Happy New Year!
Our family enjoyed a couple of weeks at home over the break.
We ate lots of food, shoveled lots of snow, opened lots of gifts, read lots of books, and slept a lot — I’m not complaining!
The break was wonderful… but I’m ready for a New Year (and to get back into a routine again!)
Here are a few of my favorite things…
FAVORITE MOMENT = Low-Key Christmas Day
In 37 years of life, I’m not sure I’ve ever had a Christmas Day with ZERO parties or festivities… until this year.
It was wonderful!
We went to church (I played my French Horn in the brass group) and then enjoyed a low-key day at home.
We ate delicious leftovers for lunch (no cooking!), played with new games and toys, watched the 1966 version of The Grinch Stole Christmas (I’ve never seen it before), and went for a hike in our local Nature Preserve (after getting 22 inches of snow the previous 48 hours!)
It was lovely not to cook or host or travel or end the day feeling exhausted from all the festivities.
I wouldn’t be sad if this became a new tradition for our family! 😊
FAVORITE ROUTINE = Winter Canning
As I’ve mentioned before, I do the almost of all my canning over Christmas break.
I started this tradition about 10 years ago, after realizing it was MUCH easier to can while Dave was home over Christmas break to help with the kids… but I’ve kept up the tradition because it’s SO much more enjoyable to sit in my toasty warm kitchen during the cold winter months than in the heat of summer and fall.
Now, I freeze all my fruit in the summer and then defrost and cook it for jam over Christmas break.
I also buy apples from the local orchard every December and do all my applesauce between Christmas and New Years.
This year, I canned 40-ish quarts of applesauce one morning and several batches of jam another morning.
Now I’m done for another year!
RELATED READING: Why I Do My Canning In the Winter
PAST FAVORITE = Bend Soap
I ran out of my beloved Bend Soap in November and I didn’t want to buy more until their Black Friday sales. Plus, I wanted to hold out until all their seasonal scents were released.
Oh my word I missed that stuff — my skin was much dryer without it too.
My order arrived a couple of weeks before Christmas and the Mint Mocha is now my most favorite seasonal scent (yup, even more than peppermint!)
The Chia Tea and Winter Woods are fantastic as well — both new scents for me.
Most of the seasonal scents are still “in stock” so if you hurry, you can give them a try too!
RELATED READING: Why I switched to Bend Soap in 2019
FAVORITE KITCHEN ITEM = Electric Kettle
Over the last 3 years, I’ve tried to teach myself to like tea… I’m still not there yet.
But, my tea experiment did entice me to buy an electric kettle a couple of years ago, and it has quickly become one of my favorite things (especially during cold winter months).
I found this black one (still in the box) for $5 on Facebook Marketplace… but if I were going to buy one brand new, I’d go for this “honeycomb” white one.
We use the kettle regularly for hot chocolate, finger Jell-O, and to sterilize the lids when I’m canning.
I love how quickly it boils water.
Also, the outside of the kettle stays cool to the touch, so you don’t need to worry about someone burning their hands.
RELATED READING: My delicious homemade hot chocolate mix.
FAVORITE BOOK = The Office BFFs
Our library recently got The Office BFFs, and I was the first one to check it out!
After faithfully watching almost all 9 seasons of The Office back when it originally aired, then enjoying a few favorites with Dave when it came to Netflix, and laughing along to The Office Ladie’s podcast for the past few years, it was basically a given that I’d love the book.
And I did!
I read 5 books last month (all of which were fantastic) but The Office BFFs was my top pick for this month’s Favorite Things post.
READ THE BOOK: The Office BFFs
FAVORITE GAME = Kanoodle
Kanoodle is one of the games we gave our kids for Christmas, and it’s a hit with everyone (to the point that they fight over who gets to play with it).
I have to admit… it is REALLY fun and sort of addicting!
Kanoodle is a pocket-size container filled with 14 different shaped pieces that fit together in hundreds of ways.
There are 200 puzzles (both 2D and 3D) with various levels of difficulty, so it works for almost any age level.
James did all 200 puzzles within 48 hours of opening the gift (we technically gave it to him because I knew he’d love it). Clara can easily do the easier puzzles, and Dave and I have had lots of fun with the harder ones.
I currently have a few other Kanoodle products in my Amazon cart because it’s in such high demand around our house.
TRY KANOODLE!
FAVORITE HOBBY = Renovation Dreaming
Dave and I are constantly dreaming and talking about cool things we COULD do to renovate more of our house — dig out the basement, put an addition on, bump out the back side, connect it to our garage, etc. etc.
And although we most likely won’t do any of them, it’s extremely fun and enjoyable to mentally weigh the pros and cons of each idea and plan how I’d arrange furniture and decorate IF we followed through with the renovations.
In the meantime, we very-much enjoy living in our already-renovated home, without walking through constructions zones or constantly cleaning up renovation messes…
But it’s still fun to dream!
RELATED READING: How we control our construction mess.
