Music can bring on so many different emotions. I watched this video clip through tears and giggles. 

Watch it and tell me what you felt.

Yesterday I stopped into a craft store to have a look around since I had some time to kill. I enjoyed looking at the Christmas decorations and watching mothers with their daughters discussing what wreaths to buy or how to use a certain decoration.

I looked at the tree ornaments. Boy there are so many different kinds nowadays. But the one that really made me stop and think "Really?" was this PICKLE ornament.

So my question to you is "Really?"  Would you hang a pickle on your Christmas tree?

UPDATE: Turns out that pickles hanging on the Christmas tree are associated with Germany (More about that HERE.) One friend mentioned they've hidden the pickle in the branches of their Christmas tree for years.  So I stand corrected about the strangeness of a pickle ornament and actually kinda like the idea. What a fun tradition. I say GO FOR IT. 

I hope you haven't been holding your breath waiting to learn where it is I chose to do my clicking. I am glad you came back to find out though.

I chose to do my clicking at work. I keep my clicker right where I sit.

The first day of clicking I clicked a grand total of 52 (I work four hours a day).  I noticed things like a little girl about age 4, holding her grandfather's hand. It made me smile and feel good....CLICK! There was another little girl looking ever so cute in a tutu. Well...you know me and tutus so she got TWO clicks.

There were a number of clicks because of customers who were nice to me and made me laugh. One customer even came up to me with a fortune from her very own fortune cookie. She said it suited me. What a lovely thing to say....CLICK!

I noticed husbands and wives holding hands....CLICK!

I had customers sharing jokes with me....CLICK!

(What was the name of Captain Moroni's horse?.....Be-unto-you, because he was always saying "Woe be-unto-you" hahahahaha)

Other things I saw through the week were:

Customers secretly paying for others...CLICK!
Cute halloween socks....CLICK!
Tater Tots (The best in town)....CLICK!
I saw a man on crutches and was thankful it wasn't me.....CLICK!
Show tunes being played on the piano....CLICK!
Cute and colourful headbands.....CLICK!
A customer dropped her plate and helpers came running.....CLICK!
Someone anonymously completed one of my jobs....CLICK!
Good news from a friend....CLICK!
Customers that generally don't smile, smiling.....CLICK!

I really enjoyed seeing how many happy thoughts I had throughout a work day. I looked forward to work to find what was going to make me smile/CLICK during the day.

During the month of November Billionclicks.org has a great deal for you. When you order your Clicker Kit, enter in the code WENDY345 and you'll receive an extra clicker with wristband and sticker that you can use for a gift (HELLO....Christmas is coming), share with a neighbour, keep in the car or many other uses. Just remember the more you order the more you get.

What colour clicker will you choose?

A number of years ago I was invited to a birthday party for a friend. She asked us to bring something that makes us happy. It was her hope to find ideas that could help her in her own search for happiness. 

I knew exactly what to take. I have a book that I have kept cards and letters from people who have had nice things to say about me over the years. Whenever I was feeling bad I could just think of this book and feel better about myself, knowing there were people out there who loved me.

One of the attendees spoke of a happy skirt she has. It has bright and cheery colours that made her feel happy when she wore it. 

I have a friend now who has a Happy Book. She has others write their happy thoughts in it as well. I believe she is on volume 7.

We all have different ways to be happy or find positivity in our lives. Here's what I've been doing for the past couple of weeks....

I've been clicking. That's right, clicking. What? You haven't heard of clicking? Watch the video to understand more.

Billionclicks.org sent me a clicker and wanted me to take it for a 'test drive'. I'm all about thinking positive thoughts and finding happiness so I agreed. I waited for my clicker to arrive. What colour would it be?

There are eight colours to choose from and each colour has a special meaning.

The day arrived I was excited to see what was inside. Awwww even the outside makes me smile. "Think Happy...BE HAPPY"

I quickly opened the box.....

PINK! I have a pink clicker! I quickly looked up the meaning behind pink: 

"Pink - the color of self worth, order and love. There is a place deep in your soul where these qualities live. Each time you breath, think, click you nourish and feed each one."

I love it. I'm all about people recognizing their self worth and loving who they are. So pink is perfect for me.

Now to decide how I want to use it. Watch for my next post to see what I decide.

How will you use your clicker?

