Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Start Making Vanilla Extract for Christmas Gifts!

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Now’s the time to start making Vanilla Extract for Christmas gifts!

Christmas in July is fun. :) Start a batch of homemade vanilla extract now and it will be ready just in time to bottle up and give as gifts this December!

Bottles of homemade vanilla are extremely awesome gifts! However, you need to start making it now because it takes 4-6 months for a big batch of vanilla to be strong and delicious.

How do you make vanilla extract?

It’s actually super easy, though the result will make you feel like you’ve made something gourmet! People love receiving this as a gift.

Find a thorough tutorial here to learn the specifics about making homemade vanilla. Or, if you’re feeling comfortable, simply follow this easy recipe:

How to Make Vanilla Extract

Start Making Vanilla Extract for Christmas Gifts!
 
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Ingredients
  • 1.75 liters of inexpensive vodka
  • 25 Vanilla Beans enter code HOME for a 15% discount on Vanilla Beans through Olive Nation!!
Instructions
  1. Slice through each bean lengthwise, leaving about one inch at the top of each bean uncut so that it stays together.
  2. Place all of your cut Vanilla Beans into a half-gallon jar.
  3. Fill the jar with vodka.
  4. Secure the lid and put the jar in a dark place (like in the back of a cabinet).
  5. Allow it to sit and "extract" for 4-6 months.
  6. Every few weeks during extracting time, shake the jar to mix it up a bit.

Once your vanilla as finished extracting 4-6 months from now:

Here’s how to finish and bottle up your homemade vanilla!

Where to buy vanilla beans:

I always buy my vanilla beans from Olive Nation. I’ve tried other sources to “save money” but instead ended up wasting money because the quality of the beans from cheap sources was terrible!

Olive Nation beans are so, so good. I’ve used their beans for years. They love working with us here at Heavenly Homemakers so they offer us 15% off when we use the coupon code: home. Plus we get free shipping on orders over $50!

To make 1/2 gallon of Homemade Vanilla Extract you need:

  • 25 vanilla beans = $91 after coupon code HOME
  • Shipping = FREE on orders over $50
  • 1.75 liter bottle of vodka = Approximately $11

Your total cost for 1/2 gallon of homemade vanilla extract will be about $102. This breaks down to $1.59/ounces which makes 4-ounces of vanilla cost $6.36

BONUS

You can save your beans after you make a batch of vanilla and reuse them to make a second batch!!

I put my used beans into a lesser amount of vodka to get more bang for my buck. So for instance, for the first round, I use 25 beans in 1.75 liters of vodka. Then for the second round, I use the same 25 beans soaked in half that amount of vodka (.88 liters). The result is still amazing and I just spent a few dollars for a quart of great vanilla extract!

Extra resources:

Go get your beans!

And yeah, go get your vodka. :) :) :)

Make yourself a delicious batch of vanilla extract and get ready for Christmas!

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Get Your Focused Family Fun Easter Packet – Quarantine Edition

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Looking for a way to make Easter special at home this year? We put this Focused Family Fun Easter Packet together for our family and want to make it available to you too!

This year, with our houseful of kids (including two new foster sons who have very limited understanding of the Bible and who Jesus is), we wanted to make Easter a time of learning and of fun.

Since we are not able to leave the house, we came up with this way to make Easter an extra special day for everyone. Here’s hoping we’ll all have fun and learn more about Jesus and His resurection at the same time!

How our Hello Easter Focused Family Fun works:

  1. On Friday, we’ll read and share about Jesus’ crucifixion and death.
  2. On Sunday morning, our boys will wake up to nothing. Oh! But they’ll receive their first riddle/clue to help them know that something great is coming! (The details of this are all in the packet we’re giving you!)
  3. The first clue will lead them to a great big basket. Hmmm, an empty basket?? Well yes. It represents Jesus’ tomb. That was empty too. :)
  4. We’ll read from scripture about how Jesus’ friends discovered His empty grave. We’ll hand the kids the next clue so they can work together to figure out where their first gift is. This will lead to more scripture reading, more gifts, and more riddles and clues.
  5. Throughout this fun scavenger hunt, our boys will learn or re-learn the beauty of Jesus’ plan for salvation. We’ll take communion together. We’ll work together. We’ll have fun together. We’re praying that this will be a time of joy and learning for our kids!

Want to join the fun?

We put together a packet that shares more details about what you need if you’d like to put together a similar scavenger hunt for your family. It includes a full sample of riddles and clues that show you what we’re gifting our kids and where we’re hiding everything (shh, don’t tell!).

Obviously what we’re doing won’t work perfectly for your household – but we hope you use the sample we share and all of our riddles to give you lots of ideas for how you can adapt and make this work for your family!

Grab your free Focused Family Fun packet by signing up below. Watch for an email asking you to confirm that you want to receive this information. Then check your inbox again to see the packet come your way!

