Advent Post #24 - Merry Christmas!

Well, I hope that you've enjoyed this series of posts!

 

All that's left to say is MERRY CHRISTMAS and I hope that you fully enjoy your day tomorrow, whatever it may bring!

 

 

Advent Post #22 - Yummy Chocolate Brownies!

As much as we *try* to be good with our eating habits over Christmas, who can resist a delicious chocolate brownie!

Image via www.bbcgoodfood.com

However, fear not(!), I came across this recipe for some super chocolate brownies with a magic ingredient that reduces the fat and salt content quite considerably. OK, yes they still contain fat and sugar but without butter or spread on the ingredient list, they've got to be on the healthy side of the brownie fence, right?

Click here for the full recipe if you want to know the secret ingredient and try them out for yourself!

Let me know what you think when you've made them and then challenge your friends to guess the secret ingredient... I bet they'll struggle to get it right!

Advent Post #21: 50 Festive Facts!

Following on from our little quiz, here are 50 festive facts to get you even more in the mood for Christmas!

1. US scientists calculated that Santa would have to visit 822 homes a second to deliver all the world's presents on Christmas Eve, travelling at 650 miles a second.
2. Robins on cards were a joke 150 years ago when postmen wore red tunics and were named after them.
3. Although now mostly vegetarian, in Victorian times, mince pies were made with beef and spices.
4. The tradition of putting tangerines in stockings comes from 12th-century French nuns who left socks full of fruit, nuts and tangerines at the houses of the poor.
5. Despite the tale of three wise men paying homage to baby Jesus, the Bible never gives a number. Matthew's Gospel refers to merely "wise men".
6. Carols began as an old English custom called wassailing, toasting neighbours to a long life.
7. Carols weren't sung in churches until they were introduced by St Francis of Assisi in the 13th century.
8. Hanging stockings out comes from the Dutch custom of leaving shoes packed with food for St Nicholas's donkeys. He would leave small gifts in return.
9. There is no reference to angels singing anywhere in the Bible.
10. Nearly 60 million Christmas trees are grown each year in Europe.
11. The word Noel derives from the French expression "les bonnes nouvelles" or "the good news".
12. Jesus was probably born in a cave and not a wooden stable, say Biblical scholars.
13. The abbreviation Xmas isn't irreligious. The letter X is a Greek abbreviation for Christ.
14. The world's tallest Xmas tree at 221ft high was erected in a Washington shopping mall in 1950.
15. The chances of a white Christmas are just 1 in 10 for England and Wales, and 1 in 6 for Scotland and Northern Ireland.
16. Many theologians estimate that Jesus wasn't born on December 25 but sometime in September between 6BC and 30AD.
17. James Pierpont's 1857 song Jingle Bells was first called One Horse Open Sleigh and was written for Thanksgiving.
18. Before turkey, the traditional Christmas meal in England was a pig's head and mustard.
19. In 1647, after the English Civil War, Oliver Cromwell banned festivities. The law wasn't lifted until 1660.
20. In 1999, residents of the state of Maine in America built the world's biggest ever snowman. He stood at 113ft tall.
21. The Greeks celebrate Christmas on January 7, according to the old Julian calendar, while Xmas presents are opened on New Year's Day.
22. Many parts of the Christmas tree can actually be eaten, with the needles being a good source of Vitamin C.
23. The holly in a wreath symbolises Christ's crown of thorns while the red berries are drops of his blood.
24. The first commercial Christmas cards were commissioned by civil servant Sir Henry Cole in London in 1843. Featuring a family drinking wine, one sold for  £8,469 last year.
25. Hanging presents on trees may come from the Druids who believed the tree was the giver of all good things.
26. The largest Christmas cracker - 45.72m long and 3.04m in diameter - was pulled in Australia in 1991.
27. The long shopping spree before Christmas began in America when relatives of soldiers posted overseas in the Second World War were encouraged to mail gifts early.
28. Jingle Bells was the first song broadcast from space when Gemini 6 astronauts Tom Stafford and Wally Schirra sang it on December 16, 1965.
29. Astronomers believe the Star Of Bethlehem, which guided the wisemen to Jesus, may have been a comet or the planet Uranus.
30. Santa has different names around the world - Kriss Kringle in Germany, Le Befana in Italy, Pere Noel in France and Deushka Moroz (Grandfather Frost) in Russia.
31. The word Christmas comes from the Old English "Cristes maesse" meaning "Christ's Mass".
32. The bestselling Xmas single ever is Bing Crosby's White Christmas, shifting over 50million copies worldwide since 1942.
33. In Britain, the best-selling festive single is Band Aid's 1984 track, Do They Know It's Christmas?, which sold 3.5million copies. Wham! is next in the same year with Last Christmas, selling 1.4million.
34. Upside-down artificial Xmas trees are sold to allow more gifts to be piled under.
35. Since 1947 Oslo has sent an Xmas tree to London to thank us for our help in the Second World War.
36. Christmas pudding was originally a soup made with raisins and wine.
37. London sweetmaker Tom Smith created the first Christmas crackers in 1847, based on the sweet wrapper design.
38. Santa Claus comes from a Dutch folk tale based on Saint Nicholas, or Sinterklaas, who gave gifts on December 6.
39. Boxing Day gets its name from all the money collected in church alms-boxes for the poor.
40. Kissing under the mistletoe is thought to spring from Frigga, the Norse goddess of love, who was associated with the plant.
41. The Beatles hold the record for most Xmas number 1 singles, topping the charts in 1963, 65 and 67.
42. Electric tree lights were invented by Edward Johnson in the US in 1882.
43. They may date back to pagan traditions, but the earliest known reference to a Christmas tree is in a German pamphlet from 1570.
44. The highest-grossing festive movie is 2000's How The Grinch Stole Christmas, which has raked in #175m so far.
45. There are 13 Santas in Iceland, each leaving a gift for children. They come down from the mountain one by one, starting on December 12 and have names like Spoon Licker, Door Sniffer and Meat Hook.
46. Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was invented for a US firm's Christmas promotion in 1938.
47. Gold-wrapped chocolate coins commemorate St Nicholas who gave bags of gold coins to the poor.
48. The first Christmas celebrated in Britain is thought to have been in York in 521AD.
49. In Greece, Italy, Spain and Germany, workers get a Christmas bonus of one month's salary by law.
50. In the Czech Republic they enjoy dinners of fish soup, eggs and carp. The number of people at the table must be even, or the one without a partner will die next year.

