Today I need to do some shopping. I'm out of several things like cat food and dish detergent...two things that are kind of important...at least the cats would say so!
This weekend I hope to get in the rest of the decorations and finish decorating for Christmas. Remember that I did get the tree up and lights on as well as a few ornaments...well, our latest pet addition (Cookie Monster) decided that the tree was his personal playland! He took off the ornaments to play with (at least they were plastic and didn't break!) and then he decided that he would climb up the tree! A good thing I was in the room because I caught the tree before it crashed to the floor! Not fun!
So today I want to share another house for our winter village. I had a small kitten food box...
...which I turned on end, taped the flaps together to make the roof...
I added pieces on each side to cover the open areas and make the box sturdier trimming to fit the roof lines...
To cover the house, I used pages from a food magazine. Meatballs on the front, candied yams on the back and baklava for the roof.
I added lightweight cardboard for windows, doors and chimney coloring each brown, yellow or red...
The winter village is really taking shape. I want to make a general store, maybe one more house and then some other items like trees, a snowman, etc.
It's Friday, do you have any plans for the weekend? If gifts are part of your celebrations I hope you have your list done including ideas. Maybe you can spend some time shopping and/or making gifts.
Do you make a lot of baked goods for the holidays? Well, yesterday's cookie recipe can be made now and stored in the refrigerator until needed. There are a lot more refrigerator cookie recipes that can be made now and baked later. Simply google 'refrigerator cookie recipes' and pick the ones that are easy and inexpensive. Spreading your baking like this will save time in the long run.
The budgets for most have not improved so when you work on plans for the holiday, find ways to save money. Look at your budget and decide on how much you can spend for holiday celebrations and stick to it.
Shop sales, especially loss leader items, and house brands. Find activities that cost little or no money and check out thrift stores often. Use what you have for decorations and substitute more expensive items with cheaper ones. For instance, if you normally have a big roast for dinner, make a special meatloaf instead.
One thing I would like you to consider doing this weekend is spending some time looking forward to next year. Once the holidays are over there will be more time to do this, but if you begin now just thinking about what you would like to accomplish your mind will work on those ideas without you even realizing which help in the long run.
Also, be sure to take time for yourself. The energizer bunny may keep going but we humans need time for rest and relaxation, especially if we want to continue operating at maximum.
Stay warm, keep safe and take care...
Talk with you on Monday...