(Click on image to enlarge)

I thought it was Christmas but it’s snot. Okay, bad pun. But seriously, all I wanted for Christmas was a clear nasal passage. I didn’t get it. In fact, I’m actually snottier if possible. But I’m nothing if not generous and I shared my Christmas snottiness with my hubby. So instead of loading up the car at 5am today and heading to Maryland, here we sit, drinking orange juice and slurping down gallons of won-ton soup. Our head colds seem to hit last night as we went to bed. Within 2 hours of laying in bed unsuccessfully trying to sleep, I finally went downstairs and slept the rest of the night in the recliner. Not a comfortable position I must admit. We both woke up around 10am and decided to try to make the Maryland trip tomorrow, or maybe even next month. Just not today.


(Click on image to enlarge)

Christmas was a happy affair other than our head colds. Jas spent Christmas Eve here and it was such a pleasure to see her excitement. There is nothing like having a child in the house at Christmas. There should be a law which dictates every household should have a child in it at Christmas time. She was very excited and pleased that Santa left her a skateboard, an American Girl doll, beauty parlor chair for said doll, clothes for the doll too, a race track set, childs sewing machine, sea monster lab, sour candy making kit, etc, etc, etc. There were a lot of things under the tree for Jas. It was a good Christmas. I hope yours was just as nice!

(Click on image to enlarge)

Whadda ya know, more of my Christmas decorations. Woo-hoo! Today’s fare is my prized Christmas Village. I’ve collected village pieces for years. I actually was given my first house in Dec 1992 from a dear lady named Claire. I didn’t start putting up a Christmas Village until maybe 1997 or 1998. Somewhere around that time. And it’s just grown over the years.


(Click on image to enlarge)

Now I have three Christmas Villages. The Victorian village, which I have around the mantle. A woodsy village which has deer, bear, log homes and a rustic woodsy look. And finally, my sweets village. The sweets village has gingerbread houses, a gumdrop shop, snowmen, a Christmas coffee shop and all sorts of yummy houses with candy pieces hung on them. (Not real candy) This year I only put up the Victorian village.


(Click on image to enlarge)

Jas is here today and will stay through tomorrow, returning to her mother at noon on Christmas day. In honor of her being here for Christmas Eve we have decided to have a small Christmas Eve buffet tonight. Normally we have a party every Christmas Eve with a huge buffet spread out. It’s really something to behold. The hubster smokes a pork butt for pulled pork sandwiches, and smoked teriyaki chicken wings as well as BBQ chicken wings. And we have the best homemade spinach artichoke dip in the world (which can be found in my cookbook by the way). And tons, absolutely tons of other foods. This year we aren’t making as much as we normally do, but there will be two kinds of smoked chicken wings, mini weenies in BBQ sauce, spinach artichoke dip with tortilla chips, pies, cookies, veggies and ranch dip and a host of other nibbles. Then on Christmas morning, every year, the hubster makes the most magnificent cinnamon buns (also found in my cookbook thank you very much). They look and taste like Cinnabon’s cinnamon rolls. They are to die for. And yes, the hubster is making those in the morning. Come on by about 8am, will toss a roll slathered with cream cheese icing your way and a cup of java.


(Click on image to enlarge)

As for Christmas Day, the menu has varied over the years. There was the year the hubster smoked a crown roast of pork. He had to do it in the garage because there was a blizzard outside. It was kind of funny because our neighbor, Max, came over to let us know our garage was on fire because he saw smoke billowing out of the garage door. It was just the smoke from the smoker. That was also the year that we ate the sides at Christmas dinner and had to eat the pork later around nine at night because the pork took so long to cook due to the cold temps. And we have done spiral sliced honey hams in the past as well as a smoked or fried turkey a time or two. Our favorite seems to be Prime Rib! That is what we had last year and will be making this year. The hubster is smoking a prime rib roast. I am making homemade cranberry/orange sauce along with killer mashed potatoes. Killer mashed potatoes are fingerling potatoes, mashed with a small amount of cream cheese, sour cream, butter and heavy cream. To die for! We will make a merlot reduction sauce for the potatoes and to drizzle over the beef, should anyone want to. I personally will just be using a small amount of horseradish for my beef. And then there are the baby portabella mushrooms sautéed with fresh garlic and shallots, finished off with a white wine reduction. Not to be forgotten is the french green beans and sour dough rolls. I blanch the thin, tender green beans and then just before dinner is served I sauté the green beans in a small amount of olive oil with fresh herbs, kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper, just until tender-crisp. I am getting hungry just thinking about it. We go all out for Christmas day dinner. Greg likes to make a homemade coconut cake for dessert but this year, since we are going out of town the day after Christmas, we will just be having the pies, leftover from Christmas Eve. And somewhere in between all of the cooking and eating we will manage to open a few presents.

Now I'd better quit blogging and get in that kitchen and start cooking. I hope Santa brings you everything you want. Don't forget to leave him some milk and cookies. And as my kids always did, some carrots for the reindeer because they have the hardest job of all.
Merry Christmas!

