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Yogurt Pancakes with Buttermilk Syrup

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Yogurt Pancakes with Buttermilk Syrup – these delicious Yogurt Pancakes topped with Buttermilk Syrup are a favorite Christmas breakfast in our family! Enjoy this yummy recipe!

These yogurt pancakes aren’t anything fancy, but what they lack in fancy they sure make up for in taste! We love to eat these pancakes Christmas morning served with homemade buttermilk syrup.

I love them with bananas, but my kids don’t as much. You can enjoy them either way. You’ll find the recipe for the pancakes and the buttermilk syrup below. This is the absolute best buttermilk syrup recipe I’ve tried.

Yogurt Pancakes

Ingredients

1 cup plain yogurt
2 egg yolks
1 square of melted butter
¾ cups flour
1 Tbsp sugar
½ tsp salt
2 egg whites

Instructions

Mix all ingredients and lastly, fold in egg whites. Prepare pancakes on grill, before flipping put 3-4 thin slices of banana on the top of each pancake, then flip and cook other side.

Buttermilk Syrup

½ cup buttermilk

½ cup margarine

½ tsp baking soda

1 cup white sugar

1 tbsp white corn syrup

1 tsp vanilla

Boil all except vanilla for five minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Serve over yogurt pancakes.

Looking for more Christmas breakfast ideas? These snowman pancakes were a huge hit with my kids one year and they’re really easy to make!

Visit this post for 15 Unique and Delicious Christmas Breakfast Ideas.

Christmas Books: My Favorite Holiday Tradition

Monday, December 7, 2015

Giving my children Christmas books is my favorite holiday tradition. Every Christmas Eve we add to our ever-growing collection.

The beginning of the holiday season is when the Christmas books come out at my house. Each year the box gets heavier and larger. When my husband brings the box out of storage, the kids know that the holiday season has begun.

Each year since my oldest was an infant, I’ve bought two holiday books. One for the child, and appropriate for the age that they are at that year. And the second is for “the house”. I write a note inside and make sure to include the year in each one.

The intention is that when my (now 3) children have families of their own, they will take their books with them and read them to their children. The “house” book will stay with us for our (someday) grandchildren.

I love watching our collection grow each year. I am reminded of what interests they had or where we lived that year. Traditions, or stories, or things that they were learning about in school.

These books are special and treated as such. They don’t go on the book shelf in January, they get boxed up along with the decorations and only come out again in December. They are kept in a big basket in the living room. They bundle under blankets and read them by the fire. (It’s almost like a Norman Rockwell, it’s so cute.)

On Christmas Eve, they get to open a wrapped book. That book is the new addition to the collection. They look forward to getting their book almost as much as they do Christmas morning. (I said almost.)

One of the highlights of my year is picking out their books and writing the note inside. I love that these books are going to be part of my children’s families holiday traditions too.

What holiday family traditions do you have?

25 Terrific Christmas Tree Crafts

Saturday, December 5, 2015

25 Terrific Christmas Tree Crafts – kids crafts, decor and simple ornaments! There are so many unique and beautiful ways to get creative with Christmas trees this holiday season!

Paper Straw Christmas Tree Ornaments | Simple As That

Colorful Candy Trees | Hello Wonderful

Wooden Dowel Christmas Tree | Curbly

Rustic Christmas Memory Tree | Simple As That

Tannenbaum Book Tree | Nur Noch

Pipe Cleaner Christmas Trees | Zing Zing Tree

A Colorful DIY Forest | Inspired By Charm

Scrap Ribbon Tree | Fireflies and Mudpies

Christmas Tree Wall Art | Curbly

Doily Christmas Trees | Deavita

Christmas Tree Rice Krispies | OMG Chocolate Desserts

Cupcake Liner Christmas Tree | One Perfect Day

Pinecone Christmas Trees | Elementary Art Fun

DIY Paper Christmas Tree | Place of My Taste

Christmas Tree Scene | I Heart Crafty Things

Burlap Christmas Trees | Inspired By Charm

Car and Tree | This Heart of Mine

Christmas Tree Card | Crafty Morning

Pinecone Tree | Sugar and Charm

Paper Plate Laced Christmas Tree | I Heart Crafty Things

Rustic Twig Tree | Show and Tell U

Recycled Paper Christmas Tree | Wonder How To

Ribbon Trees | Stars Inspiration

Peanut Butter Cup Christmas Trees | One Little Project

Cinnamon Stick Tree | Sussle

Handmade Christmas Trees | Beautiful Matters

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles

Friday, December 4, 2015

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles – No one will ever guess this decadent dessert is healthy! Made with whole foods and no refined sugar, you can indulge guilt free!

