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Friday Favorites: Christmas Edition

Christmas time is here
Happiness and cheer
Fun for all that children call
Their favorite time of year.
Speaking of Favorite…

Favorite # ONE

Making Memories

On Monday Lydia and Rory came to Glammy’s house with Aunt Amanda for baking and candy making.

Lydia had the opportunity to practice her egg cracking and decorating skills.Also

in contrast to our divinity ventures of the past, Amanda and I managed to pull this one off on our first attempt.  Batch # 1 was a success and no redo was necessary.

~

Favorite # TWO

Ugly Sweaters and Suits

Christmas Eve Merriment is typically held at Mama’s house.

This year there was an ugly Christmas sweater contest honoring the ugly, uglier, and ugliest outfits.Although he protested that his jacket didn’t qualify as an ugly Christmas sweater, it was unanimous that LB should win.

~

Favorite # THREE

A roomful of wrapping paper and some of my favorite people.

I

LOVE

Having My kids all to MYSELF

and watching them open presents.

Afterward we took a walk to Mema’s house for MY

Favorite # FOUR

The Christmas Morning

Gift Exchange

Instead of our usual massive gift exchange, my extended family decided to draw names.  Each person was randomly delegated as Secret Santa to one other, using this app drawnames.com – a Secret Santa generator!

On Christmas morning, the secret Santa revealed himself/herself to the person whose name had been drawn.  Beginning with the eldest recipient, we took turns opening our gifts and taking time to share what we received.It was a great idea and all the credit goes to Amanda for directing the event!

~

Favorite # FIVE

The

Holiday Treasure Hunt

it was an unexpected Christmas surprise and you can read about it here! 

I hope you will!

And if you were there, please feel free to comment and add any details that I may have neglected to include.

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Holiday Treasure Hunt

Just last week I came across this photo that was taken last year on Christmas morning.

LB and I were posing for a selfie.

Stuart and Grandpa are in the background [in the kitchen].  Stuart is likely doing the dishes, and Grandpa is probably bringing his breakfast dish to place in the sink.

Who knew that it would be our last Christmas here with Grandpa?

This year on Christmas morning I thought about him not being with us for the first time.  I miss him and his quiet and gentle spirit.  It is comforting to know that he is with Jesus now.

Recently Mama received  a gift from Grandpa.  On Christmas morning she chose to share this with us.  I would describe this as a selfless, magnanimous, and gracious gift on her part, but the manner in which she presented it could only be described as an adventure.

She stood from her chair and handed over a piece of paper containing a clue

and the Christmas Morning Treasure Hunt was on!

Clue #1

led us to Mama’s blue and white porcelain collection in her entertainment center.

Hidden inside of a little blue and white pitcher was

Clue #2

which led us to a kitchen drawer.

Under the silverware tray was

Clue #3

which directed us to a clock in which was found our next clue…

Clue #4

leading us to a decorative birdhouse.  Inside was found

Clue #5

which was challenging

however we found this one was marking the page for the song Silent Night in the hymnal resting on the piano.

Our next clue turned out to be a private joke between Mama, Kyle, and Clay.  Apparently Kyle has often been guilty of repositioning one of Mama’s knickknacks

Clue #6

Clue #6 led us to an acrylic letter “M” on a table in the living room.

The “M” was commonly turned upside down becoming a “W”

Clue #7

led us right back to the room where we began, bringing an end to our treasure hunt.  on an end table, under Mama’s cell phone was her treasure: a stack of Benjamins…

enough for each of us to have two which she proceeded to pass out

She explained that Grandpa had left it for her and she thought it only fitting to share with us on Christmas Day.

Although there are MANY happy thoughts and memories that I have of this Christmas season, this was a particular event from Christmas morning that I hope to always remember!

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Friday Favorites

It is Friday and it is an Especially Exceptional Friday as today marks the beginning of

Christmas Vacation

Let me qualify that by saying today has nothing to do with Clark Griswold. 

 

For the last 2-3 weeks, I have been shopping, decorating, wrapping, baking goodies, and getting ready for Christmas with LB and family!  Now it is time to enjoy!

The celebration begins today with my Friday Favorites!

Favorite # ONE

My Snowman Collection

There is only one reason a native Floridian would have a Snowman collection:  Because SHE has seen it snow in Florida ONLY ONE time!  Nevertheless, I have an esteemed group of Snowmen in my kitchen.  This week LB helped me by lighting them up!

~

Favorite # TWO

Back in BLACK

And I’m not talking about the song.

Black is not a Christmas color, but I managed to incorporate it into my wardrobe EVERY day this week.

Every OOTD is Black

~

Favorite # THREE

Sweetheart Fantasy Fudge

I found the recipe on Pinterest posted by Grandmother’s Kitchen.

This candy is DELICIOUS and it has NO CALORIES!

Just kidding…it has calories

But it tastes excellent and it may be my new favorite Christmas candy!

