New page leaf

Happy New Year!

Are you as full of new ideas, new plans, goals, and challenges as I am?

It must be all this wondrous time off that has really started the old gray cells working. I am trying something new with my blogging -writing out my ideas on paper first! Somehow, I like what I come up with when I can longhand it first. Plus I am hoping that it will help me post more regularly. I have lots of ideas on which to write, but my mind always goes blank when I sit down in front of the computer. Weird.

So I have a lovely new notebook to start the new year. I shall have to be firm with Turtle as to whom this notebook belongs, otherwise I will find it  in her room, covered with her lovely artwork and handwriting. (Yes, she's writing now!)

I'm going to beat the intimidation of the first blank page by starting my writing on the second page.

Here's to an abundant & joyful year!

In the mood

If this version of Jingle Bell Rock by Billy Idol doesn't get you in the mood for the holidays, then I'm afraid nothing will!

I wrap all my presents like this. Don't you?

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Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Among my many blessings are:
*my family
*my friends
*my home
*my health

I hope that you too are able to take a moment and count your blessings.

Wishing you well,

C

5FF: Holiday Shopping

*5 things. About Fibro. Every Friday*

My Favorite Places to Shop for the Holidays

It's the most wonderful time of the year!  I spent many, many years in retail before becoming an educator. During my retail days, most of my holiday purchases came from the store where I worked. I was just too tired to go other places during the holidays to shop! When I left retail, I vowed to have my shopping done by December 1 so that I could enjoy the season, and avoid the crowds. Fast forward to today, my first official Christmas with Fibromyalgia. I still want to get my shopping done by December 1, but I do not have the energy to go out and hit the stores. What's a girl to do? Shop online, of course!  (For an extra fee, many will wrap your gift as well) So today I though I would share some of my favorite online retailers.

1.  North Star Bison: This fab company will ship non-GMO, grass-fed, hormone and antibiotic-free buffalo to your door! They have a great gift selection as well as buying specific cuts of meat. Don't want bison? They also carry beef, chicken and lamb.

2.  The Body Shop:  I fell in love with this store when I lived in London. As much as I would love to go to London to stock up on fair trade beauty products, they now have retail locations across the US, as well as an online presence. I highly recommend the Satsuma line of products -citrusy goodness in a bottle!

3.  Stubby Pencil Studio:  Eco-friendly art supplies and stationery for children. Well, they say it's for children, but I want these things for my personal art stash! They have kits as well as supplies. I LOVE the paste imported from Italy -a great glue for those of us who miss Elmer's paste pots.

4.  Heifer International:  My favorite charity gift! Your money helps to buy animals for communities around the world (including the USA).  These are not hand-outs. The animals not only help improve nutrition, but provide an income source. Don't worry if you don't have a lot to give -your money can be pooled with other donations to buy more expensive animals. My favorite is the llama share.

5.  Barnes & Noble:  It's not just books! Games, toys, movies, and more. You could easily buy something for everyone from here. In fact, for many years all my holiday gifts came from here  :-P

Now, go make yourself a cup of tea, get comfy on the sofa, and start shopping!

Disclosure: I am not affiliated with any of these retailers, I just love their products. I have an immediate family member who works for one of these companies, so any purchases made  indirectly affects me.

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Crazy Weekend Recap

You may recall my madcap wall-sweeping from the previous weekend. I am pleased to announce that this past weekend, I stepped up my game. I went on a mini-roadtrip with the ever divine ms. caboo! Fun was had, shopping was done, a beer was enjoyed. At least now I can say that I have started my holiday shopping.

I'm also over the moon because I was able to stock up on one of my fave teas -PG Tips. Bring on the holidays -I'm ready for them now!

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Crazy weekend

What kind of shenanigans were you up to this weekend?

Inspired by Ms. Caboo, I cleaned my living room ceiling fan. Then, I swept my ceiling and my walls. Yup. I'm crazy like that.

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I kid you not, my living room feels bigger now that I've finished that task! I'm considering it the first task completed in getting my home ready for the holidays.

Do you have heavily textured walls and ceilings that require the occasional sweep?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Let the feasting begin!!

The Great Frozen Cranberry Escape

I was nearly caught by a Holiday Decorating tip.

You see, I'm far too smart to fall for the shaved soap trap.  But as I was perusing a Holiday mag (I know, I know -I shouldn't even look at them but for now they're my guilty pleasure) I came across what could be a cool idea:

Simple, sophisticated -could look fantastic on the steps leading up to my house for the Holiday Soiree.

"I'll do it!" I found Impulsive Me saying.  "I know just the containers to use for this project.  Now, I wonder if  there are enough twigs in the yard to pull this off, or will I have to trim some off the tree?  I think there are some cranberries in the freezer that are left over from last year, might as well use them for this project."

"Cranberries?" asked Practical Me.

"Yes, Cranberries" Impulsive Me replied in that tone of voice usually used by teenage kids when talking to parents.

"I see, cranberries.  Somewhere in the bottom of the freezer you say?"  Practical Me paused a moment. "Have you looked inside the freezer lately?"

Impulsive Me nodded her head, aware that her world was about to be unceremoniously turned upside down.

"This would be the freezer that you were supposed to declutter.  The one that is currently packed to the brim?"

Impulsive Me nodded again.

"OK.  Well, I really like the frozen luminaria idea -really, I do!  I'm just wondering how you are going to fit them in the freezer? You know, alongside the bread and veggies already there, not to mention the Christmas cookies and the Holiday main dishes that you are also planning on putting in?  Remind me again, how many were you thinking of making?"  asked Practical Me sweetly, knowing she had Impulsive Me right where she wanted her.

