Free Printable Letters to Santa for Big and Little Kids

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The tradition of writing letters to Santa is such a fun way to add to the magic of the holidays. Sometimes kids can get a little carried away with the wish list. These awesome printable letters to Santa are a perfect solution. These are pretty but they also limit your child’s list automatically with a pre-defined area to fill out. Start a fun and easy tradition this year to create memories that will last for years to come!

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Start a fun and easy tradition this year with these free printable letters to Santa. Don't worry. There are options for big kids and non-writers!

 

[bctt tweet=”Start a fun #tradition with these free printable letters to Santa (options for big kids and non-writers) #printable” username=”diyadulation”]

 

Start a fun and easy tradition this year with these free printable letters to Santa. Don't worry. There are options for big kids and non-writers!

Santa Letter for Older Children

Don’t just have your child make a list of gifts he or she wants. Instead help your kids learn about writing letters and have them include a fun greeting or let Santa know how their holiday is going. Don’t forget to have them with Santa a “Merry Christmas” and/or a thank you! Grab your free printable here to get started.

 

Start a fun and easy tradition this year with these free printable letters to Santa. Don't worry. There are options for big kids and non-writers!

Santa Letter for Non-Writers

The window of time that kids believe in Santa seems to keep getting smaller. That is why I recommend starting traditions early. Don’t wait until your kids can write to start sending letters to Santa. Print out this Santa Letter for non-writers and have your little ones draw pictures of their wish lists. If you want to hold on to the memories be sure to write down what the picture is on the back of the letter.

 

Start a fun and easy tradition this year with these free printable letters to Santa. Don't worry. There are options for big kids and non-writers!

Preserve the Memories

Because this magical time of belief is so short, create a wonderful surprise for your kids when they are older. Hold on to all of these letters. Don’t worry about a complicated system or losing them in a box. Grab a small 3-ring binder for each of your children (1 inch or smaller) and a pack of plastic page protectors. Label each binder so you know which binder belongs to whom and add in 12 page protectors. If you can get your kiddos to believe longer kudos to you! Feel free to add a few extra page protectors to each binder in that case. Lastly, each year add the letters to a sheet protector and label the year. A binder full of these memories will be an awesome gift later in life for your kids.

This is such an easy tradition to start that can gift you and your children memories for years to come. The earlier you start this tradition the better. Our 2 year old will be starting this year even though a lot of his drawings consist of scribbles. They all mean something to him and he can articulate what it’s supposed to be a picture of. There a good chance you will want to make copies of all of your children’s letters to Santa to keep for yourself long after your kids are grown. Do your kids send letters to Santa? What other traditions does your family love taking part in each year? Let me know in the comments. I love reading about what makes your family unique!

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High Style Holiday Entertaining on a Budget (+ Asiago-Parmesan Fig Crostini Appetizer)

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The holidays are a prime entertaining time. You love getting together with friends and family to celebrate this magical season. Unfortunately television advertisements, the magazines you read, and store displays convince you that throwing the ultimate soiree means spending a fortune on fresh décor, fine china, and table linens. All of this is before you even get to the food. Stop chasing an idea of perfection that will land you broke long before Christmas arrives. Here are tips for high style holiday entertaining on a budget including an easy and budget-friendly Asiago-Parmesan Fig Crostini Appetizer!

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

Décor

Instead of rushing out to buy new swags and lights, use the décor you already own to decorate. If you don’t have much décor, concentrate the pieces you do have in one area (like the dining room). This will give the appearance of a full and festive party.

Another easy and inexpensive way to beef up your décor is to use Christmas wrapping paper. Wrap the pictures on your walls to look like presents. You can also wrap your food tables and even your doors to easily coordinate all of you entertaining décor elements.

Choose a Neutral Tablecloth

Create an upscale dining table with a gorgeous fabric tablecloth. The trick is to choose one that is a solid color such as green or white that can be used for multiple holidays throughout the year. Personalize the theme of your table with place settings and centerpieces. By choosing a tablecloth that can be used year-round it makes this a splurge worth investing in.