I love healthy food, but I also really love treats. Anyone else have that problem? The holidays make it especially tricky because we’re pretty much surrounded by the treats without much healthy in sight.

So, this year I decided to make a bunch of my favorite treats healthy! And, not the usual kind of healthy, the sneaky kind of healthy where treats still taste like treats. The kind where no one but you will ever know they’re healthy – even your tastebuds and treat cravings!

These Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles are the perfect healthy dessert. Just as fudge-y and delicious, but with a healthy secret ingredient! Actually, it’s not really a secret, I’ll tell you right now…it’s dates.

Please don’t let that scare you away. I promise you won’t feel like you’re eating dates. Even my picky husband had no idea. They are naturally so sweet, create the perfect truffle texture, and add all kinds of healthy nutrients and fiber.

Give this recipe a try, I promise you won’t regret it.

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles

No one will ever guess this decadent dessert is healthy! Made with whole foods and no refined sugar, you can indulge guilt free!

Serves: 24 truffles

Ingredients

14 dates
½ cup raw almonds
¾ cup almond meal
¼ cup cocoa powder
½ teaspoon sea salt
½-1 teaspoon peppermint extract
70% dark chocolate bar (3.5 ounces)
crushed candy cane or sprinkles for topping

Instructions

Put the dates in a small bowl and cover in hot water. Let soak for 5-10 minutes, drain, and squeeze out the excess water.
Add the almonds, almond meal, and cocoa powder to a food processor or high quality blender. Pulse or blend until finely ground. Add the dates, peppermint extract, and ½ teaspoon sea salt and blend until a thick dough ball forms.
Remove the dough and roll into small balls. Put the balls on a dish lined with parchment paper. Freeze for 20-30 minutes.
Break the chocolate bar into a microwavable dish and melt for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in-between until completely melted. You may want to start by only melting half of the bar. Depending on how thickly you coat the truffles, you'll only use about half.
Roll each truffle in the melted chocolate and put back on the parchment paper. Top with a little crushed candy cane or sprinkles.
When all of the truffles have been covered in chocolate, put the dish into the fridge until the chocolate hardens.
Store truffles in the refrigerator in an air tight container.

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 truffle Calories: 78 Fat: 6g Carbohydrates: 5g Sugar: 2g Sodium: 144mg Fiber: 2g Protein: 2g Cholesterol: 0mg

These are also the perfect addition to your holiday gift plates! The recipe makes 24 truffles and another part of that healthy treat balance for me is giving away the extras, so I don’t eat them all. 🙂

Looking for more healthy holiday treats?

Salted Caramel Fudge

Double Dark Chocolate Coconut Pie

Creamy Pumpkin Gingerbread

Thursday, December 3, 2015

Creamy Pumpkin Gingerbread – this is one of my favorite holiday recipes of all time! I look forward to making it every year for family and friends. The layers of soft gingerbread cake, creamy pumpkin and light whipped topping are delicious and it’s perfect if you’re serving a crowd.

The first time I tried this Creamy Pumpkin Gingerbread cake it was served at a church function in Coppell, Tx where we were living at the time. After the first bite I knew I had to get the recipe for this amazing layered cake and the lady who made it was kind enough to share it with me.

I’ve since made this dessert many times for family, friends and for church get togethers and people’s reaction are always the same – I NEED that recipe! It’s heaven in a pan and so easy to make.

5.0 from 1 reviews

Creamy Pumpkin Gingerbread

Ingredients

1 package of gingerbread cake mix
2 small packages of vanilla instant pudding
1 and ⅓ cups of milk
1 15 oz can of pumpkin
1¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
¼ tsp nutmeg
1 (12 oz) container of cool whip

Instructions

Mix gingerbread according to directions on package.
Put in a 9X13 inch greased pan and bake 20-25 minutes.
In another large bowl mix pudding and milk.
Add pumpkin and spices.
Fold in 1 cup cool whip.
Spread over completely cooled cake.
Chill for at least 2 hours before serving or overnight.
When serving top with remaining cool whip and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Delicious layers of soft gingerbread cake, creamy pumpkin filling and light whipped topping in an easy to make fall dessert.

Depending on what local grocery store you have, gingerbread cake mixes can be a little harder to find. I can usually find the Betty Crocker Gingerbread mix at Walmart, but every time I see one I grab one to have on hand in my pantry, just in case.

MORE SIMPLE AND DELICIOUS RECIPES

Chai Spice Smoothie

Ginger Crinkle Snowflake Cookies

Easy Microwave Caramels

Chocolate Covered Pumpkin Pretzels

2015 Christmas Cards from Minted

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

I love getting Christmas cards in the mail and for that reason I enjoy sending them out to friends and family each year. It isn’t always easy and sometimes we’re making last minute trips to the post office to get them off on time, but it’s always worth it!

