Pretty… Pretty Good

It’s Christmas Day. I feel… well-rested? At peace? Not overstuffed? Is this for real?

I guess this is Christmas when the kids are 13+ and you are really, truly trying to eat less. Feels great!

Also, unlike some other years, I didn’t try to do too much. This year was simple, streamlined. Despite, or perhaps because of, the shortened season after a late Thanksgiving. All but two gifts were wrapped by the end of December 23. Everything was baked by the end of December 22. I did not give any baked goods as gifts for the first time in a long time — only baked cookies for ourselves and for Christmas Eve. I didn’t do any extras like “jingling” people. And still, I felt festive and enjoyed what I did do. I’ll have to remember this for next year.

In terms of money, I spent what I had to and no more. I had plenty of gift wrap, bags, boxes and cards left over from last year. I didn’t go out on a limb on any gifts. I did a bit of targeted Black Friday shopping, used coupon codes and Kohl’s cash. I used Amazon, here and there. My husband must have Prime so he can watch Thursday Night Football, so I may as well take advantage of the free shipping, til football season is over. Everyone seems happy with what they received. Were the stockings a little baggy? Maybe. The fundamentals were solid (electronics, hoodies, Sephora), but the baubles and trimmings and what-the-hells were light this year.

The weekend of the 14th, I had a great time catching up with old friends at a cool bar in a nearby town in the midst of what seemed to be the town holiday bar crawl. I made gravy on the 15th; that was dinner, lunch and leftover dinner throughout the week. Later that week I roasted sweet potatoes and baked chicken (breaded, with parmesan) one night. The rest is a blur; I know there was pizza.

I was off on the 20th and finished some shopping and errands. I managed to get an old phone of my fixed for free (thanks, Batteries Plus!) and now I’m going to attempt to sell it. Saturday the 21st, it was bake time. The thought of having a whole uninterrupted day to bake is so exciting to me. To be able to take my time, to take up the whole kitchen without worrying about other meals, and to produce in large quantities… I love it. Add in a Christmas playlist and actual snow on the ground — perfect.

Fiona and I made all the doughs at once, since most of them needed chill time. Here’s what we made:

Spiced Eggnog Oatmeal Cream Pies

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Drop Sugar Cookies with Sprinkles — some with red-and-green sprinkles, some with crushed chocolate-covered pretzels (Fiona’s idea).

I spent Sunday the 22nd popping trays of dough balls in and out of the oven until they were all done. They generally came out good, but I think it’s time for me to finally buy a kitchen scale and weigh my flour so I can be sure I’m not using too much. These were on the dense side.

I bought the “natural” color sprinkles (on sale for $2), kind of digging the rustic look, but ultimately I think I’d rather have my nice vibrant unhealthy dyes.

Christmas Eve day, I added the filling to the eggnog cookies and cooked “funeral potatoes” to bring to my mom’s that night. Something like this recipe. I used a written recipe my mom gave me. In a first, I made pancake batter to use Christmas morning and set the table for breakfast, leading us to actually have a nice breakfast together, which doesn’t often happen on Christmas morning because I’m usually a zombie. I even had time to chill out and watch the first half of Little Women (1994 version).

One indulgence of mine this year (every year) was candles. In these dark days I must have candles lit at night. I am particular about their placement and their scent. I’ve got scentless tealights all over the downstairs, plus scentless pillars in the fireplace. Some nights I just light a few; some nights, Christmas Eve in particular, they are all going. In the living room, the scented candle burns; for most of the season, it’s been a big pumpkin/cinnamon one from Target that I absolutely love. Leading up to Christmas, it was Yankee Candle’s Christmas Cookie, which I hadn’t bought in many years but picked up cheap on Black Friday. Right now it’s Wassail & Spice from Paddywax — but I’m going to need a bigger one. This one is not delivering the full scent effect needed to combat recurring stinky dog farts.

I have off tomorrow. Looking forward to doing some more cooking over the next week — soups, maybe applesauce or apple jam to use up apples we have, maybe gingerbread with real whipped cream. I’ll probably read the (used) book I bought my husband before he gets to it. I’ve got the dog to keep me from being a total couch potato. Happy holidays!