You’ll become a part of our wonderful Heavenly Homemakers community, something that brings us great honor.

Sign up to receive your Hello Easter Packet below:

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Decorate Your Own Cookies – a Fun Tradition We Enjoy With Guests!

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We’ve started setting up a “Decorate Your Own Cookies” table when we host college kids or teens for youth events during any holiday season. It’s been a huge hit so I thought it was time I shared it with you!

Now, mind you, I throw (almost) all of my “food coloring is bad” knowledge out the window to make this fun tradition happen. Sometimes occasions just call for sprinkles, you know?

TIP: To add color to frosting without as much compromise, we’ve found this Natural Food Coloring to be wonderful! You can even get naturally dyed sprinkles!

How to Set up a “Decorate Your Own Cookies” Table for a Group:

1. Make cookies ahead of time according to the holiday. Christmas cookie cut-outs, heart-shaped cookies for Valentine’s Day, Easter egg or bunny-shaped eggs at Easter, etc. Here’s our favorite Cream Cheese Cut-Outs recipe!

2. Set out baked cookies along with a variety of fun frosting, sprinkles, and other decorating options for people to “play with.”


3. Be sure to set out knives, plates, napkins – an even toothpicks for the extra creative  in the group!

This simple idea has been so much fun when we have groups of kids or young adults over for meals. Not only that, I’ve found that it saves me time when preparing to host a large group. Instead of decorating a bunch of cookies to serve for dessert as we celebrate a special holiday, I just prepare the decorations and cookies and let everyone else do the decorating. It’s a win-win!

Don’t forget cupcakes!

You can use this same idea with cupcakes, which is even easier than cookies. Bake cupcakes and let everyone frost and decorate their own!

I certainly hope you enjoyed this sugar-filled, sprinkle-topped, food-colored post. Eeeeek. But hey, it’s all about hospitality, loving your guests, and having fun together!

Rest assured, I will still never encourage you to buy margarine. Okeedokee then. :)

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How to Have Stress-Free Christmas (Hint: START NOW!)

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Is it possible to have a stress-free Christmas? Yup! Tasha shares how!

Hey Everyone! Tasha here. I wrote a Christmas Budget script for us to read together. I put on my brown tweed blazer and I was immedietly inspired. (The equivalant to my thinking cap, because it’s winter in Nebraska and cold in my house; not just because I think it makes me look like a sophisticated Mommy-turned-naptime-writer.) This play will be a hit! Someday you’ll see it on a marquee and you will stop and take a picture and tell all your friends, “I know the girl who wrote that!” and it’ll be grand.

Naptime writers unite! I promise wearing a blazer makes you legit.

The Best Financial Christmas Story Ever

Enter Tasha and HH Reader

Me: Christmas is coming soon! Only 300 and something days left! I can’t wait to start my Christmas Budget.

You: Tasha, no… please stop. It’s February.

Me: I know, right?!?! Only ten months left to plan. I’m so excited!

You: Tasha, you’re out of control! Nobody wants to plan Christmas right now. We’re so DONE with Christmas. I mean, really. Some of us haven’t even taken the decorations down.

Me: Yikes! Better get on that. But really. Let’s talk about Christmas for this year.

You: Do we have to?

Me: Yes.

You: No.

Me: If you trust me, I promise to deliver the most stress-free, relaxed Christmas you’ve ever had in your life before. It’s simple and easy.

You: Mmmmk, keep talking…

Simple and Easy Christmas Budget

Me: Whew! I’m in! [Wink to audience.] Okay, so here’s the sitch: According to multiple sources, Americans are in BIG credit card debt, and many of them, perhaps you, will be paying for Christmas well into the summer months.

You: Well, yeah. I want to Go All Out for the Holidays. How else can I do that?

Me: By starting now, or preferably last month, in January. The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear, and by deciding how much you are going to spend and start saving for it now. Tada! That’s the plan.

You: But how do I know how much I’m going to spend?

Me: That’s a tricky one. A good amount to plan for is one percent of your total income. $500 is 1% of $50,000. Can you spend more than 1%? I don’t know, can you? Here’s an example of my Christmas budget:

  • Immediate family gifts at approximately $30 each = $180
  • Extended family gifts, make or buy $10 each = $160
  • Gifts for 11 little cousins, make or buy $5 each = $55
  • Special and delicious holiday food: $200
  • Extra Gas for travel: $200

This brings me to: $795 / 12 = $67 a month to save. This is way over the one percent guideline for our household, but spread out over 12 months it’s doable. In past years when we were on an extreme budgeting plan we spent a total of $300 for Christmas. That covered, gifts, food, and most of it went to travel costs to see family.

Gifts for everyone?

You: 16 extended family members and 11 little cousins to buy for? Really?

Me: Buying or making presents is a choice. I like to do it, it’s fun to make something or find a little something special for each person.

