: My wish list for this year

Every year, I find it very hard to come up with a wish list for me....Because deep down, all I really want is for my children to have a wonderful Christmas and for Bill to have a good Christmas.

Yet, every year I get asked by several family members, what do you want for Christmas and yet I don't know....

Well, this year, I decided to be proactive and make a short list so that I would be prepared. I told Bill that what I wanted for Christmas was:

Perfume (no vanilla or musk scents!) 

Cute, colorful socks

And I honestly can't remember what else I told Bill....

I just find it so hard to think of things that I want! 

St. Nicholas visited yesterday

Source

Yesterday, December 6 was the feast day of Saint Nicholas. This feast day is celebrated in many Christian denominations, including in my family's Catholic faith.

Rebecca and Jacob celebrated St. Nicholas' feast day at school on Friday. They had to take a shoe to school to leave out on Thursday night and Friday when they went to school they found an orange, a Hershey kiss and a small candy cane in their shoe.

In our family, it is tradition that we set out shoes on the eve of December 5 and overnight St. Nicholas comes and places a treat and an ornament that represents something major in that child's year in their shoe.

This year was no different. Friday night, Rebecca and Jacob placed the shoes by the front door before they went to bed  and they insisted that they put one of Bill's shoes and one of mine there too....

Saturday morning the kids awoke to find this site...

The filled shoes

The kids each got a pack of m&m's candy and an ornament. Bill and I got a pack of Reese cups. The kids loved their ornaments which were representative of their first time to the beach this past summer.

From left to right: Rebecca's ornament with the mermaid and Santa, Jacob got a pirate turtle, and Benjamin got a turtle making a sand castle with Santa. Each ornament says Emerald Isle, NC and has their name and year on the bottom. 

Does your family follow the tradition of leaving a shoe out for St. Nicholas? 

Blogmas 2014: Day 7: Handmade Christmas....your favorites to give or get

I love handmade gifts. Both getting them and giving them. I have been bad about not giving many handmade gifts in the past few years, but this year I am going to remedy that. I have a couple handmade gifts that I am going to be making for a couple of people. I can't share them just yet, as I don't know if these family members read my blog...but I will definitely share after Christmas as they will be appropriate for after Christmas as well.

I love getting handmade gifts, or even gifts that someone has taken time to take from ordinary to unique. One that I got last year was really cute from one of my students in the after school care program that I work at.

It was a Reeses Bar wrapped up in white paper like a snowman with a pair of socks as the hat. It was semi-homemade but oh so cute.

I would love to go to mostly handmade items, but am not sure how that will work out.....

Jacob got glasses and I made 10 cakes!

My life has been one big ball of busyness lately...between the holidays, everyday life, appointments, evaluations, etc. I don't know if I am coming or going. This week, one great thing happened and that is that Jacob got his new glasses. 

About a month into school, his teacher noticed there was some issues with his vision and his motor skills, so we have been starting the process of getting him tested to see if he needs some sort of physical or occupational theraphy. One of the first things that the intervention specialist wanted done was to get Jacob's vision tested, because she thought it was a vision issue causing these delays. We took Jacob to an eye doctor and sure enough Jacob has issues with one of his eyes. He is near sighted and has a slight lazy eye. His other eye is better than 20/20 vision because it has been overcompensating for the other eye. So his eye doctor recommended glasses. Well, Jacob's glasses came in this week and Bill said that when Jacob put them on the first time his eyes got real big and he was looking all around like he was seeing things for the first time. He seems to really like his glasses and he makes that comment if we take them off, that he can't see. 

Another thing that happened this week, is that I had to make 10 cakes for our school's St. Nick dinner. I made and decorated 10 cakes that they were going to use for a cake walk raffle. It took most of Wednesday morning to bake and most of Thursday night to decorate. But they were all delivered on time and a friend won one of them and she said it was very yummy! So that is what matters! 

Any big things happen to you this week? 

Blogmas 2014: Day 6: When do you open presents?

It is really interesting to hear others traditions. Yesterday at a work luncheon, we were talking about when we opened presents with our kids and one woman told of how her husband's family would only open presents on Christmas after they had been to church, had breakfast, cleaned up and the mom had had her 3rd cup of coffee. Many times they wouldn't open presents before noon.....

That would never fly at our house.

At our house, we typically spend Christmas Eve day with my in-laws. While we are gone, Santa or one of his helpers comes by to do a test run and make sure everything is ready for that night (he or she puts all the toys under our Christmas tree away) and he leaves one present for each child and a present for the family. When we get home from Christmas Eve with my in-laws, the kids get to see the present and they can open that present. It is always a new set of pajamas and the present for the family is the book "The Night Before Christmas" which we read as a family before bed.

Christmas morning, we get up whenever the kids get up and head downstairs to see if there are any gifts under the tree. We do not put any gifts under the tree before Christmas Eve night after the kids are in bed. The kids get to play with the items in their stockings first (which we do NOT wrap) while Bill and I are trying to wake up. Then we let the kids open all their gifts under the tree. The last couple of years, we have had a bag of donuts on the table in case the kids wanted to eat while they were opening their presents. After the kids have opened their presents, then Bill and I open our presents from the kids and from each other.

It is very relaxed and perfect for our family!

Blogmas 2014: Day 5: Favorite Christmas Food

Today's theme is all about Christmas food! 

Now I was thinking, what foods do I associate with Christmas? What foods are my favorites? Then I started thinking about Christmases growing up and what foods we had then....and I realized that 2 of my all time favorite Christmas foods were from when I was growing up.....