 

~

 Today my five team members and I had a little Christmas celebration.  We each brought a dish to share for lunch and exchanged gifts.  Previously I had drawn Wendy’s name and Kathy had drawn mine.  This was ironic because the three of us typically exchange gifts anyway.  Kathy presented me with a visa gift card, a mandarin/cranberry scented candle, and [my favorite] a large bag of peanut M&Ms.  Wendy presented me with a pair of earrings she found on my Amazon wish list.  Today these are my

Favorite # FOUR

Favorite # FIVE

I’ve been putting together a Christmas Favorites playlist and I’ve included a Christmas song that is just beautiful.

Breath of Heaven (Mary’s Song) by Amy Grant

~

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Thirty-five Years of Ornaments

When I finally opened Facebook on Sunday, I found that I had missed a Facebook message from a sweet friend.  “Hope you are having a great weekend” she wrote.  Instead of replying like a normal person would:

“Thank you, I hope you are too!”

I explained what my weekend had consisted of and added a couple pictures of what I did on Saturday and Sunday.  When I started thinking about this I realized I had stayed too busy and should have been more sociable or spent some time outside with LB (it was a beautiful weekend).

Nevertheless, I did get a lot accomplished.

One such accomplishment included

Decorating a Christmas Tree

I have two Christmas trees this year.

One is purple and decorated with a matching collection of red, white, and green glass balls.  It is Elvis’ favorite.

The second one is in the front room.  It is in this unnamed room that I have a traditional (not purple) Christmas tree which is adorned with the ornaments I’ve collected over the past 30+ years.

I have a little bit of everything.

LB agrees.  He expressed his thoughts with the comment “that’s quite a mixed bag you’ve got there”.

I thought it would be a good idea to capture a few photos of these special ornaments to add to my collection of memories here in this little blog.

My collection includes the original treasures created years ago by Stephanie, Amanda, and Richard:

I’ve always loved Richard’s muddy snowman

There are ornaments from my first-born baby’s first Christmas

A couple of cutie pie ornaments

A turkey ornament that was presented to me with the note…

To Ma From a Turkey.

These ornaments from Mema and Grandpa Reid.  A closer look reveals Mema’s handwriting.

I have this gifted ornament that ‘reminded someone of me’

And a few from that period of time when I obsessed with Victorian.

This beautiful star ornament is from Mama to remember our first Christmas without Daddy

And this little tiny Lydia handprint.

Truly a diverse assortment, each representing a special time.  And each a reminder of how quickly time flies!

~

The tree is finally decorated!

It may not be Pinterest worthy, but I like it.

And although I didn’t visit much with friends or family this past weekend, spent a lot of time thinking about them.

~

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Friday Favorites

This has been a short work week for me.  Monday was the last day of my Thanksgiving holiday vacation.

On Thanksgiving Day, LB and I headed to Asheville, NC.

It was an easy trip, barely any traffic, and we enjoyed a relaxing evening at the Hampton Inn & Suites Asheville Biltmore Village.

Although the hotel and room falls into the category of favorite overnight stays, my Friday favorites today begin with last Friday

Favorite # ONE

Shopping

on Black Friday.

There’s a first time for everything and for me it was Black Friday shopping and a visit to the Asheville Outlets.

First stop

Le Creuset®

where I picked out a Christmas present.

And the

Lindt Chocolate Shop next door

where LB enjoyed some free samples.

Next Kirkland’s where we found many cute accessories…

and this cow(which appeals to me for some reason).

And Banana Republic where I found

Favorite # TWO

This Jacket

which I had to haveThank you LB!

And later that evening

Favorite # THREE

A Candlelight Tour

of the Biltmore House

which was the reason for our visit to Asheville.

It was beautiful inside and out

The Christmas lights and decorations were so pretty and I came home with thoughts of getting my house decorated for Christmas.

Favorite # FOUR

In addition to decorating in preparation for holiday festivities, I’ve started making goodies.

Beginning with these

Peanut Butter Pinwheel Candies

In 2017 when I attempted to make these, there was an epic fail.

If I had read those instructions at the time, there wouldn’t have been an epic fail

This year I used the recipe from Big Red Kitchen which included refrigerating BEFORE adding peanut butter and rolling.  I especially appreciated that tip “chill for 15 minutes to help it set a bit”.

The recipe calls for 3 ½-4 cups confectioners’ sugar, 6 T butter, 7 t milk, and Peanut butter (no specific amount).  Although I could’ve added more peanut butter, the candies turned out well Since we have begun to deck the halls, we’ve used a seasonal channel on the TV to help set the mood

Favorite # FIVE

the television

Fireplace

Together with Christmas hymns… or Michael Bublé (whatever you like).

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Friday Favorites

It has been a busy week!

Richard, Emily, and the baby girls came to Jacksonville Saturday to spend the weekend and share in our annual Sunday before Thanksgiving Dinner.

