Friday Finds | 12-13-2024 | Books ~ Crafts ~ Holiday Recipes ~ Indie Authors ~ Contests
Welcome to the Friday Finds for December 13, 2024! 🎄
Have you finished your holiday shopping? If not, don’t worry—you’re not alone! I’m wrapping mine up this weekend, just in time to dive into cookie-baking and holiday fudge-making. This week’s finds are packed with festive recipes, fantastic reads, and heartwarming traditions to inspire your season.
From a nostalgic 4-ingredient Jell-O salad to sweet and salty popcorn perfection, you’ll find something to add to your holiday table. Bookworms, don’t miss the lineup of reviews, spotlights, and gift-worthy reads—including thrillers, cozy mysteries, and children’s tales that make perfect presents.
Also, a huge congrats to Tom Tracy, whose book Jazmyne’s Big Emotions is up for two prestigious awards! And for those feeling crafty, I’ve included simple knit and crochet patterns to make your own festive hat.
Let’s keep the season fun and stress-free (we’ll try, right?). Check out my weekly fun question—this week, we’re talking holiday traditions. What’s yours?
Peace, love, and holiday cheer! 💖
—Gina
Weekly Friday Finds | 12-13-2024 | Recipes
4-Ingredient Vintage Jell-O Salad Is Perfect for the Holidays
(Or really, any time.)
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The Only Sweet and Salty Popcorn Recipe You Need This Season
Brown butter, maple syrup, and a generous pinch of salt are the secrets to success.
Weekly Friday Finds | 12-13-2024 | Blog Posts this Week
The Answer is No by #FredrikBackman #BookReview #ShortStory #Humor #LitFic
On the Threshold by M. Laszlo | #BookReview #Historical #ScienceFiction #SciFi
Beautiful Evil Winter by Kelly K. Lavender #BookReview #Excerpt #RussianSuspense #Thriller
Jury Duty is Murder by Kate Damon #Spotlight #CozyMystery
Weekly Friday Finds | 12-13-2024 | Fun Time
I plan to stick with fun questions for the time being instead of trivia-type questions.
I never imagined my peanut butter & pickle sandwich would surprise so many people. All I can say is you have to try it!
This week, let’s talk about fun traditions. Do you have favorite traditions you celebrate this time of year?
On Christmas Day, we’ll spend time with our youngest daughter. We start with fresh-baked cinnamon rolls, coffee, and hot chocolate. Then, we put the turkey in the oven and the ham in the roaster. This is followed by opening gifts. It should be lots of fun with two extra littles this year (aka great-grandkids!).
Leave your answer in the comment section to be entered in the next drawing. I think the winner will be announced in the December 27th Friday Finds.
Weekly Friday Finds | 12-13-2024 | Independent Author News
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This time of year always gets chaotic. If I missed the author news you sent, remind me! I receive hundreds of emails daily, and things get lost and buried. I am never offended if you check up on what you’ve sent me, whether it’s announcements or requests.
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Let’s not forget about our local independent bookstores!
Weekly Friday Finds | 12-13-2024| Creative News
Here’s that picture I promised you of the Rainbow Sweater. I made it pretty big because the boy is growing like a weed. I want him to be able to wear it for longer than a month! I’m working on a Santa-style hat in matching yarn.
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Want to create your own hat? Here’s a simple pattern for knit and crochet.
Weekly Friday Finds | 12-13-2024| Giftable Books!
The Tiniest Snowflake: A Magical Winter Tale for Dreamers, Young and Old by Asher Dane
Remember, if you find something you like in this post, leave a comment and click the LIKE button at the bottom of the page. It means the world!
Please share the 12-13-2024 Friday Finds with your friends and family.
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If you are feeling exceptionally generous…donations are always welcome!
See you on December 20th for more Weekly Friday Finds Fun!
Gina
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Thanks for sharing your Christmas traditions, recipes and book suggestions, Gina.
We have a busy time starting Christmas Eve with a big dinner and a game afterwards. This year we are going to play a matching game with Red Solo Cups.
Christmas morning is spent opening presents, after they have their own Christmas at home. I make Cinnamon and Orange Iced rolls but they are not homemade. (Our guys wouldn’t have them any different.) 🙂
After opening presents we eat lunch from whatever is leftover from our meal the night before, then we rest for an evening Christmas party. Phew, we are beat after all that but love every minute of it.
Merry Christmas to you and yours, Gina.
Merry Christmas to you too, Rosie. Your traditions sound so fun.
Our tradition is to go to Christmas Eve church service.