Merry Christmas!

From all of us at the Really Real Housewives, we wish you a Merry Christmas and the happiest of holidays. We'll be back after the festivities with more survival tips and ways to keep life simple. 

Now, go have some Christmas cheer and remember to smile!

Christmas Cookies!

Once again I am delighted to have been invited by the Really Real Housewives to do another post for their blog. Thanks ladies, it’s fun to do.

I just learned a good tip from another bowler which she got from her manicurist. It came about because I had once split my nail right up the middle when bowling, thought I had done so again. She told me she had done it a couple of times and the manicurist had told her to mend it with Krazy Glue and then paint over it with clear polish (or coloured I guess). It occurred to me that this would be a good idea for any split nail no matter how it came about. I know mine have a tendency to split at the side when I let them get a tad long. I could cut them before that happens I guess!!

Don’t really have a lot to do except for worrying about Christmas Dinner – no kids or family in Canada – however, I seem to be driving myself crazy about the meal I am cooking. No idea why.

Mind you, I haven’t cooked a whole turkey in a long while so I am flapping about that. I ended up deciding to buy a fresh turkey, the frozen ones are either pre-stuffed or pre-basted and NOT with butter as they lead you to believe. Trouble is, they are rather expensive but not as much more pricey than the frozen ones. I do miss living in NC where turkeys were bred and therefore not so likely to break the bank. I always loved Brussels Sprouts but in the last few years I had gone right off them. I finally realized it was because of the softened water in the building. I cook them in distilled water now and they taste like they should once more.

Christmas is almost here, but you still have time to make these easy cookies.

Easy Slice and Bake Cookies

It's quick and easy to mix together these slice-and-bake cookies whenever you need something sweet. The recipe makes enough dough so you can bake half and put the other half in the freezer—ready to pull out and bake up a few fresh cookies anytime.

1 1/2 cups white whole-wheat flour (see Tip #2)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt1 cup sugar
5 Tbs canola oil
4 Tbs unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
Coarse sugar for decoration

1. Whisk white whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Beat sugar, oil and butter in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer on high until smooth, scraping down the sides. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined.
2. Place half the dough on a large piece of plastic wrap and shape into a 10-inch log (it's OK if it's not perfectly round). Repeat with the remaining dough. Wrap and freeze until just firm, about 45 minutes.
3. Reroll the logs to make them rounder and return to the freezer until very firm, at least 1 hour more. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Remove one roll of dough at a time from the freezer and let stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. Unwrap the dough and slice crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick rounds, turning the dough a quarter turn after each slice to help keep the cookies round. Place 1/2 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Sprinkle each cookie with a little coarse sugar and gently press it into the cookie to help it adhere. Bake 8 minutes for soft cookies or 10 minutes for crisp cookies. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining roll of dough, if desired.

TIPS:

1. Make Ahead Tip: Store wrapped rolls of dough in the freezer for up to 3 months.
2. White whole-wheat flour, made from a special variety of white wheat, is light in color and flavor but has the same nutritional properties as regular whole-wheat flour. It is available at large supermarkets and natural-foods stores and online at bobsredmill.com or kingarthurflour.com. Store it in the freezer.

Recipe Source: Eating Well Magazine

I do hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and I will see you here again on Dec. 28 when I have been invited to burble at you once again. I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.

Jo's Blog

Revlon VS Maybelline 24hr Lipcolor

Recently, I went out of my way to finally buy a lipstick more than $4. Trust me, it's HARD to do. But I buy cheap because I know I'm literally eating the cost. Here's what I mean...


Check out the lipstick on my food!!! It's so yummy...

So, as I'm too hungry or thirsty to care, I eat my lipstick. OH, THE SHAME!

But, I gave in and purchased an $8 Maybelline Super Stay 24hr Color. Not lipstick. It's like colored gloss you apply, and on the other end is a moisturizing balm to "seal in moisture and keep lips comfortable all day". The directions said to apply to clean/dry lips, wait 2 mins, then apply moisturizing balm. Easy, right?

Here is a collage of how the day went:

Likes: easy to wear, lasts most of the day, doesn't show up on a single food/cup/napkin, no lip liner looking remains, if I re-applied the moisturizer again it'd spruce it up a touch, price was reasonable

Dislikes: price (obviously because I like cheap), not 24hr stay at all

But what about another major makeup brand? So, my dear bestie, Precy Larkins, has a 24hr stay called Revlon Colorstay Ultimate. She paid about $10. Here's how her day went:

Likes: stayed on during kissing session/napkin blotting/eating, easy to wear, lasts most of the day

Dislikes: humid weather it doesn't last longer than 2-3hrs

So then I got this bright idea to experiment with the lipcolor. What if I put on a color I liked, and then add the 24hr gloss over it. Would it work? Here's the color result:

Did it work: OH, HECK NO! It was gone in a few bites of a pita. Ah, well, it was worth a try. (Trust me, reversed is no different.)

