The Holiday Report
For all the stress I had these last few weeks, I actually had an exceptionally nice Christmas: no arguing, great food, a great time, and a really enjoyable opportunity to be with family and friends. My godchildren loved their prezzies, the cats did not assault the Christmas tree, and everything that I cooked turned out to be a success. The worst thing that happened was that when I visited the bakery on Christmas Eve morning, some inconsiderate idiot parked in an area that was clearly not a parking spot, effectively trapping me in my own perfectly legal spot until the other car owner strolled out of the bakery half an hour later. This, after I'd waited in line for nearly two hours, all the while enduring the incessant, cheerful chatter of Harry Halitosis standing next to me! Still, if that's the worst thing that happens on your holiday, then I think you've been rather lucky.
I got some very nice gifts:
*a pair of perfectly Slytherin pyjamas, a deep green with silver trim.
*DVD's of PotC 3 and Ratatouille. Oddly, nobody got me the DVD of OotP!
*The complete Watchmen, all in one volume. I've never read it and can't wait to start!
*Several nice new black sweaters
*A pair of kick-ass black boots--very, very effective for Snapely stalking.
*A bag of British goodies from Younger Brother: Malteasers, chocolate Hobnobs, a Double Decker bar and a sack of sherbet lemons.
*A new scarf, hat and glove set--black, naturally, with a tasteful bit of silver.
*A box of colorful and warm socks. Just call me Albus Dumbledore! (Actually, don't. Not if you don't want me to hex you.)
* Various assorted gift cards, mostly for books. Of course.
All in all, I got nothing I disliked, and a a number of things that I hadn't expected, but really love. Nothing flashy, but I don't like that sort of thing anyway.
The baking was also well-received! I actually managed to get all of it accomplished, and so gave out Brandied Cherry Loaves and cookie assortments. This year I did a combo of Dipped Gingersnaps, Chocolate Chip Peppermint cookies, Chocolate-Coffee Sandwich Creams, White Chocolate-Raspberry Cookies, Chocolate Toffee Bars, Coconut Shortbread and Hot Cocoa Cookies. They were all big hits, particularly the gingersnaps, which were a new addition to the lineup. The Chocolate Chip Peppermints, White Chocolate Raspberries and Chocolate Toffee bars remain the favorites however, as well as the most-requested recipes. I'll see if I can find the picture I took of the cookie tray, so you can see the fruits of my labors.
So: I am content. Exhausted, yes, but content. Now I'm just recharging, since I'll have another family potluck on Saturday and I have people coming over for New Year's Eve/Day.
It never ends, but it's actually a relief to have a different sort of stress for a change.
Ooh, and before I forget: I screwed up and accidentally left out a holiday drabble from the collection that I posted. I've put it back in--a Snarry drabble written for prettyparadox--so you can go and see it here if you're interested, or missed them on the first go-round.
Ah, and last but not least: I posted some of my Snarry Holidays recs at snapedom; if you're interested in my take, it's here. It's not complete by any means, but these were some of the standouts to me, and I hope some of you might enjoy them as well, if you haven't already. I really enjoyed the fest a lot... I'm thinking that if they do it again next year, I might be interested in writing for it.
I got some very nice gifts:
*a pair of perfectly Slytherin pyjamas, a deep green with silver trim.
*DVD's of PotC 3 and Ratatouille. Oddly, nobody got me the DVD of OotP!
*The complete Watchmen, all in one volume. I've never read it and can't wait to start!
*Several nice new black sweaters
*A pair of kick-ass black boots--very, very effective for Snapely stalking.
*A bag of British goodies from Younger Brother: Malteasers, chocolate Hobnobs, a Double Decker bar and a sack of sherbet lemons.
*A new scarf, hat and glove set--black, naturally, with a tasteful bit of silver.
*A box of colorful and warm socks. Just call me Albus Dumbledore! (Actually, don't. Not if you don't want me to hex you.)
* Various assorted gift cards, mostly for books. Of course.
All in all, I got nothing I disliked, and a a number of things that I hadn't expected, but really love. Nothing flashy, but I don't like that sort of thing anyway.
The baking was also well-received! I actually managed to get all of it accomplished, and so gave out Brandied Cherry Loaves and cookie assortments. This year I did a combo of Dipped Gingersnaps, Chocolate Chip Peppermint cookies, Chocolate-Coffee Sandwich Creams, White Chocolate-Raspberry Cookies, Chocolate Toffee Bars, Coconut Shortbread and Hot Cocoa Cookies. They were all big hits, particularly the gingersnaps, which were a new addition to the lineup. The Chocolate Chip Peppermints, White Chocolate Raspberries and Chocolate Toffee bars remain the favorites however, as well as the most-requested recipes. I'll see if I can find the picture I took of the cookie tray, so you can see the fruits of my labors.
So: I am content. Exhausted, yes, but content. Now I'm just recharging, since I'll have another family potluck on Saturday and I have people coming over for New Year's Eve/Day.
It never ends, but it's actually a relief to have a different sort of stress for a change.
Ooh, and before I forget: I screwed up and accidentally left out a holiday drabble from the collection that I posted. I've put it back in--a Snarry drabble written for prettyparadox--so you can go and see it here if you're interested, or missed them on the first go-round.
Ah, and last but not least: I posted some of my Snarry Holidays recs at snapedom; if you're interested in my take, it's here. It's not complete by any means, but these were some of the standouts to me, and I hope some of you might enjoy them as well, if you haven't already. I really enjoyed the fest a lot... I'm thinking that if they do it again next year, I might be interested in writing for it.