tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post3234339343574009460..comments2023-09-24T11:26:16.606-04:00Comments on The Middle Ages: The Sanity ClauseDeb and Barbarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04444390852070865517noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-59992570352656083272011-12-02T12:02:56.036-05:002011-12-02T12:02:56.036-05:00Great. Yeah, it wasn't that difficult. :)
But ...Great. Yeah, it wasn't that difficult. :)<br />But thank you!<br /><br />I used a pastry syringe for the "Spritzgebäck" and a garlic press for the spaghetti.<br /><br />I'm looking forward to making more. :DBeckihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11056971028004881629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-78263386334275893292011-12-02T10:58:30.996-05:002011-12-02T10:58:30.996-05:00Becki, it worked! You made these??? Mmmmmm. But al...Becki, it worked! You made these??? Mmmmmm. But also very pro-looking. Mmmmm.Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10020502430509158737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-27442792528590715232011-12-02T09:23:13.135-05:002011-12-02T09:23:13.135-05:00Oops, something went wrong...
Hope this works?
Fi...Oops, something went wrong...<br />Hope this works?<br /><br />First ones are the spaghetti cookies, second the so called "Spritzbgebaeck"<br /><br />http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/24/platz1.jpg<br />http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/8184/platz2.jpgBeckihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11056971028004881629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-90001456258933557802011-12-01T23:03:29.735-05:002011-12-01T23:03:29.735-05:00Rigel! how rude stealing my birthday gift! :P oh w...Rigel! how rude stealing my birthday gift! :P oh well, at least I got my Firefly/Serenity marathon - probably as close as I'll ever get. Congrats on your little miracle, you definitely deserve it :)Ellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01158977906595540113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-11459964729391868292011-12-01T20:02:53.871-05:002011-12-01T20:02:53.871-05:00Oh, Becki -- these links are empty to us. Would lo...Oh, Becki -- these links are empty to us. Would love to see them!Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10020502430509158737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-60309853232099062802011-12-01T09:52:04.801-05:002011-12-01T09:52:04.801-05:00My first christmas cookies! Yummy!
The first ones...My first christmas cookies! Yummy!<br /><br />The first ones are supposed to look like spaghetti. :)<br />http://img163.imageshack.us/img1639427/platz1g.jpg<br /><br />I don't know how they're called in English, in German it's: Spritzgebäck<br />http://img215.imageshack.us/img2155419/platz2i.jpgBeckihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11056971028004881629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-85282994863655620912011-12-01T00:09:19.366-05:002011-12-01T00:09:19.366-05:00Dear Deb,
Please, may I have Nathan Fillion as m...Dear Deb, <br /><br />Please, may I have Nathan Fillion as my birthday gift? I promise to feed him and take very good care of him. I will be careful not to break him while I am playing with him. <br /><br />Thank you.<br /><br />Love and hugs,<br />Rigel<br /><br />:DRigelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-63721841316791770972011-11-30T23:54:10.556-05:002011-11-30T23:54:10.556-05:00I don't know why my post didn't post but I...I don't know why my post didn't post but I love all your great holiday ideas.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-89850126141525500392011-11-30T23:48:03.648-05:002011-11-30T23:48:03.648-05:00Rigel that is wonderful news. And it is huge. Brea...Rigel that is wonderful news. And it is huge. Breathing space for little treats. We are big Nathan F fans too. We know him actually. Not well but we do know him. LOVE HIM! We don't have scented candles Dawn as they tend to make the boy sneeze but we do have a lovely creche that my Dad MADE. I will take a pix of that for you. How lovely that your parents keep that tradition going. Kelly I am with you on that. And yes, Colin said thanks to all of you for the birthday wishes. Thanks Christina, it is friendly because of people like you that join in the conversation. Dawn I like Barb am amazed by all the holiday birthdays and I hear you Rigel with the gifts wrapped in Christmas paper. Like you Dawn we have always made my brother's boxing day birthday separate and wrapped in non christmas paper for that reason.Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17041122116481448321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-51895207682083500332011-11-30T22:47:47.507-05:002011-11-30T22:47:47.507-05:00My daughter's birthday is December 28th. She u...My daughter's birthday is December 28th. She used to look forward to Christmas because three days after that it was her birthday. <br /><br />I do all my gift-shopping for her at once, then divide the stuff into two piles. The day is ALWAYS separated from Christmas.Dawnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04893995750373814482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-69266416255239960522011-11-30T21:34:36.694-05:002011-11-30T21:34:36.694-05:00Hi Deb,
