J is for Jesus, Candy Cane Pizza, & our Christmas Eve afternoon.

That's a mouthful!

So after Christmas Eve brunch at my mom's....we headed back to our house.  It was right smack dab in the middle of Grace's nap time....but with all the excitement and goings on....she definitely didn't want to nap....and part of me didn't want her to either because I just wanted us to all be together.  I had a few things planned and basically there was no time to nap!  And....maybe in the back of our mind....we were hoping for early bedtimes for the girls.  ;)

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This book has turned out to be one of my favorites this year...

In a nutshell....it's a story about how a candy maker in a small town made a new candy one year....a candy cane.  When held one way...it is a J for Jesus.  When held the other....it resembles the shepherds staff.  The red is for the blood that He shed, and the white to show he can make us white as snow.  Love it.

So anyway- I wanted to do a few candy cane things....all while throwing in things about Jesus and His birth and who first came to visit Him after He was born, etc, etc.


First thing up.... just a little J for Jesus craft.  I found these glittered foam candy cane {J} stickers.  I just cut out a large J for each girl and had them stick the J's/candy canes on them.

The girls played for a bit while I was getting a few things together in the kitchen.


Grace had to wear her new Little Mermaid pjs from Aunt Sis and play with her new stroller from Gramma and Poppa.

We made some cupcakes for Jesus' birthday.  I have 2 great helpers!

For Christmas Eve dinner....and continuing with our J/candy cane theme....

I saw this candy cane pizza idea randomly a few days before Christmas on Delia Creates.


Geoff rolled out and cut a perfect J for us.....

I got a little carried away with the pepperonis.  If we do this again next year....I will make the crust a bit thicker to withstand all of the grease from the cheese and pepperonis.....and I will do a few less pepperonis.

And just to keep it real.....between all of this 'fun' (and it was fun)....we were busily trying to fold and put up all the laundry and just clean a bit so that we could enjoy a 'clean' house on Christmas.

Our pizza!  Complete with pepperonis, black olives, green olives, and jalapeños.  Yumm-o!

And cupcakes for dessert.....in keeping with my 'keeping it simple' theme in life right now....I just got the spray can of cupcake icing (I think it's made by Betty Crocker)....and really- it is some of the best icing you can buy, I think.  I let them 'decorate' their own.  And I think we sang Happy Birthday to Jesus.  ;)

The evidence....clean up a mess, to make a mess, to clean up a mess, to make a mess.

Santa came....