FAVORITE RECIPE = Chicken and Wild Rice Stew
One of our family’s favorite winter “comfort foods” is chicken and wild rice stew.
This stew is very filling, it’s nutritious, it’s quite easy to put together, and you can easily make it ahead of time and just pop it in the oven roughly 30 minutes before you’re ready to eat.
It also freezes well if you want to make a double batch. 😉
RELATED READING: Chicken and Wild Rice Stew.
FAVORITE QUOTE =
I almost laughed out loud when I read the following in my weekly email from The Nester… so true!
FAVORITE ARCHIVED POST = The Power of One
In all honesty, this post might be one of my favorite posts I’ve ever written over the past 13 years.
After more than 10 years of making small simple changes (one at a time), I was finally able to look back and see the massive changes that had come as a result.
It was exciting, satisfying, and humbling all at the same time… and I hope it’s encouraging for you too!
If you feel overwhelmed by all the changes you want to make, or if you just don’t know where to start, read my archived post and choose ONE small thing to focus on this year.
Read the full posts here.
That’s all for me this month. 😆
If you’re interested, you can scroll through ALL my Favorite Things posts HERE!
Liane says
Hi Andrea,
Wondering what is the function of the non dairy creamer in the hot chocolate mix? I’ve been buying whole milk for my gluten free pancake mix from Amazon. I like this one https://www.amazon.com/Hoosier-Hill-American-Powder-tested/dp/B08769TPSY if link won’t go search by Hoosier Hill. I really miss Swiss miss packets but if you read the label….(gasp!). Trying to eat real food as much as possible.
We have a kettle but I’ve never used it. I just pop a mug in my microwave with a tea bag inside. My current fav is Stash Chai. Amazon has it. It’s also good iced. Hot drinks I like with milk and no sweetener generally. But iced tea and lattes need some.
Andrea says
I think the non dairy creamer was just always what my mom used so that’s what I use now too 🙂
Thanks for the link — I’ll look into it!
Kristen Bates says
How did you make the snowmen? So cute!
Andrea says
It was so easy and fun!
We used 12 boxes (4 large, 4 medium, 4 small) and put various gifts inside each one (you could also do one gift per box). We wrapped everything in white craft paper and added black circles and an orange triangle cut out of construction paper. I tied some red ribbon as a scarf and topped them with Santa hats (and one top hat).
Nicky says
Kettle! Haha. I’m British so life without a kettle is unthinkable, how did you survive until now!
Andrea says
that’s funny! I guess I just don’t drink hot beverages, so I didn’t need a kettle. I’m glad to have one now though 🙂
Emily Frauhiger says
I love your idea of canning in the winter!! It is genius!! How do you store your apples until the end of December? Do they get soft?
Thank you for sharing all your favorites!!!
Andrea says
Hi Emily,
I don’t buy the apples until December. Our local orchard sells them through January (sometimes February) and they are kept in super cold storage with low oxygen so they don’t get overripe at all.
I usually buy them a week or 2 before I plan to can applesauce and just keep them in paper bags in coolers in our garage. It works well!
Fran says
Happy New Year…..love the snowmen gifts….can’t wait to see what 2023 brings ❤️
Andrea says
Thanks Fran! Happy New Year to you too!
JJ says
It looks like you were in Narnia. ❤️ That quote is spot on. What kind of paper did you wrap the snowmen in?
My husband as we were watching World Watch: Where did you hear about this? Me: The Andrea Dekker blog.
My kids as we made a homemade sugar cookie house: Where did you get this recipe again, Mom? Your sugar cookies are the best! Is it that one lady on the computer?
Me: Watching kids paint with paint sticks and thinking, “Andrea Dekker definitely finds the best things!” We had a blast using artprojectsforkids dot come to look up step by step drawings. The metallic blue paint stick made an amazing sky!
Thank you for sharing your favorites! They become ours, too!
Happy New Year!
Andrea says
Yes, we felt like we were in Narnia when we were on our hike… we even talked about it since we had just seen the play at a local high school 🙂
Glad you are liking the World Watch news, sugar cookies, paint sticks, etc.
And the snowman gifts are just wrapped in white craft paper! It was fun for us to do and the kids loved it!
Michele M says
My daughter loved Kanoodle when she was growing up! I’ve had Kanoodle Head to Head saved in my cart for a long time. Now that you reminded me, I might have to finally order it so my daughter and I can play together.
And one of my new favorite things is a steam mop. Now I’m wondering why I waited so long to buy one.
Andrea says
my sister also loves her steam mop — unfortunately, we can’t use one on our old barnwood floors.
I also have the Kanoodle Head to Head in my Amazon cart 🙂
Natalia says
My oldest daughter is 17 and she said yesterday that she really needs to have an electric kettle when she moves out, on her own. I’m sure there will be lots more items to add to that list, but interestingly enough, the kettle made it to the top of her list. And no, moving out is not going to happen soon!
