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Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Christmas Cookies - Gingerbread and Stars

Merry Christmas to my online community! I won't be posting my Picture Perfect Party Linky and my Make My Saturday Sweet blog hops this week. As I type this message, I'm not even at home. I'm working from my mother-in-laws computer. So, you'll get to see what we've been up to once we're back home.

I wish everyone a peaceful and joyful Christmas!


Many ladies are in a cookie baking frenzy this time of year. Even I got in on the action. I was having a cookie craving and so I tried different recipes for the fun of it. Since I didn’t want to make myself fat on all the yummy treats coming from my oven, I decided to bake for others. Normally we give the teachers a gift at Christmas time, so this year I made little baskets of home baked goodies for them and for some friends and family too.

I must say, baking is more work than buying a small gift, but it was worth it. Will I do it again next year? Maybe, but next time I might only bake for a few people and buy gifts for the others. It doesn’t make much sense to have the oven running in the heat of our South African summer, which runs around December through March.

So, here are two of my creations that I made for the very first time, Christmas Stars and Gingerbread Men. For some reason, I enjoy improvising. I also try to go with healthier options when I’m baking, but I do have a sweet tooth.

The recipe for the stars came from this Spiderweb Sugar Cookies recipe, which would be fun for Halloween. I was looking for a sugar cookie recipe on the web and saw that this one was well liked and included a Royal Icing recipe.






I followed all the steps up to the point of cutting the dough into circles. This is where I chose star shapes instead. I decided not to ice / frost them as I found the Royal Icing to be too thick and looked clumpy on the cookie. I also found that you need a heck of a lot of red food coloring to make it look red, so my batch of “red” icing (which looked more like a hot pink) never got used. My food coloring is the artificial kind, which can’t be healthy, and I found that it also changes the taste of it, so those were further reasons why I chose not to use it.

You can see in the photos below what I decided to do with the red icing. It became a sensory activity for Amanda. I let her taste it too, but only a tiny bit.

I used my white Royal Icing for the gingerbread men. That worked out really well. I used this Gingerbread Men recipe, which also has its own icing / frosting recipe. If you look at my photos, you’ll see that I stuck with white.











Friday, December 21, 2012

Make My Saturday Sweet - Blog Hop #20



Paper Candy Cane Activity

I got this paper candy cane activity idea from Julie at Hey Mommy, Chocolate Milk. Her pictures are really sweet and she used red and green pipe cleaners instead. I used what I had on hand, which was red and green paper.

This is a really easy activity for small children. I cut white candy canes out of paper, glued them on a green cardboard, then cut small strips of red and green paper for decorating. All Amanda had to do was to create patterns with her strips of paper on the white candy canes. She wanted someone to play with her, so I decorated one of the candy canes too. She had a lot of fun and played with the left-over strips of paper with her plastic kitchen dishes.

I also printed some fun free Christmas printables from Julie too. Amanda enjoyed them very much.

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Christmas Tree Game

I printed this sweet game for free from Allyson at All Our Days. I don't plan to keep it forever, so I used normal paper and only printed the game pieces on cardboard. I didn't have white (which is what Allyson recommended), so I used yellow instead and was very happy with how well it worked.

This was the first time that I played a game with Amanda where you are on the same team. If you win, you win together. If you lose, you lose together. It certainly stops all the whining, fighting, and crying when the one child loses and the other wins. Of course, children need to learn about having the right attitude when they win or lose, but it's certainly nice as a mom to have a break from being the coach, teacher, referee and counselor.

There is a naughty kitty in the game, which is hilarious for me, because we have recently added a kitten to our family. If you spin and land on the kitty, it knocks an ornament off of the tree. You win when all the ornaments are on the tree once you've reached the finish line.

Amanda loves the game and has played it with me, her sisters and her friend, Sarai. It was easy enough that she could explain the rules to the others. I think this game was too easy. You win more often than you lose, but Amanda hasn't figured that out yet. She still gets excited with every win.

Now on to the blog hop...


Amanda’s Books and More

It's time for another Make My Saturday Sweet (M.M.S.S.) blog hop!
Join me (your host) for this fun and easy hop.
All family friendly blogs are welcome!


