The Suede Sofa Blog

{Holiday Homes Tour}

This HoLiDaY Scott and I were asked if we would participate in our town’s Holiday Homes Tour to help raise money for a non-profit animal shelter, called the Castaways. How could we say “No”? WaLtEr our chocolate lab is a rescue dog. So here is a sample of what people saw on the tour:

017 — On the front porch were these chairs with a sign that said "LeT It SnOw". The weather man must have thought it said "Rain" rather than "Snow", and rain it did all day long!! However, it only added to the ambiance - cozy and warm inside with Lara's aromatic potpourri filling the house, Christmas music, lots of Christmas lights, and a crackling fire!!

004 — Walter stole the show by sitting in this very spot all after noon with his reindeer head band. And yes, the K-State footbal game played (on mute) durng the open house! They won and are headed to the Cotton Bowl!! Yay!! - (I had to include that since Scott, Lara, and her husband, Doug are all K-State alums and very proud Wildcats!! :) )

: Kitchen #2.

018 — Staircase. (Sorry to state the obvious!)

In case you were hoping to see the Master Bedroom, that’s another post I will share in January (hopefully). I spent a couple of months doing a room make-over and want to show you my finished product!! StAy TuNeD!!

Homemade Hot Chocolate & Live-It List Idea

Is one of your Live-It list items to start a new family tradition? How about putting this YuMmY hot chocolate in thermal mugs for the family to sip on while driving around to see Christmas lights! I bet it would be something the kids would look forward to every year!

This homemade hot chocolate recipe is always a crowd pleaser. Makes a great gift and a pErfeCt refreshment with your cinammon rolls on Christmas morning!

Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

16 oz. Nestle Quick Chocolate Drink Mix

6 oz. Coffee Creamer

½ C. Powdered Sugar

4 Tbls. Cocoa

Mix Ingredients well and store in air tight container. Use 1/3 Cup of mixture to 1 Cup warm milk. Top with marshmallows!

Makes 32 Servings

(These were some clear containers I had around the house. I decorated them with wrapping paper, jute rope and ribbon! Super easy and immediately FeStiVe!)

Enjoy!

Lara

Pastor D.J. {This Could Be The Place For A Miracle}

Pastor D.J. wants you to know that this could be the place where God does something AmAzInG in your life!!

What is your favorite Christmas song?

LaRa SaYs: “Well, honestly I have too many favorites. Can I share 2 of them? ‘AnD ThE AnGelS CrIeD’ tears me up every time. Love this song…

and my second song, as heard on the movie HoMe AlOnE, always makes me feel like a kid…and everyone wants to feel like a kid now and then :)”

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RoByN SaYs: “Over the years my favorite Christmas song has changed. This year I am really into BrEaTh of HeaVeN by Amy Grant. It helps remind me of the true meaning of Christmas!”

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RoByNn SaYs: “My favorite? Ummm………there is actually no other genre of music where I have so many songs in a dead heat. This, however, may be one of the most powerful Christmas songs I have ever heard. It is called, “Mary, Did You Know?” By Rascal Flatts

Suede Sofa would LoVe to know your favorites this year!

Smile at a Stranger

Last week my friend Anne lost her husband after a tough BaTtLe with cancer. They had just celebrated their son’s first birthday and through it all Anne managed to stay upbeat, positive, and grateful for their time together as a family. The night before her husband passed she wrote, “Hug your loved ones and smile at a stranger. Today only comes once” on her Facebook page. I was immediately stuck by such PoWeRfUL words.

A SMiLe…something so simple yet packed with such meaning. Whether it be the crossing guard you drive by daily, a cashier at the grocery store, or a stranger you meet at the post office; you never know what they might be going through and how much a smile might mean to them. It is something that won’t cost anything and the payback will warm your HeARt.

STOP EATING!

Do you ever have days when you eat everything in the house and you still feel unsatisfied? And then as you are frantically trying to find your hidden candy stash you scream inside, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING? STOP EATING!! WHY ARE YOU STILL EATING?!”

Even though I normally stay within 5 pounds of my healthy weight (besides when I’m pregnant) I still have days when I fall off the deep end. Thinking that it will make me FeeL better, I eat everything in sight, when in fact it only makes me feel worse and causes me to eat more. I basically give up on myself and hOpE that tomorrow is a better day (when many times it isn’t because I feel horrible the next morning!)

I’ll be hoNesT; I don’t have a glorious ending to this post. I’m just writing to say that no matter what size or weight you are, some days are just TOUGH. Have you ever stuck to a diet for weeks or months and then, for whatever reason, you lose control and gain all the weight back? Probably, yes. The reAliTy is, even in the most perfect circumstances PeaCe wItH FoOd won’t always be as peaceful as it sounds.

Speaking of which, I don’t know about you but the holiday goodies are making this “eating stuff” even more difficult. I’m trying to sample in moderation, but again…trying to be real with you…it is a struggle and some days I just give up.

Confession: Right before I sat down to write this post, I had inTenTions of ending my horrible eating day with a glass of milk and cookies. I just happened to text my sis and she said she was at the gym. Hearing from her is what it took to “snap out of it”. Instead, I’ve opted to write you and sAvE myself the extra calories and disappointment I would have felt in 10 minutes. Thank you sis and to you readers for detouring my thoughts so my day could end better than expected!

