Have Yourself a Souper Little Christmas…

Merry Christmas!  I hope that all of you that celebrate Christmas had a great one!  This year was so much fun because Sadie was old enough to look forward to Santa’s visit.  When I get a chance, I will have to post a video of her coming into the room and seeing her Santa gifts for the first time.  

We had a very busy Christmas morning. 

Sadie’s requested item was a unicorn pillow pet.  She was delighted that Santa remembered!  She also enjoyed opening her presents from us and going through her stocking!  She was also excited about her new tricycle (pink with ladybugs—so cute!) and her Beauty and the Beast DVD. 

 

 

 

 

 

Then it was on to Ryan’s parents’ house where we had lunch and lots more gifts to open!  Sadie loved seeing her cousins and “helping” everyone open their presents!

 

 

 

 

 

Then we got back in the car and headed to our final Christmas destination… Leenie and Poppy’s house!  Sadie enjoyed the ride.  She snuggled with Uni and watched Beauty and the Beast, another gift from Santa.  The coolest thing about our drive was the SNOW!  Can you believe it?  A white christmas in South Carolina! 

 

 

My mom decided a couple of years ago that she would stop doing the huge traditional meal for Christmas.  Instead, we have a variety of soups, which is perfect for cold (snowy) Christmas nights!  This year, there were three varieties:

Potato Soup with Bacon, Cheese, and Sour Cream

 

Taco Soup with Cheese, Tortilla Chips, and Sour Cream

 

and Turkey Noodle with Veggies

 

 

We ate until we were stuffed… but not too stuffed for some of this delicious Italian Creme Cake!

 

More pics to come… and the video, too!  Hope all of you had a restful holiday! 

As I type this, Poppy (my dad) is preparing to make us “Waffle House Waffles” for breakfast with his new waffle maker.  YUMMO! 

Reindeer Food!

Well, I can’t believe it is almost here.  It seems like we prepare and prepare for Christmas and then it goes by in a flash!  I can’t believe it is already Christmas Eve.  We’ve still got loads to do.  I have only wrapped 5-6 gifts, so I am sure you can guess what I will be doing this afternoon. 

But Sadie and I already tackled one task this morning.  My little helper and I made plenty of reindeer food.  Here’s a little photo tutorial and you’ll find the “recipe” below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients:

• oatmeal
• red and green glitter or sprinkles

Directions:

Pour everything in a bowl.  Mix with a spoon.  Leave on the porch for Santa’s Reindeer on Christmas Eve.

Now, we’re off to our annual Christmas Eve luncheon at Ryan’s parents’ home. 

A Tower of Cookies—Thanks to Diana at The Chic Life!

Well, thanks to my friend Diana over at The Chic Life, I had a very cool tower of cookies to take to a holiday party tonight.  You may remember back to around Thanksgiving when I was making Cookie Dough Balls.  That was Diana’s recipe and they are such a fun dessert treat.  I have made them… hmmmm… I’d say probably 5 times just since the week before Thanksgiving.  Well, this morning, I was catching up on some of my blog-reading and discovered a new twist that Diana had put on her Cookie Dough Balls.  I HAD to try it.  Here’s a link to her post, so you can get the directions and the recipe for the cookie dough balls. 

Take a look at my tower.  How cool is this? 

So, how is everyone doing on the Christmas shopping/wrapping?  I am JUST about finished with the shopping.  Now I have got to start WRAPPING.  Usually, I begin this process around 3:00 on Christmas Eve afternoon and it feels like such a chore.  This year, I am determined to start early.  AND… I think I am going to have a fun gift-wrapping trick to share with you.  You won’t believe my source!  It’s Ryan.  He may be on to an interesting idea.  So be sure to check back and see the gift wrapping trick!

Hope everyone is having a relaxing evening!  I think I am going to change into my PJs and see what we’ve got stored in the DVR.

Nightie-night!

Holiday Prep and Sorta-Homemade Potato Soup

Yesterday we celebrated Ryan’s mom’s birthday!