Your decorations are beautiful! I love ho...Hi Deb,<br /><br />Your decorations are beautiful! I love how you've decorated your house! You are wise to do a little at a time. Good for you for remembering to take care of yourself during the holidays; it's so easy to get stressed out.<br /><br />I really enjoy reading your blog; everyone seems so friendly here. :)<br /><br />Tell Colin I said Happy Birthday.<br /><br />ChristinaChristinanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-57619467914281221252011-11-30T21:26:20.559-05:002011-11-30T21:26:20.559-05:00Rigel, told you I would wish for you! The more, th...Rigel, told you I would wish for you! The more, the merrier :) Yay!!!!Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10020502430509158737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-70597172832805693532011-11-30T21:17:36.880-05:002011-11-30T21:17:36.880-05:00I LOVE this time of year! Everything about it!!! A...I LOVE this time of year! Everything about it!!! And your decorations are just splendid! :] <br /><br />P.S. A very happy birthday to Colin!!!! :DKellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06785247788175367281noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-14363777460207048412011-11-30T18:34:04.095-05:002011-11-30T18:34:04.095-05:00Wow, Deb. What a beautifully decorated house. That...Wow, Deb. What a beautifully decorated house. That would certainly be a welcome sight to come home to. Do you have scented candles, as well? Since we stopped getting a live tree (cats would sleep in the branches), we've relied on Yankee candles to try to recapture the scent. Balsam/cedar is one viable option.<br />I love the look on the pup's face, as well.<br /><br />Christmas here is no longer the big production it used to be, but one tradition carries on, and it's the most important one to the parents. They have a creche, and the figurines are all Hummels. They bought this for their first Christmas together and it is always set up in its place of honor on the dining room buffet. It's never been my favorite, but I now appreciate that at least SOMETHING has remained constant through the years.<br /><br />Any little gift to yourself is well-deserved, Deb.<br /><br />You can tell Colin I said happy birthday, but he's already heard or read it a few times from me. :)Dawnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04893995750373814482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-82344755874800986872011-11-30T18:27:22.681-05:002011-11-30T18:27:22.681-05:00I forgot to add: There's further joy in our h...I forgot to add: There's further joy in our household. I've got a tiny Christmas miracle on my hands. It may not seem like a big deal to y'all, but it is a super big deal to me. The timing along chokes me up a little.<br /><br />I had very recently lamented in an email to Barbara (because sometimes a gal just needs to vent!) that one of my ongoing thorns of sadness and frustration and regret is that I miss having a well stocked kitchen. I pitched a little pity party and whined all over Barbara for a couple of paragraphs that I miss having full cupboards and fridge shelves. I miss having a variety of ingredients at my fingertips. I miss having enough in the kitchen. Don't get me wrong. Eddie and I have meals to eat. But, every week, I only buy a bare minimum, and by the last couple of days, I'm always carefully finagling to get the last couple of suppers to work out right. I threw myself a little pity party about not having a full pantry, a well stocked kitchen. I know, I know. Pathetic and whiny. There are people who ARE hungry. I should shut up with my white, First World whining over having lost a comfortably middle class lifestyle. Go ahead and Gibbs slap me. I deserve it.<br /><br />But, do you know what happened?<br /><br />I logged onto the company portal today to see my payslip for this coming Friday's direct deposit. I've got to pay rent this week, and I was calculating how much I could allot for groceries and gas in the car and would I have enough left to get one of the Christmas presents I've planned for my son. Between the extra hours I worked on Black Friday and the part time holiday hours the company granted for Thanksgiving Day (which I did not know in advance was going to happen), I have $40 MORE than normal in the grocery budget this week. That more than doubles what I usually spend on me and kiddo in a week for food. It'll help me do just what my heart was longing for: stock the kitchen a bit better. I can get a few things toward making cookies and candies for friends for Christmas, and it'll let me put some frozen meats up in the freezer. This week, I'll buy a pound of ground turkey AND some chicken. *happy sigh*<br /><br />I thought, "Should I pay down a bill with this money?" I thought, "Should I hide this money somewhere toward future car maintenance?" And, then I thought, "No. There's too much grace in this timing. This $40 is meant for groceries. It has to be." And, I felt warm peace deep in my guts and knew it to be true.