Lots o'Dots cake and lots of mince pie

If you've been reading this blog for a while, then you have to know how much my daughter, Zara, loves to bake. At the ripe, old age of 2 1/2, baking has become her favorite thing to do. It's right up there with painting and drawing for her. So, when she asks to go to the kitchen to bake or "mix" as she calls it, my husband and I tend to indulge her. Her last baking whim led to what I call the Lots o'Dots cake.

Lots o'Dots

We all scream for snow cream!

Snow!!!

This is the sight that greeted me when I looked outside this morning. Snow, snow, and more snow! What's a girl to do with all that snow? (Yeah, I'm not shoveling that!)

Make snow cream, of course!

I'm in love...with cinnamon frosting!

This past weekend Seán, my wonderful, amazing husband, turned to me and said, "I haven't seen cupcakes around here in a while." That was his not-so-subtle way of asking me to make some cupcakes. And not just any cupcakes. Christmas-ish cupcakes. What's more Christmas than gingerbread? Not much!

Crafting with Kids

So Norman Rockwell! Photo by Seán.

NEWSFLASH: Winter's here!!! You know what that means, right? Kids stuck indoors. With you. Now, don't panic! I said DON'T PANIC!!! There's things that you can do to make this season more...I dunno, enjoyable? Here are a few cheap and easy ideas for cheap and easy things to do with your kiddos.

Last Christmas I Gave You My...Salt Dough Ornament?!

A few of my salt dough ornaments.

If I'm to be perfectly honest, Christmas is barely on my radar this year. I had had big plans to make all the ornaments, to make my own gingerbread house, to make endless amounts of cookies, but I lack the motivation. I have a few more weeks until Christmas, so I might get into the spirit before then. I'm not holding my breath.

A Fiddy Cent Tree Skirt

My fiddy cent tree skirt.

From the second year of my marriage up until last year I had a gorgeous velvety blue and silver tree skirt. So what happened last year? Well, I won't name names, but a certain potty training toddler (who still is not potty trained) pulled it out from under the tree and peed on it. And you better believe that if she ever gets married, I'm telling that story at her wedding.