iPhone Life Lately

Stuck in Winter

Usually I love March.  I flip the calendar over from February and rejoice in the fact that it's March 1st.  It seems like a reward for making it through a long, cold winter.  March is the first month of spring; St. Patrick's Day rolls around, Easter festivities are underway.  In short, there's a lot more to look forward to than in January and February.  However, this March has been pretty ludicrous so far.  I should preface this by saying that last March was unseasonably warm.  Crazily warm, even.  My seasonal allergies flared up and I started experiencing asthmatic symptoms.  Because it was so warm in March of 2012 and my breathing was so bad, I ended up being diagnosed with asthma in April.  Needless to say, I don't think there's a chance in hell of me needing to worry about taking a Claritin this March.  As I write, big, fat snowflakes are falling down outside.  If this was three months ago, it would be awesome.  I'd be playing Christmas music, baking and enjoying the soft twinkling of Christmas lights.  Let's make a long story short: there is absolutely nothing festive and quaint about this snow nonsense right now.

That being said, the promise of March is difficult to shake.  I decided that Monday was my last day of wearing boots.  I've been wearing 4 different pairs of boots in a rotation since October.  It's the equivalent of looking at a big chunky sweater in March; basically the most depressing thing on earth to see.  Funnily enough, several teachers at work seemed to make the same choice:  we're all wearing flats with bare feet and talking about how, even though we're freezing, it's just too sad to slide boots over our calves right now.  A round of dramatic haircuts are also taking place:  everyone at work seems to agree that March is the time to get hair chopped and ready for spring.  In fact, I made a haircut appointment for March 16th way back in January.  I can't wait to get it cut.  It's too long for my taste and flat-ironing the hot mess of my thick hair has become, well, a hot mess.  It will be nice to debut a shorter cut next weekend!

Even though it's cold and snowy, we've been trying to get out of the hibernation pattern of January and February.  Last weekend, I experienced a "Grown Up Moment":  a moment where I realize that, despite the fact that it feels like I just graduated high school a couple of years ago, I am really and truly an adult.  I've had these moments several times since turning thirty, but the irony is that I love these moments and realizations.  My best grade school friend turned 30 about 7 months before I did, and on my 30th birthday, she told me how much I'd absolutely love my 30s and how much better they are than the 20s.  Realistically, I know there isn't much difference between 29 and 30.  But between 21 and 31?  So much difference.  I love, love, love my 30s so far.  I feel so much more settled, so much more comfortable in my skin.  Things that rattled me in my 20s don't even cause an ounce of anxiety now; whereas in other respects, now I'm worrying about what truly matters.

Anyway, my "Grown Up Moment" happened on Saturday.  We made a date with several couples from Mr. My Blog for Bonnie's former place of employment.  Four couples dined downtown at a gorgeous little restaurant where a dress code is in place and reservations a necessity.  We sat down together at a big table, ordered several bottles of wine, drank and toasted each other and ordered several courses for the meal.  It struck me as we were eating that this was an absolutely grown-up thing to be doing.  If we were in our early 20s, the only reason we would've been at that type of restaurant would be if we were getting engaged or celebrating a similarly giant milestone.  If we were in our mid 20s, we would have only been there after careful planning and saving to pay for an anniversary or birthday meal.  But here we were in our early 30s, just eating there for a regular dinner with friends.  It really drove home the fact that, despite how it feels, we've indeed been out of college for almost 10 years and have 10 years of working and job stability behind us.  It was the type of place my parents would go to to meet their friends for dinner when I was a kid, and leave my siblings and I with a babysitter for the night.  My parents would dress up and have a glass of wine before going, then come home late looking thrilled and happy after a night of laughing with their friends.  Fast forward 20 years, and here I was drinking a glass of wine and reading before leaving for the restaurant, then having the exact type of experience with our own group of friends.  It's nuts.  Time truly flies.  That being said, I am loving being a "grown up."

Here's hoping that I can report in the next post that March has warmed up and spring has truly sprung.  Until then, I'm believing in the power of haircuts and colorful flats to imbibe the spirit of spring!

