Tag Archives: thanksgiving

Blogmas – My Holiday Wish List 2019

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MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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I hope everyone is having a great holiday so far, even though it’s still early in the day. For this entry for Blogmas, I have decided to do my Personal Wish List.

This year was a difficult year, and is still difficult for myself and my small family. With moving back to PA from WA in the end of March, to our wedding in May, and to still not being caught up on bills from the big move… the second part of this year has been rough. Without going into too much detail, my husband and I were both sick twice with a cold already, we had snow 2 weeks before Thanksgiving (wtf?! it’s not even winter yet!), we both had a few serious episodes of depression and anxiety throughout October November and some of December, and we seem to just keep trucking on with no real reason at this point. We’re just trying to remain happy, calm and spend as much time as we can with each other to try and combat the depression we’ve been feeling. 

Because we’re still in debt from the move and catching up on payments and had sick spisodes preventing us from working a few days… I decided to share my Amazon Wish List with you and highlight a few things that we need for our apartment and home life and what’s on my Christmas List. Your Christmas List is supposed to be things that you would never splurge on for yourself, however, with the recent events of this year and being broke, it seems my list grew to be things that I or we actually need that we don’t have much money for sadly. 

  1. Rechargeable Fabric Shaver, Lint Remover  As most of my readers know, we have kitties… and this helps with removing lint, cat hair and fuzzies that may accumulate from the laundry. We also do not have a washer and dryer in the house because there’s no room and laundromats only can do so much for your clothes. This is something I’ve always wanted for our sweaters, too.

  2. Kinesiology Tape Precut My husband and I both have back problems. We love using this tape on our back for therapy and use it constantly, but it’s sometimes expensive to keep buying it for both of us to use, and have started to use it sparingly.

  3. Elevated Garden Flower Planter Bed We have a small yard, and with our back problems it’s sometimes hard to bend over for long and garden, and it’s usually me who takes care of all of it. Having raised gardens for our plants would be amazong and something my husband always wanted for each year because it’s easy to clean up, rake, harvest and saves garden space!

  4. DEWALT TSTAK Tool Box We have way too many tools. Way too many and the box we have everything in is just too heavy and we need an actual toolbox or two to fit everything. 

  5. Kitchen Island Cart We have very little counter space in our kitchen. So little, that I can’t even make cookies unless I clean off my kitchen table and take the table cloth off, and no room to put hot pots or pans that come out of the oven. We plan on re-doing some of the kitchen and making room for this.

Again, I know Christmas is supposed to be for things you really want that others splurge on for you that you would never buy for yourself mostly, but in our case, these are things that have been on my list and have wanted for awhile that we could really use. Instead of a new Urban Decay eyeshadow palette or new Apple Watch in order to upgrade, I’m chosing most of this stuff.

 

Blogmas – Favorite Holiday Cocktail Recipes

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Christmas time is almost here, and what do you never see me during the holiday season without? A drink in my hand! With the stress and hard times that come with Christmas, gift giving, making holiday dinners and yet somehow still dealing with work and everything outside of it in your home life – you better believe that I’m going to need a nice strong drink to get me through alot of the holiday season this year.

I’ve curated a list of my favorite cocktails that I’ve actually made and tested out for you guys to try at home. Alot of them are super easy because I’m a drink minimalist (give me straight whiskey and I’m fabulous) but some have just the right touches like apples and cranberries to get you in the holiday spirit. (Most of these I’ve come across on Delish or other websites. Photos are not my own.)

Christmosas

This one is a personal favorite because it has fruit in it and it’s so simple yet so tasty to enjoy more and more of Christmas morning.

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INGREDIENTS
2 Granny Smith apples, chopped
1 c. whole fresh cranberries
1 c. green grapes, halved
1 c. pomegranate seeds
1 c. sparkling grape juice
1 bottle champagne, prosecco, or cava
DIRECTIONS

In a large pitcher, combine apples, cranberries, grapes, and pomegranate seeds. Pour over sparkling grape juice and champagne and stir, then serve.

Mulled Wine

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INGREDIENTS
1 (750-ml.) bottle red wine
1 orange, sliced into rounds, plus more for garnish
6 whole cloves
3 cinnamon sticks, plus more for garnish
3 star anise
1/4 c. honey
1/2 c. brandy
DIRECTIONS

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine all ingredients. Bring to a simmer not a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer gently over low heat for 10 minutes. Serve warm and garnish with more citrus slices and cinnamon sticks.

