AMANDA'S BASKETS: ONE MORE RAFFLE BASKET ACT

Monday, December 14, 2020

ONE MORE RAFFLE BASKET ACT

Yep, the tree is up and almost all the decorations are on. I have a few more to put on tomorrow after I take seven packages to the post office to mail.

And taking the packages to the post office will be the last act of the Holiday Basket Raffle for the guild...whew...it was a lot of work.

Well, I did win a basket and will be picking it up in person sometime this week. It's a felt Christmas decoration kit which will be fun to do.

I will not do the basket raffle again by myself. If we have to do a virtual raffle next year (and I highly believe that we will) someone else needs to step up to take part of the responsibilities.

So once I finish with the post office, I will be focusing on baking for Christmas...cookies, fruitcake cupcakes and tea breads, especially pumpkin bread which was devoured in no time at all. I have Tuesday and Wednesday to bake.

Because my school teacher son is still teaching virtually, AND because the all the kitchen equipment is turned off at the school, he cooks in our kitchen on Thursday and Friday while students cook the same things in their own kitchen! It's really wild to watch and listen to...

The presents are purchased, wrapped and those that need to be sent, are long gone (But I think the Post Office has lost two of the boxes!!! I sent them on the 3rd, priority, and they still can't trace them!!!)

So, we have a president-elect, but I understand that there are gop house representatives who are going to challenge several states and if they can get one senator to agree with them, then both chambers will vote. I really can't believe this. We have to figure out a way to come back together as a nation or we will lose our democracy. Sad commentary on our times.

And now we have a 9-11 loss everyday...and no one seems to care. Another sad commentary on the state of our nation and it's citizens.

But you know what...the nation did say they want the democracy to continue...and there is hope for the pandemic on the horizon. So, cheer up and think positively...we will come through this and I hope in better shape when all is said and done.

CRAFTING IDEAS

I am always looking for a small piece of paper to write down something which will later be disposed of. I decided to use some of the scrap paper of which I have a ton. I mostly use the paper for glueing projects. I decided to cut the paper into a small size. (Six pieces from a piece of copy paper.). But just having them sitting on my desk would get messy without a container. So, using a cardboard box, I cut it down to size and using a hot glue gun I glued the ends together. Using a picture from a magazine cut into pieces and stick craft glue, I glued the pieces to the box inside and out. I also used some decorative tape for the outside edges. And to finish the top corners which were not covered, I used straight pins with colorful tops. Looks nice and works well.

MAGAZINE IDEAS

(New) One article in the Farmer's Almanac 2024 is a list of trends. One I knew about is the trend to downsize in just about every area. Another trend that I was surprised about was called ''The Human Library' which offers people on loan to talk about specific subjects. Finally, more folks are adding pets to their family and as a result, stores are adding more pet food, toys and medication to their offerings. There's also a nice garden article which suggests mixing vegetables and flowers together for success.

RECIPE IDEAS

Have you every made Cherry Dump Cake. It calls for 2 cans of Cherry Pie Filling (21 ounces), a white cake mix, 1/4 -1/2 cup butter, melted & 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans. In a 9 by 13 pan, spread both cans of cherry pie filling. Add the melted butter to the cake mix and break apart the resulting mixture and crumble it evenly over the pie filling. Sprinkle the pecans evenly over the mixture. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 - 45 minutes until the topping is golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream. Fast, easy and very delicious.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

What if you want to establish better habits, then decide what habit you want to work on. Again, try an easier one first for that good feeling of success. Let's consider more exercise. Start small. Don't try to run a marathon right away. Set the amount of time, the type of exercise and when to do it to begin making sure that it is within your reach. If it works for you each week add a bit more. Walking is one of the best ways to get good overall movement but there are many exercise videos on YouTube of varying lengths and difficulty to check out. Change your exercise routines to eliminate getting bored. For hardcore exercise with weights, give yourself a day in-between to recover. Even on days you would rather not exercise, do it and see if you feel better. It takes an average of 66 days to establish a habit. Just think 66 days to establish a good habit for a lifetime. Sounds like a good thing to me...how about you?