During the month of November Billionclicks.org has a great deal for you. When you order your Clicker Kit, enter in the code WENDY345 and you'll receive an extra clicker with wristband and sticker that you can use for a gift (HELLO....Christmas is coming), share with a neighbour, keep in the car or many other uses. Just remember the more you order the more you get.

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Chocolate Mint Crackers
One of the easiest recipes I've ever tried is making these crackers.

1 packet of Ritz crackers (get whatever brand you like. We always use the homebrand)
1 packet melting chocolate
peppermint extract
Cotton wool balls

Melt the chocolate and dip the crackers in. Make sure they are coated nicely. Place on wax paper to dry. Now layer them in a sealed container with the wax paper in between. As you layer them place a cotton ball that has got some of the peppermint extract on it (You know what to do, just put the cotton ball on the bottle and up end the bottle...don't soak the ball) in amongst the cookies. Only need about two or three balls per layer. Now seal the container and leave it for two or three days.

When you bite into them they will taste exactly like a mint choc cookie.

Sugared Peanuts
One of the cheapest gifts to make and give has always been Sugared peanuts. It's as easy as 1...2....3.

Sugar coated peanuts

• 1c water
• 2c sugar
• 3c raw peanuts (they MUST be the RAW ones)
  
• couple of drops of red food colouring.
  

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a saucepan over medium heat throw everything in the saucepan. Bring to a boil, and stir until sugar is dissolved. Keep stirring till peanuts are evenly coated and no syrup is left in pan. (The sugar needs to not be liquid anymore if that makes sense) Spread nuts out on a baking sheet.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes to evenly roastpeanuts.

Only three sleeps till Christmas and I am nowhere near prepared. I always try to have my gift shopping done before December because I hate to be in crowds and would rather not have gifts than try and find a parking spot at the shopping centres. For the food shopping I can send my husband.

Well...that's what I try to do. This year I have failed miserably.

We haven't even written Santa letters. It's a good thing Santa has email services nowadays! We'll be able to email him the requests and because it's so late in arriving Santa will have an excuse to not actually have the item they requested.

The past few Christmases have been financially difficult ones. For one of them the children were aware that we wouldn't be getting any presents. Santa did come and left a few treats. The next couple of years were lean also but the children didn't complain with the fun 'family' present that they got.

This year we have tried to do more things rather than 'get' more. One family night we spoke about the things we can do to make this Christmas a more 'giving' year. At first my 17yr old son was suggesting outrageous things....he sure likes to get a reaction out of me. We then got on the right track and even DS 17 (dear son the 17yr old) got into the spirit and this is what we came up with:

* One night we'll deliver cookies to some families. The children decided it would be more fun if we pixie drop/phantom family/ding 'n ditch, them....so that's what we did. Fun was had by all as we sang Carols on the way to the different homes and watched the boys almost get caught each time.

* We would have a night of just singing Christmas carols and we'd invite some friends over as well. This was held last night. I made eggnog, roca rectangles, sugared peanuts and mint choc crackers. It was a fun evening. It was made more special by having DD 18 play the piano and seeing that all my children would join in the singing. No attitudes in sight.

* The next thing we'll do is give some people a 'heart attack'.

So I'm not going to be ready for Christmas like I would like to be. We will have food and there will be some gifts to open and fun will be had. I have chosen to be OK with not being prepared this year and be thankful for the memories we've created and the Christmas spirit we've had (for the most part) throughout our home.

Oh Tannenbaum.......


I love Christmas trees!!! While I was living in Utah I loved to go to Salt Lake City and walk through the Festival of the Trees. When the children were little our tree would be full of decorations they would make. When we first moved back to Australia we had no decorations and no money to buy any so we strung popcorn together and made salt clay decorations and painted them. Lovely memories.

A few years ago I was doing the after Christmas decoration sale thing when I came across a bunch of beautiful gold and cream decorations at .10 cents each. Our tree never had a colour theme until that time.

The children are older and although our tree was beautiful when we'd use the children's home made decorations, we now have the most elegant Christmas tree we've ever had. I love to sit and look at it.

It is a tradition that I set up the tree, Sarah puts the lights around it and all the children hang the ornaments as I pass them out. We do all this while listening to Bing Crosby (it HAS to be Bing to start the Christmas season!) After dad puts on the tree topper, we turn the ceiling lights off and turn the tree lights on. There are many ooh's and ahhh's. This year I added a new tradition. Home made eggnog after decorating the tree!!

