Celebrations Archives | Lilies and Loafers

DIY Maui Map Ornament

December 24, 2021

It only took four years, but I finally got around to making a Maui map ornament! In 2017, my entire family flew out to Maui to celebrate my cousins’ wedding. It was the best two-week vacation we’ve had so far. Well, Cabo was also great… Around Christmas 2017, I started to work on the ornament. The original map I brought back with me was waterproof! It made sense for the…

December 24, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Christmas

Cozy Hot Chocolate Bombs

December 13, 2021

With Fatima’s due date around the corner, we’re celebrating Christmas closer to home. One of the things I loved about last year’s Christmas, was the hot chocolate bombs I brought up to my parents’ house. This year I decided to try to make them from scratch so I could gift them to everyone in our family. Our first cup of hot chocolate this season was the Friday right after Thanksgiving.…

December 13, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ Celebrations/ Christmas/ Dessert/ Thanksgiving

Sweet Potato Pie

November 25, 2021

Reintroducing Fatima’s sweet potato pie. This post was first published December 11, 2012. Reposted with updated photos. Sweet potato pie is like music to my ears. Brian never had sweet potato pie so I needed to make him one. He’s had sweet potato fries, mashed sweet potatoes, but never a pie! Like much of my family dinner menu, this pie is a family tradition in my house. In the time…

November 25, 2021 By Fatima

All Recipes/ Autumn/ Comfort Food/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert/ Thanksgiving

Apple Cider Doughnut Loaf Cake

November 22, 2021

This apple cider doughnut loaf cake hits all the right notes. It’s not too difficult to make, it’s warm and spicy, has just the right amount of sweetness, and every bite screams ‘HELLO AUTUMN!’ Liam helped me bake this one. When I asked him what he wanted to bake, he said, “Let’s make pumpkin pie.” So proud that pumpkin pie was his first choice. When I said we were going to…

November 22, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Lunch and Dinner/ Thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving Menu

November 19, 2021

Ready, set, cook! If you’re gathering with family next week and making a bunch of food, or cooking all your favorites for yourself, you’ve come to the right place. Fatima loves cooking for others and finds cleaning therapeutic, which makes the time off around Thanksgiving one of her favorite times of the year. If your family is like ours, you have carnivores, vegetarians, pescatarians, and/or vegans who might join us…

November 19, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Healthy Living/ Lunch and Dinner/ Thanksgiving/ Vegetarian

Roasted Salmon and Vegetables

November 15, 2021

Every once in a while, we just get sucked into one channel for a few weeks. A little over a year ago, we were watching Food Network all the time. The last time we did that was during my entire parental leave with Liam. One day, I was watching GZ make a really delicious-looking meal on the Food Network. GZ was making a one-pan roasted salmon and vegetable dinner. The…

November 15, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Side Dishes

Holiday Baking Essentials

November 3, 2021

The most wonderful time of the year is here: Fall baking season. Pumpkin bread, apple pie, muffins, banana loaves, sweet potato pies, and all sorts of holiday treats to come. These are some of my favorite holiday baking essentials to get you through all the holidays from fall to New Years. Gadgets and Gizmos Pie dish – What is fall without a pie? Pumpkin, Apple, and Sweet Potato are our go-to…

November 3, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Celebrations/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Halloween/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Halloween 2021

October 31, 2021

I blinked and now it’s Halloween. This year’s Halloween costume goes underwater and focused on something that’s both mystical and haunting. The leaves are a little underwhelming this year, but there have been some great pockets of color in and around the city and the Hudson Valley. Last weekend, we hiked upstate to a farm we visted last year, DuBois Farms. They have THE BEST apple cider donuts. Yes, more…

October 31, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ Comfort Food/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert

Apple Butter Bars

October 13, 2021

It took me a whole year, but I’m finally writing about these apple butter bars. Finally getting around to this involved me being able to make them again. They are delicious. Unfortunately, I followed the directions and greased the pan. However, the entire sheet of apple butter bars glued itself to the pan. I should have used parchment paper like the first time. Hence the floppy mound instead of cute…

October 13, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Pumpkin Pillows

October 6, 2021

It would not be a proper fall on the blog unless there were two new posts: a fall dessert and a DIY project. The fall dessert is on the way, but here’s the DIY project. These DIY pumpkin pillows are inspired by Pottery Barn’s Halloween 2021 collection. Over the summer, Pottery Barn released their Halloween collection. Two pillows caught my eye: a ghost pillow and a jack-o-lantern pillow. I wavered…

October 6, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ Breakfast and Brunch/ Celebrations/ Comfort Food

Blueberry Muffins

September 29, 2021

Nothing says, ‘hello fall’, more than a fresh baked muffin on a Saturday morning. Well, maybe a hot apple cider donut being eaten at a pumpkin patch in your flannel shirt would say it more? But why was it so difficult to find a delicious recipe for blueberry muffins? It took me three tries. THREE. The first two recipes looked good. However, they turned out crumbly, dry, and bland. That…

September 29, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Birthday/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert/ Family Fun/ Parenting

Cake Donuts and a three-year-old!

June 9, 2021

Oh my goodness, we have a three-year-old! How is this possible? Where did the time go? How much longer will he be my baby? For his birthday this year, we celebrated with all of his favorite things under the theme: One, Two, Three…hit it! Donuts, cake, pizza, Word Party, balloons, music, dancing, and trains. And the cake? Cake donuts! For our family portraits, we cozied up in some tie-dye sweats.…

June 9, 2021 By Brian

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Comfort Food/ Lunch and Dinner

Lobster Mac and Cheese

June 2, 2021

We’ve cut down on our red meat meals. We used to have one to two red meat dishes a week. Now, we do maybe one or none red meat dishes. I even replaced our meatballs with chicken. But rather than replacing our red meat meals with just more chicken, we replaced them with fish or an entirely meatless option. This is how we got to making lobster mac and cheese.…

June 2, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert

Cadbury Egg Cookies

March 31, 2021

I’ve fallen down the rabbit hole with these chocolate chip cookies. I bring you a reimagined chocolate chip cookie for Spring. I know, ground breaking. I used this recipe and added in Cadbury mini eggs. Yes, that’s it. Anyone else love mini Cadbury eggs? Our friend, Stephanie, shared this indulgence with us many years ago. We’ve been hooked ever since. Making the Cadbury Egg Cookies My mom made those cute…

March 31, 2021 By Brian

Appetizers/ Celebrations/ Christmas/ Dessert/ Snacks

Christmas Party Boxes

December 25, 2020

The holidays this year will be very different for almost every family around the world. While we won’t be able to fill our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day up with family gatherings IRL, we rallied around some creative ideas to keep us engaged and connected. My aunt thought it would be fun to put together Christmas party boxes to drop off at each family. These Christmas party boxes were filled…

December 25, 2020 By Brian

All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Christmas/ Dad Bakes Cookies/ Dessert/ Family Fun/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Christmas Cookie Board

December 24, 2020

This Christmas cookie charcuterie board is meat-free. A classic charcuterie board, however, may display meat, cheese, and/or fruit. Today, charcuterie boards have evolved into themed presentations: donuts, pies, Christmas cookies, muffins, and candy. TBH is this even a charcuterie board? The perfect cookie charcuterie board is filled with all of your favorite cookies: gingerbread, peanut butter blossoms, decorated sugar cookies, and even store-bought cut and bake ones! A cookie board…

December 24, 2020 By Brian

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