January 6 - Christmas Chronicles (movie review)

Day 6 - Write a review of your favorite movie from 2018

I am a huge Christmas-movie-buff. I mean I have this whole list of movies I have to go through once it feels like Christmas. While I was trying to recall my favorite movie from 2018 I realized that " Christmas Chronicles" from Netflix is the only movie I have seen from 2018. A shame, I know...

I must confess that I was not very excited by the trailer and the teaser. But seeing that Kurt Russell was Santa was too appealing to miss watching this.

The film is about the Pierce family who used to be all about Christmas until their dad died.

We see the family members through home video series made each year at Christmas. The home movie flashbacks end in 2017 and then we learn that this year it will not be a "Merry" Christmas for them as it will be the first Christmas after the loss of their father who died tragically while saving other people's lives as a firefighter.

Single mom Claire has to work non-stop, even on Christmas Eve leaving her kids 10-year old Kate and the rebellious teen Teddy alone to decorate for Christmas. 

Teddy is really depressed and isolated after his father's death and hangs out with the wrong crowd and doesn't believe in Santa.

Kate is a strong believer that Santa exists. Using her dad's old camcorder she records a video letter for Santa. While re-watching the old home movies Kate accidentally sees the red sleeve of Santa. 
She persuades her brother to try to capture Santa on film to prove that he is real. 

And Santa does show up.

The siblings follow Santa and end up stowing away on Santa's sleigh. After Santa discovers them, he loses his concentration and crashes his high-tech sleigh in Chicago and loses his magic sack. 

Santa and the kids have to team up to save the world from losing their Christmas spirit.

"The Christmas Chronicles" can be a fun family movie enjoyed both by kids and parents. It's full of humor provided by the "The Coolest Santa Ever" and Christmas magic unlike some other Christmas movies that showcase only romance.

It's a cinema movie that you don't have to go to a movie theater to see. Just enough to snuggle under a blanket with some hot tea and snacks and enjoy it.

The "Christmas Chronicles" has almost everything any perfect Christmas movie needs to be a success  - holiday music, elves, reindeer, family Christmas spirit, tender reconciliation but I will have a second thought on re-watching it. The plot is too predictable and a little cheesy...

But one thing is beyond question - Russell is one of the best Santa characters yet, and you can't deny his enthusiasm in playing the role of Santa, not the traditional type, cool, straight-talking but yet kind and warm-hearted.

Have you seen "The Christmas Chronicles" and what are your thoughts on it?




This post was inspired by The January Mind, Body and Writing Challenge hosted by Linda Jean from Witte's World Blog.

December 23 - My Favorite Holiday Traditions (part 2)

December 23 - Write a post about your favorite holiday traditions. If you don't have a favorite holiday tradition, create a new one this year.

Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you have and the things you never want to lose. 

I love family traditions, especially Christmas ones.  

They create such a special bond among family members and leave precious memories. 

My Favorite Holiday Traditions

. The Advent Calendar

I introduced this tradition to my kids in the form of a chocolate bar only. But I am planning to also include a small toy in the coming year too. Besides, kids will get used to the fact that they will eat only 1 chocolate per day and that's a great idea.

. Christmas Carols

After the Christmas dinner we turn on the speaker, fetch our microphones and start singing Christmas Carols. We have a great time till the sleeping time arrives.

. Christmas Cookies

I have a special recipe of Christmas cookies that turn out really tasty. Once per year we grab our favorite cookie cutters and make Christmas cookies with holes in them. We then hang them up on the Christmas tree for a few days until they keep disappearing from our sight.

. Christmas Sweet Bread

This is a tradition I started last year. I made a round sweet bread and hid a coin inside. Then I cut the bread into as many pieces as there are family members. The one who gets the coin is throned as the luckiest family member for the whole year:)

Happiness Jar

This is a tradition I am gonna try for the coming year. I will start with an empty jar on January 1st. Each week I will write down a good thing/things that happened during that week (goals accomplished, surprise gifts, acts of kindness and gratitude, funny moments, memories worth saving)

On New Year's Eve I will open the jar and read about all the amazing things that happened in the previous year.

I just realized that I wrote another post about Favorite Holiday Memories and Traditions on December 4.

You can read it by clicking on My Favorite Holiday Traditions (part 1)

Do you have any favorite Holiday Traditions?

Would love to read about them in the comments box below.