[bctt tweet=”This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923″ username=”StellaCheese”]

Buy Disposable

When hosting a large holiday gathering the cleanup us a nightmare. Make it easier this year by purchasing disposable serving ware and utensils. These no longer have to mean a cheap-looking gathering with paper plates and napkins. You can buy plastic utensils and serving trays that look like silver as well as gorgeous plates in every color and style you can imagine. Take it a step further by getting plastic wine and champagne glasses that only look like crystal. Finally, no more worrying about kids breaking glasses or being forced to compromise your style.

Rock Your Food

The most memorable part of holiday entertaining is the food. If your guests don’t like it, or worse, have not gotten enough to eat they won’t be focused on the awesome memories being made. Don’t let your high style décor go to waste by underwhelming guests with food. Make sure that you have more than enough to eat and drink to keep guests happy all night.

[bctt tweet=”Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923″ username=”StellaCheese”]

Appetizers are a must whether you’re serving a full meal or not. Luckily, this doesn’t have to be hard. Before you reach for that bag of chips to unceremoniously dump in a bowl, make this decadent Asiago-Parmesan Fig Crostini appetizer. With the help of Stella Cheeses creating a high style appetizer is easy and budget-friendly.

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

Ingredients

 

Step 1

Cut 28 small circles out of your French loaf using a metal cookie or fondant cutter.

Tip:

If you don’t have one of these cutters, a regular medicine cup will work also. This is what I used and they turned out fantastic!

Step 2

Place 1/3 cup of butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat for 1 minute or until melted.

Step 3

Pre-heat your oven to 350º.

Step 4

Brush melted butter on butter on both sides of your bread circles and place on a non-stick baking sheet.

Step 5

Bake bread at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Step 6

Thinly slice 28 squares of Stella Asiago cheese roughly the size of your circles.

Step 7

Place toasted bread circles on spoon rests and stack a square of cheese on each circle.

Step 8

Place a dried fig on top of each stack and drizzle with honey.

Step 9

Grate a small amount of Stella Parmesan over each honey-drizzled fig.

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

These delicious Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect marriage of savory and sweet. The presentation is effortless and instantly bumps up the style of your appetizer table. This year you can wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! What are your favorite budget-friendly entertaining tips? Let me know in the comments! Next, check out the amazing contest Stella is having for your chance to win a $5000 trip to Napa Valley, CA wine country!

Asiago-Parmesan Fig Crostini Appetizer

Asiago-Parmesan Fig Crostini Appetizer
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Additional Time 5 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • Sliced French Loaf
  • Stella Aged Asiago and Parmesan Cheeses
  • 1/3 Cup of Butter or Margarine
  • Dried Whole Figs
  • 1 tbs. Honey

Instructions

  1. Cut 28 small circles out of your French loaf using a metal cookie or fondant cutter.
  2. Place 1/3 cup of butter in a microwave safe bowl and heat for 1 minute or until melted.
  3. Pre-heat your oven to 350º.
  4. Brush melted butter on butter on both sides of your bread circles and place on a non-stick baking sheet.
  5. Bake bread at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
  6. Thinly slice 28 squares of Stella Asiago cheese roughly the size of your circles.
  7. Place toasted bread circles on spoon rests and stack a square of cheese on each circle.
  8. Place a dried fig on top of each stack and drizzle with honey.
  9. Grate a small amount of Stella Parmesan over each honey-drizzled fig.
© Marie
Category: Appetizers

Asiago-Parmesan fig crostini appetizers are a perfect mix of savory and sweet. This year wow your guests with high style holiday entertaining on a budget! #ad #StellaCheeses #QualitySince1923

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How to Actually Save Money on Black Friday

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In case you didn’t know, I am an avid Black Friday shopper. Over the years I have utilized every way to save on that day from shopping online to camping out in the snow at Target. It is a fun and time-honored tradition for me. Just because I love a bargain doesn’t mean I overspend and put us in debt for this deal-mania, though. Instead, I have set rules in place that I follow every season. Now I want to share how to actually save money on Black Friday with you as well as hook you up with some free moolah to shop with!