Time for a Change

I'm throwing in the towel with winter. So over it.   This past weekend I went shopping for some spring clothes and I decided to prematurely change purses.  Since February I had been carrying this red Lill bag pictured below.  For most people, it's probably considered a decent sized bag.  For me, it was woefully small.  I always need Mary Poppins bags to tote my life around, and I was itching to switch to the bag my sister-in-law made for me for Christmas.  As you can see, it rather larger in size than the red bag!  I loooove it.  It fits my life inside with plenty of room to spare.  Plus the interior has lovely fabrics and handy pockets.  In the final shot, I hope you can appreciate the striking patchwork of fabrics and the skilled quilting involved.

I love this bag, and I look forward to having it with me for March and April! (side note: does anyone else feel as relieved as I do when we hit March 1st?  To me, flipping the calendar to March is always a huge morale boost...we're almost there!)

For Your Consideration...

....Costco's muffins are totally worth the price of membership.

Happy Weekend!

Origami and Ribs

Happy Presidents' Day!  I've spent my day binging on episodes of House of Cards, the new Netflix show that was released on February 1st in its entirety.  If you watch it, you caught the reference in this title.  Let's talk about how insanely I've been drawn to this show.  Clearly, if you've kept up with this blog at all, you know that I pretty much love TV.  One of these days I'll do a post on my favorite TV characters, spanning all genres and decades.  But for right now, House of Cards has me trapped.  There are only 13 episodes (or "Chapters") and I just finished 11.  I'm saving the final two for my next day off. 

I just need to say one thing: can we talk about what happened on Father's Day on this show??  Because it essentially traumatized me.  Like I watched it on Friday night and then woke up a few times in the middle of the night stressing out about it.  In my defense, I strongly believe that most people who have watched that episode...that moment...have stressed out about it.  W.T.F. (*deep shudder of revulsion*)

Moving on, I have a few more random thoughts:

~All last week I had a cold!  So did Mr. My Blog for Bonnie.  Bahhhh.  It was one of those slow-to-build numbers, with several days of feeling fairly crappy followed by one or two days of feeling absolutely awful.  I'm so ready for spring!

~Speaking of spring, what is with Easter being so early this year??  Yes, I totally understand how they determine the date for Easter each year (the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox) but I'm not feeling it being at the end of March.  Usually I love Lent because it means we're slowly climbing out of winter, but right now it feels strange to not be eating meat on Fridays when it's only mid-February.  I'm sure I'll start feeling better in March, which is such a great, underrated month, in my book.  Way better than February; a nice transition between the dark of winter and the light of spring. 

~Since there's no getting around the fact that it's Lent, I'll share with you that, this year for Lent, I gave up Facebook.  Taking it a step further, I deactivated my account.  I'd like to say that on Easter I'll reactivate it, and the truth is that I probably will.  But I've been rather annoyed with Facebook lately and it's nice not to be a part of that world.  We went out to dinner with friends of ours who don't have Facebook, and they told us about a German study that determined that most people feel dissatisfied and envious while trolling around on Facebook.  And I have to admit that I do usually have negative feelings after being on there.  I do a lot of eye rolling and sighing, and really, isn't life to short for that?  I also started valuing my privacy more in the past few years.  I know it's strange to say that since I keep this public blog, but this is a different type of openness than Facebook, if that makes any sense. I even tinkered with the Privacy settings and created a small list of people who are the only people who can see my posts.  Basically, very close friends and family.  Because the idea of sharing all my photos and personal updates with everyone was making me feel strange.  Again, here I am explaining all of that in a blog post.  It's strange and contrary, as I well know.  To make a long story short:  I have a feeling I might rejoin after Easter, just to maintain loose connections with people without sharing anything obnoxious or overtly personal.  But I won't be upset if I chuck the whole idea all together and remain deactivated, either.  Ahhh, Facebook:  you've ensnared us all in your web!

