DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

1.  “White Christmas”  – While there are more than five Christmas carols written by Jewish songwriters, I thought I’d just cover my favorites, starting with not only the most famous Christmas song written in modern times, but according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the best-selling single of all-time. Written by:  Irving Berlin in 1940 Actually written by:  Israel Isidore Baline (Irving’s real name) Written while:  seated poolside at the Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa in Phoenix, Arizona (talk about your White Christmas) Made famous by:  Bing Crosby in the movie  Holiday Inn   Cool Irving Berlin fact:  Refusing to make money off his deep-seated patriotism, Berlin donated all the royalties from “God Bless America” (just another little ditty he penned) to the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and Campfire Girls. 2.  “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” Written by:  Johnny Marks in 1949 Based on:  a poem/story penned by Marks’ bro

Fabric Scrap Christmas Cards  “Sending Christmas Cards!”… I just can’t seem to get that phrase out of my head from the infamous  12 Days of Christmas  song!  Why you ask? I’ve been busy making Christmas cards from fabric scraps!  I got the idea from a recent Fresh Picked Friday’s post I published with similar  Christmas cards using fabric scraps …Since I have a  bajillion  pieces of fabric scraps, I knew this was one project I had to try.  I decided to make reindeer faces out of different fun prints, then draw on the reindeer’s features.  This was such a fun project, and it saved me from having to spend a lot on Christmas cards too!  Here’s how my  fabric scrap Christmas cards  turned out… I just love how each card is unique and one-of-a-kind! Plus, I ended up personalizing the cards a bit depending on who I was sending them too; for example, my friends with new babies received a card with two big reindeer and a little baby reindeer =) These DIY Christmas cards

This recipe was found at  www.foodpluswords.com  .  Another over the top dessert! Black Velvet Layer Cake look at this cake! isn’t it sinister? isn’t is spooky? don’t you just want to eat the whole thing in one sitting? i honestly can’t think of a more perfect cake for halloween. black velvet cake! with chocolate marshmallow frosting, no less! black velvet: it’s not just a name for a horse anymore! or kitschy paintings of kittens! or a ridiculous, cheesy ’80′s song! wait. the horse was black beauty, not black velvet. just kidding. also, that song is stuck in my head now. go listen to it. it’s ridiculous. alright, let’s talk about this cake. aside from the fact that it’s uber-black (totally metal!), it’s also  effing delicious . italics for emphasis and seriousness. it’s that good. most scrumptious version of red velvet cake i’ve ever made. true story. you know how sometimes red velvet cakes are super-gorgeous to look at, but once you take a