A Saturday night slumber party commenced.  Lydia and Rory slept in Glammy’s room.  And they managed to get [maybe] six hours of sleep.  They were being OH So quiet Sunday morning; I thought they were getting some much needed sleep.

But when I sat up in bed I saw two little sets of bright eyes, wide awake and ready to PLAY

Favorite # ONE

Lively Little Girls

I assumed I would wake up and tiptoe out of the bedroom leaving them to have sweet dreams, but they were quick to jump up.  As I made my stop into the kitchen to make coffee they headed to the “Barbie room”.  It wasn’t long before they quickly returned to ask “Glammy won’t you come play Barbies?”

Well YES!

And we played various things throughout the day.  There was one “game” I particularly enjoyed

Favorite # TWO

Playing Sous-Chef

This little one assisted several times in the kitchen, she aided in egg cracking for breakfast, she [nearly] single-handedly prepared a corn casserole, and arranged the appetizer platter.

And because pumpkin pie and pecan bars were not acceptable choices for dessert that evening, she made chocolate pudding.

When all was finished she asked “what can we do next?”

We can do dinner!

Table setting courtesy of Emily

Favorite # THREE

Sunday before Thanksgiving Dinner

I love the almost traditional Thanksgiving dinner with turkey and all the sides.

And nobody can carve a turkey like LB!

Favorite # FOUR

Leftovers on Monday

it was back to work as usual – I took leftovers for lunch

and LB enjoyed leftovers for dinner.I didn’t take a picture of my lunch as it was much less impressive.

Tuesday

was typical with the exception of an impromptu taco dinner party with Stephanie and Amanda.

Wednesday

was an exceptional day which included very light traffic, very light work, and a visit to the theater later that evening to see

Favorite # FIVE

Wicked

seated right behind the orchestraIt was an exciting way to begin our Thanksgiving holiday vacation!

~

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

What’s Up Wednesday

is a recap of everything that has been going on this month…

and as always, What’s up Wednesday begins with the very important topic:

What we’re eating

Today was Thanksgiving at work – my team participated in a pot luck dinner. 

There was mac & cheese, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, pecan pie bars, and ham.

I love ham.

It is the best part of Easter Sunday dinner.

However Thanksgiving is a time for turkey.  So I made a turkey and dressing casserole.

What I’m loving

Turkey and Dressing Casserole

It is GOOD!

Turkey and Dressing Casserole

  • Servings: 10
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

INGREDIENTS

4 to 5 cups diced turkey

1 10.75 ounce can cream of mushroom soup

1 8-ounce carton sour cream

3 cups Pepperidge Farm Herb-seasoned stuffing mix

1 cup chicken broth

½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray a 13 by 9 inch glass casserole dish with vegetable oil cooking spray

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the turkey, soup and sour cream

3. Place the mixture in the prepared dish and pat down evenly with the back of a spoon

4. In a clean medium bowl, stir together the stuffing mix, butter, and broth. Spread evenly over the turkey mixture

5. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the stuffing topping is browning and the casserole is hot and bubbly

prettyis.me

This will be a great way to use your leftover turkey!

~

What we’ve been up to

The one thing that comes to mind is a re-focus on family.  LB and I have each experienced a loss very recently.  There have been two funerals.

Most recently LB’s Dad passed away.

LB has spent the last couple of years concentrating on spending  time with his Dad, who has been in poor health, and went to be with Jesus on November 8th.

Also, on the subject of family focus… I am absorbed with thoughts of Glammy-hood and how I can get to those Glam-babies.  Last week Emily came to town for a family event related to a wedding and also came to spend time with her family-in-law.

Glammy got to see the babies!

What I’m looking forward to

Richard is coming to town this weekend.  It made me feel special when he faced-timed me on Sunday.  It also made me realize how much I miss him.

~

What I’ve been working on

There has been a lot of focus on trying to get the house back in order.  Since recently painting, taking down curtains, and replacing furniture, it seems like I can’t get organized.  There is stuff everywhere!  With the fast-approaching holiday season, things may not be organized until 2020.

~

What I’m excited about

An upcoming trip to tour the Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina.

~

What I’m dreading

I’m dreading next Monday.

Although you’d never know it by the smile on my face!

What I’m wearing

These are this week’s sunrise shots in the daily parking space (my garage).

~

What I’m watching/reading

We have subscribed to The Walt Disney Company’s streaming  service (Disney+).  So far we have watched Lady and the Tramp (2019) and Lady and the Tramp (1955).  The more recent of the two presented a few unappreciated deviations from the 1955 version.

But overall, it was a sweet movie.

 

~

What I’m doing this weekend

This Sunday I will host my annual Sunday Before Thanksgiving Dinner.  It is going to be a bit different this year as LB and I attempt to remove our 60” round table and bring in temporary replacement tables to accommodate the large group.

~

What I’m looking forward to next month

Christmas!

Although I am nowhere close to being ready, I’m always excited when it arrives.

~

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

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