It is December and the clouds are hanging low in the sky, making it finally look like winter. Fireplaces are filling the air with the aroma of pine. Sweaters and boots come out of the closet and maybe, just maybe, when you go outside, you can see your breath. If you are reading this anywhere north of Florida, arguably my idea of cold is much different than most of the country's idea of cold.

Even if the numbers on the thermostat differ, there is enough of a chill in the air to break out my winter must-haves to warm me from the inside out.

The first on the list of winter musts is my sister’s homemade hot chocolate.

My sister is a gourmet. So when her family wants some hot cocoa, she doesn’t reach for the Swiss Miss. She makes her own. When you try her version of hot chocolate, you will never go back to the Swiss again.

Borden Family Hot Chocolate-

One box, 10 envelopes instant milk.

One medium Nestle Quick powder

2 cups powdered sugar

Half a medium jar of powdered Cremona or Public brand creamer

If I have powdered cocoa, I put about a quarter cup in as well!!!

Plus!!!!! MINI Marshmallows!!!!

Place chocolate mix in a cup a little more than a third up, fill with boiling hot water, stir, add marshmallows and enjoy!

The winter months is also time for colds. My house is currently dealing with a particular stubborn bug right now. We don’t like to take a lot of over the counter drugs. We like to keep it as natural as possible. Last severe cold we had we discovered a drink that will soothe a sore throat with no medicine. (We by no means are against medications but we try to limit what we take because we suffer from medical conditions that medicines can affect adversely.)

Another way to stay warm this winter is to never get out of your car because of the wonderful seat heaters. You have to get out of your car to go food shopping, right? WRONG. Walmart has a new service where you order your groceries online and then all you do is pull up at the appointed time and they will bring it out to your car and load it up for you. The first time I heard about this service I was not sure about it but the website you order from is super simple to use, best of all you spend less money because there is less of that, “OOO we could use that” or “Oh, I love this.” It's quick and simple and it saves you both time and money. Go to Walmart.com to check it out.

Last on the list is soup, nothing warms your insides more than a good soup. For me, the problem is I can’t make soup to save my life. Every attempt of mine has ended badly, to say the least. There is one soup from the Pioneer Lady’s blog that I have been able to make multiple times. It is so easy and yummy, it will be a family favorite.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from my home to yours!