Kathleen...Hmmmmmm.....Groundhog's Day! Should be something in the woods. I know the log cake with happytimes Meringue Mushrooms! You could make some rocks out of chocolate marshmallow and little trees....well I'm pretty sure Sol could help you with the trees. Hey Kathleen while I'm thinking of it I did find some small sugar Christmas ornaments that you might be interested in. http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/holiday/xmas/xmas.htm#icing%20dec Also found 2 kinds of non-edible ornament picks, scroll down about half the page: http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/holiday/xmas/x-novelties.htm Think about the log cake, I'd like to see it. LOL! Michelle

What a great gift idea, bopeep--I was just thinking this morning about what I can make my sisters for Christmas this year (who knows what made me wonder that this time of year). Last year I made them wonder wallets, and the year before that I made them each a set of coasters. Thanks for the idea!

Your soup night sounds fab! We did a nod to it being Christmas Eve with a beaded tree for a centerpiece. Ann T., avoid your eyes, and skip the rest. :) Soup was minestrone flavored stone soup. I think the caterer left as much food as was served at our big party, so there were a lot of celery and carrots, grape tomatoes, cauliflower and broccoli left. Those were all diced for the soup, plus a couple of onions, half a head of garlic, some yellow vine tomatoes, a bag of baby kale and a white cabbage. So I didn't have to go down to the garage, the base was what I had in the kitchen freezer. That's three cups of low FODMAP chicken stock and three cups of beefy cabbage soup. I added a can of crushed tomatoes, a small can of fire roasted, and a smaller can of tomato sauce, plus vegetarian no-MSG bouillion and a little jarred soup base, for the salt. :) Some pepper, Tabasco (because I was too tired to clean serrano peppers from the garden) and mostly red wine. The starter was salmon salad made from the cranberry mustard salmon skewers leftover, broken up and dressed with what I think was the remoulade from the fried chicken drummettes. It had separated, and was a thick mayonnaise consistency and very herby, with a good acid sharpness that went well with the fish (which hadn't gone fishy). That was served with the leftover tortilla chips and relishes: baby corn, spiced baby carrots, pickle chips, raddishes and mixed olives. I also made some kale chips for something light. :) The soup was served alongside a leftovers casserole: a layer of latkes on the bottom (I thought they'd make it easier to serve but they fell apart), then layers of jewel rice, butternut curry, chopped broccoli, then filled with a bread pudding made from dry, bready donut holes, a (new) pretzel baguette, the chicken from the drummettes, the Moroccan beef cubes from another skewer, a couple of sundried tomato chicken sausages I had in the fridge to add more meat, and a couple of (new) leeks sautéed with a packet of small diced pancetta. There was cinnamon on the donut holes, the flavor of which came up more in the custard than it had on the donuts, but it went well with the garlic pepper I seasoned it with. Dessert was a tarte made from a sheet of frozen puff pastry that needed using. It was brushed with leftover passion fruit sauce, topped with leftover crème anglaise, and leftover fruit. :) There were also everybody's favorite freshly baked Toll House cookies from the Toll House cookie expert and party colored Dutch chocolate half dollars (leftover). The pudding casserole could have been improved upon (custard in the bottom layer under the curry to glue it together--the curry was a rich paste so I thought it would do the job, but it just softened everything--and cut up the donut holes smaller so they'd stick better), but everyone liked it and ate well of it. I heard a few "stuffed"'s. :) My fridges heaved sighs of relief to see so many containers removed! Most of all, we had a delightful evening with loved ones who couldn't be at the big party.

I hosted Christmas Eve (7 adults, one toddler, one infant) and had a lot of fun doing so. Deep cleaning & decorating were done a week ago. All cookie & pie doughs were made on the 22nd & 'fridged. So the heavy lifting was over & done with. On the 23rd, I picked up a prime rib roast & did my baking -- two types of rolled cookies, one batch of drop cookies, and a huge pumpkin pie made in a 12" quiche dish. I adore pre-holiday baking and like to listen to classical holiday music while working in the kitchen. Such a beautiful time. Then I set the table & got out serving pieces in the evening. On the 24th, I placed the roast in a pan in a convection oven, peeled/boiled/mashed potatoes, made gravy, and fixed what turned out to be the surprise hit of the meal -- Brussels sprouts combined with baby carrots, microwaved & sprinkled with a touch of nutmeg. So easy! Baby carrots & Brussels sprouts are a good combo, and the hint of nutmeg sets off the flavors really well -- everybody kept asking why are the veggies so good, lol! So the meal wasn't anything complicated, just easy basics done well. Champagne, coffee, & desserts followed, and we had a grand time playing with our adorable grandbabies. My gallant DIL hosted Christmas day, bless her heart, and did a fine job with delicious foods & a pretty table setting. She works part-time in health care and has been having 12- 14 hour shifts as flu & colds season sets in. Plus she has two little ones under the age of two, and she and my son have awful commutes -- an hour at least. So my hat's off to her for organizing our Christmas day so beautifully despite the stresses she's under. She is amazing, and we love her dearly. I love to photograph my holiday settings. Sometimes I use the Friendly Village buffet plates, as shown here, sometimes a white Homer Laughlin earthenware set. Either are so festive this time of year : I bought the Smith & Hawken cast aluminum patio chairs for $80 each when S&H went out of business. Back then, my wooden dining chairs were beyond repair, & I got the aluminum ones as temporary replacements. They're so practical (light, strong, roomy) that I've just never replaced them with proper dining room chairs yet. I have a black metal chandelier & black iron curtain rod to kind of tie them visually. A bit odd, decorating-wise, but they sure are comfy. Oakley & lukkiirish, wishing you both peace and healing in 2017.