Cheers!

2009 is nearly here! Time to celebrate with people you enjoy! Check out allrecipes.com for a great list of fun, festive cocktails to make at your New Year's shindig. We hope you have some kind of celebration planned----big or small----and we wish each of you happiness and hope for 2009!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Babs Blog! We wish you a beautiful celebration of our Savior's birth! As you can see by the "Christmas card" above, the two of us Babs Blog sisters are spending Christmas in very different spots. Jill's view from her front door shows snow in Grass Valley, California, and Kari is enjoying Christmas in Maui this year with her husband's family. Two very different types of weather and scenery---but nonetheless, we will both be celebrating this beautiful time of year with loved ones. We hope that your Christmas is meaningful and peaceful, wherever you are celebrating this year. Please join us back here on the Babs Blog in 2009 for more fun ideas and chit chat!
Merry Christmas!

---Jill & Kari

In Honor of Babs and Dave...

This is in honor of our parents, Dave and Babs, who are, in fact, going to be celebrating Christmas in Africa (Liberia, to be exact!) Enjoy...

A Little More Info

In response to our posts about the Advent Conspiracy, some of you have asked for a little bit more info...
You can check out what The Advent Conspiracy stands for by checking out their website at www.adventconspiracy.org. The Advent Conspiracy partners with Living Water International to promote the digging of wells and the delivery of clean, healthy drinking water to those in the world who do not have access to this resource that we take for granted in the United States. You can check out Living Water International's video below. We hope it moves you beyond feeling and into some kind of action. We want to be very clear that this is not the only great cause out there---there are many organizations out there showing love and compassion to those who don't have what we have here in the U.S. We hope you'll choose one that speaks to your heart and act on that.

One More Time...

Yep, we know we already posted about this...but it's so important and it keeps weighing on our hearts. We hope you'll check this video out (even if you already have!) to help keep your Christmas in perspective. The Advent Conspiracy is a beautiful thing. Imagine providing love, compassion and life-giving water to people who need it...instead of buying your kid another video game that will be "so last year" within months. And, if you have children, think of the beautiful lesson you could be teaching them through participating in this movement! Such a lesson is a gift that will last so much longer than that video game. :)

From a Stylish Reader...

Thanks to Elizabeth for leaving this post for us. It's such a great idea for holiday creativity! And, what a great way to give something handmade. Not only is it easy on the budget, but handmade gifts are special and from the heart. Thank you, Elizabeth, for sharing with us! We hope more readers will share their great ideas for a "spend-less Christmas!"

"I collect small glass vases and candleholders through the year as I visit flea markets, yard sales, thrift stores, and dollar stores (with a few dumpster diving adventures thrown in) and toss them in a box year-round to be decorated for gifts at the end of the year. Sharpie markers, squeeze-on fabric paints, inexpensive craft paint, book-pressed leaves, broken jewelry, even pebbles make fantastic adornments for these unique gifts. Try this: Start with a clear votive holder. Draw a simple heart or some holly berries on the glass using sharpie markers. Pipe on an outline of "Liquid Lead" found at a craft store. Pop a scented candle in the holder after drying for a day, and you're ready to wrap it! Take a single sheet of tissue paper, ball it up around your candle holder, drop it into a sandwich baggie and tie off the top with curling ribbon. Presto! Protect your work surface with newspaper and throw some rubber or latex gloves on a child and set them loose with a package of colored Sharpie markers and a few candleholders, and Grandma and Auntie and Teacher will love the results. Enjoy"

Stylish Service...

Just spotted this website: Farmhouse Wares---fun stuff for your house and really great stuff for entertaining! For instance, these super-darling tureens! The little one would be great for serving up salad dressing during lunch, or homemade jam during brunch! And the medium and large ones would be great for, well, soup...and other things. Enjoy this site---we sure did!
(Also check out their great little inexpensive gifts---great for hostess gifts for the holidays!)

How Appetizing!

With Christmas just around the corner, it's great to have a new recipe or two up your sleeve. You never know when you might be asked to (gasp!) bring something to the next party you're invited to! Or, you might feel like being an extra great guest and actually offer to bring something---this is a really great way to get invited back, by the way! Try these great appetizers at Williams-Sonoma or just browse their site for other great recipes.
Try this Peppered Beef Tenderloin Crostini with Carmelized Onions...

or Endive with Pear, Gorgonzola and Walnuts...

or Cucumbers with Pickled Ginger and Crab...

or, lastly, Crostini with Tapenade.
Delicious! And if you have any fab appetizer recipes to share with us, please do! Leave a comment or send an email. :)

All Decorated Yet?

Hey, it's December 7! Are you all finished with the Christmas decorating? If you're running into roadblocks trying to come up with new, creative ideas, check out HGTV.com's top tips for decorating. Lots of good stuff there---and a lot of original ideas from viewers with limited budgets. Enjoy!

Tempe, AZ Home: Another Contract

The previous buyers walked from their contract but now, we have another contract. The "pending" price is nearly identical.

