hold fast to what matters

The rings were all converging this past weekend, were they not? Those who follow the Abrahamic religions were observing and/or celebrating Easter, Passover and Ramadan— plus it was a full moon, the pink moon, as it happens… or the "pink, lavender, pale blue, and other pastel springtime holiday” moon AKA "Reese’s peanut butter eggs for breakfast” moon…

The world, no less tenuous, no more peaceful, did seem a little cheerier as widely available Covid tests meant many people got together to celebrate.

We did.

And we absolutely forgot how to function at a Sunday dinner in the (gasp) DINING ROOM.

Boxes, storage bins, and unoccupied cobwebs were safely cleared to reveal a vault of a room. In the center, a flat surface surrounded by chairs clearly intended for convening and comestibles. We entered this unremembered temple to sharing a meal as cautiously and with the breathless exultation of Howard Carter and his Egyptian team headed into Tutankhamen’s tomb for the first time, but with (all toes and fingers crossed) fewer viral results.

Could not find the linen napkins, couldn’t be bothered with the china— but with a bit of last minute clipping from outside and a recycled Easter basket, there WAS a centerpiece. Needn’t be much. You can do it, too. The important thing was to have those laughs and love those faces that could make it.

Plus also, sent some cards, some chicks, some chocolate, and bunny beans to those who we gathered close in our hearts if not our arms.

Recycled wool chicks, carefully created blown out Araucana eggs— and the beautiful work of Ukrainian artists.

Centerpiece of repurposed ribbon, sprigs of viburnum, and real eggs in the (gasp) DINING ROOM, surrounded by viburnum branches in a bourbon bottle and sheep headed for the yarn shop.

Eggs have always represented new potential, new beginnings. We wish you better days, safety, and the surety of peace and plenty.

we are not just a one chick pony

We’ve been working around the cluck… ahem… to get some tutorials up for easy peasy spring decor. If you thought the pom poms could only be used one way? Yolks on you— Chick this out: same pom, different chicken.

We used the same techniques as our spring chicken post. A store-bought or homemade yarn pom pom, eyes, a beak, then encircled with wire or chenille stems for legs and feet, embedded down in the fiber approximately halfway on the sphere, and made secure fairly tightly. A new twist on chicken legs!

Defying eggspectations, we changed it up and dyed the yarn chickie-yellow, using easy-to-hand food coloring. Hint: leave off gluing on eyes and beak until after the dyeing and drying process is complete.

So we got up to our old chicks, covered our work surface, protected our clothes, and put on some plastic gloves in preparation for operation Tres Chic II…Hensome Lad: Son of a Biscuit.

We mixed yellow food coloring and water in a small bowl.

In a poultry amount of time, the yarn became saturated with dye by turning the pom a couple times. We rinsed the dyed pom in cool water, wrung it out carefully, then put it in the dryer with a couple old towels (the dye will come off until it is fully dry and set).

Trimming out some of the fiber to add some shaping, gives our chick some definition.

Talk is cheep… pictures say it best: this little one is im-peck-able!

Don’t mind us. Everyone around here is a comedi-hen. The best chicken puns don’t fall far from the poul-tree and we have all been dealing with not one, but several, eggs-istential crises, so we had to get them all in. Can’t wing for losing…

We’ll show ourselves to the eggs-it…

this IS a spring chicken

Adding handmade Spring decorations to your home or someone’s basket is easy and fun! Use homemade or purchased yarn pom poms as a start for this simple Spring Chicken.

Small pom poms, which can be made or store-bought, chenille stems or simple wire, any type of eyes— combine to make this adorable little Easter tree ornament or basket stuffer.

We twisted the stems to form simple feet, trimmed a purchased pom into a beak shape —but an end of orange chenille stem would work as well. We added simple animal eyes, trying everything in place before gluing with water-based glue (school glue or tacky glue will work and are not as messy as hot glue).

The stem or wire legs and feet are wrapped around and into the pom pom tightly so that the fiber covers it all around. We added a bit of ostrich feather for a floofy tail.

