Wishing you and your family and friends a peaceful and thankful weekend.
Happy Thanksgiving from Canada
Archive for Holiday Organizing
Many of you are opening up the holiday decorations, unpacking boxes and bins and joining in festivities with lights, wreaths, Christmas tree ornaments and those special holiday decorations that live on the mantel. Problem is, every year there are a few more to add to the mix. Can anyone remember how to get them all back in the box? Packing up those boxes in January can be worse than that 1,000 piece puzzle at the cottage, full of sky and water, that no one has ever finished.
Taking a picture before everything comes out of the box can be helpful. Take a quick photo, print and tape to the top of the box. Letter the photo be the memory. Now you can enjoy the festivities.
To our American readers best wishes for a health, happy and joyful Thanksgiving with your family and friends.
Today, the beginning of Chanukkah, we would like to wish all our Jewish readers a Happy Hanukkah.
If you’re the lucky family member making a turkey this weekend you must be making a grocery list as well. As you sit to consider everything that will make your gathering a success, take a moment to also consider the aftermath of the holiday feast.
Do you look forward to demonstrating your culinary expertise, night after night preparing turkey pot pie, turkey pizza, turkey à la king – whatever it takes – to free yourself from the bird?
Do you haphazardly shove everything into the fridge and forget about it, until the smell in your fridge makes it impossible to forget?
Or do you cleverly freeze your leftovers, only to toss them out months later when the ice crystals make them unrecognizable?
With a bit of planning, your holiday meal can be enjoyed beyond this weekend, without being a burden.
· Purchase clear storage containers, suitable for fridge or freezer
· Label and date the contents of each container
· Separate large quantities into meal-sized portions before freezing; when it’s time to thaw your food, you only pull out the quantity you need – instead of chipping away at a frozen block
· Give some away: after six weeks living on a university campus, your big kids are jonesing for some home cooking; send them back to school with a care package of some of their favourite holiday treats.
Whatever you plan to do this weekend, have a Happy Thanksgiving.
#1 Celebrate – If you are celebrating Christmas, best wishes for you and your family for a very happy, joyful time in your celebrations. Enjoy.
If you are not celebrating Christmas, I wish you a peaceful and restful time during this holiday season.
Cheers
#2 Last Minute Wrapping – Last day to shop. But you finished ages ago right? So you have a few small things to finish wrapping while you enjoy watching A Christmas Carol, White Christmas or Miracle on 34th Street for the “umpteenth” time. Remember to buy milk to get you over the holidays.
#3 Attend Church Service – Celebrating Christmas? Haven’t been to church for awhile and wish you had? Check your local newspaper listings for pageant services you might consider taking in this weekend. Many churches have special Christmas Eve services.
#6 Volunteer at a Food Bank – For many people this is a season of giving and yet many more have little to give. If you have often wanted to volunteer at your local food bank, consider giving them a call and slotting in over the holidays.
# 5 Decorate a Gingerbread House with your children – No children? Why not buy a kit and invite your nieces/nephews or the neighbours to come and help you decorate it.
Welcome to the Winter Solstice. Happy First Day of Winter. Now the days in the northern hemisphere get longer – yeah! Sorry to the folks down under who will now start to get less daylight each day.
To our friends honouring their Jewish faith, Happy Hanukkuh.
# 7 Prepare to Write Thank You Notes – The writing of thank you notes for the receipt of gifts, dinners, visits and good gestures is perhaps a dying art. Not only do many of us exist online with communication almost solely through cyberspace, but many of the manners of the previous generation are being lost as quickly as our computer chips speed up and our computer memory expands.
Why not revive this tradition. A handwritten note is a welcome and friendly addition to the usual collection of post holiday bills. To make sure writing thank you notes doesn’t become just another stress, book the time into your calendar. Save the space in your schedule. Keep a short list of gifts or events for which you would like to write a thank you and check your note card supply. Last but not least, remember to keep your contact/address list handy.