Homemade Gifts

I was recently inspired by a friend's Facebook status update to buy homemade gifts for the holidays.  Specifically from Etsy.  As this friend is an artist and sells some of her stuff on Etsy she is fond of the artist community that exists on Etsy.  Another girl I went to High School with sells her wares on Etsy as well.  She is a wonderful artist who combines painting and photography into her portraits.  They really are wonderful.  Check it out...

Every year I say, 'I am going to make all my Christmas gifts next year' and then I end up giving only one or two homemade items, or sometimes none at all.  This year, I am afraid it might be none at all, as it's going to be December 1st tomorrow and I got nothing!  So, I did peruse Etsy and have already found some delightful stuff.  I ordered an item or two and will let you know when it arrives if it looks as good in person as it did online!

So, as we rush out to the stores to get prefabricated gifts made in China, let's stop a minute and think about homemade gifts.  Last year my sister-in-law gave us all a loaf of delicious bread.  I can't remember what it was called, but I do remember the chocolate chips!  mmmm...  It was one of the best gifts I got.  We had it for breakfast Christmas morning.  So, if you think, well, it's not like I can give everyone a loaf of banana bread, uh, YES YOU CAN!!  Bake em, freeze em, stick a bow on em and then hand em out!

mmmmm...who wouldn't want a piece of that?!??

So, get your creative juices flowing, or take a look at Etsy to check out other people's creative juices.  Or, one more thing, challenge yourself to check where the items you are buying are made.  Buy it if it says, ' Made in the USA.'

Good luck!!

Banana Bread

This is one of my favorite cookbooks.

It has the best waffle recipe ever!

It is the only recipe I use when making waffles.

mmmmm

I see waffles in my future

mmmmm

Sorry, I digress.

Today I noticed that my bananas

were in a state of despair.

I heard them calling to me.

Banana bread...

Turn us into banana bread...

Banana bread you say?

Well, if you insist!

And look!

A recipe!

In one of my favorite cookbooks!

What luck!

ok, enough with the exclamation points! oops, sorry

The recipe called for nuts, but there were none in my pantry.

Nuts!

Then, my daughter said

'wouldn't it be yummy if we put chocolate chips in it?'

Why, yes, I do believe it would be yummy if we had

chocolate chips to put in our banana bread.

Alas, there were no chocolate chips in the pantry.

Geez, pantry, what is wrong with you today?

But, then, I found this:

Pantry, you have redeemed yourself, thank you!

We broke up the chocolate into a bunch of little pieces

and threw it in the batter

do you see those little hands? love them.

With a few other ingredients we turned it into this:

mmmmmm

I may even put a pat of butter on my piece

mmmmmm

Oh, and your house will smell delicious.