The Weather Outside (& Inside) Is Chilly

Last week we were busy getting ready for the Holiday Open House at work.  Making, cleaning, setting up.  It went well, I think.  Always hard to judge from the depths of the greenhouse, far from the cash registers.  We ran out of things like white Christmas Cactus which is the "new" favorite and the food trays were wiped clean.

I potted up many cactus gardens, the Fairy Garden I made for a display sold (yes!), and repotted a number of houseplants.  Not as many amaryllis bulbs as in past Open Houses.  The Christmas trees are being cut this week and shipped to us by the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

G and I have had Thanksgiving dinner twice so far this month.  This coming Thursday will be dinner #3.  It's a quick fix meal but has all the players.  Turkey (deli roasted), stuffing (Stove Top), baked sweet potatoes, Brussels Sprouts from the garden, cranberry sauce.  No leftovers.  I usually pick up what we need on the way home from work and pop the sweet potatoes in the oven while still wearing my coat.  The gravy this year is from a new gravy mix.  I like Knorr best but it's hard to find. We tried Trader Joe's cranberry sauce (excellent), Ocean Spray whole berry with a few spoons of the Brandied stuff mixed in (wow) and I have bags of berries to make into more brandied sauce which carries quite a punch!!!  I got imported French brandy for the recipe as I think everything French is better.

The sunny high for today is 40 degrees.  With wind.  So, it feels colder.

My friend and I did our weekly walk at 10:30 and it was brisk.  I needed a hat and gloves.

I need to visit the library to return a book and I seem to be feeling like a visit to Goodwill would be a good idea.  I have to make a paper pattern for a Santa ornament I want to make for the tree this year (saw it in the Crate & Barrel catalog or the Pottery Barn catalog)  It's just a felt Santa suit with the hat dangling from a thread.  No Santa in the suit.  No boots.  I think it's 5 inches tall and about that wide. When I find it I will share it's image with you.

I have a few plants to repot, cut back etc before they get shuffled off to their winter set up.  Either in the dining room or in the back bedrooms.  Some are already in the attic bedroom which is really cold (45) and not suitable for all the plants.  The fig is up there.

G used the Vitamix to bake a loaf of fig and walnut whole wheat bread.  You actually just mix a few of the items in the Vitamix and then add that to the dry ingredients in a bowl.  It came out quite good and he is happy with his baking success.  The recipe was for a date walnut mix but he bought figs.
The Loaded Baked Potato soup that you "cook" in the Vitamix was TERRIBLE.  I declared that that was the LAST SOUP I would ever make in the Vitamix.  I can make better soup in a pan on the stove.

Well, I need to start doing something or my day off will be wasted doing nothing.