You: How can you find anything of value for $10? Giving junk Christmas gifts is never appreciated.

Me: True, so glad you asked! Part of the joy of planning Christmas right now, is that I have a list of everyone I need to buy for in my planner, and when I’m out and about during the year, I will pick up something wonderful and special and unique for the right person at the right price. We love Christmas shopping at summer yard sales. I have found beautiful china tea cups for $1 and quality Melissa and Doug toys for cheap. Thrift stores, antique shops, yard/garage sales… all places to go Christmas shopping throughout the year. When you wait until December to buy your presents, it’s almost too late, my friend.

One year we made the little cousins a huge batch of homemade playdough with sparkles and Christmas smelling oil: $5 for 11 kids. That’s 45¢ a kid! For something they really liked! They played together with it for hours throughout the weekend.

This is how we do snack time with 8 little kids in the house for the holiday.

BUT… I have a secret. Because I am so wise, I also cheat the budget for Christmas. If you want to go all out, like Laura, and you wrap up socks to put under the tree, don’t take that out of your Christmas budget!

Ways to cheat the budget when it comes to Christmas

Me: Your monthly budget should have an item line for Clothing and Shoes, or maybe even another for Athletic Gear. If I buy socks to put under the tree, that will come out of the Clothing Budget. If I buy a tennis racket to put under the tree, that may come out of the Athletic Gear or School Budget, if I buy a lovely book of poetry and a globe, that will come out of the School Budget.

So that covers the Christmas money issue. Please don’t go into debt for the holidays. You’ll thank me next June. Decide how much you’re going to spend and save up for it throughout the year. That’s the only way that makes sense to me. I don’t know about you, but I don’t have an extra $500 (or more or less) sitting around in the bank during the month of December.

As a result of awesome budgeting, my Christmas contains a complete lack of stress and guilt. I don’t feel guilty for spending money I shouldn’t have spent. I’m not stressed about having enough in the bank to pay the high winter utilities. There’s enough to do for Christmas, like play games and eat food, I don’t want to waste my limited energy worrying about money.

You: I think your script is terrible. It’ll never see the stage. But thanks for the budget tips.

Me: Well, you can’t win ‘em all.

Exit.

Standing ovation. Amiright? No, of course not, you’d spill the Warm Pumpkin Custard Drink you’re sipping. I get it. It’s one of my favorites too.

Hey, while I have you here. I’m sure you’ve heard by now, Laura went and started her own club. Have you joined? I LOOOVE the recipe organization and all the included Homeschool resources. Meal planning is a breeze. A BREEZE. Not like a Nebraska winter wind that makes you cry because you live in a place where the air hurts your face. No. Not like that. Just click, browse, click, browse, click, print. Done. That’s how I do it anyway.

#WhatsForDinner

P.S. In case you’re wondering, I’m having a version this pot pie for dinner, except I’m using shredded pork because it’s what I had on hand, and a bag frozen mixed veggies instead of all that pesky chopping. It’s ironic because Laura also tried writing a script in that recipe post? I think mine is better, yea? What’s your vote? And do you have a Christmas Budget?

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

How We Save Year Round So We Can Enjoy a Big Christmas

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This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Earlier this week, I shared that I go ALL OUT at Christmas time and I don’t feel bad about it. Today I’d like to share some ways we save money all year round so that we can enjoy a big Christmas without guilt or challenge.

We definitely splurge here and there on fun treats throughout the year. But for the most part, most of the time we try to keep the special treats special. Here are some examples…

How We Save Year Round So We Can Enjoy a Big Christmas

1. We don’t frequently buy coffee from a coffee shop.

If we’re traveling or out for a fun event out of town, you bet we’ll enjoy a special drink from a coffee shop. But the hefty receipt reminds us why we don’t splurge on that treat regularly!

At home, we always have a pot of coffee ready to brew. We buy fun add-ins and enjoy delicious coffee in our own mug for a much cheaper price tag.

2. We rarely eat out.

Again, we reserve this for times of travel or for being out of town for an event. When we’re home, we’ll occasionally order pizza when there’s a great deal online or when I’ve had a full day from going to court or meetings for our foster kids. Otherwise, we mostly eat at home, which saves hundreds or thousands of dollars since our family is large.

3. We rarely go to movies.

Once a year or so, there’s a movie that Matt and/or the boys like to see in the theater. Otherwise, we wait for the movie to come out on Redbox. Lots of money saved, but still a lot of fun to be had!

4. We buy ice cream from the store instead of from a restaurant.

Ha, this is a silly one, and also a confession that we now frequently buy ice cream to keep in our freezer. :) What can I say? We have a lot of teenagers in our house. And a dad who likes ice cream.