White Christmas Margaritas

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INGREDIENTS
1 (14-oz.) can unsweetened coconut milk
12 oz. silver tequila
8 oz. triple sec
1/2 c. lime juice
2 c. ice
1 lime, sliced into rounds for garnish

Lime wedge, for rimming glass

Sanding sugar, for rimming glass

Cranberries, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Combine coconut milk, tequila, triple sec, lime juice and ice in a blender. Blend until smooth.

Rim glasses with lime wedge and dip in sanding sugar. Pour into glass and garnish with lime and cranberries.

Jingle Juice

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INGREDIENTS
4 c. Cran-Apple Juice
2 bottles red moscato
1 bottle prosecco
1/2 c. vodka
2 c. frozen cranberries
1/3 c. mint leaves
1/2 c. sugar, for rimming glasses
2 limes, sliced into rounds
DIRECTIONS

Using a wedge of lime, wet the rim of your glasses. Dip in sugar until coated.

Combine all ingredients in a punch bowl, stir together and serve.

Apple Cider Old Fashioneds

This one is another personal favorite because I love apple cider and I love whiskey of any kind. It’s kind of my preferred alcohol of choice whenever I want some. 

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INGREDIENTS
1/2 c. ice
2/3 c. apple cider
2 oz. whiskey
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Apple slices, for garnish
Cinnamon sticks, for garnish
DIRECTIONS

Combine all ingredients in glass and stir to combine.

Mistletoe Shots

This is for all of you shot lovers out there who aren’t ready to give up the college vibe yet, or just want something small to get you by during a christmas party.

Mistletoe Shots
INGREDIENTS
Lime wedge, for rimming glasses
Red sanding sugar, for rimming glasses
1 c. water
2 (3-oz.) packet lime Jell-o mix
8 oz. vodka, chilled
whipped cream, for garnish
Mint leaves, for garnish
Red Hots, for garnish
DIRECTIONS

Run a lime wedge around the rim of each shot glass then dip each shot glass into the red sanding sugar.

Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Once bubbling, stir in packet of lime Jell-o mix, stirring until completely dissolved. Turn off heat. Pour in vodka or tequila (or whatever your preferred alcohol is), mixing until thoroughly combined. Pour into a large measuring cup, small pitcher or another glass so it’s easier to pour into the shot glasses. Pour the lime Jell-o mixture into each of the shot glasses. Place the shot glasses into the refrigerator until the Jell-o sets, about 2 hours.

Garnish with whipped cream, mint leaves, and red hot candies.

Gingerbread Eggnog

This final one is a bit longer… but it’s so worth it for all of you gingerbread lovers out there!

gingerbread eggnog
INGREDIENTS
1 c. heavy cream
1 (1-inch) piece ginger, sliced
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
8 whole cloves, crushed
6 allspice berries, crushed
2 cinnamon sticks, broken
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg, plus more for serving
4 c. whole milk, divided

8 large eggs, separated

3/4 c. granulated sugar

Pinch kosher salt

3/4 c. to 1 c. dark rum, cognac, bourbon, or a combination
DIRECTIONS

Combine heavy cream, ginger, vanilla, cloves, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 2 cups milk in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until tiny bubbles begin to appear around the edge of the pot (do not let boil), 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let steep 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, beat egg yolks with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined. Gradually beat in sugar and salt. Increase mixer speed to high and beat until thick and very pale in color, 2 to 3 minutes.

Strain spiced cream mixture, discarding spices; return to pot. Slowly whisk 1 cup warm cream mixture into yolk-sugar mixture on low speed; return to pot with cream mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until mixture reaches 170°F and coats the spatula, 12 to 15 minutes.

Place the pot over a large bowl filled with ice water and let cool, stirring occasionally, until chilled, 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in rum, cognac, or bourbon and remaining 2 cups milk.

Just before serving, beat egg whites with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes; fold into eggnog. Serve topped with nutmeg.

Ohio’s Beauty in the Fall – Lexie Wohler

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Have you ever seen the colors of fall? The leaves changing to different colors are some of the most incredible things to see. There is nothing quite like taking a drive and seeing the colors blend beautifully together. Instead of seeing just green on the trees, you get to see bright red, orange and yellow. We often take the fall weather and the fall beauty for granted because we have lived here for so long.

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We don’t always see the beauty for what it is, until someone else mentions it to us. We often hear the comments of, “What a beautiful fall we are having”, and “it’s nice that we get to see the change of seasons unlike other places.”