<br /><br />I found this out how long after I was being a selfish, blubbering fool to Barbara? Less than 48 hours?<br /><br />Small Christmas miracle. *sniffle*<br /><br />I am so grateful.Rigelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-3945766848586662712011-11-30T18:09:54.459-05:002011-11-30T18:09:54.459-05:00Elle - Obviously, you did not receive Nathan for y...Elle - Obviously, you did not receive Nathan for your birthday because he's already allotted to me! :D Remember, I, too, am one of those near-Christmas birthdays (12/31). *sigh* My pet peeve? Birthday presents wrapped in Christmas paper! Argh! But, you know what? I wouldn't complain if it were Nathan Fillion that I unwrapped! :D lol<br /><br />Deb -<br />Funny twist! So, today you posted about the Christmasfication of your house. Well, I was treated (awwwww *sniffle* So nice!) to lunch (yummmmmmm BBQ platter and fried peach pie MMmmmMMmmmm) with R, her youngest daughter (my son's best friend), L, and her 2 kids today (all kids = homeschoolers), and then we ran a couple of errands before it was time to pick my kiddo up from school. They had been decorating their church for Christmas this morning and were a little frustrated. Among other things, they need a star for their tree top, but it's an unusually small space. (Hard to explain, you'd just have to see the problem.) Anyway, as it happened, after we all went to pick up kiddo from school (we were all piled into R's big van), we all went to R and L's church to drop off the poinsettias and stuff. The kids all ran around outside going bonkers having fun in the last of the piles of snow and with empty wrapping paper tube swords. And, *squeeee!* I got to help with the Christmasification of their church! They'd gotten the sanctuary finished, but the fellowship hall and the narthex and the upstairs were, well, errrr, lacking. And, R and L aren't quite the glitter and ribbons giddy glee type that I am. They needed fresh eyes and fresh energy on the scene. I had sooooo much fun! A GREAT afternoon! Total recharged my spirit! And, I get to help some more on Friday before I go to work! Oh, it's an explosion of greenery and golden ornaments and stars and bells and lights, and I'm getting to go berserk with it! I'm in Christmas decorating overdrive!!! SO FUN!!! And, you wanna know the best part?!?!? I am MAKING the star for their church's tree! They have a peculiar need, so I am going to just custom craft a star! I'm starting on it tonight. The goal is to finish by Saturday night so it can go on the tree before Sunday School the next morning. So, even though kiddo and I live in a little apartment and will only put up a tree, I still get to take part is a gigantic extravaganza of Christmas decorating at R's church! AMD, I get to make a fancy tree topper star for them! :D YEAH!<br /><br />There's glitter all over my sweatshirt and in my hair right now. This makes me happy. :D<br /><br />When we were in the church, I giggled and told R, "So, guess what Deb blogged about today?" She got a kick out of the twist of fate! <br /><br />So, for the next few evenings, I am awash in beads and sequins and embroidery floss and golden felt and all sorts of pretty, crafting bobs and bits! :D<br /><br />*wanders off catterwauling "Deck the halls..."*<br /><br />P.S. Even though I gave Colin's birthday wishes above, since I'm posting again while it's still 11/30, I simply must include an extra batch of birthday hugs. Because, when in doubt, hug, right? When all else fails, figure out how to show love.Rigelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-44677482108902627952011-11-30T17:08:15.513-05:002011-11-30T17:08:15.513-05:00Wow, I can't believe how many of you have birt...Wow, I can't believe how many of you have birthdays in this season! Our little Christmas presents :)<br /><br />PS meant to add this when I posted this entry, but Deb, I frickin' LOVE that Bairn is staring out at us from her little perch under the Santa!!Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10020502430509158737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-87778618153716110602011-11-30T15:34:25.526-05:002011-11-30T15:34:25.526-05:00I love christmas! My birthday is on the 24th of de...I love christmas! My birthday is on the 24th of december, so we usually combine the two things (we do celebrate christmas on the 24th here in Germany). We even put up the tree, after we've celebrated my birthday...it's funny I think. Haven't decorated the house, yet...but will do that, soon. I love the smell of fir branches, and all the lights...