Well, it's already a week into December and I haven't even gotten up my post on Thanksgiving! I know where my brain has been...I've been busy trying to get homemade gifts made and packages sent and Christmas cards out.
We had a great Thanksgiving. We enjoyed time spent together as our little family of three and two kitty cats. I made rolls with yeast and they turned out yummy! They wouldn't win any awards...lol. I made a no-bake peanut butter and chocolate cheesecake. I even threw together a little charcuterie board. We didn't have to travel up to my sister's place like we usually do. So I just scaled it down and threw on a lot of yummy bite-sized snacks. I made up some mulled cider and hot cocoa. We played games. I even popped open a bottle of wine with Thanksgiving dinner. My family doesn't drink so I've never actually had wine with my Thanksgiving dinner. It was nice and pleasant. We made the best of it and had a great weekend.
We've also committed to a really big project. My mom has had some mobility issues within the last two months. And they live in a home where there are quite a few stairs to get out of their home. Well, being the genius my husband is he has planned out how to build a ramp to get her out in her wheelchair. We just bought all the lumber and will spend part of our winter break building that. I'll have pics as we start working on it. I'm really hoping this helps her and my dad out for a little while till other arrangements can be made. It's so hard to see my mom getting older. But so grateful we can help out where we can.
And we got the holiday decor up! It was a busy but fun and enjoyable weekend together.
Reading:
I
finished up 4 books since my last update:
Wonderland by Zoje Stage,
1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving by Catherine O'Neill and Margaret M. Bruchac,
A Velocity of Being: Letters to Young Readers by Maria Popova, and
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi. We had our last book club discussion. I made it through! That is a large book and it was great to discuss with friends.
I'm still making my through A Promised Land by Barack Obama. I started reading Legendborn by Tracy Deonn and She Votes: How U.S. Women Won Suffrage, and What Happened Next by Bridget Quinn. I've got a couple of holiday themed books I may try to get to this month...We shall see. I'm really playing catch up here.
I am planning on doing a small unit with G on holidays around the world. I got a bunch of books from the library and some recipes to try and decor to DIY...so hopefully it'll be fun and interesting!
I'm taking my time with The Self-Driven Child by William Stixrud. There's a lot to digest and I don't want to miss anything. I haven't read anything in two weeks but I plan to finish this week/weekend! Crossing fingers...
Classics that I'm reading: Still working on Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. I'm enjoying taking my time here. It's been a long time and it's the perfect classic to read as the weather gets chilly and the holidays approach.
Philosophy: At the Existentialist Cafe: Freedom, Being, and Apricot Cocktails with Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Albert Camus, Martin Heidegger, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and Others by Sarah Bakewell. We're getting closer to the end!
Listening to:
Christmas and holiday music! A few news podcasts to catch up on but not a lot. Braiding Sweetgrass is still there but I just haven't gotten to it for a few weeks. Hopefully soon.
New Books Acquired:
Watching:
Movies:
We watched a couple of fun holiday movies as a family...Jingle Jangle on Netflix was lovely! We watched Elf last night as one of our classics we watch every year!
I also watched
Happiest Season on Hulu. This was so good. I will be watching it yearly, a new classic for me!
TV:
TV has been mostly holiday baking shows like Sugar Rush on Netflix and Great British Baking Show Holiday edition. I also finished up The Undoing on HBO Max and just started The Queen's Gambit on Netflix.
Making:
My no-bake pumpkin cheesecake on Thanksgiving didn't set...I forgot to buy heavy whipping cream and tried half n half instead and it did not work! I knew it wouldn't but I was desperate. But other pies turned out fine. So I made it again this weekend and it was a hit! It set and everything.
I've also been trying some winter cocktails--I made a white winter hot chocolate out of white chocolate and added some peppermint vodka. This weekend I made up coquito, a traditional eggnog from Puerto Rico! So delicious. I'll take this over regular eggnog any day!
Holiday baking will commence this week and weekend......
Looking forward to my 17th wedding anniversary! We're not really going anywhere but we're going to hit the big city for holiday lights outside and a fancier curbside dinner! I also ordered a pair of personalized mugs. It's small but it's what must be during a pandemic.
How wonderful of you to help your mom out with this project! I am sure that she will greatly appreciate it.
ReplyDeleteHolidays around the world sounds like fun. You can go where your interests lead you, and that's nice.
My naturalist book club is reading Gathering Moss by the author of Braiding Sweetgrass. Apparently the group already read Sweetgrass. We will be discussing it in early January, so I'm starting it soon.
Cheesecake is one of the baked goods I've never tried. I bet it tasted delicious.
It sounds like you've got great plans for your anniversary. Fancy curbside! I like it.
Mine wasn't a true cheesecake with the no-bake and all but it's even yummier I think! Lol.
DeleteGathering Moss sounds really good too. I am loving her writing.
A fancier curbside dinner!!!! Hahahhahahaha!
ReplyDeleteYour Thanksgiving sounds perfectly lovely to me.
I had zero plans to do any holiday baking yet, but then our oven died yesterday so now I'm wanting to bake ALL THE THINGS! We live in a tiny town and the repair technician is in the process of tracking down a new heating element. I'm trying not to stress over it.
Oh no! Oven death is no good. I hope you get it fixed soon. I'm the same way...I don't miss something until it's gone. Thanks for stopping by!
ReplyDeleteI'm behind in my blog reading...again. I'm considering making Stamped (Kendi and Reynolds) my first book of the year, or at least right up there. Your Thanksgiving sounds perfect and much fancier than ours :)
ReplyDeleteNo worries. It's so busy and stressful this time of year. I've been taking a big break last week and probably this week. I don't think I'll get my end of the year faves and worsts until after New Year's! I had such high hopes and goals...
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