Some little ones really enjoyed the cake!  Sadie missed the party since she was with Leenie and Poppy.  However, she was happy that the cake was left here so she could have a piece tonight!

Soon Leenie and Poppy arrived here in Rock Hill.  We headed to the mall for a quick visit with Santa.  We had to make sure that he knew she wanted a Unicorn Pillow Pet!  The visit was very successful!  Very small wait time and no tears!

She was rewarded with a quick 50 cent ride in the Merry-Go-Round!

  

This morning, we got up and headed to Charlotte… to visit IKEA!  Guess how much this breakfast cost…

99 cents for the food…

and 99 cents for the coffee!  $1.98 total!  You can’t beat that!

We had a fun shopping trip and scored some fun items… which I can’t mention here because some are gifts! :) We picked Sadie up from school and she was excited to see her Aunt Adrienne!

 

And now… for the recipe…

“Sorta-Homemade Potato Soup”

This is the easiest soup you will ever make.  And I can promise that NO ONE will ever guess that you started with a mix.  I have made this several times over the past couple of weeks and this soup has been a hit every time!  These bear Creek Soup Mixes are soooooooo good!  I usually don’t like soups from a mix, but these are REALLY good, and you would not know it is a mix.

Ingredients:

• 1 packet Bear Creek Creamy Potato Soup Packet (Found on the soup aisle at Bi-Lo or Wal-Mart—and you can also use the Cheesy Potato Soup Mix)
• 1/2 cup sour cream, plus extra for topping (I used light and that worked fine)
• 1/2 cup bacon pieces, plus extra for topping (I use the ones in the bag on the salad aisle)
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus extra for topping (I used light)

Bring 9 cups of water to a boil.  Then add the soup packet.  Bring back up to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer for 15-20 minutes.  Stir occasionally so that the potatoes don’t stick to the bottom.  Just before serving, add the sour cream, bacon, and cheese.  Stir and serve.  Top with extra bacon, sour cream, and cheese if desired. 

 

Tacky Christmas Party

And… I am back after another little hiatus!  I just seem to be getting caught up in all the hustle and bustle of the season!  But… can I just say…

Woo Hoo!!!!!  I am on vacation!

No more school until January 3!

Just to catch you up a little…

On Friday night, Ryan, Sadie, and I headed to Gaffney to meet Leenie and Poppy.  We walked around some of the outlet stores, which was fun. Then we headed to Cracker Barrel for dinner.

 

 

Do you remember this game?  This has been on the table at Cracker Barrel ever since I was a kid… and it’s still there!

 

 

Then, Leenie and Poppy took Sadie with them.  Sadie was excited to spend a few days with her grandparents!

And Ryan and I were excited about our Tacky Christmas Party!

Every year, we host a little Christmas party at our house.  The usual tradition is to do a re-gift White Elephant/Dirty Santa/Chinese Auction gift swap.  Everyone brings a gift they have received that they would like to “trade.”  This year, we added another twist, and decided to make it a Tacky Christmas Sweater/Outfit party.

The outfits were hilarious!

Lucas a.k.a. “Cousin Eddie”

Jenn with her doily sweater

 

Meredith

Laura and Patrick

Ryan  with his beautiful sweatshirt… and by the way… that’s a blue dickie under that sweatshirt…

 

Not as ugly as it could be… but I wanted a white shirt so the pink dickie could show through… in the spirit of Cousin Eddie…

And a group shot!

Kate, Chuck, and Baby Ryan

And now… for the food…

Stuffed mushrooms

 

Salsa roll-ups

 

Cookies and Goodies

Somehow I didn’t get a pic of the “Crack Dip” that Meredith brought.  We all love her “Chicken Crack.”  Jenn also brought a special treat…

 

Ingredients for Gingerbread Martinis!  I never heard of a gingerbread martini, but I am a fan of them now!  YUMMM!

 

 

And now, I’m off to prepare for gathering #2 of the weekend!