All sugary confessions aside, here’s how we save money on this treat: We’ve found that we can go to DQ and spend $3.50 per person, or we can go to Walmart and spend $2.98 for our entire family. We don’t even just get the boring kinds. We get cookies and cream, chocolate chip cookie dough, peanut butter cup, chocolate mint, sea salt caramel. (Don’t look at the ingredient list…don’t look at the ingredient list…if you don’t know what’s in it, it can’t hurt you. Heh.)

So we’re getting the same deliciousness as a DQ Blizzard at a fraction of the price.

5. We don’t have cable TV.

We have zero channels, and we have Netflix. That’s it, and yes we miss watching sports sometimes but that’s what friends with cable are for. (We offer to bring food in exchange for watching the World Cup. It’s a win-win.)

I have no idea how much this saves us each year, but thousands I’m guessing. Hundreds at least.

6. I buy Christmas wrapping paper and decorations 50%-90% off after Christmas to prepare for the next year.

I took a friend with me last year to take advantage of the huge discounts. We’re still laughing about how much we got – and high-fiving about how much we saved!! It’s hard to pass up such inexpensive wrapping paper, right?

I always get lights to have on hand next year to replace broken ones, gift bags, tags, ornaments, paper plates and napkins, and whatever else I feel we can use. Oh my, and lots and lots of wrapping paper.

None of this is a judgment against those who regularly enjoy cable, coffeeshop coffee, ice cream outings, etc. This was just me sharing that we choose to enjoy treats at home more often than enjoying treats out.

And then when Christmas rolls around, we have extra money to splurge and enjoy extra special treats and outings. I don’t consider this a sacrifice – like we’re saving all year long so that we can have a big Christmas. This is simply our lifestyle, and it means that at Christmastime we kind of go nuts, because it’s fun and we feel that THIS is the time to go all out!

How about you? How do you save and when do you splurge!?

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Why I Go ALL OUT For Christmas (and Feel Good About It!)

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With many talking about how to save money at Christmas time, how to have a minimalist Christmas, and how to do less for Christmas, I’d like to share today about why I go ALL OUT for Christmas. And why I don’t feel bad about this.

I’m not normally a stuff buyer or a gift-giver. Every other month of the year I am a cleaner-outer – a girl who feels that less-is-more. But at Christmas time? GIVE ME ALL THE CHRISTMAS!!!! And let there be lots of presents!!!

Allow me to explain…

Why I Go ALL OUT For Christmas (and Feel Good About It!)

Part of me can’t explain my “why” except for the fact that I really, really love Christmas. I look forward to it, make big plans for it, am super creative with it, and do everything I can to give my family the best day ever. This, in turn, makes it the best day ever for me, because I get to watch my favorite people having tons of fun on my favorite day.


Wow, this picture was many years and fewer boys ago.

So because I love Christmas so much, and I love watching my kids (young and old) have fun with this day of celebration, I tend to go ALL OUT making the day fun and festive. Can you believe this…

Last year I made our Christmas morning last from 8am until 2pm.

Yes I did, thank you very much. We sat in the living room (and/or at the breakfast table) Christmasing together for six beautiful hours. Then we cleaned up some of the mess and had a late Christmas dinner together: Lasagna, because it can be made ahead of time and bake while we are Christmasing. It’s become our family’s Christmas dinner tradition!

What does our very long Christmas morning look like? Keep reading if you dare. :)

Well, first I should backtrack and say that instead of drawing names, all of our boys buy a gift for all of their brothers. (With our growing family, this in and of itself turns into a lot of presents under the tree because 5 boys times 1 gift each to all of the others, plus a gift from each for Dad and a gift from each for Mom…I can’t even do the math. And this year there are 7 boys, plus Mom and Dad, so we’ll have to figure out how we’re going to include the babies in this since they’ll obviously care more about ribbon and boxes than anything else.)

Why do all the boys get a gift for all the other boys? Because everyone loves it!

Everyone makes a wish list and it includes things like a new phone case, soccer socks, dress shirts for work, windshield wipers for their car, and all sorts of other fun and practical requests. This is obviously an example of the  “big boy” list. The little boys’ lists are easy, and I make those based on what they need. :)

Once everyone has made a list, the boys take turns shopping with me for their brothers and Dad. It is truly special seeing them pick out gifts for their brothers as they say things like, “Oh, he’ll love that!” (Dad takes the boys shopping for me separately.)

Most of our gifts to each other are practical. This is the main reason we can buy a lot of gifts at Christmastime. When our boys need something – new soccer cleats or shin guards, work clothes, school clothes, something for their car – they put it on their wish list. Some think this is boring, but we think it is fun. IT IS FUN TO OPEN A BIG PILE OF PRESENTS!!!! Or at least we all think so – even if the gifts include socks and tools.

So there are many presents under the tree because everyone buys something for everyone. Phew.

But wait. There’s more.

This is the part where I go crazy and probably sound crazy, but boy do I have fun!

