Tag: christmas

Posted in Blogmas, Recipes

Christmas Day

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

The final day of Blogmas!

I would have posted sooner but yesterday and today was crazy between going to work, getting last-minute presents, and trying to wrap everything before people came over.

Usually, I’m a gift bag type of person, but I tried to live out my Hallmark main character fantasy. I watched two videos on how to wrap presents, and let’s just say I’m going back to gift bags next year.

Wrapping problems aside, last night was so fun. I’m surprised I stayed up until midnight- saying that makes me sound like an old person, but I was just sooo tired. But it was worth it to see everyone’s faces as they opened their gifts.

My boyfriend has wanted a new longboard for a while now. He always talks himself out of buying one because of the price. So I knew it was perfect even though I went over the agreed-upon $50 gift limit we set months earlier. Giving him his gift was the highlight of my day. I don’t know if it was his cute little smile or the fact he just started smothering me in kisses, or the fact he ran outside at midnight to ride it. He was like a little kid it was soo cute.

Since we open presents on the 24th we don’t usually do much on the 25th.

The kids played with their new toys while the adults just at and watched tv. Soul came out on Disney and Wonder Woman premiered on HBO. So we were so busy watching the movies.

When we were done with all the new stuff it was time for a classic. We decided to put on Harry Potter and make our own butter beer.

I tried to convince my family to play a Harry Potter drinking game with me but they were completely against the idea.

Apparently watching Harry Potter which wasn’t even my idea was soo boring. My sister fell asleep during the first movie.

Today was overall fun. the little ones had a great time opening all their gifts.

I’ve had this recipe for butterbeer saved in my notes for a year. This isn’t my usual recipe it’s not even my original recipe. But I don’t remember where I got the original recipe from.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup light or dark brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 6 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon  salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
  • 3/4 cup heavy cream divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon rum extract
  • 4 bottles (12 oz. bottles) cream soda

Instructions

  1. In a small saucepan over medium, combine the brown sugar and water. Bring to a gentle boil and cook, stirring often, until the mixture reads 240 F on a candy thermometer.
  2. Stir in the butter, salt, vinegar and 1/4 heavy cream. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
  3. Once the mixture has cooled, stir in the rum extract.
  4. In a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar mixture and the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Use an electric mixer to beat until just thickened, but not completely whipped, about 2 to 3 minutes.
  5. To serve, divide the brown sugar mixture between 4 tall glasses (about 1/4 cup for each glass). Add 1/4 cup of cream soda to each glass, then stir to combine. Fill each glass nearly to the top with additional cream soda, then spoon the whipped topping over each.
Posted in Blogmas, Lifestyle

Countdown to Christmas

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Day 23 of Blogmas.

I can’t believe how fast this month has gone. Christmas is in 1 day, and I’m still not ready.

Last night instead of posting, I was too busy getting lit. My friends and I had an ugly Christmas sweater party. I seriously lack photos because the night was soo fun that I didn’t really stop to grab my phone or a good camera to take a picture of our whole group.

We kept the party small due to COVID. But with the right people, you couldn’t even tell it was just the 7 of us.

We were too busy eating and talking and just having a good time together. Honestly I love having dinner parties. More importantly I love having potlucks. Because our menu was fire! Adobo chicken, Jamaican curry goat, some amazing cauliflower mac n cheese- I literally had to find a copycat recipe for that.

https://youtu.be/U3OFYDpkZQ0

I’m glad everyone else contributed to the actual meal because all I made was dessert and brought alcohol.

But we didn’t really care about who brought what. We cared about being together.

Especially once we started playing little games. The holiday bingo and word unscramble were definitely fun. But pin the Santa hat on Baby Yoda was the highlight of the night.

I know, we’re nerds!

Last night was so fun, but today was work.

All-day was dedicated to cooking Christmas dinner…or I guess Christmas Eve Dinner technically. My family is a little weird; we don’t celebrate on Christmas Day. We celebrate at midnight on Christmas Eve.

I absolutely loved making tamales with my boyfriend’s family. We put on Christmas movies and got to work.