<br /><br />Your decorations look really nice!<br /><br />Tomorrow I will start baking "Plätzchen" (cookies). <br /><br />Oh, and I have to make/write some cards...<br /><br />I would like to send you one, but I don't know if that's possible?<br /><br />And happy, happy birthday, Colin! :) Hope you had a great day (or still have).Beckihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11056971028004881629noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-91780580959251556812011-11-30T14:37:42.751-05:002011-11-30T14:37:42.751-05:00Happy Birthday Colin!! November 30th is clearly a ...Happy Birthday Colin!! November 30th is clearly a very quality day, it's my birthday too! (I forget about the time zone thing - it's Dec 1st already here... since it's still Nov 30 over there Rigel, you've still got time to send Nathan my way ;) lol) <br /><br />Loving the decorations Deb, sounds like you and my mum and grandmother would get along like a house on fire. My mum especially, is a Christmas fanatic. She usually has the house decked out by mid-November - I'm not kidding, she sometimes beats the shops! This is mostly part of her own sanity clause (great name for it!) My sister, grandmother, and I all have our birthdays around the end of November, and then all the holiday chaos begins... so it's much easier to just have everything up and ready earlier. She was actually a lot later than usual this year and only put them up last week. The house is very very festive :) <br /><br />Erin, I know exactly what you mean about the card thing. I'm used to the tree and everything being up on my birthday, I can even tolerate my birthday presents being wrapped in Christmas paper... but please no Christmas cards for birthday, that's just lazy and rude.Ellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01158977906595540113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-41900430242617359612011-11-30T14:09:17.852-05:002011-11-30T14:09:17.852-05:00Yes Lisa I agree, we should all employ the Sanity ...Yes Lisa I agree, we should all employ the Sanity Clause right? I gave Colin your birthday wishes. He thanks all of you guys!Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17041122116481448321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-21148383092064516942011-11-30T14:08:21.428-05:002011-11-30T14:08:21.428-05:00Hi S, just answering this one now as I am doing th...Hi S, just answering this one now as I am doing them one at a time. Had a three hour meeting with Mom's crack care team so just responding now. I hear you! My brother's birthday is December 26 or Boxing Day in Canada.Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17041122116481448321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-53631473305521018522011-11-30T14:07:04.418-05:002011-11-30T14:07:04.418-05:00Molly I gave your birthday wishes to Colin, thanks...Molly I gave your birthday wishes to Colin, thanks. And you are right. The alternative of not decorating is soooooooooo sad! Thanks S, passed your wishes along and thanks for the house compliments. That is only a small sampling of what the house looks like during this festive season.Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17041122116481448321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-23287052883896019682011-11-30T14:01:01.865-05:002011-11-30T14:01:01.865-05:00Rigel "and also with you". Thank you. An...Rigel "and also with you". Thank you. And yes, Mom and Dad have a lovely little tree and other decorations that they put up. Not as many as they used to, but it still looks lovely. Since we were kids, they would host a Christmas Eve party and bless them, they are still doing it now. The only difference is that we now run it, and they greet their guests as gracious hosts. Thanks Annette. Always nice to know I'm good to go!!!!!!!Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17041122116481448321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-38505614431625262812011-11-30T13:47:09.477-05:002011-11-30T13:47:09.477-05:00S -- that was interesting enough to post twice ;) ...S -- that was interesting enough to post twice ;) PS and you are safely amongst the tech-unsavvy here (referring only, of course, to Deb and myself!)Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10020502430509158737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1528510907038944744.post-57373527272587064872011-11-30T11:09:55.142-05:002011-11-30T11:09:55.142-05:00What lovely decorations, Deb. The Sanity Clause is...What lovely decorations, Deb. The Sanity Clause is a great idea for actually being able to enjoy the holidays.<br /><br />Happy birthday to Colin!lisahgoldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11158660223296807317noreply@blogger.com