My youngest was complaining of dry skin last night and I made a mental note to get more of the good lotion from Bend Soap. I ran out of the good stuff and I thought we should just use up all the other stuff before I buy more. Well, now I know why we prefer certain brands…. It’s hard for me to throw away “good” stuff. However, just because it is usable, doesn’t mean it’s good enough… I know what kind of clutter I’ll get rid of once my new order arrives. I really want to try the Mint Mocca. Sounds… Delicious!
I missed reading your blog for the past two weeks! I’m glad you’re back!
Andrea says
Thanks for your kind words, Natalia!
I think you’ll love the Mint Mocha — I’m already wishing I would have ordered more!
And yes, I totally get not wanting to “waste” perfectly good toiletries, but sometimes it just doesn’t pay to force yourself to use them up. I know others who have posted half-used cosmetics on freecycle or buy nothing websites. That could be an option???
Christy Pociask says
You could use the lotion you don’t like for cloud dough. I think you just add corn starch and you have white snow dough!
Andrea says
great idea! I’ve also used shaving cream for this 🙂
Chris says
You know, I really love the idea of your daydreaming with Dave about renovations. I love to think about stuff, too. 🙂
I would like to try the chicken recipe.
Happy New Year!
Andrea says
hope you enjoy the chicken recipe — it’s delicious!
Debbie says
We’ve also been talking about renovation for our house recently. We have a small closet pantry and my husband believes it would be pretty easy to do a bump out on the side of the house and make it a walk-in pantry. I totally love the idea but in my mind it seems like a big project, and maybe costly. I don’t know if we will do it, but he seems to believe we will. That quote is so true, isn’t it? Sadly, I did all three this past year. LOL! I felt overwhelmed at all the purging I had to do, but I did a little bit of it this past weekend and I already feel lighter. Now I just need to do a little bit every weekend and I could probably get it done in a matter of weeks.
Andrea says
ooo… I love the idea of a walk-in-pantry, but I totally get not wanting to do a big project and deal with the mess.
The mess (and the cost) is usually what turns me off from most projects these days… but it’s still fun to dream!
As for the decluttering, just keep picking away at it. Tackle one space/room/closet at a time and give yourself a deadline so you don’t waste too much time in one spot. The progress you see will motivate you to keep going!
Laura says
What salad dressings do you make or use? I read this post which lead me to 1 healthier habit which lead me to how i store, prep and serve fresh produce. I would love a good staple salad dressing recipe! And how long it lasts (i’m sure in your household you don’t have to worry about expiration dates but I only have 3 that will eat salad:)
Andrea says
Hi again!
Our kids love ranch (who doesn’t) and they go through it so fast that I usually just buy it from the store. Just a few weeks ago though, someone mentioned how easy it is to make Ranch and that I really should give it a try (so it’s on my list of things to try!)
I personally like to mix olive oil, some type of vinegar, honey, and a little salt/pepper for many of my salads. I just keep it in a small jelly jar in the pantry and it will last for a long time (however long oil and vinegar last).
That said, there are hundreds of easy salad dressing recipes on the internet… so it might be worth it to experiment with a few until you find a couple you love. Then stick with those.
Hope this helps!
Laura says
I love the snowman wrapped boxes! Are they presents? My kids are teens now but maybe I’ll try that next year, they look so cute!
Andrea says
Thanks Laura — yes, they are gifts wrapped in white craft paper and made to look like snowmen. It was VERY fun for us and for the kids! And very easy 🙂
Laura says
Love it! Thanks for both of your replies:)
Toni Price says
I enjoyed your post very much. All the interesting activities and suggestions made my day today. I am going to continue to subscribe to your blog and pass it on to others. I am also going to try the Bend soap and possible get it for gifts for next Christmas. Thanks for sharing your life and Happy New Year!
Andrea says
You’re welcome Toni 🙂
Thanks for your kind words of encouragement!
Casey says
I always look forward to your Favorite Things posts :). Thanks for sharing!
Do you have another healthy habit you’ll be adding to your list this year? And if so, will you be doing a blog post on it?
Happy New Year!
Andrea says
Thanks Casey! I love writing these posts too 🙂
As for another healthier habit — I feel like I’m running out of ideas!
I do REALLY like sweets, so it would probably be good for me to cut back on the sugar I consume… but in the back of my brain, I have this nagging feeling that the minute I try to cut back, I will instantly want as much sugar as possible (LOL!) So I’m not sure the best way to cut back without depriving myself and causing my brain to crave even more sugar.
I’ll share it on the blog if I decide on something!
Donna Marie says
Simpler is my style for this year!!!
Andrea says
yay — love this!
Stel says
I was amazed this year by Americans’ non-use of kettles 🙂
It is literally the first item I had ready for my son’s stash in preparation for university. It was also the first item I got 30 yrs ago!
Andrea says
haha — I never had a kettle or tea pot until last year!
Rachael Thiele says
Me too! I’m going.. um… this is like us Australians going wild because we’ve just discovered toasters! It sounds crazy! All motels, any sort of kitchen here always has an electric kettle, unless you are camping and using a gas stove.