We just spent the past few days in San Antonio celebrating the holidays with my parents. Now I’m Park City bound with the boys and we’re meeting friends and their kids at our condo. A few years ago, we road-tripped from Texas… but never again. Flying from here on out only. ????

Celebrating Hanukkah at the Shraybers

A quick backstory: Mark grew up Jewish and I converted before we got married. I partake in everything but fasting on Yom Kippur. Hanukkah is an 8-day Jewish celebration. This year, we celebrated one night earlier since Mark’s mom had a wedding to go to. We had some friends over at our house and they brought the boys Hanukkah presents even though they aren’t Jewish – so sweet!

The holidays are a special time for us to spend quality time together with friends and family. I wanted to share a little bit what Hanukkah looks like for us and a few of our once a year traditions.

The menorah and the process of lighting it is one of the most important rituals of Hanukkah. The candles are placed from right to left, but when lighting, is lit from left to right. We light one candle each night using the candle in the middle (shown above), totaling to the 8 days of Hanukkah.

Most of you are probably familiar with ‘Elf on the Shelf’. Well, for the Jewish version, this stuffed animal is called ‘Maccabee on the Mantel‘ and it has the same concept. So adorable! The set comes with the doll and a book telling the story of Hanukkah.

How to Make Stovetop Potpourri

The stovetop potpourri is a must-make for the holidays. It’s so easy to make and a great alternative from candles. Your home will be filled with that cozy holiday scent in no time. It also lasts about 4 days which is plenty!

Stovetop Potpourri Ingredients:

• cranberries, orange, cloves, cinnamon, rosemary

Directions:

1. Pour into a saucepan with 4-6 cups of water & simmer on low heat

Do you guys do casual or dressy holidays? Unless we are having a full-on holiday party, it’s comfy athleisure clothes or loungewear all the way in the Shrayber house.

Hearty Instant Pot Beef Soup Recipe

Our family loved this! It’s a hearty beef soup cooked using an instant pot that’s both healthy and yummy. I just posted the recipe to the blog. You can take a look at the easy to make recipe – here.

My Latest Trader Joe’s Find

I’m not sure what I’d do without Trader Joe’s. It’s so easy to find what you need and quickly go in and out – except during the holidays when everyone is doing their last minute grocery runs and the lines are incredibly long. I found this bourbon cake and it’s a new one for me. They only sell it once a year and I’ve heard that it’s really good. The rustic packaging caught my eye and the cake itself didn’t disappoint and I’m usually not a fan of bourbon. Highly recommend!French 77 Holiday Cocktail Recipe

Credits to Drink52 for the cocktail recipe.

French 77 Cocktail

Feeling a little fancy? This is the perfect drink to serve at parties and don't forget to treat yourself to a glass!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 5 minutes mins

Course Drinks

Servings 1 serving

Ingredients

  

• 3 tablespoons gin
• 1 1/2 tablespoons St-Germain
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons prosecco
• 1/8 teaspoon orange bitters
• A lemon peel
• A maraschino cherry

Instructions

 

• In a cocktail shaker, add the gin, st. germain, lemon juice, and enough ice cubes to fill half the shaker. Shake it (a lot) until your hands are really really cold, about 15 seconds.
• Strain the liquid into a coupe glass and top with prosecco, orange bitters, a lemon peel, and a maraschino cherry.

Thank you guys so much for stopping by and reading! I’d love to hear how you spent your holidays. I’m also so excited for the new year and if there’s anything new or things you’d like to keep saying on the blog, just let me know!!

xo, Jaime