Some of my family members come up to Ohio just to see what fall looks like for us. Many of my relatives don’t get to experience the serenity of fall because of where they live. They are in awe of the changing colors and the different atmosphere they feel when they come to Ohio in the fall.

Most of the time, the leaves start changing color in the middle to late September and they continue falling until after thanksgiving in November. When the leaves start dropping, you can see clear across the valley that we have in our backyard. The smell of fall is something very different, too. You can tell that fall has come when the air has a crisp clean sent to it and you feel the colder air in your lungs when you take deep breaths.

It is so refreshing to walk outside on a crisp clear day. It is one of the ways I enjoy fall. I take walks and photograph the changing colors of the leaves and the beauty all around me.  I hear the leaves crunching under your feet as you walk. Have you ever walked outside and smelled the air after a thunderstorm? Well multiply that clean smell by 10 times and add the rustling of the leaves all around you and you just know fall has come.

Sometimes the fall can be fairly warm for our Indian Summer as we call it, in the 60s and 70s. Whereas some other years, the temps can drop to the 50s pretty quickly. The temperatures are some of my favorite aspects about fall. They are often just perfect enough for me to break out some of my favorite sweatshirts and some of my favorite sweatpants. There is nothing like sitting around a warm campfire, drinking warm cider as the temperature drops to the 50s in the evening and into the night.

Some of the fun things you can do include going on nature hikes in some of the area’s finest Metroparks systems. The truth is, you never know what kind of animals you’ll see, from possums to beavers to deer and sometimes even wolves and coyotes. My family often jokes that we have the Disney movie Bambi, right in our backyard with all the woodland creatures around us.

Some other fun things to do include going camping and sitting by campfires and raking a huge pile of leaves just to jump in them and have them spread all over your yard. Fall gives you more wonder to gaze at than you ever thought possible.

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Come experience fall in Ohio if you’ve never been here before. You will not be disappointed.

As the catchphrase goes for Ohio, whatever you’re looking for, you can always find it here.

*Lexie is a repeat guest blogger for The Unsanity and you can find her bio and previous posts here.

Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies – Gabriela

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Good Morning friends!

Monday means guest blogger time! Thankful to have this chicka on here to share this awesome recipe with us on vegan pumpkin cookies! You can find her personal Instagram here and her Toki Box Instagram here. 

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Hi everyone! Nice to meet you!

I’m Gabriela – vegan + baker + proud owner of a new subscription box – TokiBox (which I created back in May this year.)

My box is all about healthy vegan goodies like superfoods, healthy snacks and eco-friendly accessories.

I became vegan a few years ago after watching a documentary about animal cruelty and I’ve been vegan since then. I don’t think I could ever eat animal products again, that’s why I created my box. A place where you can get healthy snacks and superfoods that nourish your body and gives you energy and happiness. Because it is true that you are what you eat.

I have started cooking and baking around the same time of becoming vegan – because I was discovering a new world filled with foods I never tried. I grew up a small village in Romania – so there were some of the fruits, vegetables and pantry items I’ve never seen.

Now I cook because it makes me relax, distress and create amazing stuff! It has become on of my hobbies.

When I don’t work at my box (being an online business is sometimes a 24hr job) I enjoy taking photos in nature, running and doing yoga J. I love photography and the outdoors.

I’m super happy to do write for this blog and I want to thank to Koral for the opportunity to connect with each one of you and share one of my favorite recipes.

If you’d like to check out my box head over to our website: http://tokibox.co

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I’m happy to introduce you to one of my favorite fall recipes, perfect for the holidays and fall season.

These cookies are a healthier version of the traditional chocolate chip cookies that I love to recreate in the fall – winter season, because makes me feel so cozy and happy!

Ah, and I have to mention that it has one of my old time favorite ingredients: PUMPKIN.

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Because, ‘tis the season of pumpkins.

Cookies are my favorite dessert and I enjoy decorating them with all sorts of stuff and serving them with
“weird” combinations like peanut butter and nut milk or plum jam and almond butter!

I love baking them as well because they are easy and fast to make, plus everyone in the family loves them!

I have tried tons of cookie recipes since going vegan, but I personally fell in love with this one and I hope you do to!

This recipe is healthy, with no dairy or butter and with delicious vegan chocolate chips-it can be optional in case  you’re going for a healthier treat, and it is under 30 minutes.

