The Old Folks Home

[ronott1]

We've been invited to an "orphans" Christmas dinner this year, those unable to get together with family. Small bites (tapas) on the menu. There will be a charcuterie board, soup, bread, and I'm bringing fingerfood of dill pancakes topped with lemon creme fraiche and smoked salmon, plus polenta triangles topped with carmelized red onions, balsamic drizzle and bleu cheese crumbles. If I have time, I'll get a batch of amaretto truffles done (or maybe pepperment schnapps) for a dessert contribution. One of the couples owns a winery, so hopefully they'll bring a bottle or several of the good stuff! I'd make up a batch of eggnog, but everybody needs to drive home afterwards and, well, the recipe is basically holiday rocket fuel. (We joke that one glass and you join the party; three glasses and you are the party.)

Sounds like a good time!

 

[bruceha2000]

We've been invited to an "orphans" Christmas dinner this year, those unable to get together with family.

All that stuff sounds really good! And way fancier anything I ever make.

I am waiting for the Atmospheric Rivers to start!

IIRC you about drown the last time they came through!

 

[microchick]

We bought new lights on Ebay this year and love them. They are the LED 'fairy' lights. I think I got 4-100 light strands at 5.95 a strand. They run on regular house current and have push button controls that change the twinkle pattern.

I love the idea of an 'orphan dinner'. Sounds like so much fun for folks like DH and myself who don't have kids nor family close by. It would probably be hard to organize in our neighborhood as the Amish have family head counts 16 or 18. The next door non Amish have 15. On the other side of us we asked that couple what they were doing for Christmas and got a Bah Humbug! response from them.

Doesn't it make you sad for folks like that? I'm 65 years old and DH 67. We both enjoy the lights and decorations not to mention the cookies and treats and Christmas in general. Guess we are just kids in old bodies!

And now because they are just too darned cute not to watch again at Christmas:

 

[microchick]

I forgot to add....To all my dear friends here at the 'Home' who aren't 'orphans' and who will be busy the next few days with family and celebrations and not check in, and all the 'orphans' Merry Christmas To All!

 

[ronott1]

All that stuff sounds really good! And way fancier anything I ever make.


IIRC you about drown the last time they came through!

I know!

Hopefully the dams and levees are in better shape. There has been extensive work on lake Oroville and a levee at the Sacramento River just south of us.

 

[ronott1]

We bought new lights on Ebay this year and love them. They are the LED 'fairy' lights. I think I got 4-100 light strands at 5.95 a strand. They run on regular house current and have push button controls that change the twinkle pattern.

I love the idea of an 'orphan dinner'. Sounds like so much fun for folks like DH and myself who don't have kids nor family close by. It would probably be hard to organize in our neighborhood as the Amish have family head counts 16 or 18. The next door non Amish have 15. On the other side of us we asked that couple what they were doing for Christmas and got a Bah Humbug! response from them.

Doesn't it make you sad for folks like that? I'm 65 years old and DH 67. We both enjoy the lights and decorations not to mention the cookies and treats and Christmas in general. Guess we are just kids in old bodies!

And now because they are just too darned cute not to watch again at Christmas:

Nice score on the lights!

 

[pennyJo1960]

View attachment 1622842

Merry Christmas

We've been invited to an "orphans" Christmas dinner this year, those unable to get together with family. Small bites (tapas) on the menu. There will be a charcuterie board, soup, bread, and I'm bringing fingerfood of dill pancakes topped with lemon creme fraiche and smoked salmon, plus polenta triangles topped with carmelized red onions, balsamic drizzle and bleu cheese crumbles. If I have time, I'll get a batch of amaretto truffles done (or maybe pepperment schnapps) for a dessert contribution. One of the couples owns a winery, so hopefully they'll bring a bottle or several of the good stuff! I'd make up a batch of eggnog, but everybody needs to drive home afterwards and, well, the recipe is basically holiday rocket fuel. (We joke that one glass and you join the party; three glasses and you are the party.)

We kinda are orphans but have always had this problem adopting other orphans raised 6 kids in all always had fun favorite mantra "I do not want to be a grown up today"
Merry Christmas everyone ?????

 

[Peep_Show]

Mr. Hanky? OMG...





I love South Park but forgot that, yes, he's a Christmas character.

 

[bobbi-j]

About 29 degrees here this morning. The lawns have little ice crystals covering them, a field of crunchiness underfoot. DH spent yesterday chopping wood so that we can stock the woodpile up in Santa Fe. I hit the stores yesterday and scored on decorations for next year (20-ft twinkle light strings for a buck each.) This year we just have a little tabletop tree, but next year will probably be full-on decor as I'm in the rotation for holiday entertaining of various social groups. I don't mind the decorating, but putting it away brings on such a depression.

Seed catalogs are arriving by the bushel. Love looking at them! DH has declared his new favorite vegetable is delicata squash, a bush variety winter squash. Friends have raved over the watermelon radishes they've been gifted, so move over French Breakfast. The veggie compound will have early crops this year with peas, radishes, chard, kale and beet plantings. Hard to think about now, but it seems like March is just around the corner.

I'm like you. Love to decorate, hate to take it all down.

We've been invited to an "orphans" Christmas dinner this year, those unable to get together with family. Small bites (tapas) on the menu. There will be a charcuterie board, soup, bread, and I'm bringing fingerfood of dill pancakes topped with lemon creme fraiche and smoked salmon, plus polenta triangles topped with carmelized red onions, balsamic drizzle and bleu cheese crumbles. If I have time, I'll get a batch of amaretto truffles done (or maybe pepperment schnapps) for a dessert contribution. One of the couples owns a winery, so hopefully they'll bring a bottle or several of the good stuff! I'd make up a batch of eggnog, but everybody needs to drive home afterwards and, well, the recipe is basically holiday rocket fuel. (We joke that one glass and you join the party; three glasses and you are the party.)

Where is this dinner? Just send me the address. If we leave now, we should get there on time. NM isn't that far from Minnesota...

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Got a friend's quilt on the long arm today and got it about a third done. I've been harassing her for years to get it done (she had less than 2 hours left putting the top together) and I offered to quilt it should she get her keister in gear and finish it. That sweetened the pot enough.

Have tomorrow off too (thanks trump) but as always I volunteered to work Xmas day as I don't have family up here and the day is meaningful to my staff.