Today is National Cupcake Day!

 

Yes, today is National Cupcake Day! Nationaltoday dot com says this is the day, "to commemorate these compact yet delectable sweets." So, let's begin our celebrating with some cupcake fun facts - did you know . . . 

Christmas Book Review - What Makes Candy Purr?

With Christmas just around the corner I want to let you know about the new books in my Candy the Kitten . . . and Me! books - today I want to let you know about one the children you love are sure to enjoy - What Makes Candy Purr? In this fun story children will get to learn about the things which make Candy, a sweet little calico kitten, purr. And, not only will they discover the things which make Candy purr, but they will be surprised to learn about animals which are not cats, but still are able to purr . . . such as bears! Did you know bears purr? In What Makes Candy Purr? the children you love will enjoy discovering not only about the things which make Candy purr, but will be surprised to learn about other animals which purr, too! 

Just for Fun - Interesting Christmas Trivia!

Since Christmas is next week, I thought it would be fun to share a bit of Christmas trivia with you! Did you know . . . 

Tomorrow is International Tea Day

While I am not a big fan of hot tea, I do enjoy iced blueberry, green tea all year long, so a day to celebrate tea sounds like a good idea to me. Tea, of course has been around for a very long time, so a great way to celebrate tomorrow - along with drinking some tasty tea - is to learn some interesting facts about tea - did you know . . . 

My Christmas Carol for Today - Everybody Loves Christmas

 

It is very easy to notice on grandma's cookie jar, I love Christmas! I love everything about it - the reason we celebrate and the wonderful opportunity it gives us to spend time with our families! So, this song, Everybody Loves Christmas, had to be part of my "Christmas Carols" - you will find it at this link - enjoy!

These are the lyrics if you would like to sing along . . . 

Today is National Cocoa Day!

 

Today is National Cocoa Day so I thought I'd share some fun cocoa facts with you. Did you know . . .

• Long before people nibbled on bars and brownies, chocolate was consumed in liquid form. Historians credit the Olmec civilization of southern Mexico as being the first to roast the fruit from the cacao tree, then grind it down and mix it with water and other ingredients. Archaeologists have discovered Olmec pottery with trace amounts of chocolate dating back to around 1700 BCE.

Today is National Ice Cream Day!

By the way, did you know today is National Ice Cream Day?! I do enjoy a nice bowl of ice cream, but since I've been focused on losing weight (I've lost 100lbs since the start of 2020!), I rarely eat this sweet treat. I have found, however; sorbetto on a stick - especially the mini-size only has 50 calories per serving! Hooray! 

But back to ice cream - let's look at some ice cream fun facts - did you know . . .

Christmas Book Review - Candy's Favorite Place

With Christmas just two weeks away it seems like the perfect day to let you know about another of my new books in my Candy the Kitten . . . and Me! series of books -which would make a great gift for a child you love - this time, Candy's Favorite Place!

In Candy's Favorite Place, children will get to learn where Candy, a sweet little calico kitten, loves to spend time. She really likes to be a cat in a box and a cat on her princess pillows, but there is one place where she really loves to be and children will enjoy discovering Candy's Favorite Place! 

Christmas & Learning to Be Gracious

Christmas is just a two weeks away, today I am remembering a few years ago when my daughter, son, daughter-in-law, and grands joined us for dinner Christmas Eve - and of course, to exchange gifts. This particular year, one of the things we gave the grands was three $5 bills each. I decided to wrap them in different size boxes and went through the house to find - and in some instances, raid boxes. I ended up with an interesting mix . . . an empty band-aid box, a box which had cold pills in it, and other miscellaneous boxes.

Today is National Poinsettia Day 12

Yes, while Poinsettias are a beautiful plant and something which brightens any day, today is the day to especially appreciate and celebrate them. I would love to have Poinsettias at my house, but I have the black thumbs of death and have been grounded forever by my grown children and grandchildren from every having plants again - they all say I am "cruel and unusual punishment - for the plants." Plus, I have a cat. So, instead I very happily enjoy Poinsettias at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park as they have so many of them as part of their Holiday Traditions exhibit! I'm happy to share with you some really interesting facts about Poinsettias - did you know . . .

Christmas Book Review - A Family of Her Own for Candy

I often review books for children from a number of publishers and always enjoy the books which tell a great story and have colorful illustrations. If the books also find a way to involve the children in the story, then the book is likely to get a high review from me. So, when I write stories for children, I work to be sure all these things are covered in my stories and my Candy the Kitten . . . and Me books definitely do these things! Today I want to share with you one of the books in this series - A Family of Her Own for Candy.

crafting with grandma - Sweet Wire Angels

Christmas is just two weeks away!!! The time is certain to fly, so if you are planning to make any gifts for people on your list . . . and/or items to decorate your own home, now is definitely the time to be working on these projects! 

With this in mind, I was browsing on Pinterest - and found a wonderful angel craft! It is wonderful for several reasons: it is inexpensive! Definitely wonderful! It is simple to make! Definitely wonderful! It is adorable! Definitely wonderful!

Some Fun & Interesting Christmas Tree Facts - Did You Know . . .

If you are like me, your Christmas Tree went up after Thanksgiving dinner, so you have been enjoying it for several weeks. My grands once again helped with the decorating - it makes the tree so much more fun and meaningful for me. Today I thought it would be fun to look at some of the fun facts about Christmas trees - share them with the children you love . . .

My Christmas Carol for Today - All I Want for Christmas - by the Piano Guys

Okay, once again, yes, I know for a song to be a "Christmas Carol" there should be some singing, but once again, the Piano Guys put together "All I Want for Christmas" with fantastic music (there is a cello so it has to be fantastic), and combined it with Lego animation of a number of favorite Christmas movies/shows in a "nutshell" presentation - watch it at this link and you will see what I mean and why I had to include this in my Christmas Carols!

Enjoy!