December 16 - Christmas Holiday Printable

Day 16 - Create a printable for the holidays

I was browsing my Pinterest feed to find some ideas for a printable when I stumbled upon this Pin. I love the ideas here because I usually don't know where to start from while making New Year goals and resolutions. This list gives you 9 specific things to focus on for the coming year.

1. A bad habit I'm going to break

~Sleeping with my make-up on.~ 

I have really made up my mind to take care of my skin both by eating more healthily and by taking a better care of it especially before sleeping.
 I have bought all the necessary cleaning products and will try my best to beat my laziness and perform the cleaning routine every night.

2. A new skill I'd like to learn

~Photography~

I will try to take some photography courses online. Skillshare offers 2 months of free unlimited courses once you sign up. I will try to join the courses and really follow-up.

3. A person I hope to be more like

~ my tutor at work~

She is someone so smart and so positive and so trustworthy, leads a healthy lifestyle and is never afraid to speak her opinion. 

4. A good deed I'm going to do

~volunteering~

I have always wanted to volunteer but never have done it. This year I would like to volunteer in ecological groups and events.

5. A place I'd like to visit

~Iceland~

After seeing this video, I started dreaming of this country.



6. A book I'd like to read

~ an autobiography~

I've never read an autobiography so I would like to try this genre, maybe to start from Steve Jobs and Cristiano Ronaldo.

7. A letter I'm going to write

~ to a childhood friend ~

Back in my childhood years, when we used to play in the backyards, my friends and I used to write letters to each other though we lived next doors and saw each other every day for hours. Last time when I visited my homeland, my friend showed me some letters of mine she had kept. 
I just thought it might be a good surprise for her to receive a handwritten letter from me after so many years especially when we are a long distance from each other.

8. A new food I'd like to try

~ Goji berries ~ 

These days I am trying to avoid animal products as much as possible and I am trying to include healthy food in my daily menu. I have read lots of benefits of Goji Berries but I haven't tried them yet.

9. I am going to be better at  

~ self-control~

This post was inspired by the 31-Day Blog Challenge hosted by Linda Jean from Witte's World Blog.

December 15 - My Christmas Cleaning Tips

Day 15 - Share your cleaning ideas for the holidays


I am the type of the person whose house is more organized than clean. 
I mean you can hardly find any dishes piled up in the sink or any toys scattered all over the house. Everything should belong somewhere and should go to its place once not used. It may literally stress me out to find something in an untidy mass. 
 But deep cleaning is an issue. I hardly find the time for that.

There are 2 types of housework I especially dislike: ironing and vacuum cleaning. The solution is to iron only before wearing something and almost no carpets at home.

My Christmas Cleaning Tips

1.  Make the bed the first thing in the morning (it makes a huge difference)

2.  Give a chore to your kids and your husband  no matter how small, it can make a difference.

3.  Declutter the house before Christmas  (the less stuff, the easier to clean) 

4.  Keep the entryway and the living room clean and organized for surprise guests.

5.  Have recycling bins to put recyclable stuff quickly away and out of the house as soon as possible

6.  Have extra storage containers to keep the food leftovers organized in the fridge.

7.  Use natural cleaning products

. vinegar/water mixture as an all-purpose cleaner

. citric acid as a toilet cleaner

. baking soda/water mixture as fruits and vegetables   
  bacteria killer 

. baby oil to shine your stainless steel

8.  And finally make your house smell naturally good 

. add your favorite scents to pine cones

. add cloves to an orange

. water/ essential oil mixture as a room spray

I am still keeping up with the 31-Day Blog  Challenge hosted by Linda Jean from Witte's World Blog. Head to her blog to check her daily challenges for each day of December.

December 14 - My Christmas Holiday Plans

Day 14 - Create a post about your holiday plans

Before kids vacation felt like a vacation, but these days I have second thoughts on making plans for holidays. 

I would be super excited if I could accomplish these 2 simple things: cleaning and cooking:)

But of course, there are other plans in my head that I would try to implement.

 . catching up with the fallen behind days in the 31-Day 

  Blog Challenge

. taking off my pajamas from time to time

. doing some shopping(not only grocery shopping)

. taking kids to watch some Christmas plays / shows /  

  movies

. trying new recipes

. taking more pictures outdoors (Christmas  

 villages/ decorations / lights)

. declutter the house / mail / computer folders

. reading the e-mail courses piled up in my e-mail

. reading hard-cover books

. procrastinating less

. visiting more relatives and friends

What are your plans for the Christmas Holidays?



This post is inspired by the 31-Day Blog Challenge hosted by Linda Jean from Witte's World blog.

