Making Memories Monday

Christmastime is here! I'm so excited for the season, and I have so many ideas to share that I'm about to burst with excitement! Today I have a few ideas about making Christmas memories with your family.

Set Traditions. Family traditions create unity and provide a feeling of security. As a child, my family would always have a dinner by candle light and Christmas tree lights. The children would choose the meal (it was always pizza) and during dinner we would all set New Year's Resolutions. Even though I'm grown and out of the house, we still participate in this tradition with my parents. I look forward to it every year! And about this time in December, I start thinking of the resolutions I'm going to share with everyone at the candlelight dinner, and I can hardly wait for the yummy pizza!

One tradition I want to set for my own children is to get a small tree and decorate it with homemade ornaments that we make together as a family. This year I would like Chloe's tree to be decorated with Christmas candy. My plan is to make candy canes out of taffy and put them on her own personal little tree!

Homemade Candy Canes (Pulled Taffy)

1 & 1/2 C sugar

2 tsp butter

1/4 C mild vinegar

pinch of soda

3/8 C water

pinch of salt

1 Tbsp flavoring of your choice (i.e. peppermint, cinnamon, cherry)

Combine sugar, vinegar, water, and cook to light crack about 268 degrees. Add butter, soda, salt. Pour onto marble slab or platter and let it cool until it can be dented with the finger. Work in flavoring. Divide the taffy in half and work red food coloring into one half, leaving the other half white. After the taffy has been cooled and pulled, twist a small piece of white and a small piece of red together and make a candy cane.

If you're not up for the task of making pulled taffy, simpler candy canes can be made by twisting red and white chenille wires, or by threading red and white beads alternately onto a chenille stem.

I'll post a picture once I get Chloe's tree done. I have high hopes that it's going to be very cute!

Make a Christmas photo book. Whether you like traditional scrapbooks, digital scrap booking or the simplicity of sleeved photo albums, create a photo book of Christmas memories throughout the years and add to it each year. This is a great way to turn memories into keepsakes and help keep the traditions alive. Set the book out for all to see at Christmastime. It will be fun to look back at hairstyles, fashion, and loved ones who have passed on and remember all the fun things you've done as a family during the holiday season.

Does your family have any holiday traditions?

Be sure to leave us a comment and tell about your traditions.

And remember, each comment is an entry into the drawing for this week's giveaway. Which is....

2 Martha Stewart Craft Kits

reindeer puppet kit and

pom-pom insect kit

The winner will be announced Monday, December 8th.

Don't forget....

to stop by Nana's Kitchen to see what's cookin'!!!