~Girls!  Have you watched the second season?  This is another show that I watch all the time and I usually have strong feelings of revulsion, just like a lot of the critics who watch it. That being said, for all of the gross sex and weird revelations, the moments of humor are totally worth it.  I love Lena Dunham.  On the show, I frequently laugh out loud because she exposes part of the Female World (actual term) that are usually only discussed among extremely close friends, if at all.  I think she's an amazing actress and the show is smart, though totally unconventional.  Plus, she went to Oberlin College, which is 15 minutes down the freeway from me.  I love a good Ohio connection! Also, I love Shoshanna.  But who doesn't?

~Pinterest fun:  Mr. My Blog for Bonnie and I are trying to watch our cholesterol, so yesterday I made and froze 12 breakfast sandwiches.  I got the idea from this pin.  The process went very quickly and I was amazed at the low calorie count of each sandwich when using turkey bacon and egg whites.  I diced up a red pepper, threw that in the egg whites and topped it all off with some spices.  I had one this morning and it tasted really great.  I'll definitely be stockpiling these in the future!

~I also made BBQ Chicken Nachos last night, direct from Pinterest.  Here in this house, we are suckers for Mexican food.  And yes, I know that BBQ Chicken Nachos (and nachos of any sort) really aren't authentic Mexican.  But my feelings on that are akin to the way I feel about Buffalo Chicken:  the best way to capture that flavor is in actual Buffalo wings (eaten in Buffalo, because they are so much better there!) but I love the taste so much that I make Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches, Buffalo Chicken Dip and Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese.  Don't judge.  Anyway, this recipe is great because the nachos call for a Queso Sauce.  I of course cranked up the heat and added minced jalapenos to the sauce, and it was fabulous. 

~I saw something about Heart Tarts and I made them two weeks ago for Valentine's Day.  Then I made a second batch, froze them with the intention of baking them on Valentine's Day itself, and promptly forgot about them.  So today I took them out of the freezer, baked them and iced them.  They are divine! 

February Seven on February Eight

 

This is where I was last night!  "Les Miserables" came to Cleveland for 4 short days and Meredith and I were at the opening performance.  Let me just say, we jetted downtown precisely after I finished working 4, 10 hour days with 2 year olds.... I really needed the night out!  I knew there'd be a lot of laughter and tears, and that was true.  Though in Classic "Me" fashion, a lot of laughter was inadvertent and unintentional.  For instance, during "I Dreamed a Dream" which is of course one of the most emotional musical numbers of a very emotional production, I accidentally kicked my (thankfully closed and unopened) bottle of Diet Coke and it went rolling down several aisles of seats.  Sigh.  Luckily at intermission Meredith spotted it and requested an elderly gentleman in front of us to help us retrieve it.  All was well in the Diet Pop department after that.

The production was wonderful, and while the movie gave scope and exposition to the story, the musical production was concise in telling the story...as concise as you can get over a story that spans a couple of decades and encapsulates politics, religion and redemption.  I loved every minute of it! Especially during "One Day More" which is my favorite song in the whole production, and which closed out the first act on a very dramatic note.  I teared up.  But of course, when don't I tear up at Les Miserables?

A lovely and serendipitous event occurred on the way home.  Listening to the radio, "February Seven" by The Avett Brothers came on.  I love this song, and my heart did a little leap when I realized that the actual date was February 7th!  Listening to "February Seven" on February Seven was a nice little wrap-up to the evening.

Here's the first verse of "February Seven" which I think is so beautiful:

I went on the search for something true 

I was almost there when I found you 

Sooner than my fate was wrote 

A perfect blade, it slit my throat   

And beads of lust released in to the air

When I awoke you were standing there 

I was on the mend when I fell through 

The sky around was anything but blue

I found as I regained my feet   

A wound across my memory  

That no amount of stitches would repair

But I awoke and you were standing there

 

This song definitely has a bluegrass-y feel (actual description, of course) and, dare I say it, almost a country flair.  Typically I'm not into that type of music though my horizons have expanded pretty wildly since Mumford and Sons came along and "Nashville" started showing up on TV.  "Undermine," anyone?  It's definitely in heavy rotation on my iPod.  