(click on image to enlarge)

I bring you the Oopsy Daisy household in all it’s Christmas glory. This year I didn’t decorate anywhere near what I normally would. We really scaled it back. But we do have some Christmas spirit as you can see by the pictures. How could you not have Christmas spirit when you have three Christmas trees in your house. The large one in the front room (pictured above), the small shiny red one in the TV room (pictured below), and the small shiny green one in Jas’s room (which I didn’t take a picture of yet).


(click on image to enlarge)

This tree adorns our TV room. We haven’t decided which tree Santa will leave the presents under yet, but considering all the presents my son has hidden in his closet for Jas, I would say only the large tree will be able to fit them all.


(click on image to enlarge)

The stockings may not have been hung by the chimney with care, but the Christmas cards sure were hung by the water cooler with care. Does that count?

Tomorrow I will post pictures of my cute Christmas Village.

(Click on picture to enlarge)

I would insert some really awesome pictures of the Christmas party I went to last night, but I was having so much fun that I forgot to even pull my camera out of my purse. So I’ll put a pic of the hubster above from our shopping excursion at the party store. The hubster and I had a great time even though he told everyone at the party that I had farted in bed the night before and almost killed him. I swear I could have almost killed him at that moment when he said that. Isn’t there something in the marriage vows that states “And thou shalt NOT snitch on beloved spouse when beloved spouse accidentally makes a delicate tinkley noise in her sleep.” Yup, I’m pretty sure there was a line in the vows that went something like that. Besides, I think that anything anyone does in their sleep should not be held against them. (Or against their husbands leg either according to him).



The hubster spilt that little detail of the ONE time I made a "tinkley noise" in bed in the midst of playing this awesome game, Apples to Apples. It was the first time he or I had played that game and we absolutely loved it. It’s the sort of game that is best played in a group situation. But that just gives you an excuse to have more people over, right?

And since it was a writers group Christmas party we had to play several rounds of the word game where someone starts a story, then the next person appends a sentence on it and the next person adds another sentence to the story, until people run out of story ideas or someone pees their pants from laughing so hard. Fortunately no one peed their pants, but it was close.

- 10 -
You've got red and green bags under your eyes

- 9 -
You're serving reindeer pot pie

- 8 -
When you hear, "Sleigh bells ring, are you listenin'?," you scream, "No! I'm not listening!"

- 7 -
You climb on your roof and start shooting carolers in the ass with your BB gun

- 6 -
You think you hear your Christmas tree taunting you.

- 5 -
Instead of spending time with family, you're watching some guy make photo copies

- 4 -
You're busted for running through town wearing nothing but mistletoe.

- 3 -
You've got eggnog coming out of your ears. (Eggnog Latte in my case, but I lurve it!)

- 2 -
Your standard response, "And happy holidays to you too, you bastard"

- 1 -
Two words: tinsel rash

Ho Ho Ho, Marry frigging Christmas. That about sums it up for me this year. It's a crappy end to a crappy year as far as I am concerned. I got nothing, absolutely nothing accomplished this year. This year sucked. And to put the icing on the cupcake, at Thanksgiving my mother in law came here and gave me her horrible plague, which I have had ever since. Everyday, at least two or three times, I can be heard complaining about it. Just makes me mad. But then again, I am so sick and miserable that everything makes me mad these days. Is it too much to ask to be able to breathe clearly? That's all I want for Christmas, clear nasal passages. Come on Santa, pony up with some oxygen.



The day after Christmas will find the hubster and I driving to Maryland again, bright and early. I get the pleasure of spending five days with his mother and sister while he gets the fun task of riding to New York City and Boston with his trucker brother and law in his 18-wheeler. I wanted to ride in the 18-wheeler too until I found out they have to take showers at truck stops. Then spending time in Ocean City with the hubsters mom and sister sounded pretty damned good to me.



In the gloom and doom of my present mucus filled life I do have a bright, shining ray of sunshine. It is called Eggnog Latte! And behold, we shall bring you tidings of great joy which we shall name Eggnog Latte. And all was right with the world. My sadness however, returns when I realize that when January arrives my eggnog lattes disappear from the menu. Life can be cruel, oh so cruel.

(click on image to enlarge)

Just about the time I finished unpacking from the last trip to MD it's time to pack for another jaunt there. No one died this time - yet. The hubster wants to do a drive-along with his brother in law in order to see if he might have an interest in becoming a truck driver. I on the other hand, would stay in Ocean City with the sister in law for the week, and shop, walk on the beach, shop, go to movies, shop, eat out and shop. And did I mention I would be shopping? A tough job but someone has to do it.


(click on image to enlarge)

Our only decision at this point is do we go at the end of this coming week or wait until the week after? I have a feeling we won't be home for Christmas either way. A shame, because I was hoping to spend Christmas in Key West this year. Oh well, there is always next year.

Son in law update: He landed in Kuwait earlier this week and will be finishing his journey and hitting the sand pit from Hell in a few days. Yup, the big I. Please keep him and my daughter and grandpug in your thoughts and prayers, as well as the rest of the soliders that defend our country.