Don't go into debt for Black Friday because you love a bargain. Find out how to actually save money on Black Friday!

Start Now

Don’t think that you are forced to spend Thanksgiving Day planning for a successful Black Friday haul. Many major stores “leak” their ads early on purpose. Take advantage of this. My favorite database for this is Brad’s Black Friday. He and his team have been doing this for years. They know how to verify leaked ads and can spot a fake from a mile away. If you are relying on Black Friday deals to stay on budget this year then start planning now.

Do Your Research

When you see a deal for an item on your Christmas list make sure that you know it is a good deal. Companies pay people a lot of money to get you to part with your hard-earned cash. Check out what items are going for in stores now and compare to the deals in the leaked ads. If you’re only saving a few dollars off of the regular price is it really worth the fight through the chaos?

[bctt tweet=”Find out how to actually save money on Black Friday and enter to win some shopping cash! #blackfriday” username=”diyadulation”]

Make a List and Stick to It

This is the number one best thing you can do to save on Black Friday. Make a list of the exact items you want to pick up. While you are shopping, do not deviate from that list. The chaos of Black Friday encourages you to buy now! This is made even worse with many deals being available online. Shopping online prevents you from seeing any of your money leaving. It also keeps you from seeing the items you purchase accumulate.

Brave the Store

I know that this turns a lot of people off of Black Friday. When you think about the points made above it makes sense that you will save the most money in store. However, in addition to those points, here are a few more reasons to visit the stores on Black Friday:

  1. It forces you to prioritize. Many stores open at the same time and you have to decide which store has more of the items you are looking for.
  2. A lot of deals on big items such as game consoles and televisions are only available in the store (although I recommend skipping these items in most cases… read more about that here).
  3. You get tired. When you are on your feet for hours hauling items and waiting in line you will lose stamina. Being tired will send you home with more money in your pocket than shopping on the couch will.

 

Now are you ready to win some free cash?! Enter below and don’t forget to share with your friends!

[bctt tweet=”Want to win some free cash to shop with this Black Friday? Enter today! #giveaway” username=”diyadulation”]

$335 Fall Black Friday Giveaway

WELCOME TO THE FALL BLACK FRIDAY GIVEAWAY!

Do you have a long holiday shopping list and need extra cash? Well, I’ve got good news for you. 24 bloggers have come together for the Fall Black Friday Giveaway! We don’t want you to stress over holiday shopping, so we’re giving away $335 in Paypal CASH! So what are you waiting for? Enter using the giveaway form below! This giveaway has ended. Thanks to everyone for entering!

Meet the Hostesses

Fall Black Friday Giveaway

Erlene • My Pinterventures Chelc • Inside The Fox Den Christene • Keys to Inspiration

Kim • Made In A Day Megan • C’mon Get Crafty Sherry • Olives-n-Okra

Leslie • Lambert’s Lately Emily • Our House Now A Home Amanda • The Kolb Corner

Brooke • Re-fabbed Shirley • Intelligent Domestications Brittany • Balanced Frugality

Lorelai • Life with Lorelai Emily • Two Purple Couches Alli • An Alli Event

Marie • DIY Adulation Dee • Meatloaf and Melodrama Holly • Pink Fortitude

Cindy • Little Miss Celebration Sara • Twelve on Main Vineta • The Handyman’s Daughter

Marilyn • Marilyn’s Treats Andrea • Waldorf Salad & Cottage Fries Paula • Holly Jolly Holidays

Holly Berries

ONE WINNER WILL WIN $335 PAYPAL CASH!

Giveaway ends November 16 11:59pm PST, open to US and Canadian residents, ages 18+. Winner is subject to eligibility verification and will be announced within 72 hours of giveaway close. Good luck!

Disclaimer: The winner has 48 hours to respond or an alternate winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way administered, sponsored, associated, or endorsed by Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, or Facebook., or Facebook.