Christmas

Toast the Holidays with Sarah Lamb

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Hello everyone! I hope that you had a good Christmas, and that your new year is starting off well. I’m personally thrilled we get a tad more daylight each day. I’ve never been keen on pitch black skies at 5pm! So, a toast to that! And, if you need a fruity, slightly tart, little bit bubbly drink, I’ve got just the thing for you. The ingredients are pretty simple, and you can garnish it however you like. We made it on Christmas Eve, and I used lemon, orange, and lime slices. The recipe calls for cranberries as well, but we skipped those. Ready? The original recipe is here, over at this blog, but I’ve copied it here for you.

Cranberry Punch

Ingredients

  • 1 liter ginger ale*
  • 2 cups pineapple juice
  • 1 cup cranberry juice
  • ½ cup fresh cranberries
  • 1 orange, thinly sliced
  • 1 lemon, thinly sliced
  • 1 lime, thinly sliced

Instructions

  • In a large pitcher, whisk together ginger ale, pineapple juice and cranberry juice.
  • Pour over sliced fruit, if desired.

That’s it! So simple! I like how you can customize it as well. My kids liked it a little sweeter, so they added more pineapple juice. Their grandmother liked it more tart, so she added a little more cranberry.

If you make it yourself, I hope you’ll enjoy it!

Toast the Holidays with Nan Reinhardt

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Happy New Year! Are you a peach lover like I am? Whether you’re hosting a big party, a small gathering with just few friends, or spending a quiet intimate New Year’s Eve at home like we are, this mocktail is absolutely delish and the perfect way to ring in the new year! Have a safe and happy holiday, and my New Year’s wish is that 2026 is the best year ever!

Peach Bellini Mocktail

  • 2 oz Peach Purée: Made from fresh, canned, or frozen peaches blended until smooth.
  • 4 oz Chilled Sparkling Beverage: Choose one of the following:
    • Non-alcoholic sparkling wine or Prosecco alternative (for the most authentic taste).
    • Sparkling apple cider.
    • Club soda or sparkling water.
    • Lemon-lime soda or ginger ale (for added sweetness).
  • Optional: 1/4 oz fresh lemon juice (to balance sweetness and prevent browning).
  • Garnish: A fresh peach slice, raspberries, or a sprig of mint.

Instructions

  1. Prepare the Peach Purée: Peel and pit fresh peaches, then blend them in a food processor or blender until completely smooth. If using canned peaches, blend them with a little of their syrup.
  2. Chill: Ensure all ingredients and your champagne flute or glass are well-chilled before mixing.
  3. Combine: Pour the peach purée into the bottom of the glass.
  4. Top Off: Slowly top the purée with your chosen non-alcoholic sparkling beverage.
  5. Stir Gently: Give the mixture a very gentle stir to combine the flavors without losing the effervescence.
  6. Garnish and Serve: Garnish with a peach slice or fresh berries and a sprig of mint, then serve immediately.

 

Toast the Holidays with Shanna Hatfield

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It’s fun to come up with mocktail recipes. This festive take with a peppermint twist is so easy to make, and tastes great! My friends gave it a test-drive and they gave it thumbs up!

Enjoy!

Peppermint Crème Fizz

Ingredients:

Cream Soda

Peppermint Coffee Creamer (I used Coffee Mate’s Harry Potter Peppermint Toad creamer – because it was the only peppermint creamer they had at the store … and it was SO good!)

Optional –

Whipped Cream

Crushed Peppermints

Peppermint Sticks

McCormick Candy Cane Finishing Sugar

Directions:

Pour a cup of chilled cream soda into a glass. Add two tablespoons of creamer. Stir and serve.

If you want to make your drink a little festive and fun, wet the rim of the glass then dip it in a shallow dish with candy cane finishing sugar before adding liquid. Once you’ve added soda and creamer, top with whipped cream, crushed candy cane or peppermint pieces, and a peppermint stick for stirring.

Happy Holidays!

Toast the Holidays with Linda Broday

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Classic Shirley Temple Mocktail

My drink is so simple and easy to make and is really versatile. It’s a great way to celebrate the New Year without the alcohol and kids can drink it too as well as pregnant women. It’s delicious.

Recipe

1 cup of Ginger Ale or any lemon-lime soda diet or regular

1 teaspoon Grenadine (can use pomegranate juice instead)

1 squeeze of a fresh lime

Maraschino cherries to garnish. And you also can put an orange slice on the rim.

Directions

Pour the Ginger Ale and Grenadine into a glass. Squeeze in some lime, stir and add the cherries. Also lots of ice.

This would be a good drink for New Year’s celebrations. Or just anytime you want something different. You can also rim the glass with sanding sugar that you find in Walmart.

Most grocery stores shelve Grenadine by the Club soda and Ginger Ale. That way you wouldn’t have to go to a liquor store which I hate. But I think the pomegranate juice would be a great substitute. Any health food store should carry it because it is very healthy.

Anyway, I hope you try this and find it delightful!

 

Toast the Holidays with Jo-Ann Roberts

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Happy Boxing Day!  In Great Britian and some Commonwealth countries, particularly Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, December 26 was the day on which servants, tradespeople, and the poor traditionally were presented with gifts.

Explanations for the origin of the name have varied, with some believing that it derived from the opening of alms boxes that had been placed in churches for the collection of donations to aid the poor. Others, however, have held that it came from the boxes of gifts given to employees on the day after Christmas. According to this theory, because the work of servants was required for the Christmas Day celebrations of their employers, they were allowed the following day for their own observance of the holiday.

Our family has celebrated Boxing Day several times in the past with a life-long friend, Doreen (Potts) Ference, an English war bride. She often served Buck’s Fizz, a drink made with orange juice, non-alcoholic sparkling wine, and a twist of orange. No stirring was needed…the bubbles did all the mixing.

Buck’s Fizz

  1. 4 ounces orange juice**
  2. 8 ounces sparkling non-alcoholic wine
  3. Orange twist for garnish

Resist the urge to stir here. Your mocktail will be perfectly blended as you combine your juice and your bubbles. It’s the power of sparkling wine.

**Feel free to get creative with other fruit juices, too. Blood orange, pineapple, and mango juices go well at brunch or baby showers. Cranberry juice may feel festive if you’re celebrating the winter holidays or new year’s.

Toast the Holidays with Jeannie Watt

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Happy Christmas Eve! What follows is a recipe I made with my grandchildren, ages 4 and 2. They loved the final result as did all the adults in the house.  It’s super easy and fun to drink.

Fun Jack Frosties

Ingredients:

1 lemon

2 cups blue sports drink such as Gatorade

1 pint lemon sorbet or lemon coconut sorbet (I like lemon coconut)

1 cup+ ice cubes

Sugar for glass rims if desired

Equipment:

Blender

Directions:

  1. Juice the lemon for 2-3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice and pour into blender.
  2. Add the blue sports drink, sorbet and ice cubes.
  3. Process in the blender as for a smoothie.
  4. Pour sugar onto a small plate. Pour a small amount of water on another small plate. Dip rim of glass into water then in sugar to make a sugar rim. (This is optional if you don’t want a sweet drink.) Fill glass with frosty mix.

Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

 

Toast the Holidays with Karen Kay

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Howdy!

Fermented Lemonaide

This recipe is one of my favorites and although it is easy, some of the ingredients (like whey) you might not find at your local grocery store.  However, your local Health Food Store would probably have some whey.  However, one can easily do a substitution for the whey.  This recipe comes to me from The Healthy Home Economist — https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com — and it is a favorite of mine, as well as a favorite of my grandchildren (especially in summer).  But, it is a refreshing drink in winter, too.

RECIPE:

** 6-9 lemons

**1/2 cup whey — whey is the golden liquid one sees on plain yogurt — or one can substitute with 1/2 cup filtered water with one tablespoon lemon juice or yogurt or vinegar) — I do not recommend buying whey from the grocery store because the brands carried in grocery stores often contain MSG — an allergen.

DIRECTIONS:

** Juice the lemons

** Combine with 2 (two) quarts of filtered water

** Add the whey or substitute as stated above

** 1/2 cup sugar (as much as 3/4 cup if one prefers their lemon juice sweeter)

** Mix

** Ferment for 2 (two) days in a warm place

** Refrigerate — one can bottle it.

We enjoy this drink year round.  Hope you’ll enjoy it, too!

 

 

 

 

Toast the Holidays with Pam Crooks

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I think most of us enjoy a cup of hot cocoa now and again, but this recipe is one of the best!  I’ve been making it for years, and my favorite part is the crushed candy canes, which gives the hot cocoa that subtle mint-ey taste that sets it apart from the rest. Even better, there’s no cooking on the stove. Use as much as you want, when you want.

It makes a great little gift, too, when you need something special for that special someone.  Fill a jar, add a tag, and you’re done!

I often make this after the holidays when there are leftover candy canes that need to be used.

Peppermint Mocha Hot Chocolate Mix

  • 1/2 cup instant mocha-flavored coffee
  • 1/2 cup dry nondairy creamer
  • 1/4 cup baking cocoa
  • 1 1/3 cups confectioners sugar
  • 1/4 cup crushed peppermint candy.  (I use 3 regular size candy canes)

Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in blender. Process until blended. Store in a jar or airtight container.

Add 2 Tb. mix to 3/4 cup boiling water for 1 serving.

Yield: 2 1/2 cups mix

 

Covering Christmas

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Covering Christmas is my last holiday release this year. It was such a fun story to write about a bareback rider trying to win a world championship title, the western lifestyle reporter who catches his eye and his heart, and Ella – the daughter he never knew he had until her mother dies and he suddenly finds himself in the role of single parent.

He wants a gold buckle. She needs a fresh start. But love—and a little girl—have other plans.

When the reigning world champion bareback rider retires, Keller Drake finally has a clear shot at claiming the title he’s chased for years, until an attorney corners him at a rodeo with life-altering news. Keller has a five-year-old daughter he never knew existed, and Ella’s late mother named him guardian in her will. Suddenly, the man who can ride the rankest broncs in the world is terrified of something far more dangerous—fatherhood.

 

 

In the book, Keller is a peanut butter addict. He loves anything made with peanut butter. His daughter, Ella is the same way.

Here’s a little excerpt from the story I thought might make you smile.

 

“My wife said to tell you that Ella is staying with us tonight, and you can pick her up after breakfast tomorrow.”

Keller turned to stare at Cooper as they stood in line at the hotel’s coffee shop. Cobie had knocked on their door and offered to style Ella’s hair, so Keller had volunteered to hustle downstairs to get breakfast. He’d run into Cooper in the elevator, and they’d made their way to the coffee shop. A line snaked out the door, but they weren’t overly concerned because the service on previous mornings had been fast and efficient.

“Is there any reason in particular your wife is kidnapping my daughter?”

Cooper grinned. “She said you and Cobie need some time together without a five-year-old chaperone. Buy tickets to a show and take Cobie out on the town after the rodeo tonight. You both deserve to have a little fun. Ella and Alex get along like two little peas in a pod, and it isn’t any trouble to keep her tonight. Just bring a bag with her jammies and whatever she’ll need to our room before you head over to the rodeo this afternoon.”

“Are you sure, Coop? I already feel like I’ve taken advantage of you and everyone else who has helped with Ella while I’m riding.”

Cooper looked insulted. “You aren’t taking advantage of us. We’re all glad to help, Keller. Paige and I know how hard it is to have a child and rodeo, and there are two of us working at it. You deserve a little time to enjoy life. You’re only what? Twenty-seven?”

“Just turned twenty-six, and I feel like I’m careening toward fifty.”

Cooper chuckled. “Exactly what I mean. Take Cobie somewhere fun and spend the evening being a young, not entirely ugly, single guy out for a great evening with a beautiful woman who clearly does not find him to be totally repulsive.”

“Ugly and repulsive. Guess I’m moving up in the world,” Keller quipped as the line inched forward. “Seriously, man, I appreciate it, and tell Paige I’ll gather Ella’s stuff and drop it off before we head out for the day. How about I reciprocate and keep Alex for you one evening so you and Paige can have some time alone?”

“I’d love that, but let’s make it during the day. We’re both too exhausted to do anything after the rodeo. I’m not as young as I used to be, you know.”

Keller shook his head in disbelief. “You’re going to be perpetually younger than us all, Coop. How about you leave Alex with me tomorrow morning? I can make sure he gets lunch, and you can reclaim him sometime in the afternoon before I need to head over to the rodeo.”

“I like it. It’s a deal,” Cooper said, shaking Keller’s hand.

“Any food allergies I should know about?” Keller asked as they got closer to the counter.

“Nope, and he’s usually a good eater. Takes after his dad.”

“I’m pretty sure a refined palate is more a trait from his mother, but what do I know?” Keller teased, then placed his order for breakfast. He got yogurt and an assortment of whole fruit, and could hardly believe his luck when he spied peanut butter muffins studded with chocolate chips in the pastry case.

“One of those muffins, please,” Keller said as the young woman behind the counter gathered his order.

“You and your peanut butter addiction,” Cooper pointed to the case of pastries. “I heard Ella has been known to eat it straight out of the jar.”

“What?” Keller asked, staring at Cooper. “Where did you hear that?”

“From Alex. He said they were hungry, and Ella got out a jar of peanut butter and ate it with a spoon. He went with a bag of fruit snacks. That was back when we were in Pendleton, or was it Walla Walla? Anyway, the gist of my story is that your daughter also has a predilection for peanut butter and eats it straight from the jar.”

Keller thought of all the peanut butter he’d eaten the last few months and wondered how much of it had five-year-old slobbers living in the jar. He would have been grossed out, but considering some of the things he’d cleaned up when Ella had the twenty-four-hour tummy flu, he decided slobber was the least of his worries.

Here’s an easy recipe for Peanut Butter Candy

Peanut Butter Drops

INGREDIENTS

1 11-ounce bag white chocolate chips

1 11-ounce bag peanut butter chips

1 cup cocktail peanuts

1 cup crushed pretzel pieces

DIRECTIONS

Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

In a microwave-safe bowl, stir together white chocolate chips and peanut butter chips, then melt in 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval, until the chips are smooth (1-2 minutes).

Stir in peanuts and pretzels, then drop by spoonsful onto the parchment.

Let cool, then store in an airtight container up to a week.

What is your favorite must-have flavor or treat, or holiday indulgence? 

Mine would chocolate in various forms.

Silver, Bells, and a Town Named Lovely

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About a year ago, I started kicking around the idea for a new holiday series. The notion of it having something to do with silver bells got stuck in my head.

So I asked my hubby, Captain Cavedweller, to brainstorm some ideas with me.

By the time we’d finished, I had pages of notes, a fictional town named Lovely (that was going to be anything but lovely, at least in the first book), and the plans for a four-book series that followed a family of silversmiths.

I didn’t know anything about silversmith work, but I sure enjoyed learning enough to write the stories.

I knew even less what someone would do in 1876 when they wanted to work with silver but were too poor to acquire any that was “clean.”

In the first book, A Joyful Ring, Gunder Burke leaves behind the big city of Pittsburgh after finding an advertisement for a silver mine in the new town of Lovely, Oregon. He sets on out a journey, determined to build a good life for himself. A life that will allow him to move his parents and sisters to Oregon as well.

Gunder arrives and Lovely is nothing like it was advertised. He gets a job at the silver mine, but is still determined to turn silver into something more. His father’s ancestors were bell makers and his mother’s family were known for making jewelry in their home country of Sweden.

It was fascinating to learn how Gunder could scrape up the tiny bits of silver from beneath the wagons that transported it, clean it, then melt it. In the story, Gunder struggles to figure out how to get the fire hot enough to melt the silver.

Here’s a little scene from the story.

Gunder watched her go, then returned to pumping the bellows until the fire burned so hot that he couldn’t stand to sit there any longer.

He stood and moved back, waiting as the blaze dropped below the rock rim of the pit he’d built. Assured it wouldn’t burst back to roaring flames and catch anything on fire, he returned his box to the hiding spot beneath his cot, washed up at the pump by the cookshack, and joined the other mine employees for Jed’s supper of ham, potatoes, and soggy green beans. For dessert, they had slabs of apple cake that were actually tasty, and not a crumb of it remained when the meal was finished.

Gunder hurried back to his tent, full and content. Although the sun had set, there was still enough light remaining in the sky for him to see. When he scooted the coals off the pot in his pit and lifted the lid, he saw that the silver had melted.

It had finally melted!

“Hurrah!” Gunder shouted and raised both hands to the sky in victory.

“What happened?” Risa asked, suddenly appearing at his side. Her presence was so welcome, he didn’t bother to wonder why she was there.

“It melted! My silver finally melted!” he said, swinging her into his arms and dancing her in a lively jig around the fire pit until she was laughing so much she could hardly stand upright. Her hair slipped from her pins, and the shawl she wore was askew, but he thought she looked utterly enticing. He’d never seen her hair down, not that it all was now, but the strands that had escaped looked like shimmering ribbons of silk. His hands itched to reach out and finger one of the waves.

“Congratulations, Gunder.” She gave him a hug and kissed his cheek, then stepped back and looked at the silver that was already beginning to harden back into a solid form. “You can melt it again, can’t you?”

“I certainly can. I’m going to need more oak wood, though.”

Four generations of Birke family silversmiths find joy and love during the holidays.

A Joyful Ring

A rugged freighter, a hopeful dreamer, and a Christmas they’ll never forget.

In 1876, Gunder Birke leaves the daily struggle of Pittsburgh behind, determined to build a better life in the rough-and-tumble mining town of Lovely, Oregon. Hired as a freighter to haul dangerous explosives for the local mine, Gunder faces ongoing danger—but nothing as treacherous as the risk to his heart when he meets the beautiful and spirited Risa Hoffman.

After losing her mother and siblings, Risa has spent most of her life on the move with her father, never knowing what it means to have a real home. When she convinces him to settle in Lovely, the remote, uninviting town is far from the idyllic refuge she imagined. Still, Risa pours her hopes into building a future, working at the boardinghouse while dreaming of a finding a husband who can offer stability and comfort.

But when Gunder’s steady kindness and quiet strength awaken feelings she never expected, Risa must choose between the security she’s always longed for and the love that rings true in her heart.

As snow begins to fall across the rugged Oregon landscape, two souls discover that sometimes the most beautiful gifts come wrapped in hope, faith, and the promise of love.

A Joyful Ring is the first book in the wholesome holiday Silver Bell Sweethearts series.

A Joyful Love (releasing tomorrow!)

One spark of hope. One act of courage. One joyful love.

Caleb Birke once believed adventure waited somewhere beyond the horizon. But after wandering the world, he discovers the one place his heart longs to be is right where he began—home in Lovely, Oregon. Now devoted to preserving his family’s legacy of fine silverwork, Caleb lovingly crafts everything from heirloom sleigh bells to western saddle silver, each piece carrying stories of the past and hope for the future.

A routine delivery trip to Baker City becomes anything but ordinary when he meets Laramee Scott—a lively, sharp-witted horse trainer who steals his breath and quickly claims his heart.

After fleeing a scandal in Texas, Laramee is grateful to find refuge with her aunt and uncle in Eastern Oregon. The land, the horses she loves, and the freedom to rebuild her life are exactly what she needs—until one unexpected encounter with Caleb makes her wonder if she wasn’t running from her past, but being led toward her future.

As Christmas draws near and snow begins to fall on the high desert, Caleb and Laramee discover that love—like silver—can be shaped, refined, and polished into something lasting. But only if they are willing to trust their hearts… and believe that sometimes the greatest gift of all is the courage to love.

A tender, heartfelt holiday romance, A Joyful Love is filled with family legacies, jingling sleigh bells, and the timeless hope Christmas brings.

A Joyful Promise (November 27)

He crafts silver. She stitches dreams. Together, they discover a joyful promise that could last a lifetime.

Baylor Birke has always known where he belongs—at the silver bench in his family’s shop in Eastern Oregon, crafting Western heirlooms that honor a legacy that is generations strong. Spurs that jangle, bridles that shine, and saddle silver that elevates cowboys into kings makes his work feel both satisfying and meaningful as he labors in the place he loves. But when a shy, talented young woman arrives in Lovely, Baylor begins to wonder if life has more to offer than tradition… perhaps even a joyful promise he never expected.

Bonnie McClure has spent her life preparing to take over her family’s department store in Heppner, but the world of inventories and invoices has never stirred her passion. Her true calling is in the artistry of embroidery, turning simple cloth into something beautiful with every graceful stitch. Sent to Lovely to care for her injured aunt, Bonnie anticipates a quiet holiday season … until she crosses paths with the handsome cowboy who caught her eye in Pendleton at the rodeo.

As Christmas approaches and they are thrust into helping with the church program, Baylor and Bonnie find themselves caught between obligation and longing, expectations and dreams. The magic of the season whispers of possibility— but only if they dare to follow their hearts.

Will the holidays bring them a joyful promise of love and a future stitched together with hope?

Discover a wholesome holiday romance filled with small-town charm, heartfelt tradition, and the timeless magic of Christmas.

A Joyful Home (December 4)

A legacy rooted in silver. A future shaped by love. And two hearts searching for home.

Silver artist Bo Birke has crisscrossed the globe showcasing her award-winning work, but the only place that truly feels like hers is Lovely, Oregon—the quiet Eastern Oregon town where generations of Birkes have crafted heirloom treasures. Time with her beloved grandpa Baylor and her Birke cousins restores her spirit, while the call to protect her family’s legacy grows stronger every time she steps into her workshop. Bo thinks she knows exactly what her future holds… until a chance encounter introduces her to the one thing she didn’t realize she was missing.

Rafe Judson lives for the rhythm of working with horses. When his parents buy a ranch outside Lovely, they tempt him to move there with wide-open pastures and the freedom to train equines the way he prefers. He’s not convinced this small town is where he belongs—until he bumps into a gorgeous, spirited woman in the local convenience store. Suddenly, staying doesn’t seem like such a bad idea.

As the holiday season arrives, Bo and Rafe are drawn together by shared dreams, unexpected laughter, and a growing sense that home isn’t a place—it’s a person.

Will they discover that the joyful home they’ve both been searching for is waiting for them to take a leap of faith?

A wholesome, holiday romance filled with hope and Christmas-kissed nights, A Joyful Home is perfect for readers who love heartfelt family legacies, tender love stories, and happily-ever-afters wrapped in the sparkle of the season.

 

 

Be sure you enter the big The Bridge giveaway! 

Then come back here and share if you’ve started reading Christmas stories yet, and if not, when you crack open that first book full of holiday magic.

Petticoats & Pistols