3rd Day of Christmas Giveaway…..with Melissa Taylor
Published December 2, 2009Attention Weight Loss Wednesday gals….Do not fear! We are still checking in today. Just scroll down past this 12 Days of Christmas interview to see our WLW post. After, of course, you’ve entered today’s giveaway!
(If you are just joining us in our 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway, click here to get caught up. You can enter to win the prizes on any of the posts until midnight EST on Sunday, December 13th)
On the third day of Christmas…..meet my gregarious, godly and oh-so-pretty P31 sista’ Melissa Taylor! Melissa’s heart for Jesus and love of people comes through in all she does, whether she is speaking at an event or writing a devotion or answering the phones in the P31 office (I actually can ‘hear’ her smile through the phone when I call!). She is a treasure to us at P31 and now you can know her too! Meet Melissa:
Melissa and her sweet momHi Karen’s blog readers and Merry Christmas! I am Melissa Taylor and I’m so excited to be included in this year’s 12 Days of Christmas Giveaway!
I live in Charlotte, NC with my husband of 20 years, Jeff, and my 4 crazy fun and beautiful kids. Speaking and writing for the Lord is my passion. I’ve been doing that with Proverbs 31 Ministries for 8 years. I have a desire to encourage every woman I meet to be all that God created her to be and not to settle for anything less! Two years ago I also joined the staff at Proverbs 31 as the office Administrative Assistant and Prayer Coordinator. I am an ordinary everyday woman who just wants to bless others with what God has given me.
If you’d like to connect with me, please visit my website, www.MelissaTaylor.org. You can also connect with me on Facebook, www.facebook.com/melissa.r.taylor or Twitter, www.twitter.com/melissartaylor. Thanks so much! I pray you have an awesome Christ filled holiday!
Melissa, can you share a tradition your family has enjoyed over the years?
We get bowls of popcorn and M & M’s get in the car, turn on Christmas music and drive around the city looking at Christmas lights. I love this because it’s just me, my husband and kids all together. No cell phones or iPods allowed. We’ve had great conversations during this once a year journey.
How do you intentionally focus on Christ in the midst of all the flurry of activities that happen in December?
Beginning December 1st, we read from The Advent Book by Jack and Kathy Stockman right after dinner. Each page reveals a door. You open the door and a piece of the Christmas story is there. Whoever opens the door reads the passage for that day. And you aren’t allowed to peek ahead! This is just one of a few activities our family does.
Do you have a favorite Christmas movie you watch at this time of year?
Absolutely. It’s A Wonderful Life is my favorite serious feel good movie of the season. Home Alone 1 and 2 are my favorite seasonal comedies. Love these!
You are offering a creative giveaway today based on a special memory of yours. Can you tell us about it?
With pleasure. My giveaway is called Peppermint Memories and Music. When I was a little girl, I used to visit my Grammy for Christmas. She always had peppermint sticks in a dish to give to anyone who visited her home. Grammy was a friend of Jesus. Her life radiated Christ. Now we have a dish with these peppermint sticks in it. When we offer them to guests, we tell them of Grammy and her love for Jesus. So ladies, if you are today’s winner, you will receive from me: Grammy’s special peppermint sticks, a Christmas dish, and a $15 iTunes cards to purchase your favorite music. Merry Christmas!
Thanks for visiting with us today Melissa!
Alright ladies, leave a comment today with your favorite Christmas tradition, most loved holiday movie or way to focus on Christ at Christmas. Or, since Melissa’s giveaway involves candy, your favorite homemade or store-bought candy to savor while you ponder our Saviour at Christmastime. Or, if you really need to get OFF the computer and onto life, (like I should be doing right now!!!) just say, “I’m in!!” and you’ll be eligible to win this creative giveaway!
Third Day Blessings,
102 Responses to 3rd Day of Christmas Giveaway…..with Melissa Taylor
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I’m in!
I’m in!
I’m in!