Tres chic!

upcycled easter

We are still loving the idea of using what you have on hand, re-using what can be given a second purpose, and cutting back as far as possible on cheap, imported, high carbon-cost decor. Bein’ that it is Spring and we turn to all things renewing, we are going entirely renewable. Take an old wool coat and rehabilitate it as your bunny!

This fellow is stuffed with chopped up, mismatched socks. The carrots are spindles, twine, and last year’s Easter grass combined.

Simple stamped cards to send your happiest thoughts. Stamp and embellish with markers, stickers, or paint.

Wool coat bunny showing the simple, sturdy construction.

We thought he looked a bit downcast, so we brightened him up with needle felted wool accents.

A leftover yarn “ribbon,” and Rabbit is ready!

Valentine's, Pal O'Mine

Heart it or hate it, the day of Lurve is on the way. You might be celebrating Valentine’s or Galentine’s or Palentine’s, so we have a little “SHOW ME” sesh for making homemade cards that are really cute and truly easy.

Reuse papers from old envelopes or those stacks of patterns you got that time when you were going to organize all the photos and scrapbook the hell out of mementos… no? yes? no? We’ve given up that idea, too, friends. It’s a GOOD thing.

Take papers of different, related patterns and fold in half. Cut half-heartedly, ah… we mean cut half hearts… along the folded edge such that you end up with a little pile of heart shapes in different sizes and patterns.

If you have blank card stock, glue hearts on the fronts of cards. OR create your own cards and envelopes from trusty kraft paper.

We used bits and bobs from the whole process— parts of leftover paper and the negative space hearts left over from our first cuts, which, as we all know, are always the deepest.

Have fun! Lay out hearts and pieces in different configurations, balancing patterns, values. It is A-Okay to just glue one heart on each card too! It’s the love you are sending, not the art.

We are playing with 3-D pop-up effects as well. Pop-Up cards are a top trend…. but more on that in a bit.

Whatever you do, make sure you put on enough postage, especially if your envelope is a non-standard form. Last thing: S.W.A.K. (seal it with a lick, because a kiss won’t stick!) Lil bit gross, but goes right to the 9-year-old in you, doesn’t it?

chocolate is the only true currency…

… in this bankrupt world. And because we are kitchen witches in love with the alchemy of chocolate, these are some of our favorite go-tos when putting together quick holiday treats.

Maybe you don’t have a lot of baking skills or time to spend. No problem. Buy commercial cookies and dip them in melted chocolate. Semi-sweet morsels in a microwave safe bowl can be melted in minute or two. Lightly coat an aluminum foil sheet with cooking spray or spread a thin layer of vegetable on foil or cookie sheet. Partially dip cookies in melted chocolate and place on treated sheet or pan to harden. For additional flavor or interest, sprinkle on chopped nuts, chopped candied ginger, or orange or tangerine zest while the chocolate is still soft.

The fastest fudge.

- 3 cups of semi sweet chocolate morsels (1 1/2 standard bags— leaving some left for melting to drizzle and plenty to eat while you mix up a batch of fudge)
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk (note: NOT evaporated milk— the syrupy super sweet stuff)
- 1-2 tsps vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- butter, cooking spray, or parchment paper for pan for fudge mixture

Prepare pan for fudge mixture to rest in in for chilling.
Line an 8x8 baking pan or aluminum foil pan with parchment paper or foil. Soften butter and coat the bottom and 1/2 sides of foil or paper OR spray with cooking spray.

In a large sauce pan over VERY LOW heat, combine 14 oz of sweetened condensed milk and 3 cups of chocolate morsels. Add vanilla and a pinch of salt. Stir gently with a spatula or wooden spoon until morsels are all coated then let the mixture sit until morsels start to lose their form. Stir gently. Once most of the chocolate is melted, remove pan from heat and continue stirring until mixture is glossy and fudge-y. This takes just a couple minutes, so don’t walk away and have the prepared pan ready before beginning mixture.

Pour into prepared 8x8 pan and spread mixture gently with wooden spoon or spatula to all edges. Cover with cling wrap and chill for at least 1 hour before slicing.

Once chilled, lift out fudge block and slice squares to share!

