Monday Musings, November 23
My sister-in-law, Pam, sent this to me last week and I wanted to share it with you all today,
As we look forward to Thanksgiving, I am reminded of a table prayer offered my sister Joanmarie, a Christian Education professor at MTSO. She sat down to lunch with students and we all looked at each other as to who would pray for the meal. Sister jumped right in with her New York accent, “Darlings, the food is blessed and so are we, Amen.” Of course, no one critiqued the simplicity of the prayer offered by our professor. Although I remember a few other lessons she offered, this one stands out. The simplicity of her prayer is obvious, the eternal truth is stunning.
In spite of everything, we do need to count our blessings, especially this week, especially this year.
Well, I started slowly decorating our home for Christmas. I am trying to find a happy medium between ‘all-out Christmas decor’ and ‘nicely festive for Thanksgiving.’ Thus far, my solution has been to put the lights in our windows, decorate the front porch, and put up, but not adorn, a Christmas tree.
Typically, we do it all in the three days following Thanksgiving. So, as I do it at a much more casual pace the week preceding Thanksgiving, I imagine our days after will be a little more relaxed as well.
One of my ‘challenges’ (and given 2020, it is has been a most enjoyable challenge) has been finding ‘light,’ not too Christmasy-y, Christmas music by which to decorate. In my twisted logic, full-on vocal Christmas music is more ‘Christmas-y- than instrumental Christmas music. So, I have enjoyed Vince Guaraldi’s Charlie Brown Christmas and the Instrumental Christmas station on Amazon music. Come Friday; I can legitimately switch to the no holds barred Christmas music!
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Like you, we have our ‘must bake’ Christmas cookies that get made every year. But I’ve recently made these Amaretti cookies that are now included in that list. They are so easy to make, can be made ahead, great for shipping, and are flat out delicious! Plus, if you or someone in your crowd is gluten sensitive, these Amaretti are also gluten-free!
I finally found the turkey wings and legs for my Turkey Stock…no easy feat this year! For those of you still looking, I found mine at Whole Foods. My home smelled so good this weekend! This stock makes the best gravy.
Are you making food gifts this year? Don’t forget to check out this post containing 11 Homemade Food Gift Ideas and Recipes.
And then, make sure to print off the iron-on labels to adorn the gift bags you use to present your gifts, food or non-food!
We filled my cold-frame with 3 ferns and a geranium/coleus pot for the winter. One lesson we learned the hard way…while the nice warm climate is great for your plants, harmful pests like it too! I had a caterpillar infestation last year, so this year, I doused my plants with organic caterpillar killer when I put them in. I will be more attentive and proactive during the winter to ensure that I don’t have any additional nasties setting up home in there.
It’s not too late to whip up a Christmas stocking or two. Without exaggeration, these stockings can be started and finished in a day. If you can knit and purl, you can successfully knit this stocking!
Congratulations to Ellen Perry for winning the Knit Tote Bag! Hey Ellen, send me an email at [email protected] with your mailing address, and we will get this bag right over to you!
These are cute for the cheese lover on your gift list.
If you or anyone you know uses a Cricut or Silhouette, my friend Michelle has started an SVG Membership site (8-10 new files per month, access to full SVG library, inclusion in FB group, and a live monthly craft night). She is running a Black Friday sale through Cyber Monday. Use the code BlackFriday to save 20%. A membership would make a great gift for that crafter on your list.
Well, I am off to the grocery store for last-minute foodstuff, then I’ll come home and do some more ‘decorating, but not too much’. I hope your day is a good one, my friends.
For my friends in the U.S., Happy Thanksgiving!
Hugs,