 

To go along with this country-esque phase I'm going through, I recently ordered a necklace with lyrics by Johnny Cash.  Have you seen these necklaces floating around?   I came across them online recently and loved it.  I really like Johnny Cash and "Walk the Line" is one of my favorite of his songs.  I found this necklace on Etsy and ordered it, it arrived yesterday.  For a mere $16, I am amazed by the quality.  It's a good size and I ordered the black bead to go with it.  In her notes, the designer says that the pistol charm can be removed and I definitely plan on doing that.  After all, I can only take this "Country" image so far!  All joking aside, I'm uncomfortable wearing the pistol charm mostly because this is a necklace I'd like to wear to work.  I can just imagine all of my kids grabbing the necklace, pointing to the gun and asking "Miss Sondra, what's that??"  and me having to hastily pull it away and look awkward and transparent to toddlers.  Considering we have instant discussions about how "we don't pretend to have weapons at school" when the kids construct what are obviously revolvers and shotguns out of Legos and then proceed to point them and say "Boom Boom Boom" to their friends, me wearing a pistol charm around my neck is pretty much out of the question!

 

And so now my 4 day weekend starts.  Today I plan on meeting Mr. My Blog for Bonnie for lunch at the restaurant on site at his company.  Then I might take my self to see "Silver Linings Playbook" since I recently read the book.   We got a guacamole kit from a Farm program at Mr. My Blog for Bonnie's company this week, so I'll be whipping up some guacamole to go with our Chipotle tonight;  Don't be too jealous.  I also plan on making some Valentine's Day treats this weekend in preparation for the big event, which comes just TWO DAYS after Paczki Day on Tuesday!

Off to listen to some more of The Avett Brothers...

  

Sybil, Sybil, Sybil.

1.  I titled this post after a Downton Abbey character and if you, like me, have seen the most recent episode, you know why.  I'll refrain from discussing details here, because immediately after the episode aired on Sunday night, there were a plethora of facebook, twitter and other social media controversies regarding spoilers.  It's pretty interesting that the entire 3rd season aired in the UK months ago without many plot points being ruined, but minutes after it airs in the US, the cats are being absolutely thrown out of the bag!  I confess:  I am someone who hates surprises and, in a weird way, relishes knowing certain spoilers, as long as they're on my own terms (of course!)  That being said, I had no idea this was coming and it was spoiled for me on Sunday evening.  I planned to watch the episode today, knowing I had a half day of work to look forward to.  However, I talked to my mom about the episode on Monday night and she recommended watching it right away, asserting that it was the best episode of the entire series.  I watched it and immediately agreed.  And now, on my half day, I have watched it again and sobbed once more.  I also bought the entire 3rd season on Amazon Prime (the final 3 episodes that have yet to be aired were released yesterday) and so I watched the 6th episode immediately following, and again, I cried.  I'd keep going but I'm going downtown tonight to see a play and I don't want to arrive looking like I've fought a hundred and one emotional battles before the curtain even rises.  Ahh, Downton.  Best. Show. Ever. 

2.  To perk myself up after this Downton Fest, I'm going to go back to reading my newest book, "The Silver Linings Playbook."  I'm interested to see the movie but wanted to read the book first, and I'm so glad I have.  I'm 75% done with it and can't put it down.  While it is very difficult for me to understand the main character's psychological battles, I feel emotionally fraught for him all the same.  It's a funny book, an upsetting one, and one that has really forced me to think about mental illness.  If you've read it, or if you plan to read it, there's a scene that takes place on the beach with Pat and his best friend's family that will absolutely break your heart.  There's also a line I highlighted regarding Pat's friend Tiffany, who is herself going through severe emotional issues.  He says that Tiffany doesn't have a spouse, or a stable job, or a home or "any of the other things" without which make her vulnerable to being called "odd" by everyone else.  It's a sad but unfortunately true fact that sometimes people who don't follow societal norms and conventions end up being marked as outsiders simply because of a lack of luck in these areas, or a simple desire not to have them.  There have been several times where I've actually held my breath and gasped at various revelations throughout the book, and the fact that it isn't a suspenseful thriller and yet I'm reacting that way really stands for something.  I can't wait to finish it.