Matt and I do something unique for our gifts to our boys (and by “Matt and I” I really mean I, while Matt smiles shrugs and nods shakes his head and lets me have my crazy fun). Besides all the presents under the tree from one another, this is what the boys wake up to on Christmas morning

Piles.

Many piles of gifts. That must be opened in order. AFTER THEY HAVE SOLVED A RIDDLE TOGETHER to determine what is in each pile.

I know, I’m nuts. Thankfully the boys love it and look forward to it and have now come to expect it. So for instance…

Pile #4 last year was a stack of gifts that included new York College beanie caps. They needed new beanies, everyone got a different one, we get an employee discount at YC, and they are great quality hats. Here’s the riddle the boys had to solve together before opening this pile of gifts:

What, you’re still cold? It’s ok, we are on it
This is much better than a cap or a bonnet
They’re special, don’t lose them, they cost a bit more
Thank goodness Dad gets a discount for doing his chore

They take turns reading the riddles, work together to solve, then take turns opening their gifts to reveal who got what beanie. (Trading is allowed.) For the record, we got Brayden (5) a fun beanie from Walmart that he loved just as much but cost a little less. :)

Another riddle gift we got last year included everything we needed for a Family Movie Night:

Another throwback, you say? Don’t mind if I do
We’ll enjoy this along with something to drink and to chew
You’ll remember the VHS variety, and it’s time to improve
These gifts make for a fun night as the sweeps make their move

Can you guess? It was a Mary Poppins DVD, which was a favorite when our first set of boys was little. Since we’ve got young ones again and Mary Poppins brings back such good memories for all of us, we thought getting the DVD was a perfect family gift. So for this pile of gifts, one person opened the package with the movie, and everyone else opened a present that included a snack item we’d enjoy while watching together.

Other piles from last year included gifts like:

  • Slippers – see how practical? But if we need them anyway…
  • Board Games – last year they included Candy Land and Hi Ho Cherry-O since we had landed back in a place with littles (and ha, little did we know that God would bring us more babies this year!)
  • Socks – with this riddle to go with it:

Nothing special here, but it’s something else to unwrap
They are fancy and fun, not a shirt or a cap
Keep what’s in your sack or feel free to trade
These can replace those in your drawer that are starting to fade

But wait. There’s still more.

I know. It’s crazy. BUT IT’S SO FUN!

After the boys solve the riddles and open the piles, there is one more Riddle Gift they have to work together to solve. This one includes a Day Out that’s become a tradition – so this gift is about an outing we enjoy together on December 26. See how the fun just keeps on keeping on, even after Christmas day??! (Then on the 27th I’m all done and ready to move on into well…summer.) :) :)

For this gift, Matt and I have chosen several fun things to do in Lincoln (45 minutes from our home), then I write riddles for the boys to figure out so they learn what our Day Out will include.

Two years ago, it looked something like this, though of course, the boys had to solve riddles to figure out all that we were doing:

  1. Grab a coffee from Captain Red Beards on our way out of town (our local shop that we love but hardly frequent because we make coffee at home every day instead!).
  2. Head out of town and go to Play It Again Sports where each of us got to choose a used tennis racket (they loved this so much!).
  3. Go to the indoor tennis courts where we rented space for two hours and played 3-on-3 and made fun of ourselves because most of us were…unpracticed.
  4. Go to lunch at Raising Canes, one of our favorites.
  5. Walk the mall, choosing one inexpensive item each (after Christmas sales, whoop!)
  6. Dinner at our friends’ house (extra special because we don’t get to see them often)

After all the riddle gifts – and I should mention that somewhere in there we’ve paused and eaten our Christmas breakfast – the boys open their gifts from each other and Matt and I open gifts from the boys and each other and there are boxes and paper everywhere!

It’s a lot of Christmasing, it costs some money, and it is actually kind of excessive (what with all the piles). But I love it and I feel no regret about this. After all, we are frugal all year long, rarely eat out or buy coffee from shops, almost never to go movies or splurge on anything that we can make or do ourselves at home. But one day each year, for Christmas, we go ALL OUT. It’s an absolute blast! (And yes, we still shop sales and see how we can save on all the gifts and outings!)

Where’s Jesus in all of this?

Oh trust me, He’s there. He’s in every bit of it as our family has spent the entire year striving to look outside of ourselves and serve selflessly. Jesus is in every moment of our days, so you can bet He’s a part of our Christmas, even while we go a little crazy with gifts and silliness.

Jesus is in our laughter and our time around the tree and our mealtimes. He’s in our Christmas Eve extra-long family prayer time while we sit at the tree with all the lights out except for the Christmas lights. He is the reason for the season and without a doubt, He makes our Christmas completely full of joy.