Minted is my go to place for quality, beautifully designed holiday cards. They always have so many designs to choose from at Minted.com. Sometimes the hardest part is narrowing it down. Here’s a peek at the card we chose this year.

It’s not too late to get beautiful, independent designed holiday cards with Minted’s New Year card assortment! I’m thinking of doing New Year cards next year. Has anyone ever done that? I love the idea of waiting until after the holiday rush.

This post is sponsored by Minted.com but all opinions are 100% my own.

D.I.Y. Girls Jewelry Board

Sunday, November 29, 2015

The holidays are here! Don’t get caught up in purchasing expensive gifts when some can be made with love and our very own hands. This D.I.Y. Girls Jewelry Board is the perfect gift to give our little or big girls to organize and display their baubles and headbands.

Hi friends, it’s Nicole from Simply Happenstance! Can you believe the holidays are upon us? How can that be? I feel like we were just cleaning up and organizing from last year. This Christmas, I am trying very hard to keep the gifts to a minimum and purchase ones that are meaningful, educational, and will grow with my kids. At times I do think they get too much, so I am working on a few items that are handmade and useful.

I loved Simple As That’s recent post “Thinking Beyond Toys”, that it got me thinking about the clutter that we have going on in my daughter’s room. A couple of years ago, Sara and I had a giveaway in conjunction with a D.I.Y. Jewelry Board which still hangs in my closet to this day. It is filled with fun and trendy baubles and it has been a great way to keep my jewelry organized and at arms reach.

Here is what you will need:

White Peg Board
White Baseboard
Measuring Tape
2 1×2’s measured (shorter than the vertical length of the board
A can of spray paint
White paint
A hammer and nails
A drop cloth to paint on
A paint brush
Everbit Peg Board Hooks

This project, does take some planning ahead, but it will make for a great Christmas gift for you daughter, or family member. I purchased all products at Home Depot. In order to start the project you have to figure out where you will be placing the jewelry board. Measure the space and then go to Home Depot or your local hardware store to purchase the supplies needed for this D.I.Y. Girls Jewelry Board. I measured my daughter’s space along with both of my friends, leaving a bit of room around the area for the baseboard that surrounds each of these pegboards. I went with my husband to make sure the measurements were correct. Home Depot allowed us to cut the pegboards and baseboards in store to match the measurements we needed.

I chose to use white peg boards making it easier to spray paint them gold.

Then I painted the already white baseboards with a couple coats of white paint.

After the paint dried (a few coats later) we nailed the baseboards over the peg boards. We also purchased a couple 1×2 planks as seen to the right that we drilled into the wall to support the jewelry board as well to give space for the peg board hooks used to hang the jewelry in place with out taking out your wall from behind.

Once finished, you hammer or drill in the 1×2 wood in place. I placed two vertically on either side of the board, making sure you find where your studs are before you drill. Then you place the board up and hammer/drill the board in place over the 1×2 wood.

Place your peg hooks and add jewelry and headbands. For more information and how to make this jewelry board check out our D.I.Y Jewelry Board over at Simply Happenstance.

There you have a useful yet pretty handmade gift. We hope you all have a blessed and safe holiday season full of family, friends, and lots of fun!

Happy Holiday Book Page Christmas Tree Banner

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Happy Holiday Book Page Christmas Tree Banner – this simple Christmas tree banner is made with pages from an old book and a handful of inexpensive supplies. It’s the perfect craft project to make with the kids and will add just the right handmade touch to your holiday decor.

A special thank you to Gymboree for sponsoring today’s discussion on creating Happy Holiday moments! Don’t miss the fun giveaway they’re hosting at the bottom of the post!

For me, the holiday season is closely connected with crafting. I remember making handmade ornaments with my mom as a child and I love sharing those same memories with my own kids.

Our craft projects don’t need to be elaborate or take a lot of time. No matter how simple, they’re always memorable. Being creative and spending time together is all that matters.

I know that when my kids are grown, some of my favorite holiday memories will be of the times we sat around the kitchen table crafting together.

We came up with this cute Christmas tree bunting to make together this year. We have a book page bunting for every occasion and we love them so much, it was time to make a new one!

What you’ll need to make your Christmas Tree Banner

string or twine

stapler

buttons

coordinating pattern paper

gluestick or other type of adhesive

pages from an old book

How to put you book page Christmas Tree Banner together

Cut rectangles approximately 3.5″ x 6″ in size out of pages from an old book.

Snip out a triangle shape from the bottom of your rectangles. Hint: From left to right, find the center of your rectangle then measure approximately 1 3/4 ” from the bottom to find where the top point of your triangle will be.

