Every Christmas I have a tradition to make cookies. I make my Noni's Biscotti and Cialde, then I usually do Oreo balls and Toffee Bars....sometimes I do sugar or chocolate chip cookies too.   Giving these treats to teachers, friends and family, is something I have done for years.  It is something that I hope to pass on to both my kids.  I love coming together in the kitchen and doing something I feel is important and that my kids will hopefully hold as a cherished memory one day.  

Please be sure to head over to Eileen's page by clicking here and see her Sweet Treats image! 

This is my Noni's Cialde.....so yummy and reminds me of my childhood! 

1500 Miles, 1 Image ~ Christmas Tree

I love decorating our Christmas tree.  It is filled with ornaments from our past and each one holds some meaning and special memory.  I remember my mom always letting us pick out an ornament every year. Special years we would go to the big Christmas shop on Pier 39 in San Francisco, it was always such a treat.  I let my kids do the same thing now. Each year they choose their very own ornament, this year Little Man chose a penguin and Little Miss chose an ice cream. 

I focused on the lights of the tree because I thought the way the lights shaped the tree looked neat! I used my lensbaby double glass optic for this image and had a hard time choosing from a few! I wanted one and the kids liked another....so I think I will just leave them both up here and enjoy 2 images this time! 

Be sure to go to Eileen's page  by clicking here and see her beautiful Christmas tree image. 

1500 Miles, 1 Image ~ Lights

I love all the lights this time of year! I think they add so much cheer and beauty.  One of my favorite things to do is drive around in different neighborhoods and look at all the houses decorated with bright colorful lights.  I also enjoy taking pictures and getting beautiful bokeh from the lights! I recently bought some fairy lights and have been experimenting with them. They are fun to dangle in front of the camera and see what type of cool light effect it gives.  While we were playing around with them my daughter balled them up and just held them and I really loved the way the image turned out. Just a handful of lights!  

Please be sure to check out Eileen's blog by clicking here to see her beautiful lights picture!

Oh Christmas Tree.....

 Finding the perfect Christmas Tree can be a challenge in our  house! I am very picky and don't mind passing up a good tree to find an even better tree! We love to go to Christmas Tree farms and run through the rows of trees searching for the one to take home.  This year we went to a new farm in Washington NJ.  It was a gorgeous day that included a tractor ride, visiting Santa and of course a great tree hunt! 

1500 Miles, 1 Image ~ Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving we did something that is on so many people's bucket list! We went into NYC and saw the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! It was amazing and everything we thought it would be! We spent Wednesday night in NYC, woke up early and headed over to Central Park where we had seats waiting for us.  It was a pretty chilly morning but once the parade started that was quickly forgotten! There was nothing traditional about our Thanksgiving this year other then being with family and being very, very Thankful!  

Please be sure to check out Eileen's Thanksgiving image  by clicking here.

  

If you want to see all the images (and there are a lot) from the parade I posted them yesterday so they are on previous post!