Happy Friday! Can you believe that Christmas is only 8 days away? I have about 5 million things to do before we pack up and travel back to the Midwest. Every year I have this image of myself sipping hot cocoa and watching Christmas movies, all while admiring the neatly wrapped gifts under the tree and smelling warm cookies cooling on the counter. However, the reality is that I am frantically wrapping presents, I’ve somehow managed to bake zero cookies, and our house is a hot mess (which is exactly how I look, so we match). And our house smells weird. Toddler-scented and oddly sticky. Embrace this reality, Melissa, it’s life.
In the midst of a busy week though, I’ve managed to sit back and enjoy some simple things.
Like the wonderful discovery that Quinn loves cracking peanuts (it keeps her occupied for a solid 20 minutes!). Even when she puts one in her mouth, takes it back out, and hands it to me because “Mommy, I’m sharing with you!” What a kid.
I hope you all have a nice weekend. And I really hope you can take a short break from your holiday prep to enjoy my favorite things from around the web in this week’s edition of Friday Favorites!
***click on the underlined text to be led to the sources of my favorites
Favorite Cookie: Chocolate Brownie Christmas Cookies. That’s right, brownie cookies. What’s not to love?!
Favorite Kid Craft: Bow Tie Noodle Wreath. Since our house is already covered in glitter, I don’t even care if this project gets messy!
Favorite Freezer Meals: 30+ Kid-Friendly Freezer Meals. Once things calm down a bit, I’m planning on a major freezer meal session thanks to this collection of delicious and kid-friendly meals.
Favorite Finishing Touch: Chalkboard tape on dessert plate. Cute idea!
Favorite Fresh Dessert: Mini No-Bake White Chocolate Lemon Cheesecake Tarts. A refreshing twist to add to your holiday dessert lineup.
Favorite Hot Cocoa Station: This one. Perfection.
Favorite Gingerbread: Copycat Starbucks Gingerbread Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting. Gimme, gimme, gimme!
Favorite Platter: DIY Peppermint Platter. Have any of you ever made one of these? I’m tempted to give it a shot.
Favorite Soup: Braised Beef Short Rib Chili + Horseradish Sour Cream. WOW, the flavors in this chili will knock your socks off.
Favorite Giving Idea: Leave snacks for delivery drivers. I love this idea! We did almost all of our holiday shopping online this year, it’s just so much easier than navigating the crowds with a toddler in tow (especially a toddler who loves to sneak things into the cart when mommy isn’t looking). So I know I definitely appreciate the extra work all the delivery drivers are doing this time of year, they’re like Santa so why not leave a treat?
Favorite Bars: No-Bake Vanilla Bean Cheesecake Bars. Give your oven a break and do your mouth a favor, MAKE THESE!
Favorite Festive Fashion: This!
Happy weekend!
Love keeping up with Quinn ! What a sweetheart!!!
Thanks for all the great ideas!!! Always look forward to Friday favorites!!!
Thanks, Aunt Theresa 😊 I sure do miss you!! Hope you guys are having a good Christmas season down in the warmth!