When the weather turns colder, it becomes essential to have some good indoor activities on tap for the kids (and adults, for that matter). Particularly when temperatures dip to “no exposed skin” levels and/or you have a family member fighting off a cold – which seems to be most of the winter months – it’s nice to stay hunkered down inside. When you can combine an activity with getting other items checked off your to-do list, all the better! These orange clove pomanders are simple enough to do with the kids (even Ella, at age 3, loved it) and result in great holiday décor, such as a centerpiece when grouped together. They also can serve as simple but pretty gifts to give to teachers, party hosts, and co-workers (anyone else find Secret Santa gift-giving extremely challenging?). The materials and the steps are simple, and are included below.

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One of the first things my mom said when I found out I was having January baby was “Oh, it’s tough to figure out birthday parties during the winter!” She was right, and for the last few years we’ve had smaller parties at the house, really done up the theme that Taylor chooses with the decorations, and tried to think of a good activity to hold the kids’ attention. For his 5^th birthday party, he really REALLY wanted a Ninjago theme. We didn’t have the characters at home at the time, so I had no idea what he was talking about, but he was so excited at the possibility that I happily agreed. My first stop was to the party store, where I struck out big time. Note to the licensing agent(s) for Ninjago: you’re missing the boat, people. So, I went to work online, trying to figure out what exactly these little characters are and do, and how to creatively decorate with it as a theme for a little kid’s birthday party (in other words, nix the swords). What in the world did people do before the internet and more specifically, Pinterest?  I’ll tell you now, this link will be your friend. Print off more masks that you think you’ll need, and you should be set to tackle the various projects below.

When the kids walked into the house, this was the first thing they saw – the sign for the birthday boy, the cake and treat boxes, and their personalized ninja headbands. I used the medium to large sized masks and a glue stick to adhere to inexpensive paper lanterns hung throughout the house. I used the smaller cutouts for the take-home treat boxes, which are available in many colors at party supply or craft stores. For the headbands I used cotton t-shirt fabric, cut into long strips. The stretchy fabric helped the headbands stay secure. I used stickers for the names. The kids loved having the headbands, and it was a good way for the parents to be able to identify all of the kids by name.

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I love the holiday season, as Trevor and I tend to ditch our preference for being homebodies in favor of getting out and about to see friends, attend events, etc. I suppose it doesn’t hurt that cute invitations and festive spirits are present to draw us in. Friends recently had a group of us over for game night, and I offered to bring an appetizer and specialty cocktail. I always gravitate toward appetizers when looking at a menu or cookbook, and who doesn’t like a specialty cocktail, but I find it challenging to bring those items to a party. The whole point of chipping in for the food or drink should be to ease some of the stress or burden on the host, but most of my go-to appetizer recipes involve cooking or fussy preparation. And when I’m the one hosting, that’s okay, but for this occasion I needed to find some options that I could prepare fully in advance, would travel well, and could be served as-is upon arrival. I landed on yummy garlic roasted nuts, shrimp pate (sounds much fancier than it is, yet “fish dip” doesn’t quite do it justice) and a whiskey apple cider cocktail – recipes included below. For transporting as well as serving, I picked up inexpensive glass jars and a large basket at T.J. Maxx. The basket made for a good presentation (and handy transport), and the glass jars were nice enough such that my friend could simply open them up and include them on the table of other savory snacks.

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