We added pecans to the top of one batch— pressing them into the fudge while still warm just before chilling.

We stirred small marshmallows and chopped pecans into to the slightly cooled fudge mixture while it was still in the pan before pouring into the prepared foil for rocky road fudge.

Mint plaid nearly instant fudge... no candy thermometer required!

We created plaid peppermint icing for one batch by creating 3 colors and flavors of icing and drizzling them on in layers once the fudge was cool.

Plaid peppermint drizzle:
- white chocolate baking bar dived into thirds
- 1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate morsels
- butter: 1 TB per color
- peppermint or spearmint extract: 1 drop
- green food coloring: drop

Melt 1/3 of white chocolate baking bar with 1 TB of butter by microwaving in 10 second increments until all the bits are melted and stir easily. Baking bars take longer to melt than morsels.

Melt 1/4 cup semi sweet morsels in microwave with 1 TB of butter by microwaving in 10 second increments until all the bits are melted and stir easily.

For peppermint drizzle: melt 1/3 of white chocolate baking bar with 1 TB of butter by microwaving in 10 second increments until all the bits are melted and stir easily. Once stirred, add a scant drop of green food coloring and a drop of peppermint or spearmint extract, and stir until smooth.

Fill baggies with each of 3 flavors. Cut a small corner of each baggie in succession and drizzle small lines of each flavor over the cooled fudge block. Re-chill to set the icing before slicing.

Divide into pretty boxes, then spread chocolate joy to neighbors and friends!

Packaged and ready for delivery. Happy holidays — especially to all the hardworking elves who make it all possible!

hat ornament upgrade: gnome big deal

We are always learning, ya’ll. Sometimes the same lesson over and over! It took a bit of time to create the hat ornament from leftover and recycled materials. We have illustrations below on how to add on elements to create a jolly little gnome.

Perusing the wider webs, we saw so many examples. Gnomes are in! We saw some that were really adorable — and crazily “affordable.” Hard to resist absolutely adorable ornaments for $3. But the real costs are actually higher. Made us think we could not or would not work for such a low return on our time and materials, but somewhere someone has to do so.

Please, all, take a moment and contemplate how little workers everywhere are paid! Work towards changing the corporate approach to labor and supply.

Gather wool roving, cotton fluff, or any fuzzy bit for a gnome beard. Felt up wool roving into a ball for a nose, or use a standard commercially available pom pom.

Use tacky glue, white glue, or hot glue to secure the beard to the inside of the base of the yarn hat ornament, and the felted ball or pom pom to the front just above the beard. We secured the ball and beard with cord for extra stability. Then we added a nice Brooklyn groomed mustachio for extra panache! Go big or go Gnome, right?

fresh evergreen wreath part 2: putting it all together

Spend some time with the wreath base you want to amend and decorate— look at it from every angle to assess where judicious editing of wild ass branch construction will help with overall balance. Truly, it is a rare piece that comes into the workshop that doesn’t need a little grooming!

Trim leggy branches and anything that looks wilty or sad, clip out areas that are overrepresented, and add in where branches are thin. A turntable or lazy susan on the work surface helps with this process immensely. Once the base is in overall good shape, turn it over and put a strong holder on the back— preferably wire and preferably in a contrasting color to the wreath itself so it is easy to locate. Do this BEFORE you spend an enormous amount of time wiring and gluing potentially crushable decor to the the front of the wreath. Trust.

Assemble the greens to amend the basic base. We suggest picking greens a day or two ahead of wreath production, placing the cut branches into water and allowing the greens to harden off —or condition— before use.

Then pick, wire, or glue branches of greens around the whole wreath until it is full and fluffy.

We customize wreath orders to suit their new homes. Have fun and be creative with elements on your own!

These are ready to ship— same base, completely different looks:

ANY wreath base benefits from attention to balance. As we can attest when we play: Faux or No? on a front door.

fresh evergreen wreath part 1: prepping material

As with any fresh plant material construction, beginning an evergreen holiday wreath should begin with good preparation. Set up work area, preferably with a work surface tall enough to prevent bending down to table level. Unless you are working in a dedicated workshop, securely cover surfaces with waterproof material such as plastic drop cloths or large garbage bags. A turntable or lazy susan is a great way to rotate any arrangement project, but is especially helpful in working each part of a wreath equally.

