I really got back into reading this year after about 20 years of NOT reading. (I aimed for 12 on the #goodreadschallenge2022 and am likely finishing with 80!)
I very much enjoyed reading my friend suggestions when I did The Trevor Project fundraiser this year so when I saw this challenge come across my timeline I knew I wanted to do it in the new year!
I took the first 12 books listed by 12 different people in the comments. I can’t wait to get started! #goodreadschallenge2023
Anna and family went home for Christmas Eve and Christmas morning but came back for Christmas dinner! Tom had wanted to smoke a prime rib…
It was delicious.
Otherwise known by most as Chex mix. But it’s not your basic recipe from the back of the cereal box.
My mom has been making this for probably 45 years — though now it’s on a much smaller scale than before. She gifts each family a small container every Christmas and it’s never enough… So this year I decided to make some myself! I’ve made it before but it was so long ago I can’t even remember when it was.
The best part about making it yourself is putting in whatever you want! This is what I chose (the last box is peanuts).
All buttered and seasoned and ready to bake!
Laying out to cool…just like mom does on brown paper bags!
To be honest it wasn’t the best, but it was still damn addictive. I bagged up 7 small bags for some of the moms and the rest was gone within a week!
Anna gave all the moms Golden Girls glasses. I randomly got Dorothy and she got Blanche. We used then for a margarita recipe we’d been wanting to try.
You know I love a margarita but it was only meh:
Tom randomly found a Facebook marketplace listing for a used GE Profile double oven for a price we could kinda afford…
So out with the 20yo original oven and in with the new! It’s super fancy! But now all our appliances match!
Anna christened it with seven layer bars and white chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookies! Tomorrow I’m making Chex mix!
If you love caramel corn but hate the hulls… We usually get it from Grannie every year but I made it this year!
I innocently took a sample at Sam’s Club because I couldn’t imagine what they tasted like. I’m not a huge peppermint fan either.
And holy hell were they good. Dangerously good.
Members Mark Peppermint Almonds: https://www.samsclub.com/p/members-mark-peppermint-almonds-20-oz/P03010806
I’m sitting at the bar and she crawled over from David’s lap…
to cuddle behind me in my chair.
Book 74 for the year.
I feel like I’m just gonna leave both of these here.
Seriously, Olive? You got all those toys out already? The housekeepers just left 10 minutes ago!
David wasn’t going to do it but then Evan didn’t want to finish his so David took it over! He did really well and it turned out cute!
Anna swore up and down she was going to suck at this but she did amazing with her very first egg! Now she can’t wait to do some more!
I saw these on Amazon and had to try them. They are reflective — which is cool but obviously I can never see them because I’m in the car. And there was only enough to do this on both sides (unless I wanted to add more “string” between each bulb). Also, can’t wait to see if they stay on as the magnets aren’t that strong. But it’s cute, right?
These are always a top request!
White Chocolate & Cranberry Scones
3 cups flour
½ cup white sugar
6 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¾ cup cold butter
1 cup fresh cranberries (or ¾ cup dried Craisins)
1 cup white chocolate chunks/chips
1 cup milk
1 large egg
Holiday decorations go up!
Tom hauls everything up, puts the tree together, then comes back to do the star. Unfortunately the lights in the star were dead and we didn’t realize until it was attached.
I bought just the right number of dyes when we were at Pysanky On The River! Or maybe I bought just the right number of jars!
I was so busy with a houseful of guests and dinner prep that I barely had time to look at my phone (so most of these are from everyone else)! But it was so worth it to have everyone together — from Georgia (Filipek), Michigan (Schwalm & Coe), and Illinois (Schwalm & Hudson). And our best friends joined us, too…and fit right in!
Then we did some reenactment shots!
I can’t believe it was 22 years between these photos. But we all still look the same, right?! Also: no kids in 2000, six kids in 2022!
We excitedly volunteered to host the Schwalm side family thanksgiving this year—Filipeks usually host in Atlanta but they’ve recently downsized and didn’t have room. We had plenty of room for everyone (most even stayed with us—kicking the kids out of their rooms of course)!
Everyone had varied arrival times, but by Wednesday afternoon everyone was here! It makes my heart so happy to see my kids having fun with their cousins.
Dinner for 21 is served! Charcuterie that takes up our entire kitchen island!
to prepare for our houseful of guests—but as you can see I’m off to a raring start.