Melissa – nice meeting you…I will be visiting your website soon.
My favorite holiday candy is the peppermint bark…chocolate with peppermint pieces spinkled on top.
Happy Holiday Season to all!
Melissa it was fun to read about your Christmas traditions.
When I was a little girl my parents always gave my sister and I a new pair of jammies every Christmas Eve. Even though I am all grown up with a family of my own I still get new jammies and now so does my husband and our children and they are from my mom. 
Traditions are a wonderful special part of Christmas.
~ Merry Christmas Karen & Melissa!!
Hi Melissa! Every year my husband and I take our children to a nearby tree farm to cut down our Christmas tree. Then we go home to decorate it. We play Christmas music and I prepare several appetizers or finger foods and that is our dinner while we decorate for Christmas. So much fun!
Every year since my husband and I got married we play Handel’s Messiah when we wake up on Christmas morning. Sometimes we listen to it when we decorate the tree but we always play it first thing on Christmas day
My grandma is a special Christmas memory in her own right. We lost her last year before Thanksgiving but everyone of my past 34 Christmas Eve’s were spent at her house surrounded by family. The best gift my grandma gave me was a legacy of faith and love for the Lord. Her life spoke of family and love.
My favorite Christmas tradition is baking cookies with my four kids. We make sugar cookies and gingerbread men. I give each child their own colored icing and candies to decorate with.
I’m in!
I love the movie White Christmas. Sigh. I also love It’s a Wonderful Life.
This year I’m hoping that my two year old daughter and I can get in the kitchen and get busy with cooking some fun and simple holiday treats!
Prayers and blessings,
Rebecca
Around Christmas I like to make peppermint meringue cookies. So light, and the peppermint does just taste like the holidays. Thanks for making this giveaway available!
momofgmd—Please share the recipe!!! I LOVE peppermint and meringue cookies are usually pretty lo-cal. Can you post the recipe here?
I’m in! We also like to drive around and see the Christmas lights – this year I think I will add the popcorn and m&ms!
I very like our tradition and our 4 kids keep demanding it… On Christmas Eve’s night we usually spend time with lonely friends that we invite to come over but, when everybody leaves for their houses our family all lay down in the living room at the foot of Christmas tree in our sleeping bags. My husband puts more logs in the fireplace and we enjoy falling asleep surrounded by the light of the fire, the tree lights and soft Christmas music in the background. It’s so magical!
When everybody is asleep thought my husband and I usually just rush to finish wrapping the presents to put under the tree, finish preparing all the luggages so we’ll be ready to it the road the next morning to see the grand-parents… after we all have enjoyed unwrapping the presents and filled our bellies with a yummy breakfast.
Melissa what a sweet, sweet spirit you have. It radiates through your words.
I too LOVE It’s A Wonderful Life but it has to be the black and white version. That is followed by The Bells of St. Mary’s and Holiday Inn.
I’m in!
We watch Holiday Inn–usually on the first of December, I am recovering from kidney stone surgery and time is getting away from me…maybe this Friday we will set down and watch some Bing and Fred.
I bake gourmet cupcakes so after awhile sweets sound not so good—savory is another story entirely—we make Chex Mix on Christmas Eve.
Favorite holiday movie is “Elf”. So hilarious!
I love M&M’s, doesn’t matter what time of year it is. Does the Charlie Brown Christmas special count as a movie? I love watching it with my kids!
My favorite holiday movie is also “Elf”. It makes me laugh so hard.
I love memories from Grandmas. They just hold a special place in our hearts, don’t they. Your peppermint stick tradition made me smile.
My all time favorite Christmas movie is “It’s a Wonderful Life”
It brings back to focus that God made us all for a special reason and that we all have a special purpose here on earth all for the glory to Him of course……….=)
I would love to share my recipe! It’s modified slightly from my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.
