christmas and such.

we had a lovely christmas, boxing day and proclamation day ( a south australian holiday) surrounded by family and friends. i actually had such a busy and fun time that i got caught up in long conversations and didnt get the camera out.

but it was maisy's first christmas and being the dog obsessed people we are, we had to buy her a few little treats and remind her on this special day that she is one loved little dog...

honey biscuits.

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 this recipe will make approximately 30 biscuits delicious biscuits.

you need 125g butter, room temp chopped

1/2 cup caster sugar

1 egg

2 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon bi-carb soda

1/4 cup honey

preheat the oven to 180. line trays with baking paper.

step 1:

in a large bowl, using electric beaters, beat together butter and sugar for 2-3 mins until creamy. add egg, beat well. fold in combined sifted flour and bi-carb soda.

step 2: 

heat honey in the microwave for 20 seconds. stir in to dough. mix well. cover in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for at least 30 mins. knead gently on a lightly floured surface. roll out between 2 sheets of baking paper until about 5 mm thick.

step 3:

using cookie cutters, cut out shapes. place on prepared trays. bake for 10-15 mins until they are a nice golden brown colour. allow to cool on trays and then decorate with icing.

these cookies are delicious. tip: chilling the dough for 30 mins makes it much easier to handle. this mixture freezes very well and make lovely gifts. 

now to share some cute decorating ideas which make these biscuits look amazing.

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or for something that little bit easier... source

the gift of giving.

one of the best things about christmas is the chance to share love and give to those you love. this year i've been really inspired by all the creative people online and have tried to make a lot of things for people rather than cave too deeply into the commercial side of christmas. i love having the chance to use my time to make others happy and get a bit crafty too.

a christmas tree cake for people at church

homemade chocolates for my kris kringle

 handmade christmas card ideas.

and although this little teapot doesn't look especially christmas like, i made some teapot shaped biscuits for the staff at school to thank them for a wonderful year. the recipe was given to me by a parent of a child in my class and they are so tasty. they are honey biscuits and i'm happy to share the recipe if any one would like me?

some christmas cheer.

i've been feeling quite festive this year and it's because this time last year i didn't know things like cute creative blogs, pinterest and tumblr existed and suddenly my eyes have been opened to a magical world of wonderful ideas and lots of beautiful things. i'm awfully inspired. another reason i'm feeling festive of course is that my little class are all so excited about christmas, we're making lots of christmas crafts and everyone at work is starting to wear christmas tshirts and earrings. now for some festive snaps..

santa going past at  the town pageant

my red, white and silver christmas tree. my poor tree has been awfully bare for the last 2 years with a handful of decorations i picked up from the op shop (thrift shop), i like decorations with lots of character but mum kindly agreed to let me share the family collection and now i've got a beautiful tree full of lots of interesting decorations and mum's got a lovely green, gold and white tree.

my second addition to my class end of year christmas bags. i made each of them a bag of reindeer noses with 11 brown noses and 1 red candy nose for rudolph. these will go in a little christmas bag for each of them along with crayon ornaments. i just need one more idea for something extra to add to their goody bag... any thoughts???

for other christmas ideas that have got me excited check out my christmas time board on pinterest.