The days leading to Christmas, we help people in our community to be sure their holiday will be extra special too with plenty of food and special gifts. But we’ve decided it is important to hold December 25 as sacred for our family. Christmas day is the one day every year we close our door and focus inward toward our family unit.

This year, there will be 9 of us. Matt, me, our five boys and our two foster babes. I absolutely cannot wait!!

So now you know. Laura goes crazy at Christmas and has no regrets. It is the most fun and the family loves it!

I believe that there’s no one right way to “do Christmas” because Jesus can be in it when you choose to let Jesus be in it. Christmas is joy, God is love, and no matter if you’re big into gift-giving or choose to take a minimalist stance, Jesus can be at the helm.

I’d love to hear what your Christmases are like. Big, small, get up early, sleep in, wear jammies all day, dress up fancy, go all out, keep it simple…

Whatever you do, choose Jesus as your center. He’s in it all if our hearts are focused on His Truth.

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Coming up next: Ways We Save All Year Round So We Can Enjoy a Big Christmas!

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32 “Experience Gifts” Ideas For Kids (and their Families)

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Want some great Experience Gifts ideas to give your kids? Here are 32 fantastic options!

What are “Experience Gifts?”

Instead of giving a tangible item as a gift, you can give the gift of an experience. An outing, a special trip, a membership pass, lessons – there are so many options!

Experience gifts are great for your family if you feel your child doesn’t need more “stuff.” Instead, you can give them a special experience!

I think Experience Gifts are especially great for grandparents to give their grandkids. For that matter, it’s a great idea to consider gifting the entire family with gifts such a Family Pass to their favorite local activity centers!

Here’s a great list of Gift Experience ideas my friend Kim helped me come up with:

Experience Gifts

  1. Museum family pass or trip (There are ALL kinds of museums. Dinosaur museums, history museums, train museums, art museums, craft museums, quilt museums, archaeology museums, science museums, air and space museums, military museums, botanical gardens, and more. Like cameras or photography? Look for a museum that specializes in that subject. Like to roller skate? Check out a skating museums. Some museums are free or accept free-will donations.)
  2. Zoo family pass or trip (Sometimes when you have a large family, a family pass is the way to go because even if you only go once or twice it saves you money.)
  3. Trip to Great Wolf Lodge (Make wonderful memories!)
  4. Tickets to a play, musical, or opera (Consider what the recipient would love to see.)
  5. Tickets to a concert (We’ve surprised our boys with this more than once and we still talk about it!)
  6. Pool passes 
  7. Roller skating passes
  8. Bowling passes (What a fun family gift!)
  9. Archery or gun range passes (Unique. I like it.)
  10. Indoor batting cages
  11. Pedicure or manicure date (Would you believe I’ve never done this?)
  12. Massage (YES. PLEASE.)
  13. Hair cut and style or makeover
  14. Movie passes with snack bar money (We did this when Rogue 1 came out.)
  15. Horseback riding lessons
  16. Instrument lessons (guitar, ukulele and piano lessons)
  17. Trampoline park passes
  18. Swim park passes
  19. Gift card to their favorite restaurant, ice cream parlor, bakery or candy shop (And then go with them.)
  20. Coffee date
  21. Trip to the pumpkin patch, orchard or berry farm
  22. Gift card to their favorite bookstore (And then go with them.)
  23. Trip to the Ark Encounter or Creation Museum (Now we’re talking about higher dollar ideas, but if you’re going anyway, you should make it a gift!)
  24. Trip to Legoland, Knotts Berry Farm, or similar play park
  25. Trip to Silver Dollar City, Six Flags, Disney, Universal Studios
  26. Trip to DC to see the icons of American history (Many of them are free admission or outdoors.)
  27. Train tickets to go to a specific destination on a train (We want to do this someday with our train-loving 5-year old.)
  28. Trip to the beach 
  29. Trip to the lake to play in the water, water ski, swim, fish, kayak, etc.
  30. Hot air balloon ride (I suggested this one to my husband on our anniversary trip, but he didn’t like the idea. Something about not liking heights…)
  31. Helicopter ride
  32. Airplane ride over a favorite place (like Yellowstone National Park)

Your turn to share ideas! What Experience Gifts have you given or received?

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A Reverse Advent Idea – Consider Serving With Your Family Like This!

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I saw a similar idea to this on Facebook, did a little more research and brainstorming, then decided that I wanted to share this fabulous Reverse Advent idea with you! Join this fun!! Instead of a regular count-down-to-Christmas calendar, consider serving with your family like this during the holiday season…

What is Reverse Advent?

Instead of eating a piece of chocolate or opening a small gift as you count down to Christmas, the idea of Reverse Advent lends itself to giving. Instead of receiving something each day as Christmas gets closer, or even simply counting down the days, we’ll reverse the idea and choose something to give to someone!