Peppermint Meringues:
2 egg whites
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup crushed peppermint
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Lightly grease a cookie sheet and set aside. In a mixing bowl beat egg whites, peppermint extract and cream of tartar with an electric mixer on high speed till soft peaks form. Add the sugar, 1 Tbsp at a time, beating till stiff peaks form. Fold in the crushed peppermint. (To crush the peppermints, I just put some peppermints into a baggie, put the bag on a cutting board and crush them with a hammer. It works!)
Drop by rounded teaspoons onto the greased cookie sheet. Bake in 300 degree oven about 20 minutes or till firm and bottoms are very lightly browned. (Do not overbake! If you get them just as they are done, they have a wonderful somewhat crunchy outside and lovely slightly chewy center. They just melt in your mouth!) Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool.
These cookies are listed at just 30 calories a cookie! Just be careful you don’t eat the whole pan when they come out of the oven.
You can also fold 2/3 cup mini chocolate chips into the meringue instead of the crushed peppermint. Then you’ll have a chocolate mint meringue cookie! (Still supposed to be 30 calories a cookie!)
I’m in!
I’m in!
A favorite family movie at our house is Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase….soo funny.
momofgmd, thanks for the recipe. It sounds good and easy to make. One quick question: Will it turn out right using the liquid egg whites that come in a carton?
I have never used liquid egg whites. I would imagine as long as they whip up into stiff peaks that they would work. I guess it would just be something you’d have to experiment with. Sorry I can’t be more help!
My favorite Christmas movie of all time….A Christmas Story!
Elf with Wil Ferrell is funny too.
Linda…I always use liquid egg whites in recipes and have never had any problem. In fact, I’m going to use them in momofgmd’s recipes.
We have the tradition of going to look at Christmas lights also. We usually go through the drive through of some fast food restaurant before we begin our tour!
Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase is my favorite holiday movie! Love it!!
Thanks for sharing, Melissa. I really enjoy reading your blog!
Fun to find you here today Melissa! Just came from reading your e-mail and here you are again! Double blessing
You are such a precious friend to me.
My family likes to watch the Tim Allen Santa Claus movies, and I always watch, “All I Want for Christmas” every year along with “White Christmas”.
Last year I made some Candy Cane White Chocolate Bark, and it was DELICIOUS!!! I believe I got the recipe either here or from another P31 blog. Always fun to make a new tasty treat. My mouth is watering right now for peppermint
Blessings,
Joy
We like to make chocolate covered Ritz sandwiches! It’s kind of cheating, I know, but we’re not really candy people – more of a cookie person – but these are great. Sandwich two Ritz crackers – any variety – with peanut butter in the middle and dip them in melted chocolate. Cool and eat!
I’m in! The recipe for the Peppermint Meringues sounds great! we make Candy Cane cookies each year.
It’s just not quite Christmas without “It’s a Wondeful Life”. After that, I like the Grinch and Charlie Brown. Melissa, I have really enjoyed your devotions and stories in the P31 magazine.
My favorite holiday movie is also “It’s a Wonderful Life”. My two kids and I watch it every year. My 21 year old son will come to me right before Thanksgiving and say “ok mom, when are we going to watch are movie”. I also love “Miracle on 34th Street” and “White Christmas”. My mom and I get together every year to make candy and cookies to give to our friends and neighbors. Another tradition I have is to cook dinner for my folks and a few friends on Christmas Eve. Then we go to church. Good to hear about your Melissa. Thanks for sharing.
I love peppermint too. It’s not just candy but I love Schwan’s peppermint stick ice cream. It has bits of peppermint candy in it and it’s only around a Christmas time. I also like the Candy Cane Kisses. Yummy!
We love making buckeye candy. And also going around the look at the Christmas lights with our kids.
I’m in!
I’m in!
My favorite is the old fashioned ribbon candy. Not the stuff you get at your local wondermart either. The homemade stuff from family stores in the area. Ya gotta love it!
