I don't know about you guys, but I'm seriously feeling the holidays this year. Last weekend, I spent the afternoon at my parents' house and made some really fun Christmas ornaments with my mom. She has a huge collection of wine corks that we've kept over the years, so we picked out all the La Crema ones and made a reindeer, some grape clusters, and a couple of angels to hang from the tree. They were super easy to put together and turned out so adorable! I think we may have a new holiday tradition on our hands.

This post is brought to you in partnership with La Crema. Make your own wine cork ornaments by following the tutorials I posted on their blog last week--happy holidays!

Photos by Sarah Gatrell of Photo + Love.

Mezzetta recently asked me to use a few of their products to share a recipe associated with a favorite holiday memory, and immediately I thought about my family and some friends gathering around the island in my parents' kitchen for cocktails and hors d'oeuvres. It's my favorite part of every holiday--especially Thanksgiving and Christmas.

For Thanksgiving we often make Cosmopolitans, which are delicious but a bit sweet, and from time to time we've been known to shake up a few rounds of Lemon Drop Martinis, which are practically a dessert on their own. When it comes to eating and drinking around the holidays, I'm a big fan of a dirty martini with vodka--it's fancy but straightforward, and its salty olive flavor goes so well with a nice antipasto platter, which is one of my mom's specialties. I've included both recipes for you below. Enjoy!

Really Dirty (Kind of Filthy) Martini

Ingredients:

• One part vodka
• One and a half parts juice from Mezzetta Martini Olives Marinated in Dry Vermouth (If you like your martinis less dirty, just do one part--or less--of olive juice.)
• Ice
• Two or three olives, for garnish

Instructions:

1. Place vodka and olive juice in a shaker with ice. Shake well until the shaker is really cold.
2. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with a toothpick loaded with olives.
3. Enjoy with snacks and some people you really like.

Antipasto Platter

Any or All of the Following Ingredients:

• Pepperoncini/Banana Peppers
• Olives
• Pickles
• Marinated Roasted Red, Yellow, or Orange Peppers
• Salami, Pepperoni, and/or Mortadella
• Any assortment of cheese--Parmesan, Gouda, Brie, Manchego, etc.
• Crackers and/or Bread

Thanks to Mezzetta for sponsoring this post. Get a coupon for $.50 off and enter to win a Mezzetta Holiday Favorites Gift Basket right here! Thank you so much for your support as I work with advertisers this holiday season.

Photos by Sarah Gatrell of Photo + Love.

Happy Monday! It's been a while since our last giveaway, so I'm excited to be back with a holiday one for you, courtesy of Caribou Coffee! One lucky reader will win a package full of holiday merchandise, just like the one pictured above (I was lucky enough to get one of my own).

Here's what's inside:

• A knitted, reusable coffee sleeve.
• A gorgeous gold and white travel mug (see mine pictured here).
• The largest and most convenient cold cup in the world.
• A pound of whole bean Caribou Coffee Reindeer Blend.
• A pair of sweet little espresso cups.
• One $10 gift card to Caribou Coffee.

Enter to win below--it's super easy, and you can gain a couple extra entries by following Caribou Coffee on Pinterest and Instagram. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway is brought to you in partnership with Caribou Coffee. All of the merchandise you see above (and more) is available online and in Caribou Coffee stores.