Here are some Reverse Advent examples I saw online as I was researching:

  1. Add a non-perishable food item into a box every day leading to Christmas. On Christmas Eve, deliver the food box to someone in need or to a local mission or food pantry.
  2. Follow the same idea as above, only add a toiletry item such as toothpaste, toothbrush, comb, socks, feminine hygiene products, toilet paper, etc to your box.
  3. Choose an Act of Kindness to do as a family each day leading up to Christmas.

I brainstormed more ideas:

  1. Follow the same idea as above, only add a baby item to the box to give to an expectant mama.
  2. Add a children’s book, coloring book, crayons, and small toys each day and deliver it to a family with young children on Christmas Eve.
  3. Pray for someone new each day…

The sky’s the limit, and I have no doubt that if you and your family pray about this Reverse Advent idea, He will lead you to give and to serve in just the right way leading up to Christmas.

Here’s a sample of one list we came up with if you’d like to spend December 1-24 filling a box with food for a food bank or for friends:

I made a complete packet of all kinds of Reverse Advent list ideas here. (It’s free!)

Our Family’s Reverse Advent Project

We decided that this year our family’s Reverse Advent project will be to fill a box with baking supplies for a family we know. They LOVE to bake, but struggle to afford even basic groceries. So we’re going to put together a box of baking supplies so they can bake their hearts out this Christmas season. (So actually, we’re going to give them their box a few days before Christmas instead of delivering it Dec. 24!)

I made a complete list of 24 items to include in a Baking Box here.

Your Reverse Advent project might cost money or it might cost time. Maybe a little of both. But what a great way to make Jesus a part of your Christmas season!

Don’t have extra money for a Reverse Advent project?

Let your Reverse Advent project focus on prayer for 24 people or families as you countdown the days until Christmas. (I’ve got a great list for you here, plus another page so you can make your own prayer list!) No matter what you choose, if God is in it, He will bless it!

Besides the Baking Box we’re putting together for our Reverse Advent Project, my family and I plan to make a Paper Chain with 24 strips of paper. We’ll write the name of someone we want to pray for on each strip, put the strips into a chain, then pull one off each day as we count down to Christmas, praying each day for the person on the paper!


I also really like the idea of stringing up 24 paper hearts with people’s names so we can count down and pray this way.

Make it a family project…

If you do choose to purchase 24 items for a Reverse Advent box, make a list as a family, go shopping as a family, put all 24 items in a pile, and begin adding them to a special box on December 1. As Christmas draws near, watch the pile get smaller as the box fills up! Pray over the recipients, pray for generous hearts for your own family, pray for God’s work to be done and for His light to shine brightly through this.

Want some ideas and ready-made lists to guide you along as you plan a Family Reverse Advent Project? We worked hard and HAD FUN making a packet full of ideas and lists for you. Sign up below and we’ll send you this completely FREE printable packet! (It includes 10 pages and is so helpful to have!)

 

Download your packet, then spend time praying as a family as you decide how to serve this Christmas season. You’ll want to begin your Reverse Advent Project on December 1, so start getting ready right away!

Please comment here so we can all share in encouraging each other. What has your family chosen for your Reverse Advent Project?

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Whole Grain Pumpkin Bundt Cake

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Don’t let the “whole grain” part of this Pumpkin Bundt Cake scare you. If you use the right kind of whole grain, no one is the wiser.

I prefer to use freshly ground soft white wheat when I make cakes like this. The flour is light and fluffy, acting much like all-purpose white flour. I love it! (Here are more posts sharing about grinding flour and choosing the right grain.)

You might notice that this recipe is quite similar to my Pumpkin Breakfast Cake recipe. See, the fun thing about recipes is that you can simply tweak them just a little, pour them into a different type of baking pan, and create a whole new treat!

Need a bundt pan? I have this one, and it sure makes holiday baking more fun!

Whole Grain Pumpkin Bundt CakeYum

Whole Grain Pumpkin Bundt Cake
 
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Author:
Serves: 16
Ingredients
  • 3 cups whole wheat flour (I used freshly ground soft white wheat)
  • 1 cup sucanat or brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 cups pureed pumpkin (or one 16 ounce can)
  • 1 cup melted coconut oil (or butter)
Instructions
  1. Whisk all ingredients together until smooth.
  2. Pour into a well-buttered bundt cake pan.
  3. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
  4. Allow cake to cool for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan.
  5. Glaze with any of the tasty frosting recipe options below.

Glaze or Frosting Recipes

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces softened cream cheese
¼ cup softened butter
3-4 Tablespoons real maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

With a hand mixer (or in your blender), whip together all ingredients until smooth. Spread over cooled cake.

Stevia Sweetened Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces softened cream cheese
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Liquid stevia to taste (I use 2 droppers full)

Whip ingredients together until smooth. Spread over cooled Cake.

Orange Glaze

¼ cup orange juice
¼ cup honey
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract

Whisk ingredients together until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cake.

