Photo Ornaments

Every year, I always buy a handful of photo frame ornaments and then fill them with images from that year to add to our Christmas tree.  By now, I have quite a few of these special photo ornaments on the tree.

They are some of the most special ornaments in the whole box of Christmas decorations. I carefully place them on the tree and remember each of those special moments marked by its own ornament. It's become bit of a tradition, and one that I always look forward to adding to each year. 

Here is a look at the ornaments I created this year.  

It only takes a few minutes to put one together, but the sentiment lasts on and on.  Many photo frame ornaments already have the year marked on the frame itself.  But if I use one that doesn't I make sure to write the year on the back of the photo inside.

In the pic above, you can see that the bottom two ornaments have "2016" on the frame.  On the center ornament, there is actually a little tab hanging from the ribbon that reads "2016". 

Here's a look at some of the other special photos gracing our tree from years past.   This one says "Merry Everything" so I chose a photo that we were all laughing in.  And because the frame was red, I selected a black and white to put in it.  This pic was from last year. 

This is my absolute favorite of all my photo ornaments.  It was a gift from my niece Charlotte and sister Misty last year.

It is a handmade ornament with a picture of my Mama when she was a little girl.  Though you can't see it in this picture, I added my favorite angel ornament right beside this special photo. 

Here's one from 2014.  Lexi was still a tiny baby and this was one of her 3 month pictures.  

From 2015, this was one of our family pics.  The frame reads "Birds of a Feather" so I couldn't help choosing another silly pic.  In this one, Lexi is covering half of John's face while he is laughing and I'm oblivious to all of it.  Another favorite. 

And this was one of Lexi's first pics on the tree from 2014.  Someone actually gifted us this pretty frame.  It reads "Tis the Season for Family", with the year 2014 in the upper left corner.  Since that was the year Lexi was born, I added her newborn hospital photo to this pretty frame.  

So there you have it.  This is a just a sample of the many photos on our tree, and I cherish them all. There's just something about tradition and this time of year.  And this is a good one, if I do say so myself.  We would love to hear about your family Christmas traditions too!  Comment below or on our Facebook page!

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How Do You Wrap?

A few years ago, I found this fabulous Christmas wrapping paper.  Red and white wrapping paper in various patterns - I loaded up on it.  Then, when I started wrapping Christmas presents, each person got their own pattern. 

And those presents with coordinating gift wrap even made their way front and center onto our Christmas pic that year, stacked together and tied rather neatly with twine.  This particular bundle was for my nephews.  

I just loved how something so simple worked out so nicely.....and then I promptly, forgot. all. about. my glorious color coordinated, handsomely wrapped presents....

until

this year. I happened to be plowing through the front of my grocery store and was pleasantly surprised by another glorious array of red and white:

The hubs always says I am OCD, but if assigning everyone a specific wrapping paper and coordinating them is wrong, I don't want to be right!

Barefoot Contessa's Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

I recently mixed up a batch of this yummy cornbread to take a to a neighborhood get together.  I knew the main course would be a hearty chili, so I thought this might be a nice compliment, and IT WAS!  It was simple to make and turned out to be super moist and super flavorful too.   A winning combination all the way around!

Barefoot Contessa's Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

3 cups all purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

2 cups milk

3 eggs, lightly beaten

2 sticks melted butter

8 oz extra sharp cheddar, grated

1/3 cup chopped scallions

3 Tbsp fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced

1. Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. 
2. In a separate bowl, combine milk, eggs, and butter.
3. With a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry, until most of the lumps are gone. Do not overmix!
4. Mix in 2 cups of cheddar, scallions, and jalapenos.  Set aside at room temperature for 20 minutes.  
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9 X 13 baking pan. 
6. Pour batter into prepared pan.  Smooth the top.  Sprinkle remaining cheddar and extra chopped scallions over the top. 
7. Bake for 30- 35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. 
8. Cool and cut into large squares.

Notes: When I recently made this recipe, I omitted the step of sprinkling extra cheddar and scallions over the top of the cornbread.  Instead, I used all the cheese and scallions in the batter itself and it was perfect that way too. 

I used closer to 4 Tbsp fresh jalapenos, and it was very nice- not at all hot or too spicy- and I'm not a super spicy type of person. Make your adjustments as you see fit!