Growing up, Christmas Eve we always went to my Grandma Rose's house and there we had a buffet style pot luck dinner. I remember loving the homemade coleslaw with eggs on top that my Grandma made. We always had ham too. And then one of my favorite foods was my Grandma's Kolacky. I have made them several times as an adult and while they are really good, they are not as good as my Grandma's. 

On Christmas morning, we always had poppy seed roll that my dad would make from my Gram's recipe. Again, I have made it a couple of times since I have grown up and it brings back so many memories. 

So for me, those are my favorite Christmas foods....kolacky and poppy seed roll!  

Blogmas 2014: Day 4: Favorite Christmas Music

I couldn't wait for this day...One of my favorite things about Christmas is the music. I typically start listening to Christmas music the week before Thanksgiving and love it!

There are a few songs that I REALLY LOVE to hear at this time of the year....

This is one song that I absolutely LOVE! This is probably my favorite rendition of "Mary Did You Know". I love the use of both Kenny Rogers and Wynonna's voices blending together.


After The Grinch movie with Jim Carrey came out, I fell in love with this song. I believe that I played it over and over and over that year!


Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers' Christmas songs bring back so many memories from childhood Christmases. Love them!


And FINALLY....What I think is my ALL TIME FAVORITE CHRISTMAS SONG....
I love Josh Groban's version! Just perfection.


There is just a snippet of the Christmas music that I love. There are many songs I love to hear this time of year. I will say this though....I wish the radio stations would play the older versions of songs.... all our local stations seem to want to play are the newest, "poppiest" versions of classic songs. While there is nothing wrong with newer artists making their versions of songs, don't just throw away the old versions because many times THOSE versions are the ones that people want to hear.

Blogmas 2014: Day 3: Favorite Christmas Movies

I am going to preface this post by saying that I am NOT a huge movie watcher (much to my husband's chagrin)..... However, I do have favorites that I like to watch.

To me it would not be a complete Christmas season without watching these movies:



These are the ones I think are essential....I watch a few more but they are not really favorites as much as tradition.

Disclaimer: If you click on the pictures, it will take you to amazon.com. 

Blogmas 2014: Day 2: What Christmas Means to Me

Christmas to me means so many things. But when it comes down to it, Christmas to me means LOVE.

Christmas, first and foremost, should be a remembrance of the birth of Jesus, who was sent by God as an act of LOVE to his creation. "God so loved the world" began with the birth of Jesus and the acceptance and LOVE of Mary for God that she allowed Jesus to be born.

Christmas growing up was full of love of family and friends, even in the leanest times. I never felt any of the hard times that I grew up in because I felt the LOVE of family. I know now how lean times were some years when I was growing up. But I don't remember the toys we got, I remember the feelings of LOVE of seeing my grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins.

Now, I am trying to impart these feelings of LOVE among my own family. I tell my kids that we show LOVE at Christmastime and all times, by doing things for other people even if we might not want to. We show LOVE by doing little gestures, whether it is helping to clean off ice from windshields, or baking cookies for your elderly neighbor.

So for me, Christmas means LOVE!  

Blogmas 2014: Day 1: Favorite Christmas Tradition

I have decided to join in with Sandra over at "Diary of a Stay at Home Mom" and her Blogmas 2014 party! Basically, every day for the days leading up to and including Christmas, Sandra has chosen to a theme to help us all get into the holiday spirit! If you would like to join in, you can go here to read all about it!

Yesterday was technically day 1, but I didn't get around to putting this up...so I will do day 1 this morning and get day 2 up tonight. :)

Today's focus in on your favorite Christmas Traditions. I have decided to break this into pre-kids and post-kids.

Growing up (Pre-Kids) my favorite traditions involved Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Christmas Eve we always went to my Grandma Rose's house with all my aunts, uncles and cousins. It was a fun evening of good food, lots of laughs, lots of presents, seeing what sweater my grandma bought for each of my uncles, trying to sneak and see what presents were and just enjoying each other's company. Then after most of my aunts and uncles and cousins had left, my dad, brother and I would sit with my Uncle Jim and watch the midnight mass from Rome.

Christmas morning was always spent at home with mom, dad and my brother.

Then we would spent Christmas afternoon with my Grandma Ella and my aunts and cousins on my mom's side of the family. It was again lots of food and laughs. There usually wasn't gifts given, just lots of fun with the cousins.

Now that we have 3 children, I have tried to incorporate some fun traditions that last throughout the month. There are a few that stick out as my favorites!

We ALWAYS put up our Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. Bill and the kids put the branches on. Then Bill puts the lights on and the tinsel. Then I hand the ornaments out to the kids and Bill and they put them on. I add a couple too. After the tree is up, then I am in charge of decorating the rest of the house.

Another tradition that we have started is that we pick a child's name at our church's giving tree each year. Even when our own budget is tight, we chose another child to help. I take Rebecca shopping with me to pick out gifts. This year, we are giving gifts to a 1 year old girl. I took Rebecca shopping yesterday and she chose to get her a coat, an outfit, a pack of diapers, a baby doll that giggles and a toy telephone! Even when finances are tight, I want to teach our children to give back.

Finally, we do 25 books and a chocolate advent calender each night before the kids go to bed. Some years I let them just choose a book from a stack. Other years, like this year, I have individually wrapped 25 books and we unwrap one a night. The kids LOVE this tradition!

So there you have it. Some of the fun traditions from when I was younger and from now from our own family!

Thanks Sandra, for hosting this as it was fun looking back at our traditions!