Family

Family traditions are important to me, especially those that celebrate my Italian heritage. Each holiday, I try to find an Italian recipe I can incorporate into my own little family’s traditions. This year, I tried my hand at a panettone bread recipe.

Although most people are rearing to return the item immediately after Christmas, it’s actually really smart to wait until after New Years when stores slow down. Also, you might actually get more for the item if you wait for the Christmas sales to end and for the items to go back to full price.

As a mom of two littles, I’m constantly amazed by all the great products out there. I had the chance to test out some new products and all of them would make perfect new mom gifts. If you have a mommy friend who is having a baby in 2017 or just welcomed a new bundle recently, check out these four products that I think would make excellent presents.

I decided to try my artistic skills with royal icing to make gingerbread emoji cookies. After making these irreverent and funny gingerbread men, I had a bunch of leftover gingerbread dough and royal icing. I racked my brain to think of another recipe that could use the ingredients.

My kids are obsessed with anything that has their name on it. This Christmas, I opted to get them the best personalized gifts. I got my kids these awesome personalized books because they both love to read and I want to encourage it whenever I can. I have a distinct feeling they will ask us to read their stories again and again.

I love to bake. Especially during the holidays, I’m constantly trying out a new cookie recipe. This year, I knew I wanted to try making a hanging gingerbread man recipe. What I didn’t know is that we’d undertake a DIY cookie cutter project in order to craft the perfectly silly gingerbread men we created.

I love to bake. It is so therapeutic and a really great stress-reliever. The holidays can be so stressful and finding gifts for everyone can feel like such a challenge. That’s why I love to give baked goods as gifts. This year, I created these little Christmas tree brownies and found cute little white boxes, perfect for gift-giving.

For Thanksgiving, we bravely decided to take our two toddlers on a California road trip. We hadn’t seen most of my husband’s family in over two years since we moved to Arizona. We figured it was time to make the trek so our kids could meet their extended family. They had yet to meet their aunts and uncles, cousins, and great grandmother (who is 86!).

Now that my kids are a little older, they are really starting to get into the holidays. With Christmas right around the corner, I wanted to create a cute, inexpensive and kid-friendly craft. I created this DIY Christmas garland using paint sample cards from the local hardware store.