This week I made Peppermint Hot Chocolate at home using Neilsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract. The cocoa was delicious and if Jordan and I didn’t show some restraint we could have drunk the entire batch, it was so good. The peppermint was just right, not too overpowering.

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Peppermint Hot Chocolate

This hot chocolate recipe is perfect for a cold winter's night.

Course Beverage

Cuisine American

Prep Time 2 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 32 minutes minutes

Servings 6 -8 mugs of cocoa

Author Cindy Schultz

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup unsweetened quality cocoa powder Dutch processed
• 1½ cups powdered sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 4 cups whole milk
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract
• ½ teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Peppermint Extract
• ¼ teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract

Instructions

• In a medium saucepan, combine cocoa powder, sugar and salt.
• Place over medium-low heat and gradually whisk in milk and half-and-half until combined.
• Stirring occasionally, heat to desired temperature, being careful not to let the mixture boil.
• Stir in pure vanilla, peppermint and chocolate extracts.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and all of the easy recipes I share here on The Mom Maven. I hope you share them on your social networks. I just ask that you not copy and share the entire recipe with photos. Please use the sharing buttons below and share the link to this post. Thanks!

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What is Postgram?

Using the simple Postgram photo mosaic maker, you connect Instagram, Facebook or add photos straight from your hard drive. PLay a round a bit to create exactly what you want and then place your order. Postgram offers several sizes of prints and you can get a canvas, a poster or high-res digital file of your mosaic. Prices range from $8-$139 plus shipping depending on the product you choose. Your mosaic is ready in just a few days and can be shipped internationally. If you have old video tapes, you could also get in touch with EverPresent to convert your vhs to digital files or DVD.

Mom Maven’s Thoughts

I love my Postgram 20×20″ canvas! I haven’t ordered any prints from Aaron & Summer’s wedding yet so I am very excited to have this hanging on my wall. Jordan has had fun looking up close at the individual Instagram photos while I love looking from across the room at the big picture. A Postgram canvas will make an affordable and unique gift for anyone on your Christmas list.

The post Gift Idea-Make a Postgram of your Instagram Photos appeared first on The Mom Maven.

I miss you Daddy!

About Chris Tomlin “Adore”

This new Christmas album released on October 23, 2015. It features classic Christmas songs with a mix of original Christmas songs. There are special guest performances from Lauren Daigle, All Sons & Daughters, Crowder, and more on this album.

Songs:

1. He Shall Reign Forevermore
2. Adore
3.  Midnight Clear (Love Song)
4. Noel featuring Lauren Daigle
5. Hymn Of Joy
6. Silent Night featuring Kristyn Getty
7. What Child Is This? featuring Sons & Daughters
8. It’s Christmas
9. A King Like This
10. Bethlehem
11. A Christmas Alleluia featuring Lauren Daigle & Leslie Jordan of All Sons & Daughters

Mom Maven’s Thoughts

If you are looking for a Christmas worship album, Chris Tomlin Adore is the perfect choice for you. It is exactly what my soul needs at this time. It is also perfect for pre and post service music at church during the Advent and Christmas season. Chris Tomlin’s “Adore” CD is a beautiful, worshipful Christmas CD that should be in everyone’s Christmas music library.You can purchase Adore on iTunes or enter the giveaway below and try to win the CD!

Chris Tomlin Adore CD Giveaway

This giveaway is open to US residents only. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and verified. The winner will be notified via email and they will have 48 hours to claim their prize. The Mom Maven is not responsible for prize fulfillment, that is the responsibility of the giveaway sponsor.
Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The post Chris Tomlin- Adore CD Review and Giveaway appeared first on The Mom Maven.

The weekly view in the Erin Condren Life Planner is separated into 3 sections each day, morning, day and night. While those sections may work for some people, they don’t currently work for me. I use the “morning” section for personal and church items, the “day” section for my blogging to-dos and the “night” section is for my travel agent work, Young Living Essential Oils business and my Plexus health and wellness business. This works best for me to stay organized and on task. I often use washi tape or fun planner stickers to embellish and organize my planner.

I love that the Erin Condren Life Planner is so flexible! They even have 3 layouts available now. I use the original vertical layout, there is also a horizontal layout and the brand new hourly weekly layout which is awesome for people with strict schedules. There is a life planner for everyone! They even make a teacher lesson planner and a wedding planner as well.