As investors, we can do our comps and attempt to determine market value but, ultimately, the market will have the final say!

Cheers to better success with this contract for both parties (us, the sellers and the new buyer)!

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Property Qwest Project Details
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Address:
717 W. Manhatton Dr.
Tempe, AZ 85282

Listing Info:

• Listing price: $230,000.00
• Tempe MLS #: 4022329
• Tempe MLS Link

Take the virtual tour (click icon below):

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Hey, Party People!

Okay...so New Year's is approaching. It comes so fast after Christmas, but whether you are attending a party or throwing it, New Year's is an evening for a daring accessory, isn't it? If you can't pull it off on New Year's, when can you?
These most fabulous hair accessories are from ban.do, a fun site we discovered and are absolutely drooling over. Yes, some of them are a splurge...but so pretty, so fun, so perfect for an upcoming New Year's party. Just something fun for you to think about...what will you be wearing for New Year's?
(Sorry...we know this is a bit of a diversion from our regular "hostessing" topics, but every hostess should look snazzy for the holidays, right? :)

Peppermint Chocolate Fudge---YUM!

Chocolate and peppermint are pretty good together. Actually, they are excellent together and they seem to only make their appearances together around the holidays! Try this yummy recipe from Allrecipes.com and you won't be disappointed:

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 (14 ounce) can EAGLE BRAND® Sweetened Condensed Milk
• Dash salt
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1/4 cup crushed hard peppermint candy

DIRECTIONS:

1. In heavy saucepan, over low heat, melt chips with EAGLE BRAND® and salt. Remove from heat; stir in peppermint extract. Spread evenly into waxed paper-lined 8-or 9-inch square pan. Sprinkle with peppermint candy.
2. Chill 2 hours or until firm. Turn fudge onto cutting board; peel off waxed paper and cut into squares. Store covered in refrigerator.

Let us know how your peppermint chocolate fudge turns out! :)

A Beautiful Nativity

Peanut and Tommy, a darling Etsy shop, stopped us in our tracks when we came across this incredible hand-knit nativity set. The knitting is perfect and the complete nativity together is just beautiful. This would be a wonderful nativity set to have with children in the house---it's not breakable porcelain or glass and the colors are so joyful. What a wonderful little set to use to share the meaning of Christmas with your little ones!

Something to Think About...and Act On...

Join the Advent Conspiracy...
The idea is to substitute compassion for consumption---making Christmas more meaningful for all.
Check out this video and think about how you can make a difference this Christmas season.

The Spend-Less Christmas...

Budgets are tight for most folks this Christmas. While some people are woefully thinking about what they can't have this year due to less disposable income, truly savvy individuals are instead getting creative. You don't need to spend a lot of money to have a festive home. See that really cute sparkly, snowy, wintry house under the glass dome in the top picture? Yes, it looks Pottery Barn-esque. But it came from WalMart's Christmas collection a couple years ago! Folks, it's time to start scouring cheapo depots for decor!

And see those branches in the bottom picture? Some bare branches in a vase or cute bucket make for a great place to display your Christmas cards. Most trees need a little pruning in the fall/early winter, anyway, so you can probably get these free from your own yard. Have the branches ready (you can even hang a few ornaments on them or fill up the container with ornaments to cover the bottoms of the branches). When your first Christmas cards arrive in the mail, just punch a hole in the corner of each card, string with a little ribbon, and tie to one of the branches. As your cards roll in, your branches fill up, but it looks festive and upscale and it means that your fridge won't be covered in cards this year!

What are your great ideas for affordable holiday decorating this year? Please share them by posting a comment or by sending the Babs Blog an email. Happy decorating!

Letters of Gratitude...

Okay, it's December 1st. By now, you're likely thinking about a holiday celebration or two that you've been invited to attend. It's always important to show the hostess you appreciate her efforts. After all, if you are the guest at a party, it means that somebody else was scrubbing toilets, banishing dust bunnies, and putting out a platter of sweet treats in your honor. Never thought of it that way? Well, it's true. It's a lot of work to put on even the most casual shindig and the hostess should always be thanked. A small hostess gift is not necessary, but it's rather nice, don't you think? Check out Anthropologie for these sweet little monogrammed gifts. They won't break the bank, but they will show somebody that you were thinking of them and that you appreciate their hospitality!
***Remember, if you didn't have time to pick up a hostess gift you should send a thank you note a day or two after the party, just to show the hostess that you were so happy to be included :)

Make Your Gift Count

This year, if you are having a hard time figuring out what to get for someone, consider shopping at WorldVision, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving children's lives worldwide. They have an incredible gift catalog where you can purchase a wide range of items. Stumped on what to get that fisherman on your list? How about a fish pond? And for your cousin, the teacher? Education for girls in China seems like a good fit. For every gift, you receive a card that will tell your loved one exactly what you bought for them. It is truly a thoughtful, meaningful gift!