If you host your own blog hop(s), then feel free to link them on my Blog Hops page!


Also, I'm looking for bloggers who would like to be guest co-hosts
on my Wednesday hop and on my Saturday hop.
If you're interested, then please send an email to:
morleychristina[at]gmail[dot]com


I would love for you to follow me on Google Friend Connect
and also on

Tell me how you are following me and I will follow back!

Here are the easy rules:

  • Follow Tina (your host) @ Amanda's Books and More. If you're following me for the first time, leave a comment letting me know which way you're following me and I'll be sure to follow back.
  • Link up your family friendly blog, Facebook page, Twitter, etc. Be sure to indicate which one it is in the name.
  • Grab the button below and add it to your most recent post or on your side-bar.
  • Share about this hop on Twitter, Google+ or Facebook.
  • Follow at least three new blogs and tell them you found them through this hop. And, they should follow back.

Blog Button Code:

Amanda’s Books and More


This is a blog hop!


Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Picture Perfect Party Linky #21

Christmas in Bethlehem
This is our three-dimensional nativity scene and advent calendar.
My mother-in-law gave it to us several years ago and it still looks
beautiful. I love all the details and whimsical characters.
It's published by the Standard Publishing Company
in Cincinnati, Ohio.

These are some of my German Christmas decorations.
Only the bells are not. Amanda picked out the bells
this holiday season and decorated the tree with her
sister, Samantha.

This is Samantha's kitten, Tabitha. As you can see,
she's getting bigger. We adopted her from the animal
shelter at six weeks of age.



This is our latest advent calender. My in-laws were
recently in England and my mother-in-law bought
this at Harrods for the grand-kids. It's by
Tracey Russell Designs.



Linking with:


Black and White Wednesday

Now on to my blog hop...


Amanda’s Books and More

Here's your chance to link up your Wordless Wednesday (with or without words)
or any picture post at this Picture Perfect Party Linky (P.P.P.L.)! Come join me
(Tina @ Amanda's Books and More) on this fun and easy blog hop!

If you host your own blog hop(s), then feel free to link them on my Blog Hops page!


Also, I'm looking for bloggers who would like to be guest co-hosts
on my Wednesday hop and on my Saturday hop.
If you're interested, then please send an email to:
morleychristina[at]gmail[dot]com


I would love for you to follow me on Google Friend Connect
and also on

Tell me how you are following me and I will follow back!


Here are the easy rules:

  • Follow me. Please leave a comment so that I can follow back (as long as your blog is family friendly).
  • Link-up your post with a picture and follow as many new blogs as you like. Make sure you let them know that you’re following through this P.P.P.L. hop, tell them how you are following them and add your URL to the message, so they can follow back.
  • Grab the button below and add it on your post or on your side-bar, so that we can spread the word and get more people to the party.
  • Share about this hop on Twitter, Google+ or Facebook.

The Button Code:

Amanda’s Books and More

This is a blog hop.



Tuesday, December 18, 2012

A Day of Silence and a Poem by Cameo Smith

Our prayers go out to those affected by the shooting
at Sandy Hook Elementary School.


Covered in Grace


If you want to mail sympathy cards or letters to the school, the school address is:

Sandy Hook Elementary School
12 Dickenson Drive
Sandy Hook, CT 06482

A Poem for Sandy Hook Elementary
by Cameo Smith

Jesus & The Children

Twas' 11 days before Christmas, around 9:38
When 20 beautiful children stormed through heaven's gate.
Their smiles were contagious, their laughter filled the air.
They could hardly believe all the beauty they saw there.
They were filled with such joy, they didn't know what to say.
They remembered nothing of what had happened earlier that day.
"Where are we?" asked a little girl, as quiet as a mouse.
"This is heaven," declared a small boy. "We're spending Christmas at God's house."
When what to their wondering eyes did appear,
But Jesus, their Savior, the children gathered near.
He looked at them and smiled, and they smiled just the same.
Then He opened His arms and He called them by name.
And in that moment was joy, that only heaven can bring:
Those children all flew into the arms of their King,
And as they lingered in the warmth of His embrace,
One small girl turned and looked at Jesus' face.
And as if He could read all the questions she had,
He gently whispered to her, "I'll take care of mom and dad."
Then He looked down on earth, the world far below,
He saw all of the hurt, the sorrow, and woe,
Then He closed His eyes and He outstretched His hand,
"Let My power and presence re-enter this land!
May this country be delivered from the hands of fools
I'm taking back my nation. I'm taking back my schools!"
Then He and the children stood up without a sound.
"Come now my children, let me show you around."
Excitement filled the space, some skipped and some ran.
All displaying enthusiasm that only a small child can.
And I heard Him proclaim as He walked out of sight,
"In the midst of this darkness, I AM STILL THE LIGHT."

Written by Cameo Smith, Mt. Wolf, PA

I first saw this poem on Alyssa's blog Impractical Composition.


Sunday, December 16, 2012

Inspirational Quotes on Being Friendly


Amanda received an award at the end of this school year from her playgroup teacher for always being friendly. I believe this award describes Amanda perfectly. She loves all children and plays with boys and girls equally.

She is friendly almost all the time, both in her behavior and in her speech. I highly recommend you read a post I once wrote titled, "Learning Good Behavior from a 4-Year-Old."







After school, Amanda likes to hang out with her friends.
In this picture, the boys are playing with Amanda's
My Little Ponies. The sun was hurting her eyes,
that's why she's not looking at the camera.




The other day I told her that I hate fish-moths. Whenever I see one in the house, I kill it. She responded that we are supposed to love everyone. She then proceeded to tell me that she loves everyone in our town and all the animals. She listed dogs and cats and a few others and then added, "Even sharks."

On a recent walk with our dog, Benny, Amanda saw a pair of Golden Retrievers in their front yard. She said loudly, "Hello! Nice to meet you!" and then waved to them.




I wanted to share these photos of Amanda with you and celebrate the virtues of friendliness and kindness. There are also three photos with quotes on being friendly, which you are more than welcome to pin on your Pinterest boards. I have a "Pin it" button on my right-hand sidebar to make it easy for you.




Also, at this time, our prayers go out to those affected by the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Amanda is nearly the same age as the kids who were killed. I'm sure those children brought as much joy to their families as Amanda has to ours.









I'm linking up with these Monday blog hops:


Mommy Moments Blog Hop

Covered in Grace


Friday, December 14, 2012

Make My Saturday Sweet - Blog Hop #19

Samantha, Amanda and Jessica

I took this photo of my three girls all wearing pretty dresses for their brother's 16th birthday, which we celebrated at a nice restaurant. For some reason, I keep posting pictures of Jessica wearing this pink and black striped dress. In case you were wondering, it's not her only dress. Also, Samantha looks taller than Jessica only because she's wearing extra high wedged sandals. If you're wondering what my son looks like, I did a post with lots of cute photos of him, which you can see here on, "Inspirational Quotes on Sons."



Now on to the blog hop...


Amanda’s Books and More

It's time for another Make My Saturday Sweet (M.M.S.S.) blog hop!
Join me (your host) for this fun and easy hop.
All family friendly blogs are welcome!


If you host your own blog hop(s), then feel free to link them on my Blog Hops page!


Also, I'm looking for bloggers who would like to be guest co-hosts
on my Wednesday hop and on my Saturday hop.
If you're interested, then please send an email to:
morleychristina[at]gmail[dot]com


I would love for you to follow me on Google Friend Connect
and also on

Tell me how you are following me and I will follow back!

Here are the easy rules:

  • Follow Tina (your host) @ Amanda's Books and More. If you're following me for the first time, leave a comment letting me know which way you're following me and I'll be sure to follow back.
  • Link up your family friendly blog, Facebook page, Twitter, etc. Be sure to indicate which one it is in the name.
  • Grab the button below and add it to your most recent post or on your side-bar.
  • Share about this hop on Twitter, Google+ or Facebook.
  • Follow at least three new blogs and tell them you found them through this hop. And, they should follow back.

Blog Button Code:

Amanda’s Books and More


This is a blog hop!