I’ve been busy searching the designs to decide what kind of cover I want on my 2016 life planner. Now is the time to place your order for yourself or for a gift because as we roll into December, inventory gets limited so buy now and avoid possible disappointment in the future. Do you use a paper planner? I suggest you go check out all that Erin Condren Life Planners has to offer, you won’t be disappointed.

The post How I am Using my Erin Condren Life Planner appeared first on The Mom Maven.

When you are attending the party, you can get into the park at 4:00pm even though the party doesn’t start until 7pm. I recommend arriving early if you can because it allows time to catch some rides before the festivities get started. We arrived at about 5:30pm due to work schedules and traffic. We headed straight to Frontierland to meet up with a friend from Texas who is in town with his family on vacation. The 3 guys went and rode Big Thunder Mountain Railroad while I hung out with Kevin, Jessica and their girls. Next we headed to Adventureland to ride Pirates of the Caribbean and the Jingle Cruise. As we excited Pirates we heard the announcement that the party was beginning. Instead of taking you through our evening in order, we thought we would share our Must-Do list for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party.

Mom Maven’s Must-Dos at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party 2015

1. Holiday Wishes-Celebrate the Spirit of the Season/Celebrate the Magic

At 9:15pm you can see Cinderella Castle transform into a spectacular canvas of color and awe-inspiring magic. Viewing for this show is great from the hub on back down Main Street USA. We like to watch from near the Plaza Restaurant. This year we were on the new grassy area and had a great view of the show, except for the 1 light pole that is in a lot of our pictures!

Immediately after Celebrate the Magic, at 9:30pm is Holiday Wishes-Celebrate the Spirit of the Season holiday fireworks spectacular. This is our favorite fireworks show of the year!

2. Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas Parade

This parade is at 8:15pm and 10:30pm, we recommend attending the second parade if you don’t have young children. The crowd for the second parade is usually lighter making it easier to get a good spot to watch from. We are parade people and we love Disney parades! We had planned to catch the second parade but we arrived in the hub area to stake out our spots for Holiday Wishes at about 8:45pm and the early parade was still going on. We were delighted to catch about half of the parade. As you can see from the pictures, the early parade is very crowded!

3. A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas!/VoicePlay

A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas! Is a fun show including Stitch, Buzz Lightyear, Mike Wazowski and a cast of singers and dancers. We catch this show every year, it is so much fun! This year the show is at 7:45pm, 8:40pm, 9:45pm, 10:40pm and 11:35pm. This year sharing the Rockettower Plaza Stage was the awesome a cappella vocal group, VoicePlay. Their sets were short, only about 15 minutes each and take place right after the first four performances of A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas! Just stay where you are, or move closer as the crowd leaves, and enjoy these talented vocalists.

4. Rides!

You are at the Magic Kingdom after all. During the party crowds are lighter than a normal park day and if you plan to catch some rides during the parade, lines are even shorter! We did the Jingle Cruise right at the start of the party-we had a 15 minute wait! I love the Jingle Cruise-it is a Christmas themed ride on the Jungle Cruise. I love the new jokes and the Christmas decorations scattered throughout the ride. Normally Peter Pan’s Flight has a 60+ minute wait so we often Fastpass+ this ride. We wanted Jordan and Chase to see the new, interactive queue so we got in line with a listed wait time of 30 minutes. Our actual wait time was 12 minutes and the boys loved the new queue! The other must-do ride is the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. Again, this ride usually has a wait time of over an hour and because we don’t plan our trips months or even weeks in advance, there are seldom Fastpasses available. We hopped in this line with a posted 30 minute wait and our actual wait was 27 minutes! At the end of the night as we walked from Tomorrowland to Fantasyland the boys decided to catch a ride on the Tomorrowland Speedway, which had a less than 15 minute wait! We also walked on to Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin earlier in the evening so, we were content with the amount of rides we were able to do during the party.

5. Treats

Who can say “No” to free hot chocolate and cookies? Not us. I think Chase maxed out at 6 stops for cocoa and cookies. Why spend money on snacks when you can get free ones? Just look for the large inflatable candy canes, or check your park map for locations.

