Growing up my mother always made a traditional pot of black eyed peas for New Year’s Day for good luck, but I’ve honestly never been a big fan of traditional beans. Here’s a delicious dip recipe for a little variation on a tried and true tradition. And I’ve got another recipe posted over at my mommy blog, BlondeMomBlog.

Happy New Year! And If you have any black eyed peas recipes, please feel free to post them here in the comments.

Black Eyed Pea Dip (from the Southern Living message board)

1 can black eyed peas drained
1 can artichoke hearts drained and chopped
1/2 cup sauteed onion
1/2 cup mayo
1 Hidden Valley Party Dip dry mix
1/2 cup fresh grated parmesan

Mix together. Top with grated mozzarella (at least 1/2 cup)

325 for 20 minutes or until brown and bubbly.

Serve with tortilla chips.

Alas I am not one of those mothers who is great at traditions, but I’m slowly working on it.

When school started back in session I declared Friday nights Popcorn And Movie Night. We’ve always watched DVDs and we’ve always made popcorn, but somehow just making it official and giving it a title has made it extra special for our girls, ages 6 and 3.

For about eight weeks I checked DVDs out at our local library and I used Red Box twice, using free rental codes. I think I rented every Disney and Barbie movie available. I love that I can request movies online through our library system’s website and that I am then notified when they are at our local branch for pick up.

The last few weeks of school before the holiday break, though, I was especially busy at work and at home and have just gone to our local Hollywood Video store on Friday after school with my oldest daughter because our library is closed on Fridays. Renting two movies at Hollywood Video is $7.18! That may not sound like a lot of money, but when I realized how much I’d been saving by using the local library and Red Box, it made me think about how much $7 plus a week on movie rentals adds up!

Does your family do a movie night? How do you save on family movie rentals? Do you subscribe to a service like Netflix? Do you ever swap out movies with friends or family or use the local library?

Once we had children we started the tradition of staying home Christmas day so our girls could play with their new toys from Santa and we could just relax and enjoy some family time.

My family is coming over tomorrow for a casual lunch and I thought I’d share a few recipes I’m considering. I’m definitely making the dip and the ham sandwiches. I’m running out of time, so I may buy a store bought dessert (thank God for Publix), but here are a few good recipes.

Feta Artichoke Dip

I’ve been making this for years and cut it out of the coupon section of the Sunday Tennessean years ago.

Prep: 10 minutes

Bake: 25 minutes

1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Feta Cheese, crumbled

1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 cup regular or light mayonnaise

1 clove garlic, minced

1 jar (2 oz.) diced pimientos, drained (optional)

Mix all ingredients. Spoon into a 9-inch plate or 3-cup shallow baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Serve with assorted crackers, veggies, or pita triangles. Makes 2 cups.

Ham Delights

I’ve never made this recipe, but I have two packages of Sister Schubert’s yeast rolls in the freezer just waiting to be used!

Ham Delights

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 2 Tablespoons prepared mustard
* 1/2teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
* 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
* 3 green onions, chopped
* 1 pound Honey ham, chopped
* 6 ounces grated Swiss cheese
* 4 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
* 6 ounces grated sharp Cheddar cheese
* 2 pans thawed Parkerhouse Rolls

Combine first 5 ingredients. Stir in ham and cheeses. Place 1 teaspoon filling in center of each roll. Place back in pan. Cover until ready to eat. Cover rolls with aluminum foil, and heat at 375 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Yield: two to three dozen rolls

Snowball Cake

Our good friend Brad, who was best man in our wedding, is from Illinois. His mother made this 12 years ago when we visited and it is delicious!

1 (3-ounce) package lemon flavored gelatin

1/2 cup granulated sugar, optional

1 cup boiling water

1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple in juice

orange juice or water, if needed

1 (8 ounce) container lemon-flavored yogurt

1 (12 ounce) container frozen nondairy whipped topping, thawed, divided

1 medium angel food cake (purchased or homemade), torn into pieces

Flaked coconut or colored decorating sugar, optional

Stir gelatin and sugar into boiling water until dissolved. Drain pineapple, reserving juice, stir 3/4 cup drained pineapple juice into gelatin mixture. (If you don’t have enough pineapple juice, add orange juice or water to make 3/4 cup.) Refrigerate mixture about 1 hour or until partly set.

With electric mixer on high speed, beat thickened gelatin about 2 minhutes. Mix pineapple into whipped gelatin mixture. Stir in yogurt and 2 cups nondairy whipped topping.

Line a 10-cup bowl with plastic wrap. Fill bowl with alternating layers of cake and whipped mixture. Cover; refrigerate overnight.

The next day, invert bowl onto cake plate. Remove plastic wrap. Frost with remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with coconut or decorating sugar. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Cranberry Tea

My mother has made this for years and it is delicious and festive.

1 qt. cranberry juice

6 cups water

3 tsp. lemon juice.

Boil together 2 cups of the 6 ups of water with 1 cup  sugar.

Add 3 cinnamon sticks and 12 cloves. Mix and add a touch of red food coloring. Remove cinnamon and cloves before serving. Pour into coffee pot to serve. My mother uses her “retro” (I think it’s from the 1960s) coffee pot.

Merry Christmas everyone!

This weekend, the Williams-Sonoma, Inc. family of brands is offering limited-time savings at its retail stores during its 4-day Williams-Sonoma Friends and Family Event. All offers, with the exception of PBteen, are good for instore purchases only.  My favorite deal is the free shipping at PBteen. I love to shop online and free shipping woos me every time.

Williams-Sonoma: Friends and Family Event

Tomorrow through Wednesday, December 24, Williams-Sonoma is having a Friends and Family Event at retail stores only.  Take 20% off all merchandise in the store.  See stores for details and visit www.williams-sonoma.com to find a location near you.

Pottery Barn: Spend $100 and get $20 back

Today through Sunday, December 21 spend $100 at a Pottery Barn store and get a $20 gift card that can be used from 12/26/2008 – 01/31/2009.  See store for details and visit www.potterybarn.com to find a location near you.

Pottery Barn Kids: Spend $100, get a $20 coupon

Now through December 21, for every $100 you spend on in-store merchandise, you will be entitled to a coupon for $20 that is valid for a future purchase at any Pottery Barn Kids store between December 26, 2008 and January 31, 2009.  See store for details and visit www.potterybarnkids.com to find a location near you.

PBteen: Free shipping online

Today through Monday, December 22 PBteen will offer free shipping on an expanded assortment of in stock items only.  Normal surcharges will apply.  Visit www.pbteen.com for details.

West Elm: Additional savings in store
Today through Wednesday, December 24 get an additional 20% off on ALL SALE items. Visit www.westelm.com to find a location near you.

Williams-Sonoma Home: Save on holiday accessories

Get up to 20% off on select categories including apothecary and holiday accessories at Williams-Sonoma Home retail stores.   Visit www.wshome.com to find a location near you.

I’ve always associated VistaPrint with great looking, and affordable, business cards and have ordered freelance and blog business cards from them in the past. If you are looking for unique, personalized gift ideas, however, VistaPrint is a great source for everything from custom photo desk calendars to personalized note cards.

I recently ordered several Christmas gifts from VistaPrint as well as beautiful winter snowflake theme return address labels. For my daughter’s first grade teacher I ordered personalized sticky notes and a personalized ink pen for her desk. For my dad and inlaws I ordered personalized calendars. I ordered a traditional wall calendar for my inlaws and the more compact desk calendar for my dad, which turned out to be my favorite of the two designs as it is printed on higher quality paper stock. You can even add custom text to the calendars offered on VistaPrint, which is great for adding family birthdays and other important dates. For my 3 and 6-year-old daughters I ordered pretty unicorn theme (very girly!) note cards to add to their Christmas stockings. I’ve been working with my oldest daughter, especially, on writing thank you notes. Lastly, I ordered a set of the large magnets for the 2009 calendar year featuring our Christmas card photo. I thought these would be great to give to family.

The best part about VistaPrint is all of their items are reasonably priced and they ship quickly.

My 3-year-old is obsessed with my pink digital camera, or really any camera. It’s just a bonus that mama’s happens to be pink. While I’m all for her honing her photography skills, I’m not that keen on her slinging around expensive “toys.” I mean it’s all fun and games until someone breaks a $200 camera.

Parents magazine has an amazing line up of toys and their latest addition to hit shelves is a cute toy camera designed for ages 12 months and up. The Parents Look-at-Me Camera is sleek and designed to look just like mom and dad’s and makes realistic shutter sounds with the push of a button. The camera is just the right size for small hands and the shutter button even lights up the flash. A second button plays phrases and a third button plays fun disco music that is, thankfully, not too obnoxious. The Parents Look-at-Me Camera retails for $15 and it would make a fun present for your future award winning photographer this holiday season. All kids, especially preschoolers, love to play with toys that look just like mom and dad’s gadgets. My 3-year-old was a little too old for the camera, but still enjoyed playing with it. We’re passing it on to a friend with a one-year-old and I am sure she will love it.

You can find the Parents line of toys (which are all 100% phthalate free) at Target stores nationwide for $9.99.

Thanks to Team Mom for the fun review opportunity!

The winner of the $25 gift certificate to Creative Wanderings is Tammy who commented, The Goat’s Milk Body Glaze sounds interesting.” Thanks to everyone who entered! Don’t forget about the 15% reader discount.

Feeling stressed? Do you fantasize about locking yourself in the bathroom and taking the world’s longest bath?

Creative Wanderings is a wonderful online store out of Canada featuring delightful handmade soaps, body butters, lotions for indulging the senses run by a mom of two girls. Their signature product is the body buttah line, which will leave even the most dry skin baby smooth and soft. Most of the products are made with all natural ingredients and the finest of high quality oils and essential oils. Creative Wanderings also features a fun assortment of products for kids, from adorable rubber ducky soaps to cupcake bath bombs to popsicle soaps. Guys, do not feel left out. Creative Wanderings carries a wonderful shaving soap bar and the “man bar,” which is handmade with Alexander Keiths dark red beer.

Would you like to win a $25 gift certificate to Creative Wanderings so you can treat yourself to some wonderful handmade body and bath goodies after the holidays? Simply visit the Creative Wanderings website and take a look around at all their wonderful products. Come back to this post and leave a comment about your favorite. A winner will be chosen at random from all eligible comments left by midnight Sunday, December 21.

Savvy Housewife readers also receive 15% off all orders from Creative Wanderings using code SavvyMom now through December 31.

When I was little I had a gorgeous dollhouse my mother found at an antique store in downtown Nashville. I played with it constantly and I still have the furniture sets stored in our attic. The dollhouse, unfortunately, suffered from moisture damage after being stored in a basement and we were not able to restore it.

Every little girl dreams of having a dollhouse and I was very fortunate to preview the Raleigh Dollhouse from Pottery Barn Kids just in time for Christmas. This is a gorgeous toy that will definitely be one to pass on to grandchildren! The best part? It ships FULLY ASSEMBLED. No hacking through twist ties and hunting down microscopic screws to the point where you are drinking straight from the bottle Christmas Eve. Pottery Barn has made it easy peasy lemon squeezy, as my 6-year-old would say.

Here’s the information from the Pottery Barn Kids website:

Raleigh Dollhouse, $199

Built to last for years of play, this grand dollhouse estate gives children and their dolls plenty of room to play and explore. The large manor house has four stories of play space, open on three sides so it’s easy to gather around and join the fun. Built of birch and engineered wood with the hallmarks of traditional Southern architecture, such as spindled supports and window shutters. Item ships as one piece. No assembly required.

We also received two Palace Park Dolls. These are well-made, soft dolls inspired by vintage paper dolls that are tres chic! They retail for $29.

Pottery Barn Kids has also collaborated with the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® Thanks and Giving® campaign to create Oatmeal the Bear™. For every bear sold, Pottery Barn Kids will donate $10 to St. Jude to support research and treatment for pediatric cancer and other catastrophic childhood diseases. Oatmeal retails for $20.

Here is some helpful information about items with free shipping and shipping cut-off dates for the holidays.

(Read on …)

I’ve always been a huge fan of Sister Schubert’s Parker House style yeast rolls, especially during the holidays. Here in the South you just can’t have a holiday meal without a basket of hot rolls on the table!

The Savvy Housewife household recently tried Sister Schubert’s delicious breakfast cinnamon rolls, or as my 3-year-old says, “Icing rolls!” These are a great simple and easy way to have a fun hot breakfast, especially on the weekends and can even be microwaved. None of the Sister Schubert’s products has artificial flavorings or preservatives so you can truly taste the home baked goodness. It’s like having a little bit of Southern home cooking right at your fingertips.

The newly launched Sister Schubert’s website has several useful features to help busy families in the kitchen, from Sister Schubert’s collection of favorite family recipes to an online custom calendar maker to the Sister Schubert’s online catalog, which features lots of great ideas for holiday gift giving. Check out Sister Schubert’s tips for creating quality time with your family during Christmas.

Sister Schubert is a mom to five and a grandmother from the South and knows what it is like to balance family and work. You can now find Sister Schubert’s at grocery stores across the country, as well as your neighborhood WalMart.

Next year I join the fab (but often exhausted) mamas 40 and up club. I’ve always tried to take good care of my skin but honestly there were so many summers in the 80s where I laid out on my dad’s houseboat, frying my skin to oblivion with Hawaiian Tropic suntan oil while listening to INXS and Bob Marley.

The delicate skin around the eyes requires special care. AminoGenesis Counter Clockwise Under Eye Treatment is a special gel/cream hybrid enriched with 17 amino acids. It’s specifically designed for the extremely delicate skin around the eyes. I feel like I am constantly walking around with dark circles under my eyes and this is a great product for improving the appearance of fine lines (check), dark circles (check), or puffiness. With the concentration of a cream, yet the water carrying capabilities of a gel, this under eye treatment provides moisture, nutrients and amino acids where they are needed most.

So, if you want to combat age and the elements and make your “crinkles,” as I like to call them, a little less noticeable, this is a great product. I apply it at night before bedtime, after removing my makeup and washing my face, and in the morning before applying my eye makeup.

AminoGenesis makes an entire line of skincare products, including the “face lift in a capsule,” which was the 2006 Editor’s Choice from Day Spa magazine.

I love dressing my girls up for the holidays but let’s face it. Although I typically splurge on one special Christmas outfit for them, I can’t afford $75 boutique custom “play” monogrammed outfits and I don’t want them wearing those kind of outfits to school or to daycare where they’ll be put to the test of dirt, mulch, and juice splatters.

We received several items from Litewear Apparel to try out. My 6-year-old, Miss C, absolutely adores her pink long-sleeve Disney Princess Litewear t-shirt (seen to the right) and my 3-year-old can’t adores her Winnie the Pooh and Mickey Mouse Christmas Litewear shirts. They’ll be perfect for their parties at school and daycare this holiday season. We also got this adorable pair of pink light up snowman slippers, but I’ve put them in my Christmas stash for Miss C to enjoy this winter (maybe they’ll bring us snow!)

Litewear apparel is sold exclusively at WalMart and features a fun line of light-up clothing for adults, too.

The best part about Litewear for moms is the reasonable price. Most shirts retail for less than $10! But what your kids will love is the fun motion-activated LED lights. In fact they might like their Litewear items so much they may refuse to take them off! Never fear, though, as Litewear apparel is completely safe to throw in the washing machine, although you do need to line dry the items.

I am not a huge fan of cleaning and with a white on white on white kitchen (white cabinets, countertops AND appliances), I feel like I am constantly wiping down our kitchen. I also don’t like having multiple cleaners for multiple surfaces. Give me one product that multitasks as hard as I do!

Greased Lightning sent me a bottle of their multipurpose cleanser and I used it to tackle my stove, the front of my microwave, and countertops. I also sprayed down the front of our cabinets surrounding our cooktop since they had a lovely residue of cooking grease on them and the Greased Lightning multipurpose cleanser did a great job of cutting through it. Greased Lightning can also be used as a laundry pre-treat and to remove soap scum in the bathroom and even outdoors on patio furniture.

Check out all of Greased Lightning’s products on their website, from Greased Lightning Orange Blast to Greased Lightning Antibacterial Kitchen Cleanser. The Greased Lightning website also features a helpful cleaning tips guide to help you tackle every room in your house.