Five Simple Things (December 1)

 Hello.

Here are five things this week.

1. This sunset.

The sunset this week has been such a pretty sight to see. I love the skies the most here living on the west coast.

2. This progress.

Getting a little stronger. Hoping to continue this progress. And that's just it, it's about progress not perfection.

3. These items.

We went to a small country fair this week and these handmade "weed" keychains were being sold by a vendor. They are handmade and the man that created them was so happy to talk about them. We didn't buy one, but we did stand there and listen to how he build his business from the ground up and it was really inspiring. We wish him all the luck with his small business goals.

4. This drink.

Homemade root beer experiments coming along.

5. This car.

We saw this Betty White window cling and wiper image in the parking lot of a store. The lady came out while we were taking a picture of it and turned it on for us to see it "wave." Betty White was one of a kind and it's nice to see things like this to remind us of the good people that we once shared this planet with.

One last thing:

We have raccoons that live in the tree behind our house and Eleven likes to sit and stalk them. We saw this week that there were babies with them mama and Eleven watched every step they took, but left them along. It was cute to watch their wide eyes wondering what Eleven was and they seemed like they were as curious of her and she was of them.

Positive affirmations this week:

It takes everyone to reduce the stigma, and never ever be discouraged to talk about what you're dealing with or going through. You are enough! And, you shouldn't ever be afraid, ashamed, or even unworthy to reach out. You can do this!🌈

Have a nice weekend.

Thanksgiving (2023)

For the last two years I have been cooking and baking everything from scratch on Thanksgiving. I hate cooking, and only enjoy baking a little throughout the year. On Thanksgiving, though, I enjoy prepping and cooking from Monday until Thursday. It's the only day of the year I actually enjoy it.

Cranberries are always an easy one and I like to get those done on Monday.

Mashed potatoes with paprika on top. All of these get covered and put in our wine refrigerator.

 

Pumpkin pies, and Belvoir Elderflower Lemonade I found at Whole Foods. It was delicious! I will definitely be looking for this each time I go into Whole Foods.

Skylar helped me a lot this year. Last year he was working, but since he has been getting ready for college, he has been home to help me with a lot of the "heavy lifting." He helped me with the mashed potatoes and the sweet potatoes. And of course, Hardy is always right there where the food is.☺

Costco had a large bag of onions and it was a better deal for the amount of stuffing I make. Plus, the leftover onions we always like to sauté onions and have them with lunch or dinner.

Nothing is better than homemade apple pie. Be sure to use Granny Smith apples with cinnamon. It always makes the pie taste so much better. The apple peeler I use I've had for years, but I wouldn't use any other one. It peels and cores it all with the crank of a handle. It also works great for potatoes, too.

Homemade biscuits. These have yeast in them, but I am not afraid of using yeast. I have been interesting in sourdough, but I haven't played around with it yet. Maybe one of these days I will get brave and give it a shot.

I also made spiral ham, brown gravy, roasted carrots, deviled eggs, stuffed celery, black olives, baby dill pickles, baked green beans with bacon bits, corn. We always cook and bake with organic ingredients. It was a full spread that we ate on all day and again for three days. Thanksgiving in our house is always a good time to rest, reflect, and give thanks for all the wonderful things we had come our way throughout the year. We always take the time to say the things we are thankful for and also use this time to reflect on things we can make better.

Happy Thanksgiving, from our house to yours!