6. Characters

During Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party there are tons of characters available for meet and greets. Some of these are characters you seldom see out and about so I will give you a quick rundown of where to find the rare characters:

• Seven Dwarfs-Near the castle wall by Pinocchio’s Village Haus in Fantasyland
• Snow White and her Prince-Castle Archway in Fantasyland
• Reindeer and Elf-Across from Sunshine Terrace in Adventureland
• Sandy Claws-in Storybook Circus
• Mary Poppins & Bert-Near the Confectionery-on Main Street, USA
• Santa Claus-Next to City Hall-on Main Street, USA
• Phineas & Ferb-At Club Tinsel at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland

Last year I wrote a post about avoiding A Frozen Holiday Wish so if you are interested in finding out more about that, go ahead and click over. There are still several Mickey’s Very merry Christmas Parties left this season so contact your travel planner for tickets.

November 15, 17, 19; December 1, 3, 6, 8, 10, 13, 15 – Advance: US $74 (plus tax) for adults; US $69 (plus tax) for children (ages 3-9);
Day of the Event: US $79 (plus tax) for adults; US $74 (plus tax) for children (ages 3-9)
November 20, 29; December 4, 11, 17 – US $79 (plus tax) for adults; US $74 (plus tax) for children (ages 3-9)
December 18 – US $82 (plus tax) for adults; US $77 (plus tax) for children (ages 3-9)

Merry Christmas,

The post Mom Maven’s Must-Dos at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party 2015 appeared first on The Mom Maven.

I received a beautiful bouquet of 2 dozen fall colored orange roses. They have been on display in my dining room for a week now and they are still as beautiful as they were the day they arrived.

How a Bloomsy Box Flower Subscription Works

There are 3 basic subscription levels Small $34.99, Medium $38.99 and Large $48.99. Shipping is always included with a BloomsyBox subscription so you don’t have to worry about hidden fees. BloomsyBox sources the flowers from the farm to your door within 48 hours so they arrive fresh and ready to be placed in your favorite vase.

When you place your order on BloomsyBox.com you choose your product size, then your payment plan (month-to-month, 3-6-12 months pre-paid) and then subscribe! You can cancel your order at any time if you need to. You can also order a gift subscription and have it sent to anyone you would like. I promise you, Mom would love to receive a monthly BloomsyBox from you!

BloomsyBox is a great way to brighten up your home or office…or the home or office of someone you love. You can see how much BloomsyBox subscribers love their flowers by following BloomsyBox on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

The post Gift Idea- BloomsyBox Flower Subscription Service appeared first on The Mom Maven.

1. Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus, my Lord and Savior and I love hearing him celebrated almost everywhere I go!
2. My dad is a Christmas music addict. He has hundreds of Christmas albums and he starts playing Christmas music on October 1 of each year so that he can listen through each album once. His love for Christmas music has been passed down to me, though my collection is more selective.
3. Christmas music is joyful! Whether it is talking about the birth of Christ or Santa Claus, Christmas music is full of joy.

MercyMe-Pizza Ranch Partnership

This year MercyMe has partnered with Pizza Ranch, a well-known, Christian-owned pizza company based in Iowa.

Cultivating its mission “To give every guest a legendary experience” since its inception in 1981, Pizza Ranch connects with its communities in a way that provides bridges for friends, family and colleagues to come together. Today, Pizza Ranch is based in Orange City, Iowa and owns, operates and franchises over 190 locations in 13 states. Consistent growth has been a Pizza Ranch staple, as the brand has become a beacon of community involvement and exceptional food. The Pizza Ranch buffet features legendary pizzas, salads and desserts, and is delivered with an unmatched service quality. “We are extremely blessed to have a very close connection with our guests,” said Adrie Groeneweg, co-founder and president of Pizza Ranch. “This project extends the brand’s essence to a new dimension beyond our four walls and into their lives. It’s a new kind of way for us to relate to our loyal fans.”