When I was a child, one special memory, other than waking up before the crack of dawn to open gifts, was that our parents always gave us a goody bag/sack. It was filled with some nice treats of fruits, nuts, and candy (double sugar high for the day). I think I will try that with my boys this year. I always looked forward to that bag! We’d munch out while playing with our new toys until mom was up to start breakfast.
It’s a Wonderful Life is one of my favorite Christmas movies too! I also love to watch The Preacher’s Wife because of all the music!
Great ideas! Thanks
Mmmm! I love peppermint candy too! I was just thinking that I needed to make some peppermint bark this year since I haven’t done it in a few years. Now I just need to find a reason to make it so I don’t eat the whole batch myself
Always fun to read of other people’s Christmas traditions. This brought back fond memories of Christmas’ past with my parents, siblings, & grandparents. Thank you.
Michele
My favorite Christmas movie isn’t a movie at all…it’s the Charlie Brown Christmas Special. I know, I know…how old am I? It just takes me back to a time when my life was simpler, uncomplicated…before my parents’ divorce, when all was well with the world. Now, I have to juggle time with all of the families each holiday and it’s so tiring. I do my best not to let it get to me, though!
I love making caramel every Christmas. As I child we had taffy pulls, Georgia style. I’d love to do this with my kiddos at least once! I definitely feel inspired to go get some Grammy’s peppermints and share Jesus’ love.
I finally saw part of It’s a Wonderful Life for the first time last year–I want to rent it and watch it all with my hubby after the kids are in bed.
l love Christmas! It brings back many fond memories of my childhood and times spent with my grandparents! They are all gone to be with the Lord now but I love to just sit and think about all those days gone by
Favorite candy? Hmmmmmmmmm, I like pretzels dipped in almond bark. But I like the idea of the popcorn in the car for christmas lights. We willhave to go a-driving this year!
My favorite Christmas “candy” is the fudge my mom makes each year. It’s just your basic marshmallow fluff fudge (milk chocolate with nuts), but her fudge always tastes the BEST!
Please count me in. Favorite candy…too many to list. Thanks for being so sweet and transparent with us!
I enjoy all those old movies with the clay animation that come on t.v. right before Christmas.
I love anything peppermint, especially peppermint chocolate bark
One of my favorite Christmas movies is The Christmas Story.
When I was growing up, our Christmas Eve tradition was to drive out to the home of this older couple that were sort of adopted grandparents of my father. They always gave us kids a group gift. One year it was a Bible. I didn’t think much of that gift then – I was not a Christian. But I kept that Bible because they were such loving people. Then we would drive home looking at Christmas lights, singing Christmas carols and stop by the one Krispy Creme shop in town and each get a donut for the drive home. It is a sweet memory because that was the only time we ever saw Grandma and Grandpa McMillan – and because there were very few times when we were together as a family like that, especially with my dad. In fact, he moved out and my parents divorced when I was 18.
White Christmas & VeggieTales “The Toy That saved Christmas” are my favorite Christmas movies
One of my family’s favorite traditions mixes two of the above things: candy and tradition. We have a candy-making night. We all bring the “fixin’s” for our favorite candy and spend some great time together. Then we divide up the candy and all take some home to pass on to others. We actually aren’t doing it this year as we’re all trying to get healthy, so we had a family movie night instead and watched the black and white version of It’s A Wonderful Life instead.
I’m In!!
I’m in.
My Dad was the candy maker in our family. His specialty was fudge and it was divine. He would make enough to share with all six of us kids and our families and still have plenty left over. I really miss him and all the wonderful things he did to help people.
Hello Karen and Melissa,
My most favorite Christmas movie is White Christmas with Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye, i love that movie:) i love lots of Christmas movies but that is my Favorite one. God bless you both:) Your mom is looking great Melissa:)
Too funny! Our favorite movies are exactly the same as Melissa! We never get tired of Kevin. If my husband doesn’t watch “It’s a Wonderful Life”- well, it’s just not Christmas!!
