It's time to get my craft on!!!

Creating holiday magic for the family has never been easier or more enjoyable!  Disney Online introduces the new “All Things Merry: A Guide to the Holidays,” a comprehensive source for holiday planning with simple and budget-friendly ideas for holiday recipes, unique crafts, homemade gifts and much more!   I especially love Family.com because the recipes, crafts, and the like are created by "real" people, which means someone like me (wink, wink) can make the food and the crafts!

On Family.com guests can find simple and delicious holiday dinner recipes for main course entrees, soups and starters, dressing and sauces and inspirational side dish ideas, such as how to make spectacular spuds with a list of Holiday Potato Recipes. To finish off a holiday meal or party just right, there is a gallery of Perfect Pie Recipes and 20 Tempting Holiday Treats. Or families can make some holiday magic together in the kitchen, by baking up a batch of sweet Snowman Cookies or festive Candy Cane Cookies, featured on FamilyFun.com.

For fun and budget-friendly ideas for holiday crafts and decorations, guests can find simple instructions for homemade Christmas ornaments on FamilyFun.com and decorative Christmas crafts at Kaboose.com. This year, Family.com offers a new series of how-to videos for making adorable Disney-themed holiday crafts, like Mickey Mouse Snowman Cards, and a guide for making other creative Disney Christmas ideas, perfect for Disney fans of all ages! 

Kids can make their own homemade Christmas gifts for loved ones, such as an easy-to-construct yarn candy cane ornament or a cute reindeer hand print. Kids can also have some fun with Christmas coloring pages or online Christmas games.

Pumpkin Waffle Recipe

This morning, our family kicked off Thanksgiving week with homemade pumpkin waffles.  They were amazing and super easy to make.  Happy Cooking!

Pumpkin Waffle Recipe
2 1/3 cups of Bisquick mix
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/4 natural applesauce (no sugar or corn syrup added)
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 eggs

Directions
1.  Preheat your waffle iron as you normally would and grease with cooking spray.
2.  Mix all of the ingredients above with a whisk until smooth.  Poor onto hot waffle iron and close the lid.
3.  Cook for about five minutes or until steaming stops and the waffle is golden brown.  Top with maple syrup, whip cream, or apple butter.

Where Did My Cooking Grove Go?

I've always considered myself a pretty decent cook. I'm not talking fancy stuff by any stretch, but good around the kitchen nonetheless. I love to cook and enjoy the expression and creativity that goes into crafting delicious food. About a year or so ago, something really strange happened: I lost my cooking skills. It's like some crazy voodoo witch cast a spell on me and "poof" no more cooking abilities. I feel like most of the stuff I make goes south--even the stuff that I've always considered myself a pro at. I've always made great pasta sauce and now...it sucks, as does my amazing meatballs and great meatloaf. It's gotten to a point in which I want to stay away from potlucks. A neighbor recently dealt with a family trauma in which all of us rallied together to provide the family meals. My go to meal of spaghetti and meatballs was terrible (edible but not anything I could be proud of). I was so embarrassed.

Will I get my cooking grove back? Have my two little boys taken some crazy toll on my brain powers? I hope that my cooking abilities return in 2010...and I'm sure my family, neighbors, and friends hope so too!