And the gifts just keep on coming!

I thought I'd round up some more of the givings from out little advent tree, 

just for shits and giggles. 

 On the 7th day of Christmas The Beef got this awesome magnet to celebrate the awesomeness that is his beard. 

On the 8th day of Christmas he bestowed upon me a new charm for my pandora bracelet to commemorate the fact that is is my "bearmouth"

On the 9th day of Christmas I geeked out and bestowed upon him a patch bearing the Jedi symbol because we're hot and nerdy like that. 

On the 10th day of Christmas he hit me back with the best note I have ever read in my entire life.

On the 11th day of Christmas I celebrated our mutual love for gotham's finest with a pin that was immedieatly adhered to his lucky fishing hat:

So on the 12th day of Christmas I got lucky and won $10.

And on the 13th day of Christmas the beard shrine grew:

To be continued...

So does anyone else get as big a kick out of dorky little gifts like we do?

There's a man in the kitchen!

On the fifth day of Christmas I gave the Beef:

Awesome Metallica magnets. 

So on the 6th day of Christmas he gave me....

When I saw this I was really confused, it's just a recipe on an index card. For a moment I thought his present to me was that I had to make him treats. Treasured childhood recipe or not I don't think I would have been ok with that. 

It actually turned out to be a wonderful evening where he did dishes and then baked the recipe himself and let me take pictures so I could blog about it! 

So here we go, The Beef's Mom's Magic Cookie Bar Recipe!

1/2 cup Butter

1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 16oz bag chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts

1/1/3 cup shredded coconut 

9x13 baking dish

Preheat oven to 350.

Melt butter in baking dish.

Spread Graham cracker crumbs evenly over butter.

And if you're like the beef and also have a crooked counter prop hot plates under the baking dish so it's completely level to the point of OCD. 

Pour condensed milk over graham crumbs.

Spread chocolate chips evenly over milk.

Spread walnuts evenly over chips.

Spread coconut evenly over walnuts.

"it's like cheese!"

Bake for 30 minutes.

Let cool and enjoy!

Advent Calendar

I'm at that point in my life where most of my childhood holiday traditions just aren't happening anymore and in their place new ones are forming. It's both incredibly sad and exciting depending on my mood. One new tradition that I feel just might stick around is the advent calendar that The Beef and I are doing this year. 

Growing up I was a big fan of advent calendars because it meant that I got to have a piece of chocolate every day. Usually my parents got the cardboard kind with the little perforated doors that you pretty much had to rip open to the the christmas treat shaped chocolate out of.  They usually looked like this. 

Oh memories...

I thought it was well and good but I always wanted something more permanent, something to go back to year after year. The advent calendar featured in National Lampoons Christmas Vacation comes to mind.

Sigh.....

 I could actually purchase that glorious piece of holiday cheer here for around $1200. Unfortunately, that's not currently in the budget though one day I would absolutely love to have one. 

In the mean time though I've got a more than acceptable substitute that's much more interactive and fun.

Back in July or August my mother and I wandered in to Michaels and much to my horror (excitement) they already had Christmas things out. One such item was an unfinished wooden christmas tree/advent calendar that I just HAD to have. So I snatched up with along with some paint and brought it home with me. I started working on it right away and was teased mercilessly by The Beef and Duddits for doing Christmas projects in the summer. Screw them, I think it looks marvelous.

There are 25 little drawers in the tree, I've painted a number on each to correspond with the days from December 1st all the way to Christmas day. The Beef and I decided to split the drawers. I took the odd numbers and he took the evens so we're each getting a little something fun every other day. 

Here's the booty thus far:

 Day 1: The beef got 10 steel wheat pennies for his coin collection.

Day 2: I got a hippopotamus for Christmas! And a funny little rhyme to go along with it.  

Somebody wants one of these for Christmas. Only of of these things will do.

Not sure if you are that somebody, but I went out and got one of these for you! xoxoxo

Day 3: The Beef got his Theft Prevention lighter decal that I mentioned yesterday. 

Day 4: I was home sick and feeling pretty miserable and the beef kept my mind off of how shitty I was feeling by using apps on his iphone to quiz me about Christmas because I'm such a nut over it. It was gloriously fun. 

What kind of Christmas traditions do you have? Do you do any kind of Christmas countdown?