The Christmas Box Collection

Although Christmas is past, today I will bring it back a little by writing about my favorite Christmas book, The Christmas Box Collection.  I have mentioned this book a couple of times but I thought I would actually tell you all about it.
Hallmark came out with two movies called The Christmas Box and The Timepiece in 1995.  My family and I watched them (me being very young) multiple times during the Christmas season and I still have very vivid memories of those times.  We recorded it on VHS and they eventually got "lost" along with all of our other VHS.  I put lost in quotations because occasionally when my dad would clean out the garage he would just start throwing things away and I am sure that our boxes of VHS movies were one of those things.  Hallmark eventually stopped playing the movie and it became a story that was no longer seen or thought about in our house.  About 3 years ago, I came across the book on Barnes and Nobles website and had to buy it!  So that Christmas season, I read the book (it is actually three books bound together).  So many memories and good feeling came back while reading the beautiful story and now it is a tradition that I read that story every year during the Christmas Season.  It was actually a nice surprise reading the books because, as I mentioned, Hallmark had only made two movies.  It wasn't until I read the book that I found out the story continues and you find out what happens in the lives of the characters.

The first of three books, The Christmas Box, is about a young family who move in with a widow named Mary.  The widow is a bit mysterious and you don't find out much about her past.  The family moves in to take care of her and grow very close with her and acts as a grandmother.  This book is much about the importance of family as well as the meaning of Christmas.
The second book, The Timepiece, is a prequel to the first book.  This is when you learn about Mary's story.  It is the story of how she meets her husband, having a child as well as much tragedy that happens within their family.
The third book, The Letter, is about a mysterious letter which was left at the grave site of Mary and David's daughter.  It is much of a quest to finding out who wrote it.  This book is beautiful and much on forgiveness and moving forward.

I highly recommend this book!  You can buy it HERE.  

Friday Favorites

Favorite Coffee - Allegro Celebration Blend

Favorite Book - The Christmas Box Collection

Favorite Christmas Album - Joy Has Dawned by King's Kaleidoscope

Favorite Laugh

Favorite Fall Fashion - Jessie(seamsforadesire)

Currently Reading and Drinking

Diana by Sarah Bradford

Peppermint White Mocha with half the chocolate
and an added shot

Scones, Biscotti & MORE Baking!

I have done some more baking these past to weeks and here are photos and recipes!

Honey and Bran Muffins

 With these muffins I substituted chopped walnuts for chopped almonds.  They turned out really good but they don't have very much flavor.  I put some butter on them when I ate them.  I took them to work and ate them on break.  Because I opened almost every day this week, they were a nice breakfast to eat on my break.

Lemon Blueberry Bread

 This bread is more like a cake than bread but it turned out delicious!  I followed the recipe exactly.  When I make it again, I will probably cut down the sugar.  It is definitely worth making for yourself!

Now for my baking that I did last night...  My parents were out of town so I had the whole house to myself and of coarse I chose to bake.  These are my creations!

Raspberry Chocolate Tea Scones

 These are AMAZING scones!  I used white chocolate instead of milk chocolate and they turned out so good!  These are must to make  :)

I burned myself on the oven which hurt really bad!

Dark Chocolate Chip and Currant Biscotti

 This was the first time I have ever made biscotti.  It turned out really good!  I didn't use currants, Only Dark Chocolate Chips.  I had to put them in the oven about 10 minutes more than the recipe says.  They turned out great!

These are definitely recipes to try!!
I also found this awesome website to use while baking... Ingredient Substitutions!

I am 100 pages away from being done with Spoken From The Heart!  I am loving every page of it  :)

Baking, Reading, and DIYs

Baking...

I made a coffee cake!  I used a basic coffee cake recipe and added about 1/2 cup of sour cream to make it more creamy.  It turned out very good and the good thing was that my dad liked it probably more than all of us.  That is surprising because my dad is not one to eat homemade food.  I know, completely opposite from me, but the fact that he liked it says something!

Mixing in the sour cream

Reading...

I am still reading Spoken From The Heart!

DIYs...

#1  I needed to still unpack all of my jewelry from moving back to California.  I had nowhere to put it and it was time to figure something out.  So I found an old cork board in my sister's old closet.  I covered it with some extra white fabric I had and just tacked on the back.  The fabric was actually left over from some curtains I cut from Ikea.  So the fabric on the board matches my curtains.  I used tacks and hung my jewelry throughout the board.  I added a fabric flower I made a couple weeks ago to the corner to add some flair!  THis project only took about 30 minutes.

#2  This next project was a little more involved.  So I wanted a bedside table that would fit in my room really well, was very practical and cheap!  The cheapest one I could find that I liked was from Ikea for $40.00.  I was opposed to spending that much money but I was hoping to find something else.  I went to Micheal's and got some ideas white I was there.  This is what I came up with.
The items...
- 1 sturdy basket which was on sale and was the perfect size to store books but not big enough to get cluttered
- 1 small square piece of wood
- 2 long wood decorative border pieces
- 1 small bottle of white paint
- 1 bottle of light yellow paint
- 1 large fake decorative flower
Here is the finished project with help from my dad!

Painting the square piece

Waiting for the paint to dry

Finished project!

The beautiful flower I couldn't pass up!

Other Fun Things...

#1  Adorable new Tea Pot and matching cup from Cost Plus World Market!  

#2  To go with my new tea pot I bought some tea which should be here in the next few days.  I bought the tea online at Teavana.  I bought Cacao Mint Black Tea and Cocoa Praline Tart Rooibos Tea.  They are both dessert teas which are perfect for me and my sweet tooth!  I will let you know how they are when I get them!

#3  My to dos for the weekend...

-  Get hangers to for the rest of my clothes!  I have no where to put them and my room is too messy.

-  Bake chocolate and pecan scones

-  Wash my car

-  Finish cleaning my room

- Read, exercise, and have fun!!

My mom is in Wisconsin until tuesday and boy do I miss her!  I love her so much  :)

Small Updates

A few things I have been doing lately.....

Finishing invitations for my cousins baby shower that I am throwing for her!

I made some wonderful scones!  I got the recipe HERE!  They are from one of my friends blog.  I used whole wheat flour and dark chocolate chips.  They turned out great!
To make them last longer, I wrapped them individually in plastic wrap and put them in the freezer.  In the mornings, I would take one out and put it in the microwave to warm in up.  That worked perfectly!

Before they go into the oven

All done and delicious!

I picked some beautiful roses from the garden!

I also noticed that my cat found a new bed in our flower pot!

Other than these things, I have just been working a lot and spending time with family and friends.  I am planning on doing some more baking this week so look for that!
Currently reading:  Spoken from the Heart(still, because it is so long) and Charlotte's Web
New fave website:  pinterest.com

Today's List

Things completed today so far:
- Work from 5am-1030am
- Met my sister at the gym.  Walked on treadmill for 30 minutes and then did an hour pilates class.
- came home and made lunch.  A veggie burger and a nectarine.  I also made a coffee drink to keep me awake!
- Hung out with my sister and chatted.  Much needed!
Things I want to do today:
- Read a couple hours
- Finish making baby shower invites(I am throwing a baby shower for my cousin)
- Clean my room

I love to do lists!!!  :)
Happy Tuesday