Are you preparing for Christmas?

[agate]

Pumpkin pie is good at any time on any occasion, IMO.

I was particularly fond of anise cookies my mother used to make. Years ago I tried and tried to get that recipe to turn out right. I even tried several other recipes that I looked up. I just never got them the way they were when she made them. She was already gone by the time I was doing this experiment, or I'd have asked her what the trick was.

[jingle]

Tonight I'm going to attempt to make some divinity. It's raining with a high humidity and that says - don't make divinity, but I would like to have this for my church's Christmas celebration Sunday night and the forecast says it will rain until then. I really want some divinity -- it's part of Christmas.

[houghchrst]

Looks as though this may be the year without a Christmas tree at my house unless I can find a real, little tree. My kitten immediately started climbing in my fake tree as soon as I opened a box of lights. Hadn't messed with it all night but seems he is psychic and knew I was ready to do something with that tree. I am kind of glad he did it then because I have some heirloom ornaments and had he waited and knocked over the tree and broke something I would be very upset. So I decorated the inside of the living room with Christmas lights so it is very festive. If I don't find a tree before Xmas no big deal we have decided.

Y'all I have probably 14 bins and boxes of Christmas decorations, one of those which is a big one full of non working string lights. They are a great source of replacement bulbs. This year I put out maybe 8 tiny xmas decor in bathroom and maybe 4 in living room. I have all those boxes that haven't been gone through lol. I just don't have the energy. Every year I will admit that I do scale down on that a little bit. I have made myself stop buying Xmas decor at yard sales and flea markets unless it is a great outdoor decoration. I could really use those.

My favorite is cherry pie. I love it my grandma use to always have cherry, apple and pumpkin pie and a big tub of vanilla ice cream. Not real fond of pumpkin anything. Sounds blasphemous lol

My mom always had a different spin on Christmas dinner. After thanksgiving we are kind of sick of turkey and ham so for Christmas we got to pick what we wanted, One year we made individual home made pizzas, all kinds of toppings but most asked for was her cannelloni. I have never seen it made the way she made it and it was gastronomically fantastic. I have never even deigned to recreate it but my oldest brother makes it quite frequently for himself.

New Years was always my mom's fried chicken because the day after was oldest bro's b'day and that was one of his favorite things from her.

[jingle]

My divinity - if I say so myself was really good. I made lots of candy, lots of recipes, but the divinity was the biggest hit.

[stillstANNding]

My grandmother made divinity w some ground pecans in it. I hadn’t thought of it for decades. Glad you were able to make it.

ANN

[jingle]

My grandmother made divinity w some ground pecans in it. I hadn’t thought of it for decades. Glad you were able to make it.

ANN

Ann -- I use chopped pecans in mine and sometimes press a pecan half in the top. Why don't you make some?

[stillstANNding]

It’s too sweet for me, Jingle.

ANN

[tic chick]

happy holydays!

the vine tree is very hard to decorate. ornaments do not dangle from the vines, they just lay flat on it. it looks weird. i have tried tiny little ornaments, still doesn't work. what i currently have on it is lights, strings of silver beads and little bows. i think that's going to be the best i can do.

i read about divinity in an old cookbook or on the back of a box when i was a child. i never tried it. anything too sweet literally makes my teeth hurt . if i have any energy, i will try and make a pumpkin bundt cake and poke some holes in it and pour some rum chata into the holes. rum chata is a creamy cinnamon and vanilla liquer, so i've been told, kind of like bailey's irish cream, but cinnamon flavored. i have no energy to do anything. i did clean my mantle and put up my christmas runner cloth on it, put some poinsettias on one corner and a candle arrangement on the other. i might do a little more today, i might not.

it's a hard time of the year for me. ever since my early twenties, i have suffered from seasonal affective disorder. it hits hard the week we turn the clocks back because it is dark so early and so fast. i am not a morning person. i go to bed about 130 and sleep until 1030am. today i slept until almost noon. so, i have only about 6 to 7 hours of daylight to work with now. i don't take antidepressants anymore because it's so hard to get off of them for me. bad side effects. i am fine towards the end of february, but rightnow is the worst time for me. i think that's why i've always subconsciously disliked Christmas. it's over-commercialized and it makes the assumption that we all have gaiety in our lives. my sister was in the psych ward of the hospital about 3 weeks ago because she got crazy drunk and told police she was going to kill herself. they had to take her to the hospital, by law. she was in there 3 days. she came home and started going to AA meetings enthusiastically. her husband called me the day she went into the hospital. he was discombobulated. i talked to him. gave him 3 things to do, one was to get a lawyer. he did 2 of the 3 things, got the lawyer. now, he isn't persuing the divorce. he's giving her another chance. this is like the 241st chance. i told him i hope this is the time she turns it around, but i wasn't going to hold my breath. and since he had to give the lawyer a retainer, he can't get his money back, which is good in a way because when she slips up, he will be ready to go through it, hopefully.

and i know it's weird to say you want a couple to get divorced because hope springs eternal, but she is effing up herself and her teenage daughter and him so terribly. it reminds me so much of how brilliant my husband was, yet he couldn't understand alcohol was his enemy. i stayed through so much crap because i went by this "for better or worse, in sickness and in health, til death do us part" mantra, except it's it's usually the the non-drinking spouse who gets the "worse, sickness and death" part. haha. i stayed until i could no longer, until he did something so not like the man i knew he was, that i had to go away or possibly face the consequences for his actions.

