Common Sense Home Good News Letter 12/17/22
“There is virtue in work and there is virtue in rest. Use both and overlook neither.” — Alan Cohen
Confession – I haven’t baked a single Christmas cookie (or anything else holiday oriented), and we’ve only put up one small artificial tree. (The tree belonged to an old friend of the family, and it reminds us of those no longer with us at the table, but still with us in spirit.)
It feels a little odd, as I grew up with my mom decorating her little house from one end to the other, and starting to bake around mid-November and not letting up until New Years Day.
Next year may be different, but this year the house is still a mess because of the remodeling, and I felt the need to keep things simple.
We were supposed to wrap up the remodeling project this week with the installation of the heating system, but instead the installer got sick and the installation is on hold – again.
Even though I share lot of holiday treats on social media, we usually only make a few things each year. Instead, tomorrow we’ll be canning some citrus and making jam with fruit from the freezer. This coming week, home canned foods will go out to family and friends.
Some baking may happen, too, given that the weather calls for chilly temperatures. We’ll see. There’s a cranberry almond biscotti recipe I’ve been wanting to try for a while now.
May your days be filled with love and abundance, and a balance of work and rest, as we officially head into winter.
All our best to you and yours,
Laurie (and August IV, August V, and Duncan)
This Week’s Featured Articles…
“Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food”. Check out this list of 25 Immune Boosting Herbs and Spices and add some extra “oomph” to your holiday cooking.
You can use these herbs to make herbal gelatin for those who don’t like taking teas or tinctures.
Large areas of our state (Wisconsin) were hit with heavy snow and ice this week, and many were left without power for days.
Learn about keeping warm when the power goes out, and 12 things to prepare before you have a power outage.
This cranberry orange bread is a great way to use seasonal citrus and cranberries, and comes together in minutes. We like ours with walnuts, but other nuts or no nuts works well, too.
Update on the injured duck, little Sarah Sweet Pea. Sarah had a chiropractor visit this week, and he found that her leg was only partially seated in her hip joint, and got it reseated properly. She rested for a day before rejoining the flock, and continues to make slow but steady improvement in using her leg. You can see little Sarah here.