"Four" said Impulsive Me in a very small voice.

"Four."  With great self control, Practical Me managed to stifle a snort that accompanied the thought of Impulsive Me trying to cram 4 two-foot luminarias in the already-full freezer.

"But look the magazine clearly says Merry in Minutes -so it must be a good idea!"  Impulsive Me cried, frantically trying to save a shred of dignity.

"Have you consider the merits of a simple holiday welcome mat at the front door instead?" Practical Me asked using that tone of voice usually used by parents placating a heart-broken child.

Thus Practical Me once again saved the day by refusing to let me recklessly use frozen cranberries to decorate my front porch.

Stay tuned:  Impulsive Me is bound to cause a lot more trouble before the holiday season is over.......

Visions of Sugar Plums

There are so many layers to the Christmas holiday season:  spiritual, traditional, emotional, commercial........it's one of the reasons I love it so much.  With all the hoopla and beauty that comes with this time of year, I find myself asking yet again,

WHAT THE HECK IS A SUGAR PLUM?

According to Wikipedia,  a sugar plum is any dried fruit that has been chopped to bits & mixed with honey & spices, shaped as a plum & then rolled in sugar.

Bah humbug.

That doesn't quite live up to my romanticized-Victorian-Christmaslore I had always imagined.  I was expecting  something along the lines of what I found in the Vermont Country Store catalog -I may just order some of these anyway because I really like the idea of a special choc left on the pillow on Christmas Eve.

But in case you are now also in the mood for a bit of Sugar Plum, I'll leave you with these ideas:

 

Now, do I have Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy stuck in your head yet?

I may be Christmas Crazy

But I don't care!  I will actually be festivizing my bathroom this year. Holiday shower curtain, bathmat, the works.  Why? Because holiday decorations make me smile.  But I am not so crazy as to make my home magazine-perfect.  I'm sorry to disappoint my guests for the rapidly approaching Reed Holiday Soiree, I will not be shaving bars of soap so my guests know exactly how much soap to use when they wash their hands as one magazine suggested.  No, I'm serious -it was in a magazine as a "Holiday Tip".  (If I can find it I'll let you know exactly which magazine!)

I love my friends. I adore my friends. But I will never, not ever, shave a bar of soap for their handwashing pleasure. I monitor soap usuage and handwashing at school all day long. When I am at home, I shall assume my guests are au fait when it comes to handwashing and therefore be able to use liquid hand soap I keep next to the sink.

I will however be hanging these signs as gentle reminders:

The whole shaved soap for guests reminds me what a slippery slope (get it? soap - slippery? hahaha) getting ready for the holidays can be.  It is easy to become led astray by these "good ideas" we read about in magazines. We strive to have perfect holidays, with our homes beautifully decorated, handmade goodies and just the right outfit. Well, maybe that's just me. I want the holidays to be special and not a big disappointment because it didn't live up to my expectations. Last year we all had the stomach flu -ho ho throw. Very special indeed, especially as I nearly ended up in surgery to remove a 1 cm shard of wicker lodged under my fingernail 2 days earlier.  So my holiday mantra this year is "Special doesn't mean perfect". And if you happen to come to my home and see shaved soap in my bathroom, I give you permission to laugh heartily in my face. After you have washed your hands.

PS It wasn't fun to be sick on Christmas, but because I had prepared adequately I had enough toilet paper, pepto bismal and pedialyte to make it thru the crisis without anyone having to leave the house  :)

Holiday Houseworks: Food Storage Week

It is a good thing I started prepping for the holidays back in September!  I'll admit, the past few weeks I have only  been half-heartedly getting tasks marked off my to-do list.  But now, everything seems frighteningly close

Last week was the cooking space week and I actually got back down to business.  Motivation came in the form of getting the kitchen ready for a BRAND NEW STOVE!  Just a few surfaces to wipe down and we'll be ready for the delivery :)

I thought I disliked the tasks on the bathroom week more than anything.  I was wrong, because now I have to tackle food storage.  This means cleaning the fridge folks!  Because of the dangerous nature entailed with cleaning this appliance, I'll be sure to announce exactly when I'm going in.  Just so  you know when to send in the Search and Rescue team.  If you don't see anymore posts from me, you will know that I lost my battle with the Food That Time Forgot in the unmarked plastic container from the back of the bottom shelf.

Food storage also means tackling my pantry spaces.  Yes, I said spaces.  I have a small cabinet in the kitchen that can be used for pantry items.  I also use the big drawer in the buffet to hold things that don't sit on the shelf easily.  The rest is on a shelving unit in the basement.  And all three are completely out of control.  Organizing it is a daunting task, but I have a cunning plan that just might turn my functional kitchen into a Fabulous Kitchen. 

Stay tuned.....................

The Christmas Pudding, Poster 1928 Giclee Print

Christmas, Christmas Cake is Here!

Ain't she a beauty?

Nothing says "Time to make a Christmas Cake" more than a Black Cat wearing a witches hat. Oh wait, is that just me?

ms. caboo daringly tried to teach Turtle how to crack an egg.  I think we got most of the shell out.  Any "crunch" in the cake is obviously due to nuts.  Yeah, that's it!

 Some Mad Housewife showed up, which really made the baking fun!

This is what Christmas Baking looks like when you have 3 feet of kitchen counter space (even when decluttered).

This is the second cake we made as you can see the wooden spoon in the background already has cake batter on it.  BTW, my wish already came true!!!

It is not to late to make your own Christmas Cake  :)

Stars and Stripes (and a little joke) Forever

Did you hear the one about the Liberty Bell?




Yeah, it cracked me up too :)

Happy Independence Day!