It is very possible to use fresh cut evergreen branches and wire to create your own wreath, but with so many things vying for attention at this time of year, we happily recommend using a purchased wreath base — they are widely available at garden centers and grocery stores.

We look for springy, fresh branches on these wreaths and a minimum of falling needles. Once home, we dunk the whole thing down into a tub of water and let the branches absorb moisture. After removing the base and allowing a day to dry, we treat the base with a anti-dessicating spray such as the commercially available brand, Wilt Pruf, or similar, generously spraying BOTH sides of the wreath base and allowing it dry. This one step, though not essential, makes a world of difference for evergreens lasting longer, staying prettier, in winters that are becoming ever warmer.

We like to tidy up the purchased wreath bases with judicious trimming and balancing of branches before any decoration begins.

When your work area is set up, the wreath base is ready, gather together your tools of the trade: pruners, snips, wire cutters, scissors.

Don’t forget additional items which help avoid attachment issues: wooden floral picks, green florist wire, twine, and glue gun with plenty of glue sticks.

Adding a pick onto almost any element in a wreath provides extra structure for securely attaching to the evergreen branches. Running wire securely through or around cones, fresh fruit, or the tops of ornaments, all help the embarrassment of a wreath yeeting its dec onto unsuspecting guests at the front door.

We pick fresh evergreen elements to add to a commercial wreath. Varying the colors, leaf types, and texture adds to visual interest. We use cut-from-the-yard or bought at the garden center elements that have had a day to sit in containers of cool water so they are conditioned (hardened off from a freshly cut) and ready to insert.

Once the base is tidied and ready to decorate, assemble materials to attach. Start with bundles of found or purchased greens wired on picks and then glued at the base. Leave your newly gorgeous green base as is— OR go for something fun and unusual! Eschew the expected! Leave off the ribbon entirely— be bold!

Feathers, twigs, leaves, nuts, grasses...

Varying the sizes or types of similar items is great way to add pleasing harmony.

Wreath dec needn’t be traditional cones, fruits etc. Add a variety of elements tailor-made to your style! Avoid the cookie cutter look by adding in actual cookie cutters, ornaments, beads, baubles, spools of thread, faux fruit or berries, tiny tools — whatever fills out the former store bought wreath with your own personal flair. Whatever you add, just make sure it is firmly attached to last the season!!

Interregnum: Time for the Regular Reminder to Breathe

December. Here you are, you massive bully, you. Fall? We hardly knew you. Blown out by the cold, reaching fingers of wind from the north… shaking out the last of the leaves and replacing the autumn glow with sharp blue ice-pack light lancing across brittle lawns in long shadows. It just feels late all day. Dark in the afternoon early.
And yet… if you close your eyes and listen? Jingling of bells! Or is it the jingling of coins tumbling in tills across the land as the holiday gift buying frenzy revs up and sweeps through.

But first, we hang now for a bit in the time between. The interstitial. The time of year when pumpkins AND holiday lights and dec occupy lawns and porches in strict violation of The Code. Ya’ll, just stop. Find a good compost pile or farm with animals and give those cuties their next, best home before you throw open the Christmas closet and unleash the inflatables. Literally, give it —and yourself— a rest. It is totally understandable to want to dive in to the best parts of December celebrating, but it is not advisable nor really even possible to do ALL OF THE THINGS. Pick a few. Do those well. Spend more time and less money. Be more present and less into presents. Bring light and fewer light displays. Bring change, but give all the dollars you can to the worthiest places and not just change at the red bucket. It feels really, really good.

