Andrea Woroch provides some tips on choosing the right tree
Of the Christmas tree decorating folk, there are those of us who like assembling the same fake one year after year, and there are those of us who wouldn’t put up with anything less than the real thing. It is pretty hard to beat the smell of a real tree. If you fall into the latter category, consumer savings expert Andrea Woroch has the following tips:
1. Ask Where It Came From Some Christmas tree lots buy trucked-in trees before (American) Thanksgiving, meaning they’ll drop needles faster than airlines can raise their baggage fees. Weeks may have passed since those trees were originally cut, so always ask the vendor where and when they buy their trees. Read more...
Cookie mogul Eden Hertzog shares recipes she enjoys with her family
I take it very personally when my kid doesn’t eat his vegetables. In fact, I get a bit worked up about it. There are a few factors at play here: 1) I want him to eat his vegetables. The operative words being “I” and “want”. Can’t he just do what I want him to do, and how is it that 34 (I mean, 27) years on this planet as my own damn self and suddenly there is a 47” creature in charge of me? 2) He NEEDS his vegetables. Doesn’t he? Like, shouldn’t he? 3) If he doesn’t eat his vegetables it is a sure sign that he will wind up sitting on a couch playing video games, eating Taco Bell and Lucky Charms (out of the box!), and never move out of the basement or aspire to do anything with his life. Now I’m just being honest here people, this is where my mind goes.Read more...
One of the most important Hanukkah customs made more important with things like Lego.
The unique eight-branched candelabrum lit to commemorate Hanukkah presents an opportunity for crafting and teaching your kids about the eight day Festival of Lights. The menorah usually consists of a central stalk with a round base and three branches curving up on each side, with the tallest candle extending straight up from the base in the middle. This adaptable piece can be given a DIY spin, allowing you to turn your window sill into a work of art.
Here are 6 original ideas:
Glass bottle menorah: Strip the labels from 8 short bottles of the same height. One tall bottle, like a wine bottle or olive oil bottle stand in the middle. Cover each bottle with different coloured tissue paper and paint with hodge podge. Stick a candle stick in each bottle. Read more...
Swap a mini art session for the traditional little chocolates
This makes for a great little daily art project to get your kids counting down to Christmas. It subs in some artistic expression for a daily sweet and you’ll have a super cute homemade holiday decoration ready to go for next year. (Or, you could just paint over the previous year’s project and start over)
You’ll need:
25 2″ by 2″ (or bigger if you so choose) mini canvases. You could also do 24 canvases if you’d rather just count down to Christmas Eve
a pencil
some masking tape (or any other easily removable tape)
paint markers or acrylic paint (even regular markers will work OK)
a large piece of bristol board that will accommodate all 25 mini canvases
In which we switch up some great holiday traditions
TRADITION: Drinking Egg Nog
Eggnog is so ridiculously tasty, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without it. It can stay. But we urge you to get crafty with it! Creativity abounds in this creamy beverage’s even more rich history. Derived from “egg and grog” a common Colonial term, egg nog was a drink made from milk, sugar and eggs mixed with brandy or sherry and enjoyed only by the aristocracy (many lower class people didn’t have fridges). Since then, egg nog has been enjoyed across the world in many far-out forms. In New Orleans, it’s mixed with wine, in Peru it’s made with coconut water, and in Germany it’s consumed as a soup made with beer. George Washington allegedly cooked up a batch of his own stiff concoction that included rye, whiskey, rum and sherry. Beastly!