There you have it, ladies! I firmly support paying over $4 for lipstick so long as it's the 24hr ones. I wouldn't even chance the dollar difference with the 16hr ones. NOPE.  I love this stuff for real. I wish I'd bought a million various colors that day. But the week prior, I'd already picked up about 6 new matte colors!! Dang it!! (However, we both agreed we like the matte lipsticks, as they will stay on for 1/2 the day, but...they come off on foods.)

My advice for the holidays: 24hr lipcolor is the perfect way to keep those gorgeous colors on through any event, party, or smooching sessions....ME-OW!

Holiday Media Magic

My husband and I are big fans of movies, music and books. We have hundreds of Blu-rays and DVD’s, CDs and since my hubby doesn’t like to read (*gasp* I know. Tell me about it.) I have hundreds of books. At Christmas time, we have our favorite movies, music and authors. I wanted to share a few of our favorites, even though everyone has probably seen, heard or read them all.

Movies:

from youtube

The hubby and I started a tradition a few years ago to watch Christmas Vacation every Christmas Eve while we get things ready for the morning. It makes things a bit less hectic through humor. ;) And although I’ve seen this movie a million times, I STILL laugh at it. Still.  “Are you serious Clark?”

A few others movies my kids love and recommend are Arthur Christmas, Home Alone 1 and 2 (These ones come with a really good lesson about NOT being naughty like Kevin is to his parents at times. Yeah. I’m THAT mom…), Elf, The Grinch (not cartoon), The Polar Express (I’m the only person I know that thinks this show is creepy, but everyone else loves it…) and Prep and Landing. This year we’re introducing my kids to The Santa Claus movies.

Music:

One of my very favorite Christmas CD’s is Pentatonix: That’s Christmas To Me. They have two other ones out, which we have all three and listen to them regularly, but That’s Christmas To Me is hands down, my favorite. My kids are obsessed with Pentatonix and my hubby and I love them too. Which is funny, since my hubby’s favorite band is Pearl Jam.

A few other albums we love and recommend are The Piano Guys: A Family Christmas, Kelly Clarkson: Wrapped in Red, Josh Groban: Noel, Tran Siberian Orchestra and Mannheim Steamroller. I’m obsessed with the Tran Siberian Orchestra’s Carol of the Bells. It’s my ringtone… Hahaha

Books:

Oh, books. My favorite things in the entire world. Besides my family of course. ;) While I usually prefer reading YA and MG books, for some reason I crave romantic reads around Christmas time. They don’t necessarily have to be Christmas reads, but it has to have a romance. I love the Timeless Romance Anthologies around this time of year because they are quick and romantic novellas that I can read for a moment during a busy day, Julianne Donaldson’s books, Sarah Eden’s books and Michele Paige Holmes has some lovely romantic reads as well.

I also love re-reading my favorite MG/YA books around Christmas time too, like the Harry Potter series and Percy Jackson series. I’ll listen to them on CD with my kids and they love it.

If you have any recs for any Christmas movies or music or your favorite books, comment below! I'd love to hear them.

Thank you SO much for having me! I’ve had such a blast! I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Chantele Sedgwick is a YA author, harpist, wife to one and mom to four. She loves fairy tales, happy endings, Kit Kats and (judging by her bookshelves), buying way too many books. She lives in Utah with her family and can usually be found reading, or talking her husband’s ear off with her endless supply of book ideas. She’s the author of Not Your Average Fairy Tale, Not Your Average Happy Ending, Love, Lucas, Switching Gears (Feb 2017) and Interlude (2018).

Addicting, Soft Gingersnaps!

Are you craving that wonderful cinnamon scent that makes your home smell like a gingerbread house this season? Look no further. These gingersnap cookies are my very favorite treat this time of year.

Now I'm not a hard cookie fan, and gingersnaps tend to be...well...hard. So, the good news? These are SOFT! And so delicious. And addicting. Like seriously, I can't eat just one. My kids love them too and love to help me roll the dough into balls and into the sugar/cinnamon mix. Perfect Christmas cookies to give neighbors or to eat yourself. Trust me. Your house and your family will love you forever if you make these.

The Best Gingersnap Cookies Ever

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup dark molasses
1/3 cup cinnamon sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt into a mixing bowl. Stir together. Place the butter into a mixing bowl and beat until creamy. Add the white sugar. Beat in the egg and dark molasses. Sift 1/3 of the flour mixture into the shortening mixture; stir to thoroughly blend. Sift in the remaining flour mixture, and mix together until a soft dough forms. Break off small amounts of dough and roll into 1 inch diameter balls between your hands. Roll each ball in cinnamon sugar, and place about 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie/baking sheet.

Bake until the tops are rounded and slightly cracked, about 10 minutes. (I check on them before the full ten minutes and if they are slightly cracked, I take them out.) Let cool.

Enjoy! And don't blame me if the whole batch gets eaten before you can give them away to neighbors.

Chantele Sedgwick is a YA author, harpist, wife to one and mom to four. She loves fairy tales, happy endings, Kit Kats and (judging by her bookshelves), buying way too many books. She lives in Utah with her family and can usually be found reading, or talking her husband’s ear off with her endless supply of book ideas. She’s the author of Not Your Average Fairy Tale, Not Your Average Happy Ending, Love, Lucas, Switching Gears (Feb 2017) and Interlude (2018).