December 7 - Favorite Holiday Dessert Recipe

Day 7 - Create a recipe post on your favorite holiday dessert

Sweet Eclaires - the queen of our holiday table

I immediately grabbed my cooking book and opened my Instagram account where I post everything I cook or bake under the hashtag #lusomade. 
And this is what I found (ugh)

The photo could be much better, but no worries. I will update this post with a better and more appetizing one as soon as I make them over the holidays. 
So here we go.

Mom's recipe

Dough

Pour 1 cup of water in the pot and put on a stove until it starts boiling. 
Add 100 grams of butter, let it melt while stirring. 
Sift 1 cup of flour and mix well until you have a smooth and sticky dough. 
Turn off the stove, let the dough cool down a little.
Add an egg one by one and blend with a mixer after each egg. 
With the help of a spoon and your hand, pour the dough on the baking tray and bake. 
Watch carefully while baking. When the dough rises and doubles in size (appr. 15 minutes)turn down the heat and continue baking for appr.30 more minutes.

Cream

Mix 1 egg with 1 cup of sugar.
Add 1,5 cup of milk and 2 tablespoons of flour. 
Put on the stove and stir until the mixture thickens. 
Turn off the stove and add  50 grams of butter and a little vanilla and stir well.


If you wanna share with a favorite holiday dessert recipe you should join the 31-Day Blog Challenge 
Check Witte's World Blog to find out the daily challenges and join the fun:)

December 6 - Favorite Holiday Movie " How the Grinch Stole Christmas"

Day 6 - Write a review of your favorite holiday movie

One of my favorite pastimes during the Christmas holidays is watching Christmas TV programs and movies. 

As I mentioned in my previous post about My Favorite Holiday Memories, it's a favorite tradition for me to sleep on the couch in front of the TV while watching a program or a movie.

What about my Favorite Holiday Movie?

I would like to talk about the one that I keep watching with my kids during the Christmastime every year. 


How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas"

I love the moral behind all Dr Seuss' books. The Grinch has a lovely moral for children what Christmas is really all about. 

It's a movie that all the family can watch together and at the same time is a heartwarming tale for adults.

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas"

The movie is set in Whoville where everyone loves and celebrates Christmas with joy and excitement with the exception of the Grinch who lives atop a mountain and detests Christmas. 

The 7-year-old Cindy Lou Who meets the Grinch and tries to make him love Christmas after she discovers about his tragic past when he was humiliated by his classmates for his green and hairy appearance.

She invites him to the Christmas party and her plan almost works but the Grinch is once again upset by what is happening around him and he decides to steal the Christmas away. 

He thinks that the Whos celebrate Christmas only because of their extravagant gifts so he steals all the decorations and presents while they are asleep. 

But when he hears the joyful singing of the Whos instead of their cries, he realizes that Christmas is not about "material gifts" but it is about being together. 

The Grinch is deeply touched by this. He returns everything he has stolen, apologizes for his past deeds and is welcomed into the community once more and turns himself the Whoville police.

If you are a blogger and wanna play along, check the 31-Day Blog Challenge hosted by Linda Jean from Witte's World Blog.

Leave your link in the comments section and I would love to read your posts and connect with you.

December 4 - My Favorite Holiday Traditions (part 1)

December 4 - Tell a story about your favorite holiday memory

New Year and Christmas (as we celebrate it on January 6) are my all-time absolute favorite holidays no matter how old I am. 

Now when I am over 30, Christmas to me is about slowing down to spend some quality time with my family and close friends, lots of pajama days with traditional dishes and sweets, watching favorite TV programs, more buying than receiving gifts. 

But when I was younger, it was about spending more time with friends than family and sleepovers were my most favorite part about it.

But in reality, it is now that I realize that Christmastime is so special because of my childhood. Now when I'm away from home in another country and I recall our family gatherings, Christmas and New Year traditions are my favorite holiday memories. 

. Cooking and baking and decorating

. seeing lots of relatives and neighbors

.  the festive table all set for a few days

. some special dishes and sweets made only at  

  Christmastime

. sleeping on the couch in front of the TV 

. snow to make it more magical (if  lucky)

In order to fight the holiday blues away from family, I am trying my best to still keep these traditions while adopting some new traditions from the country I currently live in.

What about you? What are your favorite holiday memories? Do you have any holiday traditions?

If you wanna play along, join the 31-Day Blog Challenge 
hosted by Linda Jean from Witte's World Blog and share on your blog.