3.  Even though it's still technically January (blah to the tenth power) I'm looking ahead to spring and summer.  This summer, two of my family members are getting married so the Ohio branch of our family will be galloping off to New York state for their weddings.  In June, my cousin is getting married, and at the end of August, my lifelong bachelor uncle is finally tying the knot.  I have no idea what I'm going to wear yet (and don't plan on buying dresses until May or early June anyway) but I've tentatively picked out these Toms shoes:  what do you think?  Toms had a similar print last summer that I loved.  With so many colors in them, they'd go easily with any solid color dress.  I'm eager to embark on a Toms shopping spree of sorts anyway:  last year I bought my first pair in Texas and fell instantly in love: they are easily the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn, they go with a surprising array of clothes, and the best part is that when you purchase one pair, another pair is donated to a child in need.  I haven't worn their wedges yet but this is a good opportunity to try them out!

4.  Today it was 60 degrees and tomorrow the high is a mere 25.  Wahhhhh!!!!  Although I have to confess, in a weird, glutton-for-punishment way, I prefer when the weather is how it should be.  I don't mind cold and snowy days in January, but if they hit in March or, Heaven Help Us, April, I'm pissed.  And I love 80 degree days in June, but when it's 80 degrees in October, my nose is out of joint.  I want my brisk fall days, is that too much to ask??

5.  Super Bowl Weekend is coming up:  what are you cooking?  So far Texas Chili is on the menu for us, not sure what else.  Maybe a version of the Red Lobster cheesy garlic rolls that everyone under the sun is pinning on Pinterest.  We'll see!

A Little of This and a Little of That

So it's almost the end of January already!  I mistakenly thought that life would calm down after the holidays, and in a lot of ways it has.  But I've found myself being blissfully busy in quiet ways: meeting friends for coffee, hanging out with family, hibernating indoors and reading lots of books and magazines.  Here are a few random thoughts about this very small sliver of 2013:

~My friend Meredith is home, and I love it.  We were close when she was in Texas with her family, always texting and Facetiming.  But her being home is exquisite.  There have been several occasions where we've spontaneously met at our local Panera to have coffee, a light lunch, or a comically caloric pastry.  I love many things about Meredith, but one of my favorite things is that we talk about serious things without the overall conversation feeling heavy and dolorous.  What I'm saying is, she is the type of friend who I can say anything to, and yet while I'm pouring my heart out, I'm also laughing and feeling good.  She is one of those people who make life easier just by being in her presence.  I love that she's home!

~I've been catching up on some great Kindle reads lately.  You must, you must, YOU MUST read "The Good House" by Ann Leary.  I love Ann Leary, especially her first book, "An Innocent, A Broad."  This book entangled me...I started reading it on a Friday night and was finished by early Sunday.  I loved it for so many reasons: it delves into the history and characters of a small town, but it also portrays the narrator as she starts absolutely unraveling due to her alcoholism.  It is juicy, suspenseful and intriguing.  I want to re-read it!

~After this book, I moved onto "When We Were the Kennedys: A Memoir from Mexico, Maine."  I'm a sucker for a good memoir, and this is just that.   It's heavy material: a large family of children loses their father unexpectedly to a heart attack in 1963.  It chronicles the first few months after his death, and in November when John F. Kennedy is assassinated, the family's story mirrors that of the Kennedy's.  It was a very somber topic but, in the end it was enormously hopeful. 

~I'm loving Zinio.   This app allows you to download magazines, and the best part is I can get them for free since my library is partnered with the app.  I admit that I'm getting sly joy out of reading issues of US Weekly.  Yes, it's tawdry and lame, but yes, I freaking love it anyway.  And I could lie and say I'm absolutely absorbed in "The Economist" but that just wouldn't be any fun at all.

~We did something pretty cool this year at work that I want to share with you.  Instead of making specific resolutions for the New Year, we each selected a single word that we want to focus on throughout the year.  My word for 2013 is "Hopeful."  This year will be bringing a lot of changes, some definite, and some unfixed.  I have a bad habit of being anxious about everything, but I'm trying to let that go.  For a change, I'll try always being Hopeful.  We'll see how this goes.  Believe me, there have been several times already where I've had to repeat the word to myself over and over!  But I wouldn't be me if that wasn't the case!