The ​MercyMe “It’s Christmas​” CD will be available in Pizza Ranch locations beginning November 1, 2015 through December 31, 2015. It has 4 exclusive songs that can only be found on the CD version being sold by Pizza Ranch. Each CD will be sold for $5 plus tax. Pizza Ranch will give away the CD with a $25 gift card purchase as well as sell the full album at each of its 200 locations throughout the Midwest and Great Plains states. “We are so excited to debut our new Christmas album, MercyMe, “It’s Christmas”, with Pizza Ranch” said Bart Millard with MercyMe. “Pizza Ranch is a fantastic restaurant with a great mission to glorify God. It’s the perfect gift to give this Christmas season and the perfect CD to get you in the Christmas spirit.”

About the MercyMe Christmas Album “It’s Christmas”

“It’s Christmas” is a wonderful Christmas album filled with a mix of new arrangements of classic songs and several brand new pieces soon to be Christmas classics. I have had a hard time choosing a favorite song on this album so I will give you 4 O Come, O Come, Our Lullaby, Go Tell it on the Mountain and Do You Hear What I Hear. Honestly, this entire album is great and I have been listening to it on repeat since it arrived.

“It’s Christmas” Track List:

1. Newborn
2. Christmastime Again
3. Sleigh Ride
4. I’ll Be Home For Christmas
5. Hold On Christmas
6. A Holly Jolly Christmas
7. Go Tell It On The Mountain
8. Do You Hear What I Hear
9. Our Lullaby
10. Joy
11. O Come, O Come
12. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (Exclusive Bonus Track for Pizza Ranch)
13. O Holy Night (Exclusive Bonus Track for Pizza Ranch)
14. Silent Night (Exclusive Bonus Track for Pizza Ranch)
15. Joseph’s Lullaby (Exclusive Bonus Track for Pizza Ranch)

If you have a Pizza Ranch near you, go get your copy of the full CD, you don’t want to miss the bonus tracks. If you aren’t near a Pizza Ranch, and you don’t win this giveaway, go to iTunes and download the first 10 tracks of this album, you won’t be disappointed.

Mercy Me “It’s Christmas” Giveaway

One winner will receive the full 14 track CD “It’s Christmas” by MercyMe. This giveaway is open to US residents only. The winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and verified. The winner will be notified via email and they will have 48 hours to claim their prize. The Mom Maven is not responsible for prize fulfillment, that is the responsibility of the giveaway sponsor. This giveaway ends at 12:00am on 11-20-15. Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Merry Christmas!

The post MercyMe Christmas Album Review and Giveaway appeared first on The Mom Maven.

What is the Candlelight Processional?

The Candlelight Processional is a presentation of the story of the birth of Christ through readings by celebrity narrators, music from a full orchestra and vocals by The Voices of Liberty, and a mass choir made up of Disney cast members and high school choirs. It is a magical, beautiful retelling of the Christmas story that is not to be missed.

2015 Candlelight Processional Celebrity Narrators

• 11/27 – 11/29 — Gary Sinise
• 11/30 – 12/3 — Neil Patrick Harris
• 12/4 – 12/5 — Whoopi Goldberg
• 12/6 – 12/8 — Joe Morton
• 12/9 – 12/11 — Ana Gasteyer
• 12/12 – 12/14 — Meredith Vieira – NEW
• 12/15 – 12/17— America Ferrera – NEW
• 12/18 – 12/20 — Chandra Wilson – NEW
• 12/21 – 12/23 — Daniel Dae Kim – NEW
• 12/24 – 12/26 — Edward James Olmos
• 12/27 – 12/28 – Blair Underwood
• 12/29 – 12/30 — Amy Grant

Personally I’d love to see Blair Underwood or Amy Grant as narrators but I’m thinking we will catch Joe Morton on the 6th before we head home from our family vacation and maybe we’ll catch America Ferrera when I’m at Epcot for a business event. Which narrator would you like to see most?

photo courtesy of Disney

Admission to the Candlelight Procession is included in your park admission. I do highly recommend getting in line at least an hour before the show you want to see, or contacting your travel professional, me to book your Candlelight Processional dining package. Starting $35 for lunch and $50 for dinner for adults (plus tax and gratuity), Candlelight Dining Packages include an appetizer, entrée, dessert and non-alcoholic beverage per person (or one full buffet where applicable). Availability is limited. Please note Park admission is required and is not included in the price of the dining package. Dining packages are not available on Dec. 6, 2015.

There is still time to book your holiday trip to Walt Disney World so please just fill out my travel quote form and we will get started!

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