Editor’s note: Hi readers! Today I’m proud to share with you a guest post written by one of our sales reps in Chandler, AZ. Kelti is a hockey mom with three handsome boys and is a native Canadian! This week she talks about Thanksgiving and preparing for the holidays. Take it away, Kelti!

Holidays……what hockey family really has holidays?????

I keep thinking every year I will be more organized and get things sorted and pulled out so while my turkey is cooking I can decorate the house, create amazing DIY holiday gifts for my sister in laws and nieces and nephews or get the team manger’s gifts made. And then one of the team managers from one of three different organizations that one of my sons plays for will send an email and say… "we’ve been accepted in to a Thanksgiving Tournament!!!” or even worse for me a weekend surrounding the Thanksgiving holiday so now there is so much to do within those sacred days I just want to curl up with hot cocoa, my “Celly Time Cup” and watch Anne of Green Gables, Miracle and Beaches!

Here are a few of my favorite things I have kept from my Canadian upbringing and the last 17 plus years in America as a hockey wife and mom.

Holiday Baking

Holiday baking was and still is a favorite of mine. I am 45 years old and still enjoy a box of baking from my Mum! A way to help you be ready for when you do get a day at home with the family or if you need stuff to take to an event is to bake up a favorite recipes one weekend at a time, wrap in plastic wrap, then tin foil and then in a ziplock (these three steps keeps them fresher and freezer burn out), label and put in deep freeze.

So when you need to head out of town you have treats from home to make all hotel rooms cozier or when you actually get a chance to go the last minute holiday party you have something to take. A fun snack you can make, freeze and take, are mini pretzels, melt a Hershey's kiss on them for 5-8 mins @ 250 degrees, take out and place in Canada a Smartie on top and press down, in the US a chocolate MnM and press down. Then freeze for 30-60 mins. My sister in Law Tammy can place outside in Sherwood Park, me in Phoenix…goes in the freezer. Then bag up in zip locks and they are ready to go. You take out of the freezer and go, get to the event and put on a tray and serve!

Player gifts!

Fun little gift for Hockey Mums to do for team gifts…. is the Hockey Holiday Tree. We all have old, broken sticks waiting for a DIY project! So cut them down to 6-8 inches, then hot glue on to an older puck. Have picked out 4-6 different color and sized ribbons. You can do team/organization colors or holiday themed, it is up to you and I suggest you pick a few at last that have wire in them, it makes the end step easier.

The length of each ribbon should be between 8-10 inches. As you can see from the photo, you place the ribbon in an order to create tree branches. Once you have them all placed you can trim them down to have it shape your tree. You can holiday topper, or you could make one with each players’ number or the team's logo. A nice Hockey Mommy night, gather all supplies, enjoy a beverage from your “Celly Time” Cup and create a memory for all the players!

What I have learned from my years in the US is “plan it out”! I love a good paper calendar/planner so I can see/touch everything, especially since my three boys play on different teams, with different organizations. Give yourself one night or afternoon a week to make something in bulk so you can freeze it and have. Or plan out buying supplies, prepping supplies and creating the project. That way it's not a whole day you need to block off, just a couple of hours at a time, like drop off at practice, go shopping, go to practice, prep supplies.

Label Holiday Cards

My favorite time saver is labeling Holiday cards while at practice and then stuffing them another night! ** Update…from the time I started to write this blog, to coming back to edit it and send in… yes, you guessed it, my U16AA goalie’s manager sent an email saying we were no longer playing in town for Thanksgiving as our division was canceled…Vegas here we come, while the rest of the family stays at home. Good thing I have a couple of treats already made that I can pack up and take to share with the team for our Hockey Family Thanksgiving Dinner!

No matter what, enjoy the time and have fun making memories with the moments you have, we all know it mites to midgets will go by in flash….

Have a great weekend everyone!

Laura Jones
Founder of The Hockey Mommy