Christmas Wishes 2016

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Before we get to the meat of this post, I want to thank all our veterans for serving and defending the freedoms we enjoy each and every day.  Thank you so much.

Well, I’m really going against MY rules about posting something about Christmas before Thanksgiving in the US but I’m posting this now those of you who wanted/needed a reminder early enough so you can do this, too, if you want.

Christmas Wishes or an Advent calendar of sorts.  A small gift, Words of encouragement, activity suggestion, simple craft, or treat is opened each day before Christmas. For more details, read this.

In the beginning I used brown paper lunch-sized bags.  Then one year I wrapped each “gift” and quickly learned that I wasn’t doing that again!  Finally I made those sour cream packets since I was using small items and the lunch bags were just too large.

I used card stock this year and glue sticks.  The double-sided tape works better but is more expensive.  Plus I didn’t have much tape.

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I printed out the numbers and cut them out with a large hole punch.  Paper sizes were 4×5, 4×6, and 6×6.  A paper cutter works great but so does a rotary cutter.

The mini ornaments and no candy.

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The card stock was sturdier than what I used in the past so I held the ends together with spring clips until the glue dried.  I won’t lie, this took longer than using the double-sided tape but I needed to take breaks anyway.

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If the end wouldn’t stay shut, I had to use the tape.

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The completed packets can be hung from a ribbon, tree branch, dowel, or curtain rod.

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Day 24 included some surprises for the entire family so it was wrapped in a larger box.

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Ready to send!

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Do you do anything for Advent or a countdown for Christmas?

Pecan pie

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pecan-001We had Home Ec in junior high in my day…which was back in the 1960’s.  No such thing as a “middle school”.  Our junior high consisted of grades 7-9 but the year I was in 8th grade was the last year for the 9th grade to be included.  A new wing was built onto the high school so the 9th grade moved into the senior high with the rest of the “big” kids. But I digress.

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Anyway, Home Ec was a real class where we learned how to read a recipe and follow the directions.  We made the BEST fudge, baked bread, cinnamon rolls and cookies, made a cake from scratch, and baked a pie crust filled with pudding.  I’m sure we learned how to do other things in that 9-week class but those are what I remember.

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In 8th grade we had the opportunity to make a fruit pie or a pecan pie.  We had to supply our own mini 4-inch pie pan as we got to take this baked mini pie home with us.  I wanted a peach pie but my parents wanted a pecan pie, which cost an extra ten-cents!  So I made the pecan pie.  For them. I wanted no part of that deal.  Pecan pie was gross.  Or so I thought.

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Dad loved it.  I don’t remember what Mom’s take was on it.  She might not have gotten a bite of it.  But Dad raved about it.

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And I never made another one.

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Until now.

pecan-007I baked my first full-sized pecan pie today.pecan-008

And Mr. Aitch loved it.

Leaf house

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Mr. Aitch and I were raking leaves the other day and it reminded me of the “leaf houses” we used to make when I was little.

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We would rake the leaves into a floor plan of a house.  We made a living room, dining room, kitchen, playroom, bathrooms and bedrooms complete with doorways and closets.  It was like a blueprint only made with leaves.  Then we would play house in the leaf house.

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I told Mr. Aitch about the leaf houses and he thought I was weird.  He had never done such a thing nor heard of it.

Then when we were finished, we’d rake the leaves into a big pile and jump in them!

Did you do the house thing, or were we just weird kids?