Cut out the number of Christmas trees that you’ll need for each piece of your bunting.

Attach trees to your bunting pieces being sure to allow enough room to fold over the top edges. Place a button in the center of each tree.

Now you’re ready to put your bunting together. Cut a length of string and attach banner pieces to string by folding top edge of banner pieces over the string and stapling.

You’re finished. Time to hang that cutie up somewhere and enjoy your new holiday decor!

#OneBigHappy Holiday Moments with Gymboree

How are you prepping as a family to celebrate your One Big Happy holiday moment(s)? Is it spending quality time with your family making One Big Happy holiday decor? Is it drinking One Big Happy hot cocoa by the fire waiting for Santa to arrive? Is it writing One Big Happy holiday cards to family and friends? Share your One BigHappy holiday moments using hashtag #OneBigHappy on Instagram!

Gymboree clothing featured in this post

We took the color inspiration for our Christmas Tree Banner from Gymboree’s gorgeous Holiday collection. They have so many great mix and match items for all ages (up to 12) perfect for church, holiday concerts or family photos!

Enter to Win a $75 Gymboree Gift Card

Today Gymboree is giving one lucky Simple as That reader a $75 gift card to spend on their gorgeous Holiday Collection! To enter, simply follow the prompts in the rafflecopter widget below. Giveaway closes December 1st at 12am MST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be Prepared for Black Friday Shopping

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Black Friday is coming soon and I will not be braving the crowds! I’ll be relaxing at home snagging whatever deals I can while I shop online in my PJs! Who’s with me?

Tips for Smart Online Shopping

Here’s my tip for smart online shopping this holiday – MAKE A LIST! Don’t get sucked in to the “flash deals” and “get-it-now” prices.

Have a list, know the prices on items you’re already looking for so you know when to spot a deal. I’ve been collecting some bigger ticket items in my Amazon wishlist for months now. These are the things I’ve been watching closely and will purchase when I see a valuable savings.

My Virtual Holiday Shopping List

When I see a deal I can quickly and easily add an item to my cart on Amazon. I browse my wishlist often to see if anything has gone on sale – did you know some Black Friday deals are already up!

I’m a list making mama – so that’s my advice. Shop smart, know what you’re looking for and keep a running list so that when the lightening deals hit, you’re prepared!

For the Holiday-Weary Mom

Monday, November 23, 2015

It’s different now that we’re the magic-makers. If even the mention of the holidays makes you feel weary, read this today.

“I have an idea for this year’s snowball fight!” he says while shuffling food around his dinner plate.

We weren’t even talking about Christmas. During our meal, not a word had been spoken of holiday traditions or advent calendars. Not a word of Santa or Baby Jesus. In fact, I think I was in the middle of reminding them to put the toilet seat down every time they use it. (#momlife)

“Oh yeah?” I ask with a bit of trepidation, crossing my fingers that his idea doesn’t make life any more full than it already is.

“If we don’t have enough newspaper, we can use scratch paper from the recycling bin!” he answers.

Phew. THAT I can handle.

(Sidebar: I suppose I should mention that because we live in California, our annual snowball fight involves crumpling up newspaper and firing “snowballs” at each other from across the living room.)

I know — and you know — that the holidays hold an entirely different magic now that we’re the magic-makers. It was so simple when we were kids, and now it is the furthest thing from simple.

Even a less-is-more Christmas season (which I subscribe to wholeheartedly) comes with its fair share of shopping and decorating and baking. It also comes with financial pressures, relationship issues, and the worries of life that — as much as I think they should! — just don’t disappear during the holiday season.

Capturing the magic is complicated because now, we have to look for it.

It doesn’t shoot down the chimney anymore and sprinkle its glitter and warmth under the tree and across the fireplace.

The magic lives in the eyes of our children, when they notice which neighbor was first to string up his lights for the season.

It doesn’t prance across the sky anymore, pulled by a reindeer with a shiny nose.

The magic lives in the little person snuggled up beside you, ready and eager, as you turn to the first page of your family’s favorite Christmas storybook.

It doesn’t rush across the landscape in a train headed for the North Pole.

It dwells in the bedroom across the hall, where your little one is dreaming of (newspaper) snowball fights and visit to a twinkle-lit Christmas tree farm.

This is the time of year when we have to choose to set down the weight of the world, for the time being, and pick up the anticipation of a child on Christmas Eve.

I know you’re weary, mama. But you’ve got this. It’s so much better to live this season with your heart and eyes wide open than to let it pass with your nose to the ground.

“That’s a great idea!” I say to my son. “And don’t let me forget to put on the Christmas music during our snowball fight.”

We’ve got this.

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