You are NEVER alone.

~Lara

{LOL}

Sometimes in life you just have to “LaUgH OuT LoUd”. That is, at YoUrSeLf. Stop taking yourself so SeRiOuS (and trying to impress people) and just roll with it.

This happened to Lara and I a few months ago. We were trying something new on our blog – using a SmArTpHoNe to record a video. We really don’t do many videos of ourselves and are trying to branch out to help our readers take a PeEk at our everyday lives. In an attempt to video ourselves and then transfer the videos to YoUtUbE, we (or should I say, I) inadvertantly submitted our videos to Facebook and didn’t realize it until 16 hours later. One of those videos was the “SuRpRiSe” announcement (the “Live It List” challenge prize – a Coach purse) that was not to be “AiReD” until a week later. Fortunately, I realized the mistake and only 6 viewers were PriVy to that announcement before I took the video off of Facebook.

What to do?

LaUgH. OuT. LoUd!!

We learned a lesson and got a GoOd LaUgH at the same time.

Are there things in your life that you would like to try to do, but are afraid you will make a fool of yourself? Do them anyway, unafraid of looking SiLLy. And then be ready to LOL. You will be able to enjoy yourself, your life, and all those silly moments that life sends your way, a whole lot more, when you do.

;)

Robynn~

{I’ll Be Home For Christmas}

This WiStFuL World War II song has special meaning as it depicts so beautifully the yearning of SeRviCe MeN and WoMeN (as well as others who are away) to be home for the holidays. This song is still a special one and the Suede Sofa wishes you a WaRm holiday season whether you are home for Christmas or there only in your DrEaMs!!

{Take A Picture. It Lasts Longer.}

I was recently thinking back to an event in my life and wanted to go back and revisit it for a second. The only problem was I had not taken any pictures, so I was left to reminisce in my sketchy memories. Boy, did I wish I had taken pictures. I know it is easy to get so busy with an event or activity that you forget to take pics OR you don’t think it is important at the time to snap those shots. Then you live to regret it. It is for that reason that I finally decided that I am not going anywhere without my camera. The nice thing about cameras is they make them small. Really small. Many of them even come with the feature of using them as a camera or a camcorder. If you don’t like the idea of carrying around another object, regardless the size, consider getting a smart phone that has these options. Christmas is just around the corner and if you’re making out a list you may want to add this to yours. Then you won’t ever have to worry about missing one of life’s memorable moments.

Robynn~

Christmas Cookies

Marble Chocolate Cookie Bark by Lara

I LoVe these Marble cookies because they are super fast to make and a great way to use your leftover almond bark and oreos! Put them in a clear container and it makes a pretty gift too! ~Lara

2 Tbsp. peanut butter

1 pkg. (6 squares) White Almond Bark, melted

10 OREO Cookies, crumbled, divided

1 pkg. (6 squares) Chocolate Almond Bark, melted

ADD peanut butter to white chocolate; stir until well blended. Stir 1/2 the cookies into each bowl of chocolate.

DROP spoonfuls of the chocolate mixtures onto waxed paper-covered baking sheet, alternating colors of chocolates. Swirl with knife.

REFRIGERATE 1 hour or until firm. Break into pieces.

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{CHECKERBOARD COOKIES} by Robynn

I really think these cookies are FuN and they taste yummy-licious as well!

You can either use your favorite Sugar Cookie Cutout recipe or the following one I use (from the red and white checkered Better Homes And Gardens Cookbook).

Sugar Cookie Cutouts

2/3 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour

In a large mixing bowl beat batter with an electric mixer on medium to high-speed for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg, milk and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with mixer. Stir in remaining flour.

Make two batches of the above sugar cookies in separate bowls. To one batch add 1/2 cup melted milk-chocolate chips.

Press each batch of cookie dough into half of a shoe-box lid lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate.

After dough has been chilled, layer the dough as in the above pic:

With a long knife cut down through the two layers (about 1/2 inch wide strips). Take two of these strips and place as shown in the above pic. Then slice and bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.

This cookie dough (or whatever cookie dough you prefer) can be given as a Christmas gift! Just wrap in wax paper (parchment paper doesn’t allow tape to stick to it) and attach a Christmas gift tag containing the kind of cookie dough and baking directions! (If your cookie dough contains raw eggs, make note of that on the instructions.)

Enjoy!

Robynn~
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Italian Knot Cookies by Robyn (Jersey Girl)

I’ve been making these cookies for Christmas since I was a little girl. The recipe was passed down from my great-grandmother to my “Grandma Triolo” and they are always a HuGe hit!

4 cups flour

1 cup sugar

4 eggs

½ lb. butter (2 sticks)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

5 teaspoons baking powder

pinch of salt

Dough:

Melt butter, add sugar, eggs, vanilla, baking powder, and salt…slowly add flour. Chill dough in refrigerator for an hour. Form knots and bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Icing:

Mix confectioner’s sugar, a drop of vanilla, and warm water until you get the consistency you want (I like my icing on this thick side). Dip tops of cookies into icing and add sprinkles! EnJoY!

~Robyn (Jersey Girl)