Sunday, December 21, 2008

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat


And by goose, I mean me. And the weather outside is frightful, at least for anyone who has to venture out on the roads, but for those of us tucked safely in our homes, it is divine. It is going to be a Very White Christmas here in Montreal and, it would seem, the rest of Canada, too. Whoo hoo! This is the frost that was on the bathroom window this morning, at least until someone took a shower and - like the Wicked Witch of the West - Jack Frost melted, melted.



The house is semi-clean, the baking is semi-started (the ingredients - for shortbreads, truffles, buttertarts, Italian macaroons, Fat Alberts, Eccles cakes and peanut brittle - were purchased and await me in the kitchen) and the gifts are semi-purchased and semi-wrapped (I have leftover paper from last year) so it's not a bad position to be in. The tree is up and decorated. Our turkey is on order, a thirty pounder again. My babies will soon all be under one roof again for a few days, with friends and cousins dropping by at random hours and sleeping on couches and floors. I can hear Christmas carols playing, the snowblower is blowing....and while I'm exhausted by the end of it all, it's still my favourite time of year!

How are your preps going?

7 comments:

Trudy said...

Preparations are well underway - a box of chocolates must be consumed every day (yum!) and other than a stollen, baking is done. My family is supposed to come here, but we will see what happens with this snow...
Our green belt out back looks magical!

Anonymous said...

It's a quiet and lonely Christmas. After surgery, I do not feel well enough to go home 400 miles away to the family. I was horribly upset to call and disappoint my mom-- only to find she never even expected me to make it! Neither did my brother.

I haven't had the stamina to fight any crowds and have done no shopping, couldn't deal with going online to do all my shopping so I have nothing for anyone.

No invites for Thursday as of yet but I'm hoping something comes through. If not, I may drive over to work where they will be up and shooting a TV show as there are football games that day. I have friends there.

I am feeling lousy and blah... and hope that this ends soon. As I've been physically improving, a new problem has cropped up and my mental state is in the proverbial crapper at the moment. I have to have an MRI on Tuesday to see if we can track down the new problem's cause.

At least I have FABULOUS chocolate chaud from a Montreal chocolatier to help get me through... I need the calories because I've lost enough weight through all of this that my jeans are hanging off my hips. Never thought I'd be saying that in this life! I'm the same weight I was in college... a loss in total of 30 pounds since summer of 2007.

I lost ten last winter; held it for months then lost another five before I went into the hospital (by calorie-counting). Came out of the hospital ten pounds lighter (all that clear broth and Jell-O stuff)... and here at home, I just have had no appetite and have to make myself eat. So I've dropped another five pounds. I want to stay at this weight. And when I feel up to it, I plan to get some new clothes that will fit. I don't miss my little pooch that was threatening to become an extra chin. *s*

Happy holidays... today is the Solstice and we turn back toward the sun and march toward the light and spring. Even though it's snowing out where you are, spring IS ever closer.

We are expecting rain tonight and it should rain through Christmas. I saw snow on the mountains ringing Los Angeles when I went out today.

Enjoy your family and all the crazy hoop-la. Me, I'll try to keep the cats from killing each other. *s*

Lauri

A Novel Woman said...

Trudy, enjoy the snow! And the chocolates. Here's hoping the family can make it.

Lauri, you must surround yourself with things that make you happy. Cats, friends, good books, chocolate, great old movies, quilts, whatever makes you go "aaaah." You need to nurture yourself. Drink some high calorie smoothies with protein powder to keep your weight on even keel at the very least.

And Christmas will be over in the blink of an eye and we will all get on with our everyday lives again. Hang in there, kiddo. And thank goodness for the longer days, I say. I, for one, need all the sunshine I can get.

Debby said...

Is it just me, or does the first frost picture look a lot like that beast from the never-ending movie called 'The Never Ending Story'?

A Novel Woman said...

Debby, I LOVE that movie!!

And it kinda does look like Falkor, the luckdragon. Or at least it did. Now it's just so much condensation...

Brink said...

hmmmm....hate to say it sis, but to me it looks like a flying squirrel.

A Novel Woman said...

Noooooooo!