Having (hopefully) survived the first of the grand high Holler-days and put family pressure and Thanksgiving behind us like the well picked turkey carcass, we are about to hit the slalom ski run accelerating to the next. A time to breathe in the crisp air— before being overwhelmed with Cinnamon and Spruce scented breezes. A time to plot out shipping schedules which determines buying schedules which determines, oh god, wrapping schedules. Wrapping… woof. Breathe…. breathe…
Thankfully, there seems to have been a turning point in corporate thought and fewer large retailers are open on Thanksgiving Day proper. Maybe forced by executives newly aware of workers who deserve fair wages and benefits, or maybe newly aware of workers at all — find that their workers need and want celebrations with their own families and friends, so have curtailed crazy open hours and Black Friday etc and many people have opted to shop from home or limit time out, so the frenetic pace of “normal" holiday shopping is subdued… one good thing from the pandemic. This quieter holiday season should allow a pause for reflection on just how crazy the pressures to consume have been heretofore.

This year,too, many, many more folks felt free to travel to see long missed relatives for Thanksgiving. Laudably, a majority were vaccinated. Many were left with the impossible choice of seeing people or risking their own, like children under five, who could not yet be vaccinated or those who put others at risk by willfully choosing to go without. Christmas will likely be the same. Or worse. Dependent of variants etc. Sigh… So, while it is possible "we all can be together… if the fates allow...” the virus may intervene— For us, that means putting the best parts of the season to top of our list, and Santa’s list, and anyone’s list.

To begin, we suggest —powerfully suggest— nigh unto insisting— that people take a moment and enjoy the post T Day November and slightly into December interregnum. Before Fa la la laing and so forth, take the time to recollect, to plan, map out what is most important in the holiday to do that silly-word-thing: self care. Make this liminal time all about you for a couple of days —then make it all about everyone else. You cannot pour from an empty cup… truth.

The interregnum between family pressure filled Holler-days is a good time to spend moments to yourself, assessing what can be done, what needs to be done and what can you can let go!

Hereforth a short list of things you know. These are good and good for you! We are moms and we are legion— so we scold. Get over it.

Put away ideas about must-dos and tradition this year. We are handing out dispensation and special licenses. Sift out what is important for safety and sanity. Make do. Decorate in small doses with what you have and what you find with natural materials. It really does something for our souls to be out in nature and to bring nature inside.

Take time now to assess your project list and pet the cat… or else.

Hey— send cards. Send Happy New Year if you aren’t about the holiday or worry the intentionally hobbled, but limping along USPS won’t deliver on time. It’s a holiday SEASON— there is plenty of time and it is never wrong to show someone you care.

While you are at it, thank your posties, friends. They really do their best… in all kinds of weather… and are a lifeline for a lot of folks who don’t or can’t email etc. Put a card for them in your mailbox— doesn’t have to be holiday themed if you worry about giving offense (and we love that you do).

Normalize shopping local, patronizing artists and artisans, give from the Second Market, make things to share… above all listen to the message of the season still lovely, if a little lost in profit driven orgy of consumption. Why do we gift at all?

Drop a card of thanks to those who support your everyday life— the docs office, the vet, the tire repair folks… whomever. It is lovely to do so in person and provide a smiling face with the sentiment— but we don’t advocate being out in the current atmosphere too much. Besides, they won’t see your smile behind your mask…. you ARE wearing a mask, right?

Take some dreamy moments to yourself before things get hectic. Enjoy the transition and the recommit to helping or valuing others. This Thanksgiving arrangement will become part of a wreath gifted on.

Read a book a day to your children for 24 days until Christmas. Don’t have 24? Libraries hand ‘em out for free!

Read a book to a shelter pet.

Read a book.

Find a giving tree or equivalent and make someone else’s holiday as jolly—or jollier— than your own. Involve your children in picking out things for kids their own age so they have the joy of imagining some one like themselves feeling special and loved on a holiday.

Pay it forward when you can. We love paying the shipping for someone rushing to get something special to a family member and unprepared for the cost. We are on call at the local shippers especially on behalf of Santa for children’s gifts that need to be in time.

Find out EXACTLY what is needed at your local food bank. The volunteers and staffs of these amazing life-giving centers know what works and what will clutter the shelves. They often have insight into Benevolent and/or Community resource that are set up to equitably and reliably distribute aid to those who need it most.

