A make-ahead Thanksgiving menu + a clutter-free Christmas!

Wednesday, November 13, 2024

THIS WEEK, ON THE BLOG:

Over the weekend, I asked the kids when they wanted to put up the Christmas tree. They looked at me like I was nuts, then emphatically declared that it could not happen until the day after Thanksgiving.

Do any of you have your tree up already? We have several neighbors with lights up and it looks so pretty, but I will wait!

The kids are letting me listen to Christmas music in the van, and they can't stop me from mentally planning ahead for the holidays.

My hope is that this week's posts will help you to start (or continue) your holiday planning too. From a make-ahead Thanksgiving Day Menu to simple ideas for a more clutter-free Christmas... these tips and resources will help you de-stress and de-clutter this busy time of year.

Happy Planning,

simple food.

These brownies are amazing any time of year, but they are especially great for holiday parties as they can be made ahead (and frozen), they hold up well for traveling, and everyone loves them.

Satisfy your sweet tooth with these delicious cheesecake swirl brownies!

get the recipe -->

organized home.

If you'd like a few ideas to help reduce your consumeristic clutter this holiday season, I've got 10 clutter-free gift-giving traditions you might consider for your family this year!

learn more -->

**10 Clutter-free gift-giving traditions for families**.

intentional living.

For many years, I've made everything for our Thanksgiving Day feast days in advance. This saves so much stress and mess, and the food still tastes amazing!

Get my step-by-step plan + recipes to prepare your Thanksgiving party (or any upcoming holiday event) ahead so you can actually enjoy your guests!

keep reading -->

**How to plan a make-ahead holiday meal**.

In other news...

An Advent Project: A few days ago, I decided I wanted to make a Jesse Tree this year for our family, including the 25 ornaments. I did a little research, ordered Ann Voskamp's book, got my "ornaments", and I'm ready to DIY!

I'll keep you posted on my progress. 😬

Second-Hand Seasonal Clothing: The kids and I buy almost 100% of our clothing used... mainly because it saves SO much money, but also because I like knowing that we're not feeding into more consumerism at the malls or other stores.

I often get questions from readers who don't have great thrift store options, asking for ways to save on clothing... my suggestion is always to try ThredUp. I've used ThredUp for almost 13 years (I started using it right after Nora was born) and while it's more expensive than thrift stores, it's cheaper than buying new, and you can search for the EXACT item, brand, size, and color item you want as they have a huge selection and the website is very well organized.

I recently purchased new-to-us seasonal church clothes for all 4 kids from ThredUp, along with a longer vest for myself. I found exactly what we were looking for, used a $10 coupon code, and everything but one item worked for us.

Currently, ThredUp is offering 45% off + free shipping! to new customers when you shop through my affiliate link... I believe the discount will apply at checkout IF you are a new customer. If you've used ThredUp before, there are always coupon codes floating around, so do a Google search and see what you can find.

Also, I've had amazing luck with their customer service over the years, so if you have any issues at all, don't hesitate to reach out via their "chat" feature and they will likely take care of your issue immediately.

My Bread-Baking Hack: Our kitchen is a bit cooler in the Fall and Winter months, so I've been letting my bread dough rise in our Ninja Foodi -- it works like a charm! I set the temp to 100ºF (my oven only goes down to 175º which is too warm) and I get the perfect rise every time!

This concept should work in any smaller toaster oven that can be set to 100º. One more reason we love our Ninja Foodi!