I loved how the whole family was involved. Growing up, it was always just my mom making tamales and me. And the last few years, it’s been me by myself.

But not today! We had an assembly line, and everyone had to work.

It started with Nena putting the masa on the corn husk and the banana leaves. Her telling us what to do.

It was weird that we had a bunch of “addings,” as my niece calls them. We added potatoes, green olives, and jalapeños with carrots to them. Something I’ve never done before, but it’s delicious.

I started counting, but after 145, I gave up. We’re still steaming 3 pots of tamales as I type this.

Look at this picture my boyfriend got of the pupper.

After we finished assembly the tamales, we started on dessert.

Apparently, we don’t do anything small in this house because we made cookies on cookies on cookies. Almost 200 cookies. I’m gonna be Oprah.

You get cookies! And you get cookies! Everyone gets cookies!!!

I can’t wait until tomorrow to eat everything and to open presents.

Posted in Blogmas

Christmas Lights!

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Merry Blogmas day 21 to you!

Today is the first day of winter!

I love, love, LOVE holiday lights.

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is getting into the car, getting some hot chocolate, play Christmas music while taking a drive to see all of the Christmas lights.

I went with something local but my brother went to see the Christmas lights in Dodger Stadium. The video and pictures of it was festive, beautiful, and full of holiday spirit. I’m sure there’s still time to see it but I don’t think I’ll be going this year. And I’ve seen pictures and videos of it so it’s like I’ve already gone.

For the first time in a few years my neighborhood is full of Christmas lights. I’m so glad more families are moving back in my neighborhood. My neighbors decorating skills are amazing. Some houses looked like they belonged on The Great Christmas Light Fight. I wanted to take pictures but I was so caught in the moment of it all.

Maybe I’m being dramatic but it feels like the sparkles are more needed than ever this year. My favorite part was when I found a group of houses all having an candy cane archway. Did I pull over the car to walk through an arch in front of someone’s house? Yes, yes I did.

Now that I’m home I plan to put on some Christmas music and get in the zone so I can wrap all those gifts!

I know Christmas can be busy, but my Christmas wish for you is that you just take the time to enjoy this time of year with family and friends!

Christmas is in 4 days and I just can’t believe it. I’m almost ready for Christmas. How about you?

Posted in Blogmas

Gingerbread house fail!

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Welcome to Day 20 of Blogmas! 

Sorry for no posts the last few days. I’ve been feeling really sick and just exhausted lately. But I’m back and better than ever.

When I was sick, I kinda fell out of my Christmas spirit. I didn’t even listen to my friend’s playlist that she shared with me until last night.

https://open.spotify.com/user/1228842708/playlist/39Ok4YeSytaKNqkPUYIBeW?si=F-1iAw2mSa-Y1OZNtSrFug

My boyfriend was the one who helped get me back into the spirit of Christmas. He decided it would be nice to do something more traditional and fun to build a Gingerbread House.

I don’t think of myself as being particularly creative, but I do love crafts. Gingerbread houses remind me of my mom. When I was a kid, she baked the gingerbread house and little gingerbread kids from scratch. It was my job as a kid to decorate and eat the gingerbread kids. As an adult, I now feel my baking skill level is below average. I have never baked a gingerbread house before, and the only gingerbread men I’ve ever made were well under par. 

We found a cheap gingerbread village in Target. Which was incredibly useful as it provided all of the gingerbread pieces, icing, and decorations. I actually didn’t expect to get the decorations, and I’m really happy with this kit!

The kit we used https://www.target.com/p/holiday-mini-village-gingerbread-kit-28oz-wondershop-8482/-/A-54615210

If I’m honest, decorating a gingerbread house isn’t as easy as it looks. The gingerbread pieces had markings on them to guide us when doing things like the door and windows, but piping the icing neatly was still quite tricky. It’s actually challenging sticking it all together as they kept sliding around and falling. Yet, once it was all together, it held well and looks really impressive.

This was the very first time my boyfriend made a gingerbread house. He didn’t get the point of them. He asked a bunch of questions. Who would actually eat them? If you aren’t going to eat them, then why go through the process of making them? Isn’t that just wasting food?

