Monday Morning Staff Meeting

Is it Monday again? I can't believe how time is flying. Christmas is upon us.

This morning we're going to be having something very delicious. Perhaps it's something you might like to serve on Christmas morning. It's a cinnamon-apple French toast casserole.



Come back tomorrow and I'll give you the recipe and show you how it's assembled. If you love cinnamon toast, you'll love this dish.

Do you plan a special breakfast for Christmas morning?

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This Thursday in my neighbor Jacki's cookie exchange party. Do you participate on one of these? it's a lot of fun and you come away with 10 dozen cookies of different varieties. The only problem is that you must bake 10 dozen cookies.

I've seriously got to get busy on this task. My plan is to make sugar cookies using these cookie cutters that I found several weeks ago.



I'm not going to decorate them as intricate as the sample photo on the packaging. I've learned to budget my time in that regard.

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Things have been very crazy/busy around here and I apologize for not having the time to visit with you as you update your blogs. Everything runs in cycles and I am sure that things will slow down and I'll be able to catch up on all the news.

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Don't forget, if you're looking for a last minute Christmas gift, I've got new items every day. Check the sidebar for my shop offerings. Thanks to all who have supported my little home-based business. I greatly appreciate the opportunities.

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I hope that this finds you warm and cozy. Winter has officially arrived and we're in a survival mode.

Surviving until spring brings warmth once again.

That's all for me today. I'm turning the meeting over to you. Anything you'd like to discuss?

Alberta Clipper

The weather continues it's predictable course. Just behind a major snowfall a mass of extremely cold air follows behind.

This morning the temperature was only 2 degrees and this was the scene from my second story sewing room. The view up the road is framed in thick frost on the window.


Two degrees in Illinois

An Alberta Clipper could possibly reach this far south but I think this is just a case of everyday normal frigid air. Calling it a Clipper makes it sound oh so much more intriguing.

The Other Mother had plans to do some shopping today, thinking either the son or I would take her out. But here in the midwest you must be flexible or you're simply going to get yourself into difficulty. The wind chill will reach 20 below zero and that cancels any thoughts of shopping. We'll make do without the few items she was looking to procure.

Speaking of unspeakable cold, I've just finished a most interesting book entitled, "In a Far Country" by John Taliaferro. It's a true story that chronicles the lives of missionaries (Tom and Ellen Lopp) who went to live among the natives in far north Alaska in the late 1800's. I never cease to be amazed by the true grit and resiliency of our ancestors.

The subtitle of the book is "The true story of a mission, a marriage, a murder, and the remarkable Reindeer Resuce of 1898". It's all that and more. Very interesting reading.

Currently I'm reading "The Colony", a book about the leper colony on the Hawaiian island of Molokai. Again, a true story and a very interesting read.

Have a great day everyone. If you promise to come back tomorrow, I'll promise not to talk about the weather!

It's French Toast Weather Again

French toast weather is upon us once again.

For those of you who have never lived in the north and worked in a grocery store, french toast weather is the first big snowfall or the year, or a major winter storm, either a snowstorm or an ice storm.


Early morning in Illinois.

Everyone runs to the nearest grocery store where they purchase bread, eggs and milk. They are basic staples for sure but this combination is what gave the phenomenon it's name.

On Tuesday evening we had a light dusting of snow which triggered the psychological symdrome known as Meteorlogicalfrabbelfarm. The symptoms of this condition include checking the weather channel every 20 minutes and starting every conversation with a discussion of the weather, past, present and future.

"We're supposed to get 12 inches overnight, followed by a period of sleet," says the sufferer.

"Back in 1967 we had the Big Snow. Closed down Chicago, remember that one?" they babble on.

As for me, I'm holding out for the most magical weather phemomenon of all, hoarfrost. The beauty is almost unimaginable and almost makes winter worthwhile.

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Yesterday my errands took me within 200 yards of the Williams Sonoma store and I parked in front and entered the store in an attempt to test my willpower. The cake pan was OK, but having seen it my curiousity was satisfied and I left with nothing but a free sample of their toffee.

Outside in the parking lot I came upon this vehicle.


Fuschiamobile

Someone has painted their car a bright fuschia. Believe me when I say that this photo does not convey the fuschianess of it all. In an enviroment that is bathed in shades of gray and white for five months of the year, I applaud this bold move.

This car did not come off the assembly line painted in this bold palette, someone actually paid good money to have the fuschia applied. To that I say HURRAH. Hurrah for the playful offbeat spirit.

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On another note, don't be making plans to shop those day after Christmas sales for holiday themed products. It seems the retailers have made the decision to carry Christmas goods backed by very thin inventories. There is not ONE string of Christmas lights to be had within 25 miles of here. NOT a string.


Christmas light buried under snow.

My son and I decorated the front of the house last weekend and discovered that two of our net lights that cover the evergreeens were non-functional. I drove to four stores in an attempt to buy more but came up empty handed. I finally gave up when I realized that the cost of the gas was outweighing the importance of having a balanced display. We threw a couple strings of regular lights on the bare bushes and as a result we have a somewhat Charlie Brown display.

The neighbors are quite forgiving and have not mentioned the gaffe. Thanks guys.

I'm off to do some work around here, decorate another tree and generally organize things. Those are perfect activities for a cold and snowy day.

Stay warm.

Monday Morning Staff Meeting on Tuesday

Thanks for visiting today. We're holding the Monday Morning Staff Meeting on a Tuesday. It's always a little offbeat around here.

This morning I'm serving cake. Lots of cake. All the cake you could possibly eat.

Those of you who have been reading for awhile know my weakness for $30.00 cake pans. I just love those decorative cake pans and all the wonderful creations that spring forth. My mild obsession started with the Christmas Tree ring pan.



