Cat's

So the cats love it when the Son comes home to visit.  Manny & Annabelle just want to hang out and snooze next to him on the couch.

 

And then there's Aiden.  He has to resort to the cat tree because he is so big.....poor kitty!  It's nice to have the Son home for a couple days.

Cold Christmas

Deliberately planned this Christmas day according to the outdoor thermometer.  My lazy indoor day quickly turned around when the temperature finally reached 12 degrees around 3 pm.  Headed outdoors for my 3 mile run, while taking in a slight wind chill.  No problem....all I wanted was the sunshine to hit my face.  There's just something about cold sunshine that warms the spirit.

And Bike man?  He spent most of the day slowly making his delicious bean soup, just the way I like it.  Lots of ham from the slow-cooked ham bone, with plenty of whole tomatoes and a variety of different beans.  Even if you say yuck, I don't like bean soup.....wait, you'll love this soup!  A cold day calls for warm soup my friends.

Early Christmas

We actually celebrated Christmas last night.  Grandma Shirley loved her new birdhouse!

Grandpa received a favorite gift of nuts!

Our daughter Becca enjoyed her new sweatshirts.

And the Son enjoyed his new BWCA books and maps (he is resisting having his picture taken, can you tell?). We all celebrated Christmas last night,but now are back home and settling into quiet time.  No plans for Christmas day......just enjoy the day at home.    

Traditions

Some small traditions just can't be forgotten, especially at Christmas and certainly at grandma & grandpa's house.

 It wouldn't be Christmas unless we decorated sugar cut-out cookies and gingerbread boys!

  It's fun to have our kids helping out.  Even the Son enjoys a hand at decorating. 

And our son's girlfriend Trisha.......

Becca and Trisha finally finished with all the special touches of sprinkles, candies and lots of frosting.  Several hours of decorating Christmas cookies and we were all tired.  Now we get to eat all those lovely cookies!!!

Sweet Treats

Rolo goodness!  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Spread out pretzel rings over the parchment paper.  Unwrap Rolo candy pieces and place one Rolo in each pretzel ring.  Once the entire cookie sheet is prepared with Rolo pretzels, place in a preheated oven.....200 degrees for 5 minutes.  After five minutes the Rolos will be soften.  Take the pan out of the oven and quickly press a pecan half on top of each Rolo pretzel.  Let cool before placing in a air tight container. 

I love these little sweet treats and they're so easy to make.  Also made a batch of gingerbread boys and cut-out sugar cookies.  Enjoyed my "stay-at-home" baking day.  We were on the edge of a major snowstorm today, but lucked out this time.  Just dealing with the 26-30 mph wind gusts tonight.  Despite the windy conditions, I still managed to get out on a run this afternoon.  Cold, but delightful.....is that really possible?  Oh yeah, I'm from the Midwest!

Preparing

I'm trying to prepare for Christmas.....making cookies and wrapping presents.  Decided to take tomorrow off from work to complete my baking projects.  With snow moving in from our latest storm, I'll be happily in my kitchen baking sugar cookies and gingerbread boys!!!

My New Focus

Been working on renewing signage in my library.  My focus has been mindful of the visually impaired.  Couldn't resist purchasing these 8 inch foam letter sold by Demco.  A month ago I asked my mother, who just happens to suffer from Macular Degeneration, what colors stand out for her you mom?  Anything bright and colorful my mom said.  So, I decided to focus on our audiobook collection.......if a person can't see the audiobook foam letters, don't worry because I also order all new signs with large font and also in braille.  With people living longer, our visually impaired senior population will keep increasing.  After understanding my mom's difficulties in not being able to see, I'm more aware of this visual difficulty.  Just trying to help my senior customers!