My boyfriend and my brother made their houses look so great. Mine looks like it was hit by hurricane cookie-trina. If I can be honest, I don’t know if it was that successful, but I don’t know if I can consider it as a fail; I’ll let you decide!

Hope you enjoyed it, and have you made your Gingerbread house yet? Have you ever made a Gingerbread House? Did yours look better than mine? It probably did.

Thank you very much for reading this blog post, and I hope that you’re still enjoying blogmas! I’ll see you again tomorrow for the final week of blogmas, so make sure you stay tuned for that!

Posted in Blogmas, Recipes

Great-grandma Goodall’s biscuits.

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Day 16 of blogmas 2020!

Christmas is all about sharing. Today, I’d love to share something from my family with yours- a family heirloom. My family is a little different; some of the most cherished inheritances are our own family recipes.

Great-grandma Goodall’s biscuits. It’s the recipe my Great Grandma Gwen originally made, then passed down to her son, my mom, and me. It’s one I’m proud as punch to share when I go to others’ homes as well.

I did have to change it a little because I never learned to cook them correctly. All I had was a copy of a photo of the recipe.

I tried to keep it close to the original, but I’ve never had them, and it took a lot of experimenting to find a version that I actually like to make and eat. I ended up with a cross between a dinner roll and a flaky biscuit.

The most important thing was getting the right amount of yeast. It’s all because the yeast back in the day were called cakes and were the size of bouillon cubes. Yeast packets now are nothing like that, and I know because I used all three packages when I made it the first time.

What I was expecting after using all three packs!

So now it’s your turn to give it a try. Let’s get started…

Here’s the ingredients you’ll need for this 

  • 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup butter (softened)
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 pkg. quick active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp.)
  • 1/2 cup hot water 
  • 1/2 cup hot milk 

Directions

Mix 2 cups of flour, sugar, butter, salt, and yeast in a large bowl. Add the hot water, hot milk, and egg. Beat with electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute, scraping bowl frequently. Beat on medium speed for 1-minute scraping bowl repeatedly. Stir in enough remaining flour to make the dough easy to handle.


Place dough on a lightly floured surface. Knead for about 5 minutes or until the dough is smooth and springy. Place dough in a large bowl greased with shortening, turning to grease on all sides. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and allow to rise about 1 hour or until doubled in size. The dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.


Grease the bottoms and sides of a large muffin pan. Make dough as directed, push fist into the risen dough; divide dough by cutting in half. Pinch off dough and make 3 balls of equal size; put 3 balls in each muffin cup and brush with butter. Cover with plastic wrap; let rise for about 30 minutes.


Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Brush tops with butter.

If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #recipeswithbunny.

Posted in Blogmas

Christmas Wish List

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Day 15 of Blogmas!!

Today’s, post it later than usual but today was a roller coaster of emotions.

I started today off with a massive headache and felt sluggish. I decided that as long as i didn’t have a fever, still had my sense of taste and smell, or was throwing up, I could still work. Let’s skip the gross parts, but a $175 covid test and a trip to an urgent care later, I’m fine. My body was so stressed; it caused me to have a migraine, and I learned I suffer from anxiety nausea. Before today, I thought that was just something they made up for Chidi in The Good Place.

Christmas is just around the corner, so I thought today I would share my Christmas wish list. 

I wasn’t originally going to do a Christmas wish list post. Still, I just loved reading other bloggers’ wish lists, so I decided to make a post of my own. I personally love buying Christmas gifts for my friends and family – but they are always asking, “what do you want?” 

I sometimes find it hard to answer this question because I actually feel pretty content with everything I have. I hate asking for stuff because I can purchase it myself or talk myself out of wanting it if I need something. I’d rather people save their money instead of buying me stuff… for the fun of it, here are some things that I’d like. 

Before I get started, I am mostly doing this for Blogmas purposes, and probably most things I will save up and get myself.

Starbucks gift cards- if you know me personally, you know my caffeine addiction. 

Books or Barnes & Noble gift card- Books are on my wishlist every year and have been since I could read. I know, I have so many books that I need to start reading, so I shouldn’t really be asking for any more, but I can’t help it.

