After Parade Hot Chocolate and Cookie Buffet!

     In my little hometown, where we just moved back to this past August, they hold an annual Christmas parade on the 1st Saturday of December. There are craft fairs, and carolers, and often raffles. It is a fun day, so I wanted to share it with family and friends! I spent most of last week baking and decorating, all the while watching the 6 month old Nugget! I was tired by the end of the week, but everything was ready!

    I rearranged our sitting room to accommodate as many people as possible! I decorated our artificial tree, as it was a little too early to get a real one, then set up the hot chocolate buffet!

     I made hot chocolate from scratch using chocolate chips, cream, milk and sweetened condensed milk. (sooooooooo indulgent!) I set out little dishes with cocoa powder, crushed candy cane and cinnamon. There were also marshmallows that I'd dipped in chocolate and sprinkled with candy cane, mini marshmallows, chocolate chops, candy canes and whipped cream!

    
     The cookie table was groaning under all the goodies! I made gingerbread men and sugar cookies, our guests contributed red velvet white chocolate cookies, chocolate chip cookies, butterscotch gingerbread, double butter cookies and Oreo truffles!

Then we all donned our most festive gear and walked down to see the parade. (our apartment is right on main street!

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     It was a lovely parade, and it was snowing! You can't get better than that for the start of the holiday season! I met a few family members at the parade and invited them up to join us, everyone needed to warm up, it was VERY cold out!

We compared ugly Christmas sweaters!

 

 

The Nug got to try his first candy cane! I think he liked it,,,, hehehe!   

It was a fun day, and I hope to do it again next year! Have your Christmas festivities started up yet? I hope you are enjoying the start of the season too!

Pillow Puff Quilt

     I have been trying to slip in some quilting on the days I am not watching The Nugget, who by the way has learned to sit up on his own! Albeit only for a few seconds:)

    
     This picture is blurry as he was swaying around a bit, but he is pretty excited about the accomplishment!
     I am working on a quilt I started a while back, before the move. It is made by cutting 4 and 1/2 inch by 8 and 1/2 inch rectangles of cloth. Fold the pieces in half so that good sides are facing in and sew up two and a half sides, leaving an opening. Turn right side out, lightly stuff with fiber fill and sew closed the opening. You end up with a little pillow!

     I am making as many as I can in red white and blue themed fabric from my stash and am using stuffing from my stash as well, all of which were given to me by various friends and family, so its a free project! To make the quilt you just sew the little pillows into strips,

 then sew the strips together, and the finished product will be a warm comforter type quilt that doesn't need to be backed or edged! Easy right?

     Here is what I have done so far. It is going to be a nice warm quilt, perfect for cold winter nights! I don't know if I will keep it or give it as a Christmas gift yet, I need to stop getting emotionally attached to my creations! I hope you Christmas crafters are getting stuck into your work load, time is ticking my friends!