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Time: under 30 min

Makes 20 cookies

THE INGREDIENTS:

  • 1, 1 ¾ cups of flour (either regular or gluten free)
  • 1, ½ tsp of baking powder
  • ½ cup pumpkin puree
  • ¾ cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp nutmeg
  • ¾ cup of tahini (or any nut butter of your choice)
  • Vegan chocolate chips (measurement depends on your taste).

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THE PROCESS:

  • Preheat the oven at 350 and oil a baking tray with coconut oil.
  • Mix the flour with baking powder and set aside.
  • Mix in the wet ingredients: pumpkin puree, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, maple syrup and tahini.
  • Combine them together using a spatula and then mix it with your hand (like a dough).
  • After mixing it well, stir in the chocolate chips (my husband likes a lot of them so I put in ½ cup).
  • Start shaping the dough into small 2 inch balls using your hand.
  • Put all the balls into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.
*you can use any kind of flour or even oats 
*chocolate chips are optional – for an even healthier recipe, you don’t have to use them.

These cookies are going to come out super fluffy and not oily. I like serving them with a glass of non-dairy milk. For this photo I used pea milk from Ripple, but you can use any kind of milk you want and toppings! Go crazy with them!

This is a super healthy cookie recipe you can make ahead of time and snack on throughout the week. It is filled with protein and vitamins from the tahini and pumpkin. Eat food that nourishes your body.

Hope you try out the recipe and let us know how it turns out!

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PS: here’s a coupon code in case you’d like to try out my healthy vegan goodie box: KORAL5 for $5 off on your first box!

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The Phoenix

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2017 was a big year for me. Let’s run through some highlights:

  1. I re-found my best friend and we started dating back in May of this year. It was perhaps by accident and totally not planned but it took him awhile to decide if thats what we truly were supposed to be. Turns out, it was.
  2. We got engaged in the very end of September at our favorite place and where we had our first official date nearly 3.5 years ago at the Bloomsburg Fair in PA.
  3. I got a major promotion with the company I worked for at the time in July, and became a work from home person starting August 1. I now am a #bossbitch and work for the government creating content and social media copy for the Defense Health Agency and Department of Defense.
  4. That job landed me (and the fiancé) in Washington State for December 1 working on Joint Base Lewis-McChord for DHA Connected Health. The Pacific Northwest is great, so far. Even though we have MUCH to explore and things to be seen come spring and summer. I’m very excited.
  5. We were fortunate enough to drive across the country from PA to WA in November right after Thanksgiving and made it in 4 days, with enough time to stop at House On The Rock in Wisconsin even and spend some time there to gawk and the insanity that it is. While on the way out, I got to meet some of his family in Montana, and my god, that state is the prettiest state I’ve ever been in. #BigSkyCountry is the place to drive through in fall and summer.
  6. I can now mark quite a few states off my list that I’ve visited and they aren’t all on the east coast anymore. Hooray! An updated list of states I’ve visited so far: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, New Hampshire, Delaware, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Florida, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Montana, Nevada, Washington, Idaho, Washington DC, Virginia, Maryland, Louisiana and Minnesota. 
  7. Mom came and visited (already!) for Christmas and had a great few days with her. It was great to see someone, even though I wasn’t away for that long from my friends and family. I can’t wait until she brings me my kitties in the spring… I think thats part of the reason I am semi depressed.

Things are going pretty good. Helping my partner get passion back in his life is the hardest part right now. We’re both a bit under the weather and depressed and thought maybe this would help with the move, but so far, it’s just remained the same and maybe even potentially gotten a bit worse. I’m not too worried though. We’re still in the beginning and we have a lot to get done still including finishing setting up the apartment and finding him a job yet. I’m also in the market for a car, so I’m hoping that falls into place soon. Sadly, I sold Hannah at the end of December, but it was time for an upgrade and possibly a more adult car… (like I said, possibly.)

Things have a way of working out. Even though I miss my friends and family, I know some of them will be out in time to see me (and us) its just a matter of when. I feel that if I keep those close to me, I’ll slowly break from the depression I might be feeling these days. I’ll get used to it out here… soon.

One of the biggest lessons I have learned is sometimes a part of you must die. It’s what separates the newer version of us from the old. If you have ever been in the limbo of death and rebirth you know how hard it can be. To let go and say goodbye to a part of you, so a new and better part can grow.

We should strive to be like the Phoenix when we need to. To die and rise from the ashes of what we once were. We must say Goodbye, so we can say Hello.

Love Always,

Koral Dawn