DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

Christmas parades can be seen in cities and towns nationwide. The parades help usher in Christmas. Christmas parades can be small with just a few floats, and a couple of bands, or very large with a lot of floats, several bands, clowns, assorted groups, and cars carrying important people from the community. But whether the Christmas parades are small or large in size doesn't matter, it's what is at the end of the parade that makes all the difference and that would be Santa Claus! Seeing Santa Claus means the Christmas season is here! Christmas parades have been going strong for 90+ years. When Christmas parades first started it was more of a way for people who lived in small towns to get together and socialize with each other while watching a very short parade. The parades were something the communities looked forward to every year. One such Christmas parade in California started in 1928. It was one of the smallest parades ever. There was only one actress and Santa Cla

   This diy comes from  www.myblessedlife.net  .  Enjoy! G ood morning, beautiful people! I hope you are having a great week. I’m excited to bring you my reindeer holiday coasters that I created using the fabulous new line of  Martha Stewart Crafts  acrylic paints. Woot! I adore how the coasters turned out! What a great handmade gift! Reindeer Holiday Coasters Supplies Needed: 4 – 4″ white porcelain tiles {I got mine at Lowe’s for 0.16 each.} Small felt pads Reindeer and snowflake stencils Glitter Feldspar paint Satin Habanero paint Sponges Spray Gloss Enamel Tape down or use spray adhesive to secure the stencil to the tile. Either way works! Squirt a bit of each paint into a bowl. Then use a sponge and dab it in the red paint. Then sponge most of the paint off before pouncing it on the stencil. The best way to achieve “no-seepage” under the stencil is to do a few light coats of paint. Then, stencil three bl

   Give the gift of great recipes this holiday season. Surprise someone special with one of these favorite food gift ideas—Christmas cookies, fudge recipes, Christmas candy and more! Gingerbread Cookies Recipe 60 Servings Prep: 30 min. + chilling Bake: 10 min./batch + cooling 30 10 40 Ingredients 3/4 cup  butter, softened 1 cup  packed brown sugar 1 egg 3/4 cup  molasses 4 cups  all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons  ground ginger 1-1/2 teaspoons  baking soda 1-1/2 teaspoons  ground cinnamon 3/4 teaspoon  ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon  salt Vanilla frosting of your choice Red and green paste food coloring Directions In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and molasses. Combine the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight or until easy to handle. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-in. th

hy do we have a decorated Christmas Tree? In the 7th century a monk from Crediton, Devonshire, went to Germany to teach the Word of God. He did many good works there, and spent much time in Thuringia, an area which was to become the cradle of the Christmas Decoration Industry. Legend has it that he used the triangular shape of the Fir Tree to describe the Holy Trinity of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The converted people began to revere the Fir tree as God's Tree, as they had previously revered the Oak. By the 12th century it was being hung, upside-down, from ceilings at Christmastime in Central Europe, as a symbol of Christianity. The first decorated tree was at Riga in Latvia, in 1510. In the early 16th century, Martin Luther is said to have decorated a small Christmas Tree with candles, to show his children how the stars twinkled through the dark night. Christmas Markets    In the mid 16th century, Christmas markets were set up in German towns, to prov