and then, the last 3 years that he wasn't drinking, he actually was a decent person. we emailed, we talked on the phone every so often. he helped me out in a jam twice, but it wasn't a normal, healthy love relationship. and of course i am still reeling from his death because of all the love we did share at one time. our kids are mostly ok. i know Christmas will be hard for us all. my mom died 4years ago last august and i never grieved her like this. my own mother. maybe because i did everything i could have for her. funny how that doesn't translate into doing everything i could have for my husband. i couldn't make him quit. i wasn't going to enable his lifestyle. so, there you go.

so, i am wishing all who read this a peaceful and meaningful holiday season. do what makes you happy. help someone less fortunate. make cookies for firemen to show your love. it's all good.

to all of you...i care so much for you all and thank you for sharing and caring,
jeannie

[jingle]

Thank you, Jeannie. I hope and pray you have a peaceful and GOOD Christmas.
I'll have a very quiet Christmas -- just like the last 7 or 8. My cats and I will have a nice day together, good food and good naps.
On Monday, the 24th, I'm taking loads of cookies and candy to the local police .... that's what I did today - make candy.

[houghchrst]

Jeannie my heart is heavy for you, I totally get it. Four years? My goodness how the time flies. I miss my mother too. I am glad that you and your ex found a bit of peace at the end and that the children are adjusting. I know they are adults but they are still your children. I hope you find a calm, peaceful moment here and there and your tree sounds lovely, simple and sophisticated.

The only joy I will have this year is watching my children open their gifts. Yes they are grown but I still enjoy it. I am sure I will probably get one or two things. I know CJ is going to put a heater core in my car for my Christmas present. He will be buyin and installing. No tree but the gifts are wrapped early thank goodness because I usually do it on Christmas eve lol.

I had to look Divinity up and i must say I have never tried it. How is that? Maybe I should make some just to see. One year I made Sugar Cookies all kinds of colored dough and made reindeer, snowmen, santas and an actual bowl that was made up of cookies and filled it full of different cookies. I will never do that again. The sugar cookie dough was homemade and a lot harder to work with than I realized so starting as a newbie on that project was a lot of work. I have made swedish meatballs and put them in new rubbermaid kitchen containers. My swedish meatballs are famous among the family lol. Such a simple yet delicious recipe, the recipe is simple but it is a lot of work as I usually fry my meatballs and will get all four burners going. If I make them I make a lot because it is usually for a gathering.

Don't have any plans about Christmas dinner as I have no money and missed my food banks. There were three I had planned on going to on Tuesday but it totally escaped my mind untiil it was too late in the day. I went through the whole morning with a feeling that I was supposed to be doing something but could not recall what and just pooh poohed it away. I do not want ham or turkey lol. Thinking maybe Jared and I will go out to dinner if I can come up with the funds.

[jingle]

Our local food bank is open only on Monday and Thursday, so yesterday I took some things I thought they might need. The nice woman who helped me carry stuff gave me a list of their most needed things.
I planned on taking goodies to the police station on Monday but this morning I got it all packed and I'll take it today. I think that's my last project for the year!
My precious next door neighbor is coming this evening to get cookies, but that's a different project.
I've bought a great supply of in-shell pecans and I'll be working with those when the cats will allow it. They love to see me sitting at the table and consider me "available".

[stillstANNding]

Our food bank asks for spagetti sauce. They don’t get it from the larger regional food bank because they don’t deal with glass jars. Our smaller bank says it’s one of the most requested items.

My fairy lights came yesterday. I got white on copper wire. They come with a battery pack so they can be put anywhere and they have a remote with 8 settings and a timer. I got a 2 pack of 30 feet each. I am taking one for my Mom to Christmas-up her living room.

ANN

[houghchrst]

The food banks and pantries have an overabundance of spaghetti sauce here. It comes in a can. I have not used one yet, picky about my sauce but hunger is a whole different thing so am sure I will be trying it. That's okay because I also have an overabundance of diced tomatoes which I adore and can be a fantastic add in, my own herbs and spices. We love pasta with diced tomatoes and black or kidney beans. We can do with ground beef or usually without.

I also have an overabundance of canned veggies which I don't usually eat but have discovered that they make great add ins for dogs on diets so have found a use for them. I prefer my veggies fresh or frozen, in the can they seem to lose so much and then there is the texture thing.

Ann I love fairy lights and think the battery operated ones a great invention. I have a multi colored string for Christmas this year and would love to own more. I have a very high shelf in my living room and I hung a string of white lights, the big old fashioned bulbs, up there and it looks so good and adds so much light that I am thinking of putting lights up there permanently.

Jared is gone this Christmas, been at his dad's since Sunday evening. He will open his presents when he gets home today. Brandon came and stayed the night here and opened his presents last night. He got mostly money a little early but I did buy him a few things to open. Unfortunately he is sick and will not be feeling well today lol.

Jared and I may be going to his great grandma's for dinner or to actually keep Jared in contact with that side of his family. They still treat me as family and CJ has no contact with them so I do the duty.

It looks as though we might get some sunshine today. It would be a blessing as it has been cloudy for way too long and my SAD has kicked in.

I hope you all have a wonderful day.

[stillstANNding]

My husband and I are flying to Pennsylvania today to spend a week with my 93 year old mom. She is awesome. I can’t wait to be relaxing in her living room.

Have a good day everyone.

ANN

[jingle]

I wonder if any other person is sort of pleased to see that holiday ended ??