White Chocolate Peppermint Christmas Crunch

This past weekend we whipped up our first holiday batch of White Chocolate Crunch or Christmas Crack as I like to call it. This is something my family has been making for years around the holidays, it is a super yummy recipe that is easy and festive, it can also be made in so many variations find my Halloween version here. 

This year I tried the new Angies white chocolate peppermint popcorn, seriously so good.... my obsession with all things chocolate and peppermint is real. That gave me the idea to make the crunch white chocolate peppermint flavored, a new twist. Turned out to be a great idea I think it is even better then the original.

Another great thing about this recipe is that it can be made in any size, just multiply the amounts below:

What you Need:

• 2/3 cup white chocolate chips 
• 1 cup chex
• 1 cup cherrios 
• 1 cup mini pretzels 
• 1-1 1/2 cups popped popcorn 
• Mini M&Ms 
• Peppermint extract 
• Crushed Peppermint 
• Wax Paper

What to Do:
1. Heat up white chocolate in the microwave, stir every 30 seconds until melted
2. Add in 1-2 drop of peppermint extract (per 2/3 cup of chocolate) and stir
3. Combine chex, cherrios, popcorn and pretzels in a bowl, pour on white chocolate and stir to coat
4. Fold in mini M&Ms
5. Spread out on wax paper, sprinkle with crushed peppermint
6. Allow white chocolate to harden, eat and enjoy

Another great thing about this recipe is you can customize it completely to your tastes, you can use any salty treats some others to try are: buggles, honeycomb, peanuts, etc. You can also customize your candy mix ins and garnishes such as holiday sprinkles. Basically anything is good covered in white chocolate so you really cant go wrong!

This is a great treat to make a big batch of and give as gifts to neighboors, teachers or friends around the holidays!

Our Wedding Video

Its Here it is Here, Our Wedding Video that is!

The long wait is over and I am thrilled to share the final product with you all!

Video and Photos by Tony Gambino Photography

First Week in our New Home

We started the process of moving last week, brining over boxes, painting, etc. Then Saturday was the official moving day. We had help of several friends and family members and we are beyond grateful for their help. We couldn't have done it without them, and it got done really quickly with all the helping hands. 

Homeownership started with a bang with several omg moments on move in day. Starting when the fridge delivery guy announced he could not hook up the fridge (even though it was in the exact same spot as the previous owners) oh and that the valve to hook it up was leaking. All the guys quickly realized we just needed a replacement part and headed to the closest Home Depot. Add on two more trips and a small kitchen flood and we were in business. Yes you read that right on their way to Home Depot once again the guys said they would turn the water back on for us and all the sudden water began shooting all over the kitchen. They instantly realized their mistake and turned the water back off. After using almost all the towels in the house to clean up the mess, it was just a funny story about moving day we all have laughed about.

Somewhere in all the excitement one of our new sweet neighbors brought over homemade cookies and that's when we just thought wow we moved to a good spot. Over the next two days we moved furniture around and unpacked as many boxes as we could before it was time to go back to work on Monday. Since then progress has been slow but it has been happy. We are so thrilled with our new home and have loved every day here since we moved in. We have met several of our other neighbors and they are all great, we are in love with the neighborhood to say the least.

A large majority of our home may still be in boxes but we still wanted to get our Christmas tree up so we could enjoy it so we did just that. We kept it simple with just the tree, stockings and a little greenery but it instantly livened up the house and made it so cheerful.

We are trying to take everything one step at a time with the house since it is so easy to get overwhelmed and there is so much we want to accomplish. We have already started our list of projects on top of the whole unpacking thing but that is all a part of the journey. I cant wait to share more with you all as it happens.

Stay Tuned!

We Bought a House

Big news in our neck of the woods, it is now official we closed last night we are now homeowners! We are so excited that it is now final. It has been a long but very exciting process along the way. We started scoping out neighborhoods about a year ago and once we had in narrowed down to a desired area we started attending open houses just to see what we could afford and what we liked. After we returned from our honeymoon we official started the search with our realtor.

Turned out our timing was great because when we were going to open houses during the summer houses were selling in a matter of days, most going into a multiple offer situation. Summer is the most popular time to buy in the area since parents are trying to move before their kids go back to school. Once we started hunting school was back in session and a lot of the craziness died down, however the inventory was also a tad lower but it worked out just fine.

