When it comes to indulging during the Holidays, breakfast pastries are one of my favorite splurges.

Aside from Monkey Bread, these cinnamon rolls are my favorite excuse to basically eat dessert for breakfast.

I have been meaning to make and share my favorite cinnamon roll recipe for a couple years and finally had the time to make them when Mikey was away one weekend (which resulted in me eating them for every meal). They are a bit time consuming, but if you have other things to do during some of the waiting periods they’re totally manageable (and worth it). Any time I see a cinnamon roll on a menu I am tempted to get it. The smell of Cinnabon at the mall gets me every. single. time. There is something about that cream cheese frosting melting into the doughy cinnamon and sugar that I literally can’t say no to! As I write this I am having a super hard time telling myself not to go get a cinnamon roll for lunch!

We are huge traditionalist’s and all around Holiday cheer people in my family…I blame my Mom for my obsession with all things festive and jolly. One of my favorite things is waking up on Christmas morning at my parents house to the smell of coffee and Monkey Bread…and sometimes, when I’m lucky, cinnamon rolls!

As kids, we always woke up super early and started screaming at my parents to wake up. The rule was no opening or shaking anything until they came out of their room. My favorite story (I have many, I was a very naughty/sneaky child) was the year my brother and I bought each other Giga Pets. I was horrible at keeping secrets and told him right away that I had gotten him a frog and forced him to tell me what he got me.

We were so excited to open them but my parents were still in their room, so I told my brother to follow my lead and start tearing up computer paper right outside their door. I started screaming, “YAYYYYYY THE DALMATIAN GIGA PET!!!!”, and my brother repeated the same about his frog…it worked.

My Mom came running out of her room in a flurry yelling that we had to wait…Got her! She then laughed and told us we could open our stockings even though we were brats 😉

We were always up so early so we would always eat breakfast after presents…but that has shifted now and my Mom is always up before us, turning on all the Christmas lights, lighting the candles and prepping the food (which now has lots of eggs since Mikey does not do sweets for breakfast. Travesty.).

I am so excited to head up to the beautiful Northwoods this year with my family and sit around, eat cookies and reminisce about the funny Christmases from the past. And I guarantee my Mom will say the same thing she says every year when she is ready for bed, “Ok kids, time to go to bed so Santa can come”.

If you don’t have a Christmas breakfast tradition I highly recommend you add these cinnamon rolls to your list!!! They are SO gooey and delicious!

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Happy Friday!!!!

I am so glad it’s the weekend and that it’s a Holiday weekend at that! That means Christmas parties, baking Christmas cookies and blasting as much Wham “Last Christmas” as possible!

I have a few links of fun Christmas recipes as well as a couple last minute gift ideas for the cat lover or makeup fanatic in the family.

Hope you are finding time to focus on the reason we celebrate this time of year and reducing the stress that can often come with the busyness of parties, gifts and prep. Mikey and I plan on seeing some friends this weekend and then I promised myself I would buckle down and tackle my long list of Christmas cookies! I’m hoping to add a couple new recipes this year, and promise to post the keepers with you!

Have a blessed day and weekend, I hope you enjoy what I’ve been crushing on lately 🙂

[Look at this beautiful, raw and vegan Eggnog…what?! Raw and vegan…does that make it healthy? Not sure if “fun uncle” would love this eggnog…but you could try and trick your guests with this healthy spin on one of my Holiday favorites]

Even though I am about ready to ninja chop our cat, Norman, for constantly trying to climb our tree or play with ornaments…I think this modern cat couch is the best thing I’ve seen for cat’s this year! it goes so well with our modern style couch and I’m pretty sure he would love it…last minute Christmas gift for the little cookie nabbing, tree climbing menace??? He’s just so cute when he’s sleeping!

If you have not tried these Too Faced Melted lipsticks yet I am begging you to get one for a friend and three for yourself. I am pretty sure they were made for people like me who are too lazy to reapply lipstick and always afraid it’s smudging across my face. This long-wear lipstick comes in shades that flatter every skin tone and stay on through those holiday appetizers and cocktails. Any girlfriend or family member would be obsessed with one of these for Christmas! You have my word! [and if they hate it you can just send the lipstick my way 😉 ].

Who doesn’t love Apres Ski?

My favorite part about snowboarding in the mountains is the time of the day when everyone heads down the hill and grabs a refreshing mountain beer. I swear it tastes so much better after a day on the slopes. You’re tired from that crisp air and a day of shredding (I sound like a pro, right?) and you can sit and relax all while watching people who are coming in waaayyy too hot and have to bail so they don’t crash into anyone. Or watch people as they struggle to get their skis off and either tip over or lay down for a rest…can you tell I love to people watch? People watching would be even better in this cute Apres Ski top from Nordstrom. Last minute gift idea for the mountain girl in your family!

Naomi over at Bakers Royale is always stunning me with her beautiful desserts. She is a doctor with two kids, yet she has the most delicious sweets and best pictures and I am pretty sure she is a super human for making time to manage a blog as well as live her life. She’s amazing. And I think this Peppermint 

I am in the Christmas spirit. Christmas music is on blast, decorations are up, and packages from Amazon are beginning to arrive.

I love the hustle and bustle that comes along with Christmas. We have a pretty packed schedule this Christmas season and I am so excited to celebrate with friends and family!

I am inspired to try harder with my decorating skills…this wreath and chalkboard are amazing…

It is so easy to get caught up in the chaos that comes with Christmas and very easy to lose focus on the whole reason we celebrate! I got this beautiful Advent book, “O Come Let Us Adore Him” for my Mom and my sister in law and we are loving the daily verses that help us stay focused on the reason we celebrate Christmas!

Obviously we all love the song…and what’s better than a cute little throw pillow? Booze and ice cream. No more words are needed. Just a large Brandy Alexander in my hand, please.

(different recipes have cream or ice cream, depends on what you’re in the mood for).
I want to find some fun Scandinavian Christmas decorations to celebrate my heritage and because my Grandma always has the best Swedish and Norwegian decor during the Holidays! I love this sweet little scene here!

Leave it to Martha. I can totally see my Mom making a whimsical little village like this! I can just imagine how obsessed I would have been with something like this as a kid! Hopefully I can make time to decorate on this level someday!

Remember I told you it was time to step up your hot chocolate game last week?

Well here is the recipe to help you do that!

I made this absolutely decadent hot chocolate that’s richer and creamier than any hot coco anyone has ever given me. Topped with homemade marshmallows you really can’t go wrong. Add a little baileys and you might just faint. I pinky promise you will never regret making this even though it has whole milk or heavy cream in it…it makes it so much better than the mix with water your Mom used to make you (no offense, Moms).

I hope everyone had an absolutely fantastic Thanksgiving Holiday! I know I did because I am now perpetually starving. I stretched my stomach out and then some…and It was worth it! Mikey and I packed in as much friend and family time as humanly possible and we wouldn’t have had it any other way!

I know your schedules are beginning to fill up…but maybe you can add this to your next get-together menu…it won’t disappoint!

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