Easy Holiday (Not too sweet) Treat

We had a fun time making a new treat today after school.  It had been my intention this fall to do a new holiday craft or make a new treat with the boys each day in December, but work got in the way this week, so we're starting on December 3rd.  (The boys don't know, and I'm the only one fretting about it). 

How can you go wrong with pretzel rods (our favorite pretzel), chocolate chips, and Christmas sprinkles?  The boys had a great time.

They're going to a friend's house after school tomorrow so I'm going to send these with them for their playdate (Thomas informs me it's no longer called a play date).

So easy to make - literally 10 minutes from start to finish!  And really yummy!

Pretzel rods

1/2 bag chocolate chips

Sprinkles

Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave for 1 minute.  Stir.  If not melted thoroughly, microwave for another 30 seconds.  Dip the pretzel rods in the chocolate, roll in sprinkles and lay on wax paper to harden.

Enjoy!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins

One of the main things that I will miss about work when I resign early next year is the staff that I work with.  They are all really great people, and we laugh a lot in our meetings.  It's a fun bunch and I have learned a lot from each one of them.  I enjoy the days when we leave the office and go off-site to focus on strategy like we did yesterday. 

Often people will bring donuts or other food to our off-site meetings.  Yesterday I took sausage balls (they remind me of Fall - maybe because we eat them around Thanksgiving and Christmas).  One of my colleagues is a vegetarian, so I made another dish to accompany it.  I found this recipe in Southern Living and decided to try it.  Nothing like trying a new recipe at 6 a.m. for an 8 a.m. meeting.

Instead of typing it up I'm going to post it here.  And because I had to get to work, it never occurred to me to take photos.  But there is a pretty one on the link.

These muffins were delicious!  Everyone loved them, including the boys who had one with their breakfast.  I will definitely make these again.  It's like having an individual coffee cake.  I would cut back on the sugar though - it really didn't need 2 cups.  May 1 cup sugar and 1 cup applesauce?  Everyone said to leave the sugar as is, but I thought it was a little much.

Some of the reviewers at the link above said theirs sagged in the middle.  Mine didn't at all.  They were just perfect.  Try this recipe out - it would be great to take to a brunch, to a meeting of some sort, a potluck. 

I will definitely try them again!

Happy 98th Birthday, Mawmaw!

Happy 98th birthday to my grandmother Zula! 

She has 2 daughters

 2 grandsons & 2 granddaughters

2 great-grandsons and 3 great-granddaughters!

Here we are at Christmas last year

Decked out for our St. Patrick's Day 2009 party

And Thomas and Brennan with BOTH of my grandmothers!

I am so fortunate to have both of my grandmothers still, and am thrilled that the boys get to spend a good amount of time with both.

Happy Birthday, Mawmaw!  We love you!