My favorite candy is Russell Stover’s French Mints. But I’m really trying to watch my weight right now.
Movie – Miracle on 34th STreet
The Polar Express
My favorite Christmas comedy is Home Alone 1 and 2!
My boyfriend and I were just talking about it the other day.
My son loves “Shrek the Halls”, and well, I’ll admit I like it a lot too. Thanks for the giveaway, great prize, hope to win
My favorite Christmas candy is my Mom’s divinity that she made so many years ago.
I’m in.
I love The Christmas Story!! And Peppermint bark is becoming my new favorite candy.
My favorite “candy” is a oatmeal choc. “thing” my grandma use to make…I try every year to make it, but it is just not as good.
Terry
http://pink-itsmorethanjustacolor.blogspot.com/
Peppermint bark!!!
The “Christmas Card” is one of our family favorite movies during the holidays…we have already watched it twice.
I’m in.
It’s a Wonderful Life since childhood have watched every Christmas Eve. Really not a fan of Home Alone movies.
Love peppermint anything!
I’m IN !!!!
I’m in. Thanks.
im in
My new favorite candy at Christmas is this huge, handmade candy cane I found in a little store in a little town in North GA. Yummy! I’m excited that I get to back to that little town tomorrow so I can get some more.
Julie =)
I love the movie “Christmas with the Kranks”. It makes me laugh so much every time I watch it!
Every year, my 3 children look forward to making special cookie creations for each family member we visit. Now our grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins look forward to their cookie “gifts.”
I love “The Santa Clause” movies and of course, Charlie Brown’s Christmas.
My favorite Christmas tradition is cooking our family’s traditional Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage Christmas Eve dinner with my Nana. She is 90 this year and doesn’t cook anymore, but I still look forward to this special time with her.
Plus the recipe is really quite delicious
Whoops, I am getting confused on what I am posting on!!! I only got three hours of sleep last night ladies, and it shows!! Pray for my final this afternoon. My favorite Christmas movie is Elf hands down
Okay, day 2 post I put that fannie mae candy that my mom and I make are my absolute fav!! However, I do have a major sweet tooth, and puppy chow comes into a very close 2nd place. I have some at home right now, and it is hard to resist every time I walk through the kitchen(especially being 8 months pregnant, I want to eat the whole tub)!!!
peppermint is delicious in hot chocolate!
A friend at work makes fabulous fruit cake! I think I enjoy it more because SHE made it! Friends are treasures!
love watching… “a Charlie Brown Christmas” & “the Sound of Music” with my (now adult) kids & hubby.
enjoy eating… frosted sugar cookies, mom’s peanut blossoms & peppermint bark!
One of my favorite Christmas movies is the Preacher’s Wife.
I’m in!!
I have many Christmas movies that I enjoy. I will have to say that my boys love Frosty the Snowman and The Polar Express.
I love Puppy Chow for people! It is Chex cereal with Chocolate on top and powdered sugar. It’s great. I need to make some for our trip up to MI.
dark lindt chocolates for christmas!
Anything dark chocolate… any time. =)
My husband thinks it is not Chrismas without “It’s a Wonderful Life.” And he and our youngest daughter can quote almost the whole movie.
Hey, I know another Melissa Taylor that lives in Charlotte, NC.
She sells real estate.
Anyway, when my kids were little we always had a birthday party for Jesus. We invited friends over for lunch, did a craft, had a devotional and had birthday cake. The decorations all had a special meaning of Christ. My 11 year old daughter mentioned this year, “I bet you miss doing that with us, don’t you mom?” I may miss it but she will remember it and the reason for Christmas and that is the most important thing for me. My children know Jesus and will someday in heaven be able to reach out and touch him.
I’m in…
I love the movie “Elf”, even though it’s a silly one..thanks!
I love peppermint candy nice story with grandma, thanks for sharing. I just lost mine 6months ago. Your comment evoked nice memories.
I’m in!