Remember, Remember we all hate November

Lordy, some morning are just ITCHY, right? That fabric you were working with last night felt smooth and luscious and this morning it is not only fighting against straight seams but it is straight scratchy besides. Sunshine streaming in is welcome for the light, but unflinching in outlining every overdue cleaning project in sharp detail. While Spring light is life-reviving and perfumed with blossoms, Summer light diffused and evening lingering, Fall light is…. tricksy. In October, the finding light is warm, casting a fuzzy glow over the home scene, scented with cider and cinnamon.

On the other hand, November light crashes through leafless limbs unfiltered, bashing through windows heading directly for every dusty surface, every spattered backsplash like an unwelcome and judgey relative strongly suggesting with an unflinching gaze that you thought you were ready for the guesting season— and you were very, very wrong.

Last year, innovation was the way to go for celebrating the Allidays. Halloween was semi distant, folks came up with myriad ways to stay apart but celebrate together. This year it seems with vaccinations on the rise (Hallelujah!), Turkey Day is back and looking to be an in-home event.

There is that light… just look at it laughing at our paltry wipe down efforts…

Et Ouija! Changed the perspective...Just look at our shiny knobs!

What! Don’t REALLY look at them! What, are you a monster?

Just admire from afar that we have all made it through some serious, serious stuff and are together to really count the ways we are blessed, to value those we love and let go what we cannot control.

Oh Yes. Have another cup or two. Play with the doggos, hang out with the kids. Pause. Enjoy. Our kitchens are a bit fuzzy, but our hearts are full.

Notes for folks with incoming guests and no time to line up contractors and re-do whole house post-pandemic nesting... or to barely dust...

Clean the bathrooms super well, at a minimum.

Add distracting candles and guest towels.

Tell guests your house is booked for scenes on an upcoming movie shoot ... it is a horror film, n'atch... and everything thing, dust, webs etc MUST stay in place.

Tell guests your fuzzy cabinets are participating in NoShaveNovember.

Keep a line of cups by the entry and inform guests as they enter that like many cultures that request no street shoes in the house, your sanity requires that they leave their glasses by the door.

Start cleaning and organizing the room or part of the house LEAST likely for guests to visit, leaving yourself so pushed for time close to arrival that you barely have time to shower, change and put out cups by the entry for glasses.

Drive to home goods store and buy a written sign for each room. Add your own spicy sayings with sharpie:

Blessed — with 3 varieties of pet hair!

In this house we — don't mention that they are still looking for the last person who complained about the toilet handle jiggle, leak bucket under the sink, or flush instructions situation in the guest bath.

Grateful — if you leave after coffee and don't expect a cooked breakfast.

Tell your overnight guests you are participating in NaNoWriMo and juuuust need to document chewing habits for a scene in your novel so will be observing them closely in the morning if they want to stay for breakfast, perhaps documenting with a live feed.

Really do these things:

Keep light low — no matter how gleaming your abode. Nobody likes sparkle. It incites emotions of envy and jealousy. Hard No-no’s for a convivial gathering.

Candles are great but don't overperfume your rooms.

(Should never leave people wondering if all the candles are trying to cover up something.

Like a body.

In the basement.

Wut?!)

More:

Start stress eating chocolate a couple hours before projected guest arrival. Unlikely you will experience break outs in a just couple hours...

🍅 pin tomato tip 🍅

If you don't have time to dust out every bowl — fill them higher with seasonal materials!

Add seasonal pieces to top up bowls when you don’t have time to deep dust.

Party prep.

Kit in place for emergency cleaning ahead of guests.

Sorry, guests, we couldn’t clean because the cat was comfortable on our lap…

Quarantinesgiving was my 1st Thanksgiving

By November 2020, COVID-19 had made one spring, one summer, and one fall interesting. And we were about to find out what it had in store for us for The Holidays™. My parents, siblings and I had mutually agreed that the priority was keeping my parents safe. That would mean limited and cautious visits with the grandkids, especially. At the time, older people were the most at risk, and the youngest ones were most likely to be silent carriers. Cases were surging, no vaccines yet. No pressure! Just don’t mess up and kill grandma! [Nervous laughter]

Like Halloween before it, I was determined to have some sort of Thanksgiving. God knows why, it’s not like a top ten holiday for me. Quarantining with littles meant going without much of what we had been accustomed to — freedom, spontaneity, outings, time with friends and family, etc. For me, it also meant going without any help after delivering my second, and emergency-esque surgery. We’d been slogging our way through it, and dammit we were due for some celebration!

