On the 3rd Day of Christmas @Rudedoodle Gave to Me- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner- Three Horrific 1970s' Christmas Meals

At some point I must research this. Why do 70s' cook books' have page after page of absolutely disgusting looking recipes? Why were those meals served up and considered modern & appetising then, but are so repulsive to our eye now? And why did they put everything in jelly? Even salads?? 

Anyway, my third day of Christmas gift to you on this Christmas Eve should curb your appetite if you fear over eating. Just keep this blog post open on your phone tomorrow and take a quick peek if you want to put yourself off your food and not eat another mince pie.  

1. BREAKFAST

Christmas breakfast is chocolate, so here we are. Probably the only thing any of us would eat willingly in this blog post. 

2. LUNCH

Or Christmas dinner I suppose. Start with a prawn Christmas tree (not the last tree we will see), put your turkey in a suit, and tuck into the mash igloo.

3. DINNER

I said there would be more trees.

A sausage wreath, naturally. 

Make it stop. 

On the 2nd Day of Christmas @Rudedoodle Gave to me- Two Home Alone Songs

Schmoyoho have been making hilarious tunes and auto tuning the news on YouTube for years now.

Three years ago they put lyrical to the Home Alone theme tune, and you'll never hear it the same way again once you've heard this. 

This year, they auto tuned Kevin and made an original song 'I Made My Family Disappear'.  

So my second day of Christmas gift to you, is both of these songs. Also check out their latest videos where they auto tune Star Wars. 

On The 1st Day of Kitschmas @Rudedoodle Gave to Me- One Star Wars Holiday Special (Watch it Here!)

If you've never seen it, you can't believe it can be as bad as everyone says it is. But it is. 

The ill-advised Star Wars Holiday Special, written by George Lucas and shown in 1978 is the stuff of legends.

Han Solo & Chewie go to visit the latter's family, and we also see appearances from Leia, Luke, CP30 and of course Darth Vader. 

The definitely-not-canon ordeal includes bizarre scenes like Chewie's creepy uncle viewing what can only be described as virtual reality, 3D, soft porn. 

One interesting fact- the Holiday Special is actually the first appearance of cult favourite character Boba Fett. He pops up in a cartoon animated sequence, then goes on to star in the second Star Wars movie shortly after. 

So my first day of Christmas blog for you, my loyal readers, is a link to a fairly good quality version of the entire show. 

If you've already seen it, and can't put yourself through it again, then why not  read this Mental Floss article about the making of the Star Wars Holiday Special instead? They talk to those who were involved who I guess have come to terms with the creation they put out there.

Stayed tuned over the next eleven days for more Kitsch Christmas treats. 

#MerryKnitmas Staying Warm With Fenetic Wellbeing & A New Year's Resolution to Get Knitting Again

This Christmas I want to get knitting again. Whilst it's a little late to start hand crafting gifts, at the speed I knit anyway, the Christmas break is an ideal time to start a project.

 Fenetic Wellbeing kindly sent me some Cath Kidston knitting tools, to kickstart my hobby again. 

With many older people at their most vulnerable during the Winter months, Fenetic Wellbeing are currently looking into how best we can keep warm, particularly through the idea of knitting winter accessories. 

My original knitting-crazy period was when I was expecting Smix. It was a hobby I could do while sitting watching tv, and I quickly was able to produce a stack of brightly coloured, woolen, baby blankets. Indeed I used my own blankets in the hospital (we had to stay 11 days after he was born), and throughout his first years. 

We are so used to buying everything we need, that it's cool to know you can still make something like that yourself, to keep your family cosy.

I found knitting very relaxing and rewarding, so it's a hobby I'm excited about starting up again over the holiday break. 

Keeping warm at this time of year is vital for health, especially for older people. Our oil ran out on Saturday, and while we spent the day time at my parents', on Sunday night we had a cold one, waiting until the oil was delivered on Monday morning. Wearing layers is one of the best ways to combat the cold. So we bundled up in onesies & made it through the night, but I was so relieved Monday morning wasn't one of the icy starts we've seen. I could have hugged the oil delivery driver when he arrived! 

There are other ways to keep your home warmer- like making sure your sofa isn't blocking any radiators. When you are cooking, or even having a hot shower, leaving those doors open will allow heat to spread through the house. Shutting the curtains retains the heating you are pumping out, and with this being the shortest day, you can cosy up early in the evening. If you do run out of heat, as well as putting on layers, stick a hat on! 

If you are quick-knitted then why not pick up your needles and follow this tutorial Fenetic Wellbeing have created for making a Christmas stocking? 

I'll be sharing my finished Cath Kidston scarf on Twitter after Christmas. You can find out tips on staying warm on Twitter @FeneticTrading, or on Fenetic Wellbeing's Facebook.

The Award For the Craziest Press Release Gift of 2016 Goes to- Greggs' Bakery, for Their Christmas Flavour Lip Balm! And You Can Get One Free This Coming Monday!

Greggs has launched two limited edition flavoured lip balms just in time for Christmas – and is giving them away in nine cities across the UK, including Belfast.

With all those Christmas kisses under the mistletoe in mind, the UK’s leading bakery food on-the-go retailer has created two special festive lip balms – Festive Bake and Sweet Mince Pie flavour – offering the ultimate flavours of the season for your lips.

I burst out laughing when my parcel arrived this morning containing a sprig of mistletoe & my own set of lip balms. 

