My husband cracked a joke, which made the younger daughter laugh.
Unfortunately, she was drinking milk at the time and snorted it through her nose.
She reported that it stings. Upon clarification, she reported that it also stinks.
Being naturally loving and concerned parents, we suggested she take care of the stink by snorting 7-up.
Being a rebellious teenager, she did not like the idea and refused to obey.
We're melting!
It is 52 degrees today.
That is 35 degrees above what it was the day before Christmas.
At this rate, summer will be here before the year is out. Again.
You can see the cold weather gear that the boyfriend received as Christmas Presents...the day before the Temperatures Went Up.
Also note the great quantities of wrapping paper on the floor.
I can wear tennis shoes again, which everybody (meaning knees, hips and back) appreciates because the support is so much better than any other shoe. I can drive on bare pavement and I control where the car goes, not the ruts in the snow. I can park in the driveway again.
So far it is staying on the lawns OK, which is cool. And it is no longer powdery, which means that snowballs can be made.
Until Summer gets here on Wednesday, anyway.
Sometimes
Sometimes life just gets too much to handle and you have to curl up in Daddy's lap and go to sleep.
Note the dog, checking up on her health.
Merry Christmas!
This is a pattern I got from Lily Kerns at quiltuniversity.com. (Don't ask for the pattern, it is copyrighted and I can't get hold of her until I take another class from her.) The quilting (rays from a light in her hand) was my own idea, and I am pleased with how it turned out. It is actually rectangular, I guess the camera was a little tilted. That happens a lot.
I've been making angels lately with non-traditional clothes -- that is, not white. It started a couple years ago when I washed all the fabrics with a white with silver sparkles, and one of the reds ran. At that point I decided I was not going to buy any more fabrics, and that angels can wear pale pink!
We now have freezing fog, on a day when everybody and their brother is in a big hurry to exchange Christmas presents for ones that a) fit, b) they like or c) aren't duplicated. I hope they wait, we don't need more useless accidents. Once I took one back about a week later, the tables were still set up and I had no lines. We got really lucky here, only about 6 inches and it didn't stop anyone from shopping or attending Christmas Eve services.
I think it is time to mention my other sister: Hi Annie!
Weather Report
Why does the east coast get all the attention? We have lows of 1 degree Fahrenheit (-17 C, sounds much colder) and the possibility of a white Christmas! No power outages, though. Two hour school delays all week, because the high is about 17 and nothing melts off the roads. More snow expected tonight.
The Brazilians have a mixed reaction. The cold is too cold (they just came off of a winter of what, 50 F?) but they are thrilled with the snow. The Lebanese has a space heater on 24/7, but she is excited about the snow too. But then, she is naturally an excitable person.
The cat has taken advantage of my sister's (the same one that always wants me to post, like I have nothing better to do!) Christmas package to get closer to a heat source. This cat got outside yesterday and spent almost 2 hours in the cold. Doesn't want to try it again today.
Our bedroom has 3 outside walls, one of them a sliding glass door. For some reason, the dog prefers to sleep with the daughter.
The furnace decided to quit sometime yesterday. It was 58 in the house (who knows what in my bedroom!) when I returned at 9:00 (6 outside). Fortunately, one of the repair companies offers 24 hour service and we didn't have to rely on the fireplace and sleep in the living room. And it was only a (redundant) indicator that broke! Simple fix, lousy timing.
I should complain. I have power, I have hot chocolate, I have a fireplace. Life is good. (Note to self: get more firewood. Mulled wine, too.)
Cranberry Sauce
My sister has just hinted that I am not posting often enough. So here is my Cranberry Sauce recipe. I got it from Carol at
www.quiltuniversity.comCranberry Orange Chutney
Skin from orange, chopped fine, boiled quickly in a couple of tablespoons of water. Pour out water and then glaze with a tablespoon of sugar. Then add everything else.
I small orange or tangerine, in sections
1/4 cup orange juice
12 oz bag cranberries
2 1/4 cup sugar
1 cup chopped unpeeled apple (about 1 apple)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes until berries begin to pop. Chill until serving time.
I have never added the walnuts because one of my friends, with whom we always have Thanksgiving, doesn't like nuts.
This year I cut the orange into sections. It made the whole thing watery.
We never seem to have orange juice, so I add whatever is in the fridge. This year it was Treetop Orange Passionfruit. Other orange mixtures have worked also. This years version was especially good.
This makes enough for Christmas,
when we also have turkey.
I've talked to several people whose mothers believed that the canned cranberry jell stuff that is sold as sauce was good enough. I've always made my own because I disagreed with her on this. (Not to mention several other points). I wonder how many people in similar circumstances have converted to the real stuff. I should probably ask my own brothers and sisters!
Of course, having 5 kids probably affects your decision making for meals. But it was the only time we had mashed potatoes from real potatoes!
Also, having 5 teenagers passing judgement on new reicpes -- in typical teenage diplomatic style -- dampens your enthusiasm for trying new things!
