When life is sweet say ‘thank you’ and celebrate!

Hi sweet friends!!!! First and foremost, ‘thank you’ for being here! This little blog was always on the ‘to-do list’ and then, well, life got in the way! But the best way to get something done is to simply begin. Why not finish off an amazing year, with my first official blog post, a holiday recipe for you to enjoy & a GIVEAWAY!

This week we were fortunate to have Shannon Lee Blog come over and do a mini session with us, and what a perfect chance it was to get started on our holiday baking!

The heart of your home is the kitchen & baking with my mom was always one of my favourite activities (especially the part afterwards when I got to lick the bowl & taste test the finished product lol)! Growing up almost all of our meals were lovingly prepared by my Dad (he’s an amazing cook), or baked by my Mom. That’s right, my Dad did pretty much all of the cooking (what gender roles right?!)! And no matter what the crazy schedule was during the week, the 5 of us almost always sat down to eat together. I think that sharing family meals doesn’t just feed your family physically but feeds you emotionally and draws you closer, building a lifetime bond for your children and you, and for them together as siblings. I am so grateful to my parents for placing such an importance on this & to this day as 3 grown siblings, we still enjoy many meals together every week.

In my opinion, the family that breaks bread together, stays together! These photos from our mini session, capture what is so important to me, fun with food & enjoying it altogether as a family!

 

Harper and I made some eggnog sugar cookies, and I’m going to share the recipe for you here!

Eggnog-y Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

3 cups flour

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp rum or vanilla extract

1 egg

2 tbsp Classic Eggnog

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

• Preheat oven to 350, line baking sheets with parchment
• cream butter & sugar
• in a separate bowl combine dry ingredients
• add egg, eggnog, vanilla/rum extract to butter & sugar
• gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet, until the dough comes together
• wrap in plastic wrap & refrigerate until chilled (approx 1hr)
• roll out onto a lightly floured surface to desired thickness & grab your favorite cookie cutters!
• arrange on your parchment lined sheets, about 1-inch apart & bake for 7-9mins (will vary with oven & thickness of dough), look for golden edges of the cookies when done.
• let cool, frost (optional)
• these cookies freeze well & are good in an air tight container for up to a week

Frosting: you can use royal icing (gingerbread icing), cream cheese icing, buttercream icing, or store bought frosting!

My go-to royal icing recipe is from Sweetopia!

and lastly, ENJOY!!!

If you care to share your sweet pics of these ‘Eggnog-y Cookies’, be sure to tag @thesweetlifeapparel and use #Getthebakedgoods so I can see & share!

Here’s a few more from our photo session! A huge thank you to Shannon Lee for capturing this sweet little moment in time of my youngest and I, doing what we love, we will treasure these photos forever!

Now, I want to hear from YOU!!! What is your favourite holiday recipe? Or favourite memory of baking/cooking with your family? Leave a comment below & be entered to win a $25 shop credit to The Sweet Life , a $25 shop credit to A Little Love Creative, $25 shop credit to Tiana’s Party Boutique, AND a Mini Photo Session with Shannon Lee! Drawing a winner on Monday morning, so get typing & make sure you are following the above shops on Insta!!

Happy Holidays sweet friends!!!!

XO The Sweet Life Jen

Mama & mini ‘sweet’ tees from the shop, Harper’s hair bow {Arrow & Lace}, Harper’s apron {For the Love of}, Cookie cutters {Scoop’N’Save}, Holiday signs in the kitchen {A Little Love Creative}

(closes at midnight Sunday, Dec 17th) (shop credit cannot be combined with other promo codes, valid until Mar 1st, 2018. Photo session must be used by Dec 31, 2018, and a travel cost of $20 may be applied to sessions outside of Surrey/Langley/Abbotsford)