Twelve Christmas Favourites #4

#4 Christmas Favourite – Rum Balls

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I know I have already talked about how good Rum Balls are but they are my very favourite Christmas treat.  Here is the recipe:

Traditional (no bake) Rum Balls Recipe

by Clair from The Cookbook.com. au

These traditional rum balls are very easy and quick to make (no baking required!), make great Christmas gifts and are perfect for when friends drop round during the silly season.

Recipe makes approximately 30-40 balls (depending on size of balls). I usually make double (or triple) quantities, as they go so quickly!

Rum Ball Recipe Ingredients

  • 1 packet plain sweet biscuits (Nice, Arrowroot, Marie or Wheatmeal Biscuits)
  • 3 tblspns cocoa powder, sifted to remove lumps
  • 1 cup desiccated coconut
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk
  • 2-3 tblspns rum (Bundaberg rum works best)
  • 1 cup extra coconut (for rolling finished balls in)

Rum Ball Recipe Method

Finely crush biscuits in a food processor (or you could put them into a zip lock bag and crush with a rolling pin). Add cocoa power, coconut, sweetened condensed milk and rum to crushed biscuits. Combine all ingredients well (you should end up with a stiff mixture). If it is a particularly hot day, or your mixture isn’t quite stiff enough for the balls to hold their shape, put the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes or so before rolling.

Take large teaspoons of mixture and roll into balls using your hands, then roll balls in extra coconut to coat. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet or shallow plastic container and put in freezer. Once frozen, put into a container and keep in the freezer until ready to use.

Rum balls will last for weeks in the freezer, so you might want to make a couple of batches, well in advance of Christmas

If you are going to make them double or triple the recipe…… they go fast!!  Happy Rolling!!

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Twelve Christmas Favourites #3

#3 Christmas Favourite – Spreading Christmas Joy

Here is a little way our family spread the joy at Christmas.  This is our Christmas video and  a must to watch. Seriously watch it!!  Guaranteed to make to smile, laugh and maybe  belly laugh.  It is the season to be Jolly!

This is for all our beautiful family, friends and readers.

Have a ROCKIN Christmas!!

xo Love xo

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(oh and our rockin dog Bonnie) xoxoxo

 

Twelve Christmas Favourites #1

For the next twelve days  I will share one of my very favourite things about Christmas. I will also have my usual posts….. if something comes up xo.

#1  Christmas FavouriteChristmas Decorations

I love Christmas decorations.  I always have.  Some of my favourite childhood memories are of decorating the Christmas Tree.  I remember everyone in my  family had special decorations.  This is something I have continued with Andrew and Ben.   Even as an adult I still get excited about putting up the tree. I have difficulty waiting until the first of December.  Most years I just can’t wait.  This year Ben was excited to decorate the tree and Andrew ……. well not so much!   Here are some of my favourite decorations.  They are favourites because I made them, they have been given to me by someone special or they  have a memory attached to them.

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Happy Christmas xo

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Christmas Treats

There is something pretty wonderful about this time of the year.  I just love planning for Christmas.  I have already began gathering ingredients to make those  special treats that are saved just for the  Christmas season.  My favorite of all is Rum Balls – with no fruit and made with Bundy rum.  I seriously had the yummiest rum ball recipe…….. but I lost it!  I have this habit of writing recipes on scraps of paper and losing them.  I have found this recipe.  It is not quite the same but I think it will still be super tasty.

I also came across this cute idea.  Not really for Christmas day but I thought I would surprise the boys with it this week.   Just a little something to make everyone smile.

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What’s your favorite Christmas treat?

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Toys, Tantrums and Pocket Money

A couple of weeks ago I witnessed the worst tantrum in the supermarket that I had ever seen.  It came from my son.  It was over a activity pack that I said he could have if he helped me with the shopping.  Unfortunately Ben did not help me with the shopping.  He began running around the shop.  I had given him two warning before I put him in the trolley and told him we had to put the activity pack back.  He held onto the activity pack with all of his might.  But when we reached the checkout I took it off him.  WOW…… I have never seen anything like it – screaming, kicking, punching, tears.  His face was so red.  He was so angry.  But I couldn’t give it back to him……. could I……NO NO NO?  We got through the checkout, packed the groceries and out to the car and he was still screaming the place down.  By the time we had got home he had calmed down.  But I was shaken!

Last week when we went to the shopping centre I took back up.  Andrew came along to and we had had a long discussion with Ben that we would not be buying any toys.  We had jobs to do.  We once again had tears on our departure because he didn’t get anything but it was nothing compared to the first incident.

I know I spoil Ben…… only child and all.   Not really the best parenting strategy!!  So as a result we are going through detox.  The detox strategy is going to the shops and I am not buying any toys.  It breaks my heart to see him so upset but his behavior is unacceptable.  I do feel guilty because I helped create that behavior.  Mothers guilt!

We now seem to have reached a happy place when visiting the shops.  I have introduced pocket money.  Ben now has pocket money that he receives for completing jobs.  He loves it and is now more interested in collecting gold coins than toys.   So now when we are at the shops he has his pocket money to spend.  If he hasn’t got enough money he is learning that he needs to do some more jobs to earn enough.  His jobs include – feeding the dog, helping to set and clear the table, picking up his toys, collecting the eggs and picking up the dogs toys.  I have been using  You Rule Chores on my iPhone.

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We have found it pretty great.  However Ben sometimes plays with it and gives himself extra coins!  I found the application here.   If you don’t already read Li’l Magoolie it is worth a look.

Fingers crossed for no more tantrums!!

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