After hunting with our realtor for about a month we had pretty much seen all our options in our desired area and knew which house was our best bet. We were excited to put in an offer, and it was accepted without a battle.

While we closed last night we will not get the keys to our new home until December 1st, so we have about a two week wait before its truly ours and we can start moving our stuff in. We have already started packing up our apartment and I am busy picking out paint colors for the walls. Our minds have really been on overdrive thinking about all the projects we want to tackle and what to do any buy first.

I cant wait to share the journey of home ownership with you all and any projects we take on so stay tuned!

Honeymoon Video

See our Honeymoon Pictures: Part 1 Here, Part 2 Here, Part 3 Here  and Part 4 Here

In addition to lots and lots of photos that we took on our honeymoon using our GoPro we also took plenty of video footage that we hoped to put together into a honeymoon video recap... Well easier said then done. I had no idea what kind of project it would be to edit my first video but I did my best. It may be about two months later but I have finished that video and am excited to share.

Again this was our first time recording video and editing so it is very amateur status and it shows but you can only get better with practice so hopefully the next one will be better. Highlights of what is included in the video

Opening: Wailua Falls
Tunnel of Trees
Poipu Beach
Spouting horn
Kayaking Wailua River
Hiking to Secret Falls
Waimea Canyon
Smiths Family Luau
Sunset Cruise- Na Pali Coast

Wedding Photos: Signs and Details

Now that I have shared all the photos of the events of our Wedding Day I wanted to do one final post, pictures of many of the signs and small details. These small details are some of my favorite parts of weddings.

Signs 

From my past posts many of you already know that I went a little sign crazy for the wedding and made quite a few, here are a few shots from them in use on the big day

Chalkboard Welcome Sign, See DIY Here
This one was located at the entryway to the reception

Wooden Welcome Sign
This one was located at the beginning of the aisle of the ceremony

Please Choose a Seat Sign, See DIY Here
This one was also located at the front of the ceremony

Mr and Mrs Chair Signs, See DIY Here

Love Story Timeline
This was located next to the guestbook at the reception

Flowers

We didn't get many pictures of just the flowers but here are a couple

This is one of the bridesmaids bouquets at the reception, each of their bouquets were different which I loved. They were made up of assorted blooms in fall hues of white, peach, pink and cranberry with greenery.

Evans boutonniere, his was cranberry while the groomsmen's were white

A picture of one of the table centerpieces at the reception, they were all a bit varied as well

Lastly the best pictures I had of the head table garland flowers and greenery

Cakes

Cake Table

Cutting Cake- Berry Chantilly from Whole Foods

Oreo Grooms Cake

Gifts

Evan gave each of his groomsmen and the fathers a personalized pocket watch

I gave my bridesmaids these robes from the picture on handmade white and gold personalized hangers

Wedding Photos: Reception

The ceremony was finished, family photos and sunset portraits done. It was time to party with our guests and we were so excited! Our reception took place in the indoor ballroom down the drive from the golf course, we had all our guests trickle down there and then it was time for the wedding party to enter. The groomsmen and bridesmaids were announced and entered in couples to "Shut up and Dance with Me" then it was our turn.

 After our entrance Evan and I went straight into our first dance to "Me and You" by Kenny Chesney. Then we sat down to eat, we were both starving and needed to get some food in our systems quick before we made the rounds to say hello to all of our guests.

 After everyone had dinner it was time for the speeches. The maid of honor, best man, and both our parents gave great speeches that were so heartfelt.

In addition to the speeches Evan's fraternity brothers and my sorority sisters did our chapter wedding traditions. For Evan that was a chant they all do as a group which I love to watch at all the LXA weddings. For me my sisters all circle around the bride and groom and sing a song, I love these pictures of both.

Then it was time for the mother son and father daughter dance, and finally cutting the cake.

Once all the mandatory events were completed it was time to just visit with everyone, dance and play around in the photobooth.

Next Up: Final Pictures, Wedding Signs and Details, Stay Tuned!

All Photos by: Tony Gambino Photography 

Vendors: 
Venue: Paa Ko Ridge Golf Club
Flowers: Floriography
Bridesmaids Dresses: Wtoo Dress 295 in buff
Bridal Gown: Trinity by Maggie Sotero
Groomsmen Suits: Mens Warehouse
DJ: Dreamweaver Productions
Photobooth: Clik Photobooth 
Cake: Whole Foods- Berry Chantilly