Making it simple ...

That was my desire this Christmas. Just a simple celebration of this blessed holiday.

I chose to forgo the typical wrapping paper and aimed for something warm and simple. I ended up with brown shipping paper and yarn in warm tones of Christmas colors.



The next step was to choose gift tags. I pondered cutting them out of the brown paper in festive shapes or tying them on with the yarn. I finally found myself at the antique store choosing vintage postcards for 25 cents each. I could have spent hours looking through the boxes of cards. I stopped myself when I had slightly more than enough for the gifts we had purchased.

The postcards tucked nicely under the yarn. I didn't write on them, but instead chose to let the content of the picture prove for whom the gift was intended.


Each gift was tied differently and each bow or set of strings or what-have-you was different from the next. I didn't photograph all of them and somehow missed a couple of my favorites, but here are two for you to see.

A belated Thanksgiving ...

We celebrated Thanksgiving on Sunday rather than Thursday. We also enjoyed a small roasted chicken rather than turkey. The children didn't mind the slight changes in our traditions. We had all of the other dishes they are accustomed to, including our desserts.

I am a bit embarrassed to admit that I made my very first attempt at a homemade pie crust this year. I'm thrilled to share that it was a success!

I cheated on the pie filling, though. I used Wilderness brand, which I have always preferred. It was not good this year. It could be that my preference for all things homemade - and therefore fresh-tasting - made the canned filling seem to be less tasty. Wilderness brand is so expensive that I doubt I will go that route again. Particularly so when two cans are required for each pie!