Mojo and Moxie’s Stocking Stuffer Gift Guide 2021

It is THAT time of year people! We know how you LOVE our gift guides, so this year get ready for our Stocking Stuffer Gift Guide 2021!

Danni and I were recently on a girls trip in Mexico and talk turned to Christmas (as it does ,when you are sitting on a beach staring at the waves) – wait, WHAT?? Yes – we started talking about Christmas and how difficult it is to be creative with stocking stuffers for our grown up kids. Let’s face it – girls are SO easy. You can buy for them forever – but its not cheap. And BOYS – what on earth to you get them that they are going to appreciate and use – that isn’t junky.

I complained that I am just all over the place with my stockings. I start October-ish keeping an eye out for little, special things and by December 24th I have a massive bin – half of which I have forgotten about and much of which they don’t need or even want.

One of our friends had the brilliant idea of picking a theme for your stocking – which not only focuses you on something they need or love, but also steers you clear of random purchasing. We LOVED this idea and decided we would steal it for the blog, to help organize our stocking stuffer gift guide for 2021.

Every year our gift guides are BY FAR, the most popular posts on the blog – so let’s get right into it. Be sure to comment below if you have ideas you would like to share as well – we love hearing from you!

Searching for Joy in the Christmas of 2020

I’m standing in the aisle at our local Calendar Club staring at the abyss of adult games, desperately searching for joy in the Christmas of 2020.

You see, every year at this time, I love to find a new game for our family. Life quiets down, kids are home from university and extra curricular activities take a well deserved break. Christmas is the perfect time to get in that “family time” we always talk about, and play a game, or do a puzzle.

This year though, the thought of suggesting we play another game or “hey kids, let’s do a puzzle,” fills me with such dread, I turn on my heel and walk straight out of the store.

“Ok lady, I say to myself, “you’ve got to get your shit together and find some joy in the Christmas of 2020.”

Anyone else with me?

Don’t get me wrong – I am grateful for a lot of things right now – I’m just struggling a little with joy.

I am grateful we have employment, a home, our health (fingers crossed) and ways to connect via technology with people we love – although – if someone suggests another Zoom, I might have to punch them in the face. 🙂

I’m not totally devoid of happiness – nor do I feel depressed, but I do feel the peaks and valleys of my emotions like never before. I also feel a certain anger that bubbles just below the surface. At times, I tear out of the house looking for a break, knowing if I hear the words “social distancing” once more, I might scream.

But I digress…

In our house, we light the advent wreath – four candles signifying HOPE, PEACE, LOVE and JOY – each one lit in the four weeks approaching Christmas. And while in previous years, these candles were lit more with a nod to tradition – this year HOPE, PEACE, LOVE and JOY seem to take on a new meaning.

We’ve all had to come up with things that give us HOPE, that bring us PEACE, that show LOVE and that have helped us feel JOY at our family table.

With it being just a few days from Christmas, I thought I would share with you some of the things we’ve come up with in our family, while we are searching for Joy in the Christmas of 2020.

I feel JOY when I see all the extra Christmas lights people have put on their houses this year.

I feel HOPE when I see that doctors are getting vaccinated.

I feel JOY when I see a family out for a walk together.

I feel PEACE when I know we are all together under one roof.

I feel JOY that I can find a parking spot at the mall one week before Christmas!

I feel HOPE when I see the city supporting local business.

I feel LOVE when I see our family laughing together.

I feel JOY when I see people skating outside in a local park and Christmas carols being played.

I feel HOPE when I see a company pivot to adjust to restrictions and be successful.

While this list is certainly not exhaustive it sure beats going down the rabbit hole of despair, doesn’t it? I know that choosing joy in a pandemic is a little like choosing love in the middle of a fight with your partner. The question always is – do you want to be RIGHT, or do you want to be HAPPY?

This Christmas there are many reasons to NOT be joyful. This pretty much sucks, and let me tell you – I can come up with plenty of reasons to support that statement too. We really have to consciously be searching for joy in the Christmas of 2020. We have to wake up every morning, and figure out how we are going to either find joy, or bring joy each day.

In what is most likely our last blog post for 2020, all we are wishing for you this holiday season is a little JOY, unconditional LOVE, PEACE, and an abundance of HOPE. Because remember… after the last pandemic came the ROARING ’20’s and in my mind the next decade has us strewn in sequins and dancing like fools.

Dance with us – won’t you? See you in 2021

xx

C

If you are looking for JOYFUL Christmas morning inspiration check out our Gingerbread Waffles or Christmas Morning Eats – guaranteed JOY.

Christmas Baking for those who hate Christmas Baking!

I get it. There are those of you who HATE to bake. And when Christmas hits, you hate to bake most of all! Well never fear – this week is just for you – it’s Christmas Baking for those who hate Christmas baking.

I’ve been putting off the baking this year. Don’t get me wrong – typically I love a good Christmas cookie – especially when I’ve made it (wink wink) but something about this year has me in a bit of a funk… Is it COVID? I’m not sure but I’m not as excited about getting out all the familiar traditional recipes and hunkering down for some solid baking days.

Many of our friends are throwing their hands up and saying “what’s the point this year?” We can’t have anyone over – who is going to eat it all? And as much as we may have more time than usual at home, the baking phase of COVID passed for most of us mid-April and we are OVER IT.

I was recently looking through the ol’ recipe index for some inspiration. It’s a gaudy binder I received many years ago from my Grandma that has pockets to store clipped recipes, or old written recipes from years past. Funnily enough, this is the binder I always consult when deciding on my Christmas baking for the year. Yup – I still have notes on recipes and I very rarely google any of my Christmas baking…

The Great Christmas Debate – Real or Fake

Now that I have your attention, The Great Christmas Debate – Real or Fake comes up every year. Trees. Real or Fake trees!! I know what you were thinking 😉

There are so many sides to this debate and I am not sure if there is even a right answer. But here are a few facts that I have found. You can make your choice for whatever works for your home at Christmas.