The Festive Bake flavour is inspired by the taste of chicken breast, sage & onion stuffing and sweetcure bacon in a creamy sage and cranberry sauce.

The Sweet Mince Pie flavour is based on Greggs’ deliciously crumbly short crust pastry filled with sweet mincemeat, which is made with vine fruits, Bramley apple and candied orange and lemon peel.

A Greggs spokesperson, said: “This Christmas we wanted to bring some fun to the last minute present dash by giving busy shoppers the chance to pick up a festive lip balm from a number of our shops across the country."

Greggs is giving away a total of 5,000 lip balms at selected shops across the country on Monday 19 December from 10.00am until supplies run out, including:

·Belfast - Donegall Square West, BT1 6JH

·Birmingham - High Street, B4 7SL

·Cardiff - Queen Street, CF10 2BW

·Glasgow - Buchanan Street, G1 2LW

·Leeds - Central Arcade, LS1 6DX

·Liverpool - Wall Street, L1 8BU

·London - The Strand, WC2R 1JA

·Manchester - Deansgate, M3 2AY

·Newcastle - Northumberland Street, NE1 7DE

To view the full Greggs menu, or to find your nearest shop, go to: www.greggs.co.uk

Copeland Spirits' Fruit Infused Gin- Here's To Inventive Cocktails This Christmas!

 Copeland Spirits is a Northern Irish brand with very cool ideas about gin flavours and cocktails. They've just launched their first two fruit infused gins, Raspberry & Mint, and Rhuberry, a combination of berries and rhubarb flavours.

Gin is really trendy right now, but there have always been speciality gin bars in cities across Europe. Copeland's fruit infusions open up a world of new cocktail ideas you can make at home, with even a partnership with a good quality tonic giving you a different spin on your favourite juniper beverage. 

I tried the Rhuberry with tonic & whilst the fruit twist is there, it still retains the classic gin flavour, it's certainly not just a fruit drink for girls- it packs a punch!

Of course with such attractive packaging, Copeland gin makes an excellent Christmas gift. Right now Copeland is making its way into bars throughout Northern Ireland, but if you want to keep up to date with where you can currently try it, The Copeland Gin Facebook Page is a great place to start.

To get your hands on a whole bottle of either the Rhuberry or Raspberry & Mint, with UK wide delivery, visit Neil Wine. Here's to plenty of inventive cocktails with Copeland this Christmas!

Marks & Spencer Sweet Sweet Christmas Party Food 2016

Fruit cups £6 : Santa hats £4

Two weeks ago I showed you what Marksie's had instore for savoury party food this Christmas 2016. Flown in by Mrs Claus in her helicopter no doubt.

This time around I'm sharing the M&S Christmas party food sweet selection. Party food is on 4 for 3 this week, so again it's worth taking advantage of the offers as they will likely wind down closer to the big day.

Its worth noting you will find the party desserts in three different locations instore. So if you see a product in this blog you want to buy, but can't find it amongst the chilled fridge part desserts, try the frozen department and lastly the bakery section.

Pecan tarts £7 : Doughnuts £4 : fritters £4

A lot of the desserts have edible glitter on them, which I absolutely love. The pecan tarts have golden glitter, as do the chocolate orange brownie tarts. The brownie cubes have actual edible stars, while the Prosecco charms have a silvery sheen.

Brownie tarts £4 : Brownie star bites £4 : Viennese charms £4

This weekend there also is a Dine In £10 offer on. That's where you can get your hands on the glittery, chocolate mousse pine cones from the new M&S Christmas advert. 

Still shimmering are the lustred macaroons, which almost look too good to eat. 

Macaroons £7 : Pine cones in the £10 deal, or £4

Stollen £4

If you want some traditional Christmas tastes, there are of course mince pies, Christmas cake bites or slices, and Stollen.

After all the chocolate the passion fruit profiteroles taste fresh & sweet.  Finally we loved the mini red velvet cupcakes because they look like little Santa hats.

Cupcakes £4 : Profiteroles £6

What a lovely festive spread you can put on with M&S. Remember many of these desserts can be frozen so you can use them for New Year's if you wish.

Brownie stars

Red velvet cupcakes and Prosecco whirls

Passion fruit profiteroles  

Chocolate orange brownie tarts

Pecan tarts

Spar NI The Kitchen Range- Win One of 3 Hampers During #FoodNIHour Tonight

Spar's new range The Kitchen offers us hungry customers 39 products, perfect for making tonight’s tea. The Kitchen brand is a range of fresh meal solutions, perfect for quick and easy dinners for one, two or the whole family.

Beef stroganoff  

I tried out some of the meals this weekend. There are mains for two, sides and sharing desserts, as well as dinners for one you can pop in the microwave. The difference between The Kitchen & frozen microwave meals is the quality & freshness. The beef stroganoff has big chunks of real meat, with a creamy sauce that tastes like you've made it freshly yourself. 

To put together The Kitchen range Spar NI have worked with local suppliers here in Northern Ireland, Armagh’s Daily Bake, Willowbrook Foods in Killinchy, Big Pot Co. in Cookstown and Quinfresh from Dungannon ensure only the best home-grown produce is used for each product.

If you fancy winning one of three hampers of The Kitchen products then you can join in with #FoodNIHour tonight between 9 & 10pm. You can follow SparNI @SparNI, and the food hour hosts @foodnihour, and I will be taking part as @rudedoodle.