A random knick-knack or clothing- I am a huge fan of anything bee, cactus, and bunny-themed, or anything yellow. Still looking for those bumblebee tights from me before you. 

Polaroid film- I have a polaroid camera that I love and can always use film. Again, another practical gift.

Meal prep containers- I really need to start eating healthier. Not just healthier but eating more in general. I know eating one meal a day is not healthy, but it feels like I never have the time to cook for myself. 

And that is my Christmas wish list for 2020.

What are you hoping to get for Christmas? Please do share as I love interacting with you guys, and after you read my wish list, it is only fair that I read yours!

Posted in Blogmas, Creative

Christmas wreaths DIY

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Day 14 of Blogmas!!

Another Day, another DIY Christmas craft. 

I’ve been into DIYs so much lately. This time its wreaths!

Christmas is right around the corner, and I’m still doing some basic decorating for myself. 

I was due to have my driving test today, and it was canceled due to COVID. And there’s no idea when we will be able to reschedule it. Instead of sulking about still not having my license, I went to a friend’s house, and together we decided we needed a craft day. Which was great because I had no idea what I was planning to write today. 

Onto the wreath you came here to make—you’ll need the following:

  • a metal wire frame
  • different types of greenery
  • Ribbon or twine for hanging
  • An assortment of random things for a little razzle-dazzle 
  • Hot glue for the embellishments

I found a metal wire frame at a dollar tree. It was a total score. 2pack, and the frames are 8 inches.  

Target is where I got my greenery. They have fake Christmas tree branches. I also scored a cypress, pine cone, and berry stem filler/decoration thing. Both were $10. 

As my niece called the random bells and flowers, the toppings were also from a dollar tree. 

Once you have all your supplies here’s how it’s done: 

  • Arrange your greenery how you want it to look. 

I cut a few pieces I felt were too long and made sure it didn’t look too bulky. They are made of wire. I used scissors, but if you have wire cutters, I definitely recommend them. 

  • Begin attaching the greenery —one by one—to your wire frame.

If your frame is bigger than an 8-inch frame, I would recommend making bunches, so you have an evenness around the entirety of the wreath. I think groups will help you get so many gaps. 

Since my frame was small, I draped the greenery over the edge, winding around each stem a few times to ensure it’s secure. Overlap your bunches with the previous to cover the branches.

  • Fill in any gaps and add embellishments. 

For the purpose of hanging, create a loop. Cut an inch extra of the amount needed to hang your wreath. Tie the circle around the back of the frame and make a knot. 

When you begin layering on your add-ons, pay attention to cover the stems. Also, pick flowers that hold their shape. 

As you can see from the picture, I didn’t really know where I was going with this. I started placing different stuff I bought, and this was the result. To be honest, in the beginning, mine looked shocking, and I wasn’t very impressed with it. Still, as I got further around it, suddenly all came together. For my first try, this looks great, and this one only took 30 minutes to make.

Suppose I had a place where I could decorate myself. In that case, I could definitely see making a new wreath each year as a new holiday tradition. It’s easy and fun, and you can make them how big or whatever shape you want. Maybe next year I’ll do one again, but it will be a Disney wreath. 

Posted in Blogmas

Handle Holiday Stress

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Day 12 of Blogmas 2020!

My coworker, for the longest, was definitely not on board with my festive happy optimism. She went through a breakup during quarantine. She’s so much happier now and better off without him. But I think my coworker started to get into a funk for a while when she realized that she would be alone this Christmas.

Up until Friday, she was not even putting up a tree for Christmas. She actually really enjoys the holidays. She’s still not on my decked out in DIY holiday earrings level, but now I’ll catch her singing “Fa la la la la.” It still counts even with her eyes rolled.  

So we discussed her celebrating the transition and appreciating the individuality of this particular season. 