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Easy Recipes for Fourth of July

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I shared this post two years ago, and wanted to re-share as we all get ready for this fun holiday! Here are our favorite easy recipes for Fourth of July! Plus some tips for keeping your holiday prep simple!

Yum

The thing about making special food for any holiday is that too often the cooking and the clean up take away from our holiday fun. Here’s what I suggest you do this Fourth of July and every special day:

  • Choose simple recipes.
  • Make everything you can ahead of time so you can enjoy the day.
  • Stick with basic sides like watermelon and other fresh fruit, corn on the cob, and tossed salad (all easy to prep!).
  • Get your family involved in helping with prep and clean up.
  • Embrace the paper plate. (Do whatever you want with this piece of advice. Most of the time I avoid disposables, but to everything there is a season. So if I really want to enjoy my people and not stand at the sink rinsing a bunch of dishes, I pull out the paper products.)

watermelon

Now let’s talk about the simple recipes. Of course we will choose simple recipes. We love Simple. This is how we survive each day and also how we make holidays special. We keep it simple. We stick with basics. We go with what we know everyone likes. The beauty of all of this is that our food tastes amazing even without extra effort! (Real food is cool like that. It tastes great because it’s real and it can’t help but taste wonderful!)

13 of my favorite simple recipes for the Fourth of July!

Along with the typical grilled burgers and hot dogs, there are so many simple recipes for fun treats and side dishes that are perfect to enjoy on this special day. All of these recipes allow me to make them ahead of time and serve at mealtime. They taste amazing and are festive too!

1. Americana Cheesecake Parfaits

The cheesecake part of this recipe (white) whips together in just a few seconds. Add strawberries (red) and blueberries (blue) and you’ve got a beautiful and super delicious treat for the 4th!

Americana Cheesecake Parfaits

2. Raspberry Sweet or Unsweet Tea

Making fruit teas like this is super simple, and this Raspberry Tea turns a pretty shade of red. I’m thinking we could throw some frozen blueberries into the glass to make it a perfect Fourth of July drink. You might also want to try Peach Sweet (or Unsweet) Tea or Mango Sweet (or Unsweet) Tea so that you can set out a variety of good choices.

How to Make Raspberry Sweet or Unsweet Tea

3. Strawberry-Blueberry Shortcake

Strawberries and Blueberries appear to be the real food MVP of the Fourth of July. Raspberries too. Make this simple Shortcake Recipe, then set out blue and red berries along with whipped cream.

Strawberry Shortcake with Whole Wheat and Honey

4. Strawberry-Blueberry Shortcake Waffles

This is the same idea, but you can make your shortcake in the waffle iron for a pretty and fun twist on this favorite dessert. Might as well serve it for breakfast, because why not?

shortcake waffle4

5. Strawberry-Blueberry Shortcake Muffins

Okay fine. One more Shortcake variation and then I’ll move on. Sometimes it’s fun to make your shortcake batter in muffin tins and serve them as individual cakes with fruit and whipped cream on the side!

strawberry_shortcake_muffins_2

6. Very Berry Brownie Cups

Phew, this recipe has been on my site since before I had an actual camera. But the recipe is as good as ever and fun for people to build their own brownie cup!

verberrybrowniesm.JPG

7. Pineapple Cream Dessert

Orange you glad I didn’t say strawberries and blueberries again? This recipe is so refreshing on a hot summer day that it makes its way onto this list even though it’s not red, white, or blue. (But far be it for me to say that you can’t add strawberries and blueberries as a garnish.)

pineapple dessert 3

8. No Flour Monster Bars

This recipe makes the list because everyone loves them. Also, they are easy to make ahead of time and set out for grab-and-go snacking. If you want, you could stir in some red, white, and blue M&M’s, but you never heard that from me. Food coloring is bad. Avoid it at all costs. ;)

Real Food Monster Cookie Bars

9. Cream Cheese Fruit Dip

Here I go again with the red and blue berries. Serve them with this simple dip and it will be a big hit!

strawberry_dip_2

10. Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

See if you can find some 4th of Julyish mini-muffin paper liners. Make these super simple cookies with stars in the middle!

Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Star Cookies

11. Brownie Sundae Bar

This is super fun if you’re feeding a crowd, so everyone can build their brownie sundae however they like!

Build a Brownie Sundae Bar

12. Grilled Chicken

There is NOTHING better than this chicken on the grill. Click over to read how easy this is and read how to keep your chicken from drying out on the grill. This is a hit every time we make it!

13. Cream Cheese Corn

I’m not sure there is a side dish more perfect than this one for the 4th of July. Wow is it delicious! And it’s easy, and includes only 4 ingredients!

Creating this list has made me want to make every single one of these recipes for the 4th! I think I just might.

What are your Fourth of July plans? What are your favorite foods to make for the 4th?

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