I was woefully under-qualified to host any version of a Thanksgiving, and I don’t remember all the thinking that landed with me hosting this pressure-filled gathering, but 2020 was nothing if not different, right? “Just think of it as a dinner party. You've thrown all of one of those in your adult life, surely you can pull off Thanksgiving-lite,” she said to herself, like a happy idiot.

Being outdoors was the first parameter. So much would depend on the weather. Some layers, extra blankets on-hand, a fire pit ready to go — with a little luck, we just might pull this off.

Then came the meal part of the planning. F#cking hell. I’m the child of a talented cook, but I did not inherit those genes. This was going to require some research… not a problem for a nerd from a family of nerds. And knowing when you’re out of your depth is a wisdom that age and experience blessed me with. Ah humility, you quiet, priceless asset!

I kinda like to take it easy these days. I don’t willingly sign up for high pressure situations. And to me, Thanksgiving is about as high pressure as holidays get. Between the traditions, the food, what people have come to expect… there’s a lot of pressure to get it “right.” But COVID created the kind of situation that would have been the *only* way to get someone like me to take on Thanksgiving. Since everyone’s expectations had been thrown out the window, I could get a pass on not delivering the holiday they'd come to expect.

In my career, I make a habit of regularly clarifying with clients and partners: What is the goal? (I’ve found this is also a handy way to center yourself when feeling overwhelmed by everyday stuff, too.) So when it came to tackling Turkey Day, I brought everything back to zero and started from scratch. Put aside everything you can about what you think is required of you in this moment. Focus. What's most important?

Stuffing? Nope.

Gravy? Sorry.

Pie?? Multiple! Again, focus on what matters, people.

Okay, there has to be a bird. And I'm going to have to cook it. I'll figure out that later.

What else? Places to eat. Things to eat with. We'll have to be outside. How to make it as comfy as possible out there? Set up the fire pit. Have blankets. Mom has a serving thingie that keeps things warm — I'll borrow that. Okay, back to the food. What else? Some vegetable. Green beans. We’re Americans, stuck on starches, so… potatoes? Bread? Both? Mom makes legendary sweet potato rolls. I'm not trying to touch that. I'll ask her to bring. (I love potluckiness — it’s homey/intimate. More authentic or something.)

The bird

I accidentally bought two. I won’t get into it. (Side eye: Whole Foods.) Having a backup is probably a happy accident, especially for a newbie. Better to have too many turkeys than too few, eh?

I'd never cooked an entire turkey, or any other bird, or entire anything, ever. Maybe an entire potato? A spaghetti squash? But I was officially out of my depth. I'm a once and future vegetarian, and current reluctant eater of fish and poultry. Pregnancy required me to open up my diet, but I never got comfortable with raw... things. [Shudder] I knew I couldn't reach up a turkey, let alone yank out anything. (I was later assured that my procured turkey would be civilized: all its inside bits would be bagged up and easy to remove. Wonderful. I’ll be wearing gloves up to my elbows until the thing is in the oven, and would still require someone else to remove the, er, bag.)

I got a lot of advice before even buying a bird. Thank goodness there's no shortage of advice on the internet! First things first, how big of a turkey do I need? Then, what all will I have to do to it? How will I cook it? How long will that take? What time will we want to eat, because apparently there’s this magical window of “resting” the hot bird wants, and then it’s on! Feed time! But I gotta time it all just right.

Anecdotally I understood that moisture is a big deal. A dry turkey is a sad turkey. So I read about how to (hopefully) avoid that. I settled on dry brining and stuffing the lil chonk with apple and lemon slices among the herbs etc. This should add moisture and make it smell lovely while taking up the oven all day, methought.