  1. Try to see things through a positive lens. Think of all of the good things that could. Just around the corner could be something better than expected. The future is a surprise gift, just waiting for you to open.
  2. Remember to respond, not react. Things don’t always go our way, and hiccups are bound to happen. Getting upset and anxious about it and reacting doesn’t help anyone. Some things are just out of our hands, and we have to trust and believe that they will work out. It’s called faith!
  3. When the memories begin to flood your mind, and the ache in your heart gets very real because you will miss your current life. Do your best to remember the fantastic lessons you have learned since your last big transition.
  4. Embrace the change. Change excites me. However, the transition part isn’t always the most fun. It is uncomfortable and sometimes ugly … that is… if you allow it to be. Find ways to have fun along the way. Laugh and make new memories!
  5. BE FLEXIBLE. A very self-explanatory and elementary concept, but it’s VITAL to decking the hallway!
  6. Let things go. Some things work wonderfully in your current season that won’t work in the new season. Don’t try to hang on … If you lose a bunch of weight, you’re old clothes don’t fit anymore, right? Something is freeing about entering into a new season and starting fresh.
  7. Remember to maintain an attitude of gratitude. If you’re thankful, it’s tough to be upset. Be grateful for what you have, for what you have experienced, and where you are going. Be grateful for the people in your life.

If you’re not in a season of change or transition right now, you will be at some point. It’s inevitable. Just remember to enjoy the process.

Posted in Blogmas

Christmas Time Essentials

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Hello lovely people! Back at it with day 11 of Blogmas 2020!

Today I will be sharing with you some of my MUST-HAVES for the holiday season! There are so many wonderful things that make this season magical!

  • Christmas sweater or oversized sweater (Goodwill is the jackpot)
  • Hot cocoa packets 
  • Holiday/winter scented candle. (Michaels has the best candles and the best deals. I got 3 for 9.99.)
  • Christmas mug (you can get this at Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, literally anywhere)
  • Cookie butter flavored coffee creamer. (Usually, I’m all about the eggnog or peppermint flavors, but my coworker brought in cookie butter, and this is my life now.)
  • Fuzzy Christmas socks/ cabin socks
  • Wrapping paper, ribbon, and LOTS of tape.
  • Cookie dough (before you say anything its safe to eat it raw, now)
  • Lights, tinsel, ornaments, decor
  • Christmas playlist 
  • A maroon, red, dark lipstick
  • Recipes for yummy food
  • Christmas movie collection
  • Candy canes! Do people still put candy canes on the tree, or is that just me?
  • PEOPLE!!!! (need I explain?)
  • Christmas Time Bucket List… you should check that post if you haven’t already.
  • Festive nail polish colors
  • Christmas PJs.
  • Warm snuggly blanket
Posted in Blogmas

Naughty or Nice?

Posted on by Eryn 🐰

Day 9 of Blogmas 2020! 

Christmas will be here in 16 days. So, did you make Santa’s naughty or nice list?

 I’d like to think I’ve been nice.

Anyway, I took an online quiz for a little bit of fun to determine if I have been naughty or nice the year… Turns out I’m on Santa’s nice list. 

I see being “nice” as being a good person. My goal for 2020 was to become a better person. I know being a better persona and a good person arent the same thing. I had my struggles with this.

Mostly what I did was 

  • Remind myself to breathe
  • Use positive self-talk
  • Practice random acts of kindness
  • Learn to forgive myself and others
  • Remember to be kind to myself

I learned being a better person starts with treating yourself with the same loving-kindness as you do others.

I’ve really tried to help my family and friends when they needed it this year. But at times this year, I was too nice. I was spreading myself thin for others. I had to learn to set boundaries and be honest with people. 

I’m not in high school anymore. I’m not going to be able to see and talk to my friends all day, every day. I’m not fake for being busy. We all have jobs and lives, and I don’t even live in the same states as some of my friends. 

I learned that it does not take much to be a good friend. Checking in or making time to see my friends takes nothing starts with nothing than a text. Volunteering to help with simple things or even cooking a meal means the most to my friends with kids. 

Being a good person and friendly to others should not only happen during the Christmas period but should be an everyday affair!

Enjoy the holiday season and if possible, take advantage of any downtime you have to reflect on where you are on the naughty and nice list. While you’re at it, don’t forget to jot down the “nice” things that you’ve done over this year.