Most times that we turn the fire on it’s for the dog.
If I wasn’t so busy getting my house ready for our first huge Thanksgiving family dinner…my tree would already be up. You can bet it’s going up Thanksgiving weekend!
I had asked her to make sure the bathroom was picked up for the housekeepers. She said it was done. So imagine my surprise when I walked by this morning and saw this disaster.
And I was even more shocked when I looked under the sink (I was shoving stuff in there to quickly get it out of the way).
And these disgusting glasses filled with who knows what.
And this is where she thought it was appropriate to put dishes.
There was more like this but you get the idea.
UGHHH.
The book and a puppy in your lap.
Halfway through…
My reading buddy:
Yes that’s a bird in our living room! It was really nice order so we had the sliding doors open so the dogs could wander in and out at their leisure. We do this a lot during nice weather so it was only a matter of time before it happened.
I closed all the doors (up and down) and Tom got a long pole. I opened the front screen door. It took about 10 minutes but it finally went out the front door.
I bought $20 worth of raffle tickets and put them in a variety of things. Imagine my surprise when I got out of class to discover I won this ostrich egg!!
In case you thought I was kidding about wanting to do Pysanky now… I present my purchase — 10 dozen blank eggs! Already fully blown out and cleaned!! They were cheaper than actual eggs (she wanted to get rid of them so put them on sale!) so definitely worth the cost!! I’m actually debating getting more because they don’t go bad!!
(Yes I know there’s not a full 10 dozen here. Some are still being worked on!)
SURPRISE! A visit with some family who only lived about 20 minutes away from where we were staying!
Pysanky on the River (POTR) Day 2 started with our first class—Beginner Drop Pull. We practiced on a paper plate first and then moved to an egg. I did better on the plate…but overall I did pretty well for my very first attempt!
The rest of our day was spent working on eggs of our own! These are two of mine!
And then lunch with pierogi, sausage, and sauerkraut!
And then I worked on copying one of my mom’s Halloween designs:
And the finished products!
They’re pretty bad (compared to the more experienced eggers) but they’re pretty good for what I’ve done thus far. I’m learning that no one draws freehand and everyone uses (what I used to think of as) cheat methods. But after starting to use them myself, I totally get it. And can’t wait to do more!!
We were up early this morning to hit the Ukrainian Museum Archives in Cleveland. Surprisingly the bathroom lighting was pretty good—I love Hampton Inn!
I bought a new necklace there (because I broke my necklace on the way here).
With my mom at the museum.
Then it was off to State Meats and eating lunch at Mama Maria’s Ukrainian Kitchen!
Then we visited a Ukrainian cathedral (to see the gold spires in the sun), grabbed a donut across the street, and then some ice cream at the Honey Hut!
Then it was back to the hotel to grab our stuff to setup for the event!
OMG all the “naked eggs” for sale… Typically you’d have to blow them all out yourself and it’s not complicated but it is a lot of work. These were already blown out and cleaned! And on sale! For less than it would cost to even buy them in the store! Turns out the vendor was getting out of the egg business and just wanted them gone. Stay tuned to see just how many I ended up buying!!!
And then I bought my Christmas present! A goose egg from Pysanky Master Lorrie Popow! It’s absolutely stunning. I couldn’t take my eyes off of it!
I asked her how she could even see to do that and she said “When my eyes were younger!” I eventually looked through her Facebook page to see if I could find it to see when she did it…and it was 2012!!
Lorrie Popow: LorriePopow.com and on Facebook
A few months ago my mom asked me if I’d go with her to a 4-day Pysanky Retreat in northern Ohio. I jumped at the chance—I think I said yes even before she finished asking! I’ve long been wanting to get back into Pysanky—and I never get to spend any alone time with my mom—so it was a no-brainer!
So this morning I was in the car and on the road by 9am (in a super quick and easy road trip look) to Middleburg Heights/Berea!
Tom always does the driving so it kinda stunk not being able to work while on the road, but I did listen to an audiobook (which eventually made me sooo tired I took to eating popcorn to stay awake)! But I made it!
After we got settled and visited for a bit it was off to find dinner. I found a local Chinese place with really great Yelp reviews (Little Hong Kong) about a mile away…where we had some of the best General Tso’s chicken I’ve ever had. Highly recommend!
Then it was back to the hotel to make 65 goodie bags for the event…
And take a Covid test to be able to attend.