We LOVE eggnog. Not just any eggnog. We love Cream O Weber eggnog that we can't get in Australia. There is nothing even remotely close. The eggnog here is available all year 'round but they should not be allowed to call it 'eggnog'.

I went in search of a recipe and found one that uses cream. Which is good because we were given a case of cream earlier this week. I made up the recipe hoping that it would be alright. The verdict came in when the kids started drinking it. It was a HIT!!! So the tradition will live on. I just have to try to only make it for Christmas.

The recipe is as follows:

4 eggs
2 cups milk
1 cup sugar (I will use a little less next time)
2 TBL vanilla
2 cups cream (never said it was 'healthy')
1 tsp nutmeg (add to taste. We added more.)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (optional...but it was a nice add)

Separate eggs. Yolks in one bowl and whites in another. Add half sugar to each bowl and beat lightly. Add the cream gradually to the whites. Keep whipping mixture and add vanilla. Now add both mixtures together. Slowly add milk and spices while mixing.

Chill and ENJOY!!

This recipe served 6 of us with one or two having seconds.

Roca Rectangles
One of my favourite treats to make...and EAT...is this simple recipe I learned through Relief Society back in Utah. It is always a big hit. People can not believe that the base is actually crackers. So here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

250g Butter or marg (two sticks of butter)
1 cup Brown sugar
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 box Salada Crackers (Saltines)
1 cup Almond flakes (optional)

Line a baking tray with foil (I now use wide baking paper...it MUST completely cover the baking tray). Turn up the edges of the foil to make a shallow pan. Spray well with cooking spray. Put a single layer of crackers on the foil, cutting crackers to fit.

Melt marg and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, boiling for 3 minutes, stirring as needed. Pour over crackers. Spread to cover. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) for 7 minutes.

Remove from oven and allow to cool for about 5 - 6 minutes. Sprinkle choc chips on top. Put back in the oven just to melt the chocolate. Spread the chocolate to cover the slice. Sprinkle with almonds. Allow to cool then cut or break into slices.

ENJOY

If you have any requests then just let me know.

By Popular Demand
Ok...so I've had a number of emails asking for the recipe for my cinnamon rolls. Dilemma....should I share the recipe that brings me great compliments or should I guard it and keep the compliments for ME and ME alone? Ok...I'll share.

Wendy's (world famous) Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups Very warm water (not hot)
• 3 TBL sugar
• 1 TBL salt
• 2 TBL oil
• 6 cups plain flour
• 2 TBL yeast
• 1/2 cup powdered milk (optional)
  
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup butter or marg (I of course like butter)
• 2-3 TBL cinnamon
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup more sugar

Into a large, 'warm' mixing bowl pour warm water, then stir in sugar, salt, oil, half the flour, powdered milk and yeast. Beat vigorously for 2-3 minutes until smooth. (I use a whisk) Stir in remaining flour until all dry ingredients are completely mixed in, leaving spoon right in the heavy (sticky) batter. (I also cover the bowl with a tea towel. Leaving it in a warm area is also good)

Allow dough to rest for 10 minutes, then stir down. Allow dough to rest another 10 minutes, then stir down. Repeat this process until dough has been stirred down 5 times. (I keep paper and pen along side the timer so I can mark each 'stir'. I also keep the bowl with me while I'm checking emails or watching a show.) Dough may be sticky. Can sprinkle flour on top before you stir it to help it come away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn dough onto floured surface (I actually spray my CLEAN counter top with cooking spray...no extra flour. You will be surprised how easy the clean up is) Divide into 2 parts. Roll each part of dough into a rectangle about 1cm thick. Spread with melted margarine (or butter) and sprinkle generously with combined sugar and cinnamon mix. Roll up like a jelly roll, rolling from long side. Cut dough into 2cm lengths. Arrange 1 cm apart in a baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray or greased some other way. Cover lightly and let rise at room temperature for 30 minutes. They will also rise in the oven. Bake immediately at 200 degrees Celsius or until they have a light brown colour on the top. Can spray with water as soon as they're removed from the oven to keep them soft bread. Allow to cool then remove from dish. Frost with butter frosting or glaze as desired.

To make Orange Rolls, eliminate the cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle with grated orange zest and sugar and make the butter icing with orange juice instead of the milk. YUMMO!!!!!!!