Fun fact: sliding lemon slices under the skin was a good move for moisture AND had the added bonus of making it look like the turkey had tits — everyone’s favorite! What holiday or family get-together is complete without them? So, be aware, or you’re welcome. Either way.

If you’re the Go Big or Go Home type, here’s some inspiration that’ll keep grandma and grandpa talking for many Thanksgivings to come <3

Source: https://www.sunnyskyz.com/blog/1820/Lighten-The-Mood-This-Thanksgiving-With-Lemons

The big day

Mother Nature gifted us a mostly sunny, 50s-something day. We were a go for dinner! Mismatched tables and chairs were set up in the backyard. A wintery tablecloth here, a springy floral one there. Inside, potatoes and green beans went about as well as one would imagine. They're simple, reliable things I'd made a million times, therefore unlikely to explode the day somehow. To my great surprise, the turkey turned out lovely.

There was a lot of rushing. A lot of running around, setting up this and that. I had a toddler and a nursing infant at the time — little, mobile agents of chaos. But somehow we made it work. And what made it work was our collective willingness to let sh!t go. To be content with the day we created within the limitations forced upon us.

Thanksgiving in and of itself isn't my favorite. Politically it’s … ugh. It makes me want to give speeches in the style of the teacher in Dazed and Confused: "Don't forget while you're shoving mashed potatoes and gravy down your gullet that the colonizers turned to cannibalism and would have starved had it not been for…" Anyhoo… The point. What makes Thanksgiving good is the gathering — seeing our loved ones, and spending focused time together. Everything is closed, right? So we’re stuck together! Yay, bonding!

My siblings Thanksgiving-ed with their individual families, and the family text thread was hopping with photos back and forth of each celebration. It amused me that it was kind of like looking at personality test results. Each sibling’s Quarantinesgiving reflected their individual style. From the choice in dishes, to preparation style, and how each gauged whether their dinner was successful.

For my part, I was too busy running around to take many photos. But there’s this one, from after the dust settled.

Turkey legs up, ladies!

It’s Fall, y’all!

September. Have we missed you! Babe, when you roll up on the calendar, you usher in the best months of the year. You bust in trailing leaves, crowned in fruits and grains, trays of goodies balanced against your bouncy bosom, handing out muffins, shouting "Fall, ya’ll!” You are here. Meteorologically speaking, and soon, astrologically as well. We’ve been holding in all of our gourd-related puns for so long we are about to burst. We want to dust the world in cinnamon and nutmeg — to orange up the decor and live our best pumpkin-spiced life! And, 90 degrees or no, we whip out our warmest, coziest throws and wish for it to last and last. But before we dive headfirst into a dog-poo-free leaf pile wearing our favorite sweater while sipping a spill-proof hot apple cider— a word, please.

The Big Boxes That Be are already pushing the great red and green consumer festivus on us, packing the shelves with jingle and jangle. We are here to throw that switch and turn the Christmas train right around. Let’s put the Ho ho holiday back in its box, right back up on the shelf in the closet of assorted celebratory gear, figuratively and mentally. Pause. Take THIS moment in. This glorious, pivotal, equinotic season. This stretch when time   turns   on its axis. The changes happening are a season all on their own. In this pause, make room— create some sacred space to celebrate the mercurial moments therein. Celebrate you. Celebrate yours. The Christmas train will be along to sweep us all up soon enough. For today, and for at least a few weeks hereafter, stop and take this all in. Celebrate the richness, the layers of senseplay abundantly available…the colors, the flavors, those sounds… the atavistic ingathering eyeing incoming winter, felt in the bones. Exit Persephone. Welcome pumpkinpalooza, yes, but also the transitions, the contemplative variations, of precious, fleeting Autumn.

We plan to share some fall-lovin ideas here to help you fill your days and homes. To note the moment. Stay tuned for simple, budget-friendly crafts, makes and alternative activities— with not a Box in sight. So, go ahead— start saving treasure leaves and gathering some sheaves from around your world. If you’re #blessed to live in an area where colors change, take advantage and enjoy those living canvasses.