Sorry, I don't have a picture of the finished cake. I baked the first one for my boss at the newspaper, using my favorite buttermilk pound cake recipe. It was decorated very simply, with a frosting glaze that dripped down the trees and finally a dusting of white powdered sugar. I presented it wrapped in clear cellophane with a gold bow.

My boss went crazy for it and insisted that the newspaper photographers take pictures of it.

I was hooked on $30 cake pans and thereafter I was forced to avoid Williams Sonoma at all costs, or at least to the peril of my budget.

One day I was walking down the promenade at the lifestyle mall, totally unaware that my path would take me past Williams Sonoma. In the front window was a fantastic sandcastle cake with ribbon flags flying on the ramparts.




Luckily my willpower was very strong that day, but the cake pan was never far from my thoughts. My mind was debating the merits of the pan and whether there would ever be an occasion for me to bake one. And then our friends invited us to their summer home in Michigan. That's it!!!! The excuse I needed to invest in the pan.

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My daughter and I hid the cake in the car until late at night. We arranged the cake, with it's brown sugar sand and fresh fruit, on the counter so that Jan would see it first thing in the morning.

Here's one that got away. I successfully managed to avoid buying the giant cupcake pan,



and it's cousin the slightly smaller cupcake pan.



I continue to dream about this one.


Photo - Williams Sonoma Kitchen

What a fantastic looking cake. I'd love to plan a summer party around this one.

Unfortunately I made the big mistake of checking out W-S's website. They also have cakelet pans.


Photo - Williams Sonoma

Evidently the company has heard of my addiction because what do I find in my e-mail in-box? This................

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Photo - Williams Sonoma

The holiday season has weakened my defenses and my willpower. The Sandwich Cookie Cake Pan is calling my name and today's errand list is going to take me past the store. Isn't it the cutest? They've used crushed peppermint candy canes on the edges of the frosting. Although I may be temporarily craze enough to buy a $30 cake pan, I can confidently say that I will never, EVER spent $20 for one box of cake mix.


Photo - Williams Sonoma

Stayed tuned to see what happens and whether we enjoy a sandwich cookie cake in the near future.

How about you? Any similar addictions? I once had a neighbor that was addicted to office supplies! Seriously, she'd buy tons of office supplies.

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Our family party is coming up soon and we're going to be doing several fun things.

First, we're going to have two sweater contests. The women will be competing in the "Ugliest Christmas Sweater Ever" contest. We're shopping all the resale stores to find those truly atrocious sequin and bead adorned beauties. The guys will compete in the "Best Bill Cosby Sweater" contest. You know the ones.

We're also going to have a Crappy Christmas gift exchange. Again, the resale stores will provide us with something really awful. It's alot of fun opening those beauties.

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I'm busy putting the finishing touches on some handmade Christmas gifts. i can't tell you about them because certain people read this blog occasionally and I don't want to spoil the surprise. I'll show you them after Christmas.

Are you making gifts this year? Are you avoiding the big box stores?

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That's all for today. I'm turning the meeting over to you. Feel free to bring up any topic that suits your fancy.

Monday Morning Staff Meeting Delayed

Check back on Tuesday or Wednesday when I'll hold the Monday Morning Staff Meeting.

Don't be confused, I regularly do strange things with time travel.

Sadly, the Farmer's cousin died suddently and today is the funeral. It's supposed to snow this morning and it's a 60 mile drive into the city (Chicago).

Live every day of your life to it's fullest.

Santa's Long Johns

Today I'm going to show you how to make a cute holiday decoration called Santa's Long Johns. Don't worry, they're easy to make.



Gather together the supplies you're going to need.

Two pair of children's tube socks (socks with heels will not work)
needle and thread
scissors
buttons
small scrap of fabric
Doll's coat hanger

Sorry, I have to show you how to do this using my stick figure drawings because I couldn't find the tube socks on my shopping trip yesterday. I hope they still make them!



















It's that easy. I tea-dyed this pair of long johns. Just brew up some strong tea and allow the long john's to soak for about 15 minutes. Rinse and dry flat.

I hope you give this a try. They are so cute.

By the way, did you notice my red door? Do you remember when you helped me pick the color?

Favorite Things

Spending an hour or two on Etsy takes me back to the old days when we'd spend hours pouring over the Sears and Roebuck Christmas catalog. So many wonderful things.

Here are just a few of my favorite things.


Christmas Cocoa Butter Soap

Handmade soap is one of my favorites. Last year I bought a bar of Wasabi scented soap at a craft fair. I know what you're thinking... wasabi? It had a wonderful mild scent. The bar featured above is a Christmas scent with Frankinscence and Myrrh. Another favorite is the hard milled French soap.


Pumpkin Pie Scarf

A nice warm scarf, especially one in a yummy color. This is a cowl which work great in windswept Illinois.


Fingerless gloves

These are not very practical but a fun fashion statement.


Steampunk Earrings

I never heard of Steampunk jewelry till recently. I like it.


Sock Monkey!

A sock monkey will always be on my list of favorites.


Weekender bag for Barbados

A weekender bag. I promise to always keep it packed in case the Farmer wants to take me somewhere wonderful. Barbados, perhaps?


Laptop cover

A laptop sleeve. I love this and I don't even own a laptop!


Vintage Red Bead Earrings

Simple earrings are a favorite of mine.


Beautiful writing instruments

Fountains pens made of exotic woods.


Typewriter Key Bracelet

And last but not least, more Steampunk. My high school typing teacher might not approve of his typewriters being deconstructed in the manner, but I love it.

Thanks for looking at some of my favorite things. Do you remember looking through that Christmas catalog and do you have a 21st century counterpart to that experience?