Happy, happy holidays!!!

 by Diana McCollum

Happy Holidays! I love this season! The Christmas lights, music and goodies to eat. We bought a giant tree this year to go in our open beam living room. This will probably be the last year for a giant tree. All the family is coming on December 28th for our family get together and celebration. 

I'm still undecided if I'm having a turkey this year or stick with tamales and mexican sides. We did the tamales the last couple years and I thought a change might be nice. Plus, I love turkey dinner leftovers.

I took all these pictures around our house. I enjoy decorating for Christmas, except climbing the ladder to decorate the tree. Hubby decorated the top 1/3 or the tree on a very tall ladder.

Enjoy the pictures and leave a comment about what you are serving for the holiday dinners.

And I'll leave you to enjoy our Christmas Cactus that are blooming profusely this year. Let me know what you are cooking for your Holiday Dinner this year. 

Signals and signs ...

The number one signal for me (some might say warning) of the coming holiday season is fruitcake.  Not that dry, cakey stuff you get at the grocery store. The fruitcake I bake contains a kilogram of dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, cherries, blueberries, etc.), chopped nuts, a good amount of rum, and enough butter, eggs and flour to keep the whole thing together. I bake my cake at least a month early and feed the cake with more rum on a regular basis … to preserve the fruit, you understand.

If when you think of mincemeat, you’re picturing that horribly sweet glop from the grocery store, stop. Instead, conjure if you will a mixture of ground beef (yes, real meat, this stuff was invented to preserve sources of protein), apples, raisins, aromatic spices, and citrus peel all simmered to a velvety loveliness. My mum made this every year as did her mum and her mum. 

Shortbread cookies. Buttery, vanilla-y, flaky. I pretend I can remember Grammy in the farmhouse kitchen, rolling out the dough on the old, scarred table, using star and bell-shaped cutters, then sliding the cookie sheets into the monster wood-fired oven. All us grandkids gathered around the table waited impatiently for the cookies to cool enough to eat. I have no memory of her baking shortbreads, but I have many memories of my mum doing so.

Hm … these all seem food related … wonder what that says about me …

A non-edible sign that the holidays are upon us is my annual hunt for greeting cards to send to friends and relations. I used to see what was on offer at the usual stores, but with the advent of online shopping, the sky’s the limit. I came across an artist a few years ago who creates the most wonderful images – right up my alley. AND she uses some of those images for greeting cards. 

Nothing says festive season quite like holiday movies and books paired with a glass of eggnog – seasoned with more of that rum, can’t let it go to waste. Instant warm and cosy.

Luanna Stewart has been creating adventures for her imaginary friends since childhood. She spends her days writing many flavours of romance. When not torturing her characters, she’s in her kitchen baking something delicious. She lives in Nova Scotia with her patient husband and two hens. 

Website ~ Bookbub ~ Instagram ~ Goodreads 

Looking Forward, Looking Back, by Peggy Jaeger

 Hard to believe we are finally going to put a pin in 2021 in a few days. I mean...come on - this hasn't been the best year for the world, has it?

To put things in perspective, though, my little world did okay in 2021. No one in my immediate family got Covid or any of its variants because we were all hyper-vigilant: got vaccinated, got boostered, never stopped wearing masks in public, vigorous handwashing, and avoided crowds.

It can be done, kids. If more people would get with the program we'd be through this by now.

Enough soapbox.

2021 saw a surge in my writing and publication. 7 books done and out in the reading world; one new publisher; a couple contest wins and many new writing avenues opened for me.

Not too bad.

On a personal note ( well, a few of them!) my first grandchild was born. I've always heard that your first grandchild changes you. It did. It made me more concerned about the future of our planet, our democracy, my own health -because I want to be around to see him grow to adulthood and beyond - and my legacy for when I am gone.

To that end I've embarked on a road I should never have been out on: extreme weight loss. So far I've lost 20 pounds, which if you know anything about weight loss after 60, is amazing. I have another 30 to go and that's one of my looking forward goals. I want to maintain my health and physical mobility until I die and doing this is the best way to ensure that. Wish me luck.

As far as 2022 goes, I've got many things on the docket that look promising.

I've got a new publisher I'm thrilled to be working with.

I've got 8 books planned for release this year, two of them in multiple author packs.

We've got a family trip planned for July - our first in 3 years.

We've got one big family wedding planned for May.

I turn 62 in May, as well. That's a significant number because if I wanted to I could get social security now. Not going to, but just knowing I can is something.

I've got three major book signing events I'm traveling to in 2022. I haven't been to a major signing since 2019 and the last RWA I attended.

I hope, looking forward as well, we can get out of the grips of this virus. I don't want to see one more child have to wear a mask to school or one more person be unable to hug and visit with friends. 

I hope serious change will be made in how we take care of the poor, the mentally ill, our children, our environment, our planet. 

I hope we can finally - FINALLY - recognize that we are more alike than different and understand the differences don't make us bad people.

And I hope health, happiness, success, and a sense of peace is prevalent in my life, everyone I know, and the world as well.

Happy Holidays, everyone.

May joy, love, peace and happiness fill your days and warm your hearts

~ Peg