So there you are, lots of facts to strike up a conversation with at family gatherings where you've forgotten exactly who is who... or is that just me!?

Facts sourced from the Daily Mirror online.

Advent Post #20: more edible treats! Butterscotch Cookies

Simple to make and delicious to eat around the fire with a hot chocolate, but also nice enough to give as a gift to a child's teacher, lovely neighbour or anyone you like really! Once completely cooled, wrap in cellophane with a pretty ribbon or in a small box or tin decorated however you wish!

Butterscotch cookies, makes 10, prep 10 mins, cook 20 mins

Ingredients

100g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for the baking sheet

100g light soft brown sugar

2 tbsp golden syrup

175g self-raising flour

25g puffed rice cereal, such as Rice Krispies

dark chocolate chips, for decoration

 

Method

1. Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar and golden syrup until smooth.
2. Sift in the flour and mix together, then fold through the puffed rice cereal. Roll into walnut-sized balls and place, well spaced, on a lightly buttered baking sheet. Decorate each ball with a few chocolate chips.
3. Bake for 15-20 mins until golden. Leave on the baking sheet for 1 min before removing to a wire rack to cool.

Recipe source: BBC Good Food Magazine.

Advent Post #8: Christmas Craft - O Christmas Tree!

You can spend a fortune at this time of year on the little extras which are sold to you promising to bring that 'Christmas Magic' into your home. But for me, my most treasured Christmas decorations and ornaments are the ones made by my kids! And I'm sure that's the same for many of you.

Many items are made at school and brought home on the last day of term, proudly passed over to Mum or Dad at the school gate (quite often, there's more than you can carry and it will probably be raining!). Don't forget the carrier bag!

To help with ideas to make some lovely decorations at home, have a look at the links below. There's plenty of ideas to fill a quiet Sunday afternoon while you get on with some Christmas present wrapping!

Printable Christmas tree craft

Christmas tree hanging decoration

Handprint Christmas Tree

Scrap ribbon Christmas tree

Toddler crafts - pom pom Christmas tree

You can also pick up 'colour your own decorations' kits from various shops - or even design your own if you're handy with programs such as Paint!

Happy crafting!

Katie's Advent Calendar!

Throughout December, I'll have a different, daily festive craft activity, gift idea, recipe or something else that has caught my eye to share with you! Some simple and kid-friendly and some a bit more complicated but perfect for entertaining your families over the Christmas period.

Don't forget to follow or subscribe to receive the updates straight to your inbox - share with your friends too, so everyone gets a taste of Christmas, 'Katie-style'! Thanks for keeping up with my news and recipes! Hope you all have a busy but manageable December!

My Favourite Christmas Songs Of All Time...

Following a tweet earlier on from @crazywithtwins talking about her lastest post "24 Family Advent Activities", I thought... what can I write about that's Christmassy, festive and fun?!

After an opticians appointment and shopping trip this afternoon, we were *supposed* to be coming home to decorate the tree, put up the decorations and make some Christmas cupcakes & cookies...  Well, "fate" had other ideas!  We had finished the shopping, left the supermarket with a HUGE trolley of goodies, got to the car and the key fob decided not to work to open the car. No problem, you would think, just open the car door with the key!  Great.... until the key snaps in the lock!!!!  (Also, did I mention it's raining and there's me, hubby, eldest aged 8, youngest aged 5 and things in the trolley which really shouldn't be getting wet!!!)

To cut a long and soggy story short, clever hubby breaks into the car, manages to retrieve the piece of key from the lock and start the car using the broken bit (pushed into the ignition with the bit it should be attached to!)  So at least we got home, although now the broken bit is stuck in the ignition!!!

Oh well!  We'll worry about that tomorrow!  After I've decorated the tree with the children, that is!  Well, put the decorations on the tree - not the children!

But here's something that has cheered me up.... my top 24 Christmas songs!

1. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer  
2. All I Want For Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey  
3. Little Donkey 
4. Fairytale of New York - The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl 
5. Away in a Manger 
6. Sleigh Ride 
7. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Frank Sinatra 
8. Driving Home For Christmas - Chris Rea
9. Last Christmas - Wham! 
10. When Santa Got Stuck Up The Chimney 
11. Do They Know It's Christmas - Band Aid 
12. I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday - Wizzard
13. Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree
14. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! - Dean Martin
15. Stay Another Day - East 17
16. Stop The Cavalry - Jona Lewis 
17. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) - John Lennon 
18. Walking In A Winter Wonderland - Dean Martin
19. Frosty The Snowman
20. Walking In The Air - The Snowman
21. Wonderful Christmas Time - Paul McCartney & Wings
22. Step Into Christmas - Elton John
23. Christmas Time (Don't Let The Bells End) - The Darkness
24. Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helms

And an extra one from my children...

Dymunwn Nadolig Llawen
Dymunwn Nadolig Llawen
Dymunwn Nadolig Llawen
a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda

Llawenydd i chi
a phawb yn y tŷ
Dymunwn Nadolig Llawen
a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda.