My #RedKettleReason: So Blessed I Want To Bless Others

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Influence Central for The Salvation Army. I received a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

Christmas was fantastic for my family this year, blessed with so many gifts, delicious food, and a festive holiday party that even included a surprise wedding. We laughed, we cried happy tears, and we all had a great time. I watched my niece open a stack of presents taller than she is, I had a stocking full of fun little surprises, I was able to give my family gifts that I knew would make them smile...

I know not everyone was as lucky as my family this year though; some families had nothing under the tree, no food in the fridge, maybe even no roof over their head. This is a sad reality and I want to do my part to help those in need.Thankfully, The Salvation Army is there for those in need and this year I'm going to help as much as I can through their fantastic Red Kettle campaign. My reason for giving is simple: I feel so blessed I want to be a blessing to others.

We've all seen The Salvation Army Red Kettle out in front of some of our favorite retailers around the holiday season, you could even call them a holiday staple... but did you know that The Salvation Army was established in London in 1865? The idea began to take shape in the States in 1891 when Captain McFee decided he wanted to provide the needy with a Christmas dinner, he thought back to when he was overseas and saw charitable donations pots...  and well, the rest is history.

Today, donations to The Salvation Army help support local shelters, after school programs, addiction recovery programs, summer camps, disaster assistance and many other social services. Actually in 2013, The Salvation Army served more than 58 million meals to the needy. While 204,000 people received rehabilitation services through donations to Family Stores and over 203,000 underprivileged children attended day care and summer day camps! The Army also provided nearly 10 million nights of shelter to the homeless and 324,000 people received help during times of disaster. What's even  more amazing is that more than 4 million families and children were served during the holidays and more than 1.8 million people received help through senior, medical and institutional services.

While the monetary donations are amazing, all the people that help The Salvation Army need to be recognized as well... Every single one of The Salvation Army’s 3,600 officers, 59,000 employees and 3.4 million volunteers has helped to serve nearly 30 million Americans in need in 2013! That’s almost one person, every second, every day! It's really incredible how many people The Salvation Army has helped, but they still need more donations and volunteers to continue to help more people in need.

Although Christmas is over and you probably won't find a bell ringer standing by a red kettle tomorrow, anyone can become a virtual bell ringer and raise money for their local communities by creating an Online Red Kettle at onlineredkettle.org. You can also text the word “KETTLE” to 80888 to make a $10 donation to support the campaign. Over the next few days The Salvation Army actually receives 1/3 of their online donations, probably because if you donate before January 1st  you won't just be helping someone else - you can write off your donation on your taxes!

Once you've donated, don't forget to share your reason for giving with the hashtag #RedKettleReason and check out RedKettleReason.org for more ways to give and check out why the rest of America is giving.

Lights On with Onite LED Light - Glamping Light

I was provided this light to review, regardless all opinions expressed below are my own.

While camping, I'm a bit of a diva... I guess you could say I prefer to go glamp-ing. Luckily I had the opportunity to review Onite's Portable USB Camp light and now I can even have lights on while we are in our tent.

I love how easy this light is to use and since it plugs into a USB, it's super convenient no matter where we are. We even use it on our back patio sometimes since it's brighter than our current light.

The perfect item to add to your list of must-have camping items - grab an Onite LED light on amazon for a steal of a deal today!  Plus, if you are a blogger like me, this little light is amazing when taking pictures in low light!

Disney Planes Dusty Crophopper DIY Ornament Tutorial + Rollback Deals!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #PlanesToTheRescue #CollectiveBias

I keep talking about it, but I'm super excited to see my family over the holidays! I can't wait to see all my nieces and nephews and spend time crafting and playing with them! We have so many awesome kids in our family, it's hard not to get excited to see them! This year I'm surprising them with something I made from the heart. We're all big Disney fans so when I heard that Planes Fire & Rescue came out in early November, I knew we would spend some time together watching our favorite Plane (Dusty Crophopper)!

I just couldn't help myself though, I had to make them something to make this holiday extra special! I'm that Aunt, I show up with things I painted, crafted, baked, etc for them...and well, we all know gifts that are handmade mean the most so I tried my hardest to make a Dusty ornament that will put a smile on their face!

Once I was finished with him, I knew I had to share how I made him with you guys and I wanted to showcase him in my house... I decided that this year instead of having a traditional "big kid" tree, we were going with a unique theme. This year our tree is decorated with characters from Planes Fire & Rescue and Cars - two of our favorite movies to watch with our nieces and nephews!

I'm just in love with how Dusty turned out, so I made two so I can still give one to my family... But as promised, I'm sharing how you can create a Dusty Crophopper Ornament of your own super easily, using items you most likely already have around your home! I'm also sharing some awesome deals on Planes toys - because what's better than good prices on Disney toys?!

Disney Planes Dusty Crophopper DIY Ornament

Items needed:

Toilet Paper Roll

Orange Foam Cards (Dollar Store toy/craft aisle)
White Poster Board
Cardboard (you could always sub poster board)

Black Scrapbooking Paper
Silver Cupcake liner (or paper)
Silver Paper Fastener
Paint - Orange, White, Blue
Polyester filling
Glue (I use hot glue) & Tape

I decided to dive right into this project, gathered everything up and it was on! I started by forming the easiest part of the ornament - the cloud! I'm thinking a whole tree full of these little cloud puffs and snowflakes may be in our future next year. All you do to form the cloud is simply pull at it until you develop the shape you want. After forming the cloud, I started making Dusty's "nose" using the cupcake liner (you could always use scrapbook paper). You simply just fold the circle to make a cylinder using your own hand to form it.

Once your cylinder is formed, cut the tip off the top, making sure it is large enough to get the paper fastener through. Next you'll trim three equal propellers from black construction (or scrapbook paper) and glue these to the paper fastener.

Next step is easy, officially glue the propellers, nose and fastener together and tape it onto the toilet paper roll.

Now you'll glue your orange foam pieces (or orange construction paper) onto your toilet paper roll, allowing it to start to transform into Dusty! The next step is making his cabin body, you'll want to cut a piece of orange foam or paper into a square and fold it to look like the photo in the bottom right and then secure the sides by gluing it together.

Once it's all glued together and it's cut down to size, it's time to start working on Dusty's wings! I just decided to use a white cardboard box I happened to have from a recent gift I received. You could use poster board or normal cardboard and paint it. I simply cut his wings about the length of his body and 3/4 an inch wide. I went ahead and cut out Dusty's tailplane as well. These are easy cuts again, just a thin rectangular piece about 2 1/2 inches long and a trapezoid about an 1 1/4 inches in size.

Now it's time to add the details, I painted the edge of Dusty's wings orange to match his body, his tail stabilizer longer piece blue, and the smaller piece orange. I then added the details to the wings and took a break to let these dry!

Once the paint dried on Dusty's wing, it was time to start putting all his pieces together. I cut a hole in the smaller stabilizer piece using an exacto blade and then slid the longer piece through. I then cut a hole for the stabilizer to go on Dusty's backside and started to make holes for his wings. This is definitely part of the project an adult needs to be a part of, better safe than sorry at any age!

The next step is making sure Dusty's rocking his lucky number 7 on his sleeve! I decided the best way to get a clean circle was to trace a paint bottle. I then just sketched a 7 into the circle, colored it in, and Dusty's starting to resemble himself already!

The next is another detail piece, one of the most important! Dusty's gorgeous little baby blues. I cut them from a small piece of white poster board and snipped out two small little hills and then started drawing his eyes.

I outlined the black in his eyes almost  all the way around with blue and left a little white "shine" to make his eyes look bright. I then went ahead and used some hot glue to attach his eyes to his "face" and then his face to the body of the plane!

He's nearly done now, all you have to do is glue him onto his cloud and use a needle to get a piece of thread through the top so he is able to hang from your tree.

And it's official, you now have created a Planes ornament of your own! I think Dusty turned out adorably and the best part is, this is a craft you can do with your littles. You can let them do most of the work and just help with gluing and cutting - the perfect way to spend time together and make something you'll be able to admire year after year! I love making crafts and can't wait to attempt this with my nieces and nephews soon.

I have another great surprise in store for my nieces and nephews, I grabbed a few of the awesome Rollback deals on Planes toys at Walmart! I went ahead and kept a pack of the Die-Cast 3 pack vehicles to help decorate my tree but Walmart has so many awesome toys on Rollback specials right now, I was able to grab some toys for the kids, and even grabbed a pack to donate!

The Disney Planes Flight to Finish Speedway is on Rollback for $24.97, the Disney Planes Fire & Rescue Die-Cast Vehicles, 3-Pack is on Rollback for $14.97, the Disney Planes Fire & Rescue Deluxe Talking Vehicle Assortment is on  Rollback for $19.97, and lastly the Planes Character Assortment die-cast set and the Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue Character Assortment die-cast set are both on rollback for $4.97! With so many awesome deals on everything Planes, which toy will you be grabbing to surprise your little with?

Mini Christmas Cookie Cakes: Sugar Cookie Cakes with Whipped Gingerbread Frosting

Christmas is such a fun time of year! So much excitement and time spent with the one's we love, there's just something in the air around the holidays! This year I'm so excited to be heading back home for the holidays but since hubs sadly won't be joining me for my holiday fun, I'm trying to stock up the kitchen full of things that he can enjoy (and a few little reminders that I love him).

Yesterday I spent the day baking some special treats; gingerbread men were my first endeavor and while they are super tasty - they aren't camera ready yet. My second project of the day was these tasty Mini Christmas Cookie Cakes. I made 24 minis and thought that would be plenty for him to be able to enjoy while I'm gone but...

It hasn't even been 24 hours since I made these cuties (as I type this) and hubs has already eaten 13 of them. So I suppose this means (a) these Sugar Cookie Cakes with Whipped Gingerbread Frosting are among some of his favorite foods I've made, possibly his favorite ever. and (b) I'll be making another batch before I leave! 

I think I may even make a batch for family when I arrive to STL, these seriously are the perfect winter treat! Deliciously sweet and packed full of just the right amount of gingerbread flavor - serve these babies up with some coffee or hot chocolate and enjoy while listening to Christmas tunes and lounging with your family.

Sugar Cookie Cakes with Whipped Gingerbread Frosting Mini Christmas Cookie Cakes - The perfect flavors to celebrate the season! Sugar Cookie Cakes: 3/4 cup softened butter 1 cup sugar 2 eggs 1 tsp. vanilla 3 cups sifted flour 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. salt Whipped Gingerbread Frosting: 1 1/2 cups Cool Whip 3 cups confectioners sugar 4 oz neufchatel (or cream cheese) 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1/2 tsp vanilla extract Begin by preheating oven to 375 degrees. In a mixer combine butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Then stir in sifted flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix until dough is thick and crumbly(ish). Press into a mini cup baking dish (or just mini baking cups) and bake for 10 minutes or until the tops of the cupcakes start to just barely crack. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. While you are waiting for the cupcakes to cool, in a large mixing bowl beat together all of the frosting ingredients - adding the confectioners sugar bit by bit until your frosting reaches your desired consistency! I just use a plastic bag with a corner cut off and frost each cupcake quickly and easily, it's not the classiest way to frost but it's convenient! Once these little babies are frosted, sprinkle a little bit of crumbs from the pan (or a broken up extra cupcake) over the top! These little cookie cakes with gingerbread frosting are that easy! Just a few simple steps and now you have a delicious treat!   Enjoy!

So tell me, what kind of holiday traditions do you have in your home? I'd love to hear more about how you celebrate the holidays!

The Lakeside Collection Gift Basket + a Giveaway

Sponsored by The Lakeside Collection

It's the holiday season, as we all know... and most of us have probably finished shopping for a majority of friends and family but may still be struggling with ideas on what to give the person that is the hardest to buy for in our life... I know I am, then I found this great list of Gift Basket Ideas: 5 Tips To Get You Started and thought what a brilliant gift for my tougher buys this year!

So when The Lakeside Collection reached out to me and offered to let me review and give away one of their awesome assortments from their Gift Basket Collection I was overjoyed! I received the Cooking Up Something Special basket in the mail and instantly fell in love - The amazingly beautiful set of 3 baking dishes, The Pinoneer Woman cookbook packed full of delicious recipes, The over-sized measuring spoons, Tasty treats, it's all so amazing and so perfectly made for anyone that loves to cook!

They have a basket everyone in your family will love, from the loveable little girl basket to the outdoorsy couple bundle - you are sure to find a basket that every person on your shopping list will be happy! If you decide you want to make your own basket, you are in luck - that's an easy thing to do with The Lakeside Collection!

So here's the fun part, I'm surprising one lucky reader with one of these baskets arriving at your doorstep shortly after the new year begins! Enter to win with the giveaway tools form below!

Entry-Form

Disclosure: I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. Must be 18 or older to win. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook, Twitter or any other company mentioned above. You understand that you are providing your information to Lauren Paints | a beautiful life and not to Twitter, Facebook, or any other entity, I will not use your information other than to e-mail you a winning notification if you are the chosen winner. Enter using the Giveaway Tools form above. Void Where Prohibited. Please note that Lauren Paints | a beautiful life and all other bloggers participating are not responsible for sponsors that do not fulfill their prizes.