~I was blessed to grow up with a father (and mother) who made going to the theater a family event.  Growing up, our parents trotted us out to productions of "Phantom of the Opera," "The Wiz," "Peter Pan," "The Lion King, " "Beauty and the Beast," "Grease," "Miss Saigon," and I'm sure countless others.  Getting dressed up and sitting downtown at our lovely Playhouse Square Theater Complex to see Broadway shows is something that was a treat for us, and I grew to love it.  As an adult, I've been back to see many Broadway productions offered in our city, and I've grown very fond of Musicals in general.  After bawling through the movie version of "Les Miserables" with Meredith (while chowing down on popcorn and nonpareils, of all things) we decided to buy tickets to the Broadway production, coming next month.  I saw this production years ago (in the year 2000, actually) with Mr. My Blog for Bonnie after we had only been dating for a few months.  I remember trying desperately hard to stifle myself the entire time.  If you've seen the production or the movie, you know that nearly everyone is rendered a crying mess throughout multiple parts of it, especially at the end.  I tried to keep it together so as not to seem like a complete walking disaster in front of him.  Needless to say, if we saw it together now, I'd probably mortify him by my outright sobbing.  Indeed, I even had to consciously stifle a sob when I saw the movie with Meredith.  Rest assured, I'll be comfortable enough now, 13 years later, to really let loose when we see the production next week in Cleveland!  Hey, grown men fall to pieces at Les Mis, so I can be expected to totally lose it too!

~I've made it a goal to make more and more new recipes this year.  I pin a bazillion recipes to my boards on Pinterest, and I'm a cookbook lover.  So far I've made a lot of great things: Pizza Pull-Apart Bread, Spicy Meatballs and Spaghetti, a fabulous tortellini soup in the crockpot.... I'm having fun broadening our recipe repertoire.  Stay tuned.

~I'm also sewing more.  True confessions:  I SUCK at cutting fabric.  For one, I don't have a steady hand, and two, I am bamboozled by figuring out measurements and dimensions.  I come by this honestly because every single person in my immediate family is perplexed by math.  However, I'm overcoming these fears and doing what I love most about sewing: which is making quilts and using pre-cuts.  However, in the interest of being "Hopeful," I vow that I WILL attempt patterns this year.  Eeeeeeek!!!!

~I spilled a giant glass of my husband's RED WINE all over the kitchen this evening.  As I looked at it cascading down our white cabinets, hitting the fridge, ricocheting off our walls, I looked around and said, in my most skeptical and annoyed of voices, ".....Red Wine?"  That was the best I could do to capture the scope and tragedy of the situation.  And now, my kitchen smells rather like a winery on the Lake, which isn't a bad thing by any means.  And I mean, really, wine is alcohol, so in a very roundabout way, I was actually disinfecting my floors, cabinets and fridge when I dumped the wine all over them....right?

iPhone Life Lately

Some edited, some unedited. This is a glimpse of life lately. More posts to follow soon, I hope!

Downton Day is Here!

What a lovely sight to behold in the Sunday paper!

The Return of Downton Abbey is here!!  If you, like me, became positively enamored of this wonderful show, then you'll understand how excited I am.

I was late to the Downton Abbey party.  I had heard a lot of great things about it and discovered that Season 1 was on Netflix.  I watched the very first episode when I was visiting my lovely friend Meredith in Texas last February.  There was definitely an awesome "I'm on vacation" vibe to it.  It was late at night and I was in the guest bedroom under the covers.  I watched it in the bed on my iPad.  I was hooked!

I proceeded through the rest of the winter with Downton Abbey on the brain.  I caught episodes on the iPad whenever I could.  When I finished Season 1, I bought Season 2 on Amazon Prime since it wasn't yet available elsewhere.  I have a vivid memory of going out to lunch on a very snowy Saturday, then coming home and watching the first two episodes of Season 2 in the comfort of my home while it snowed outside.  It was blissful.

I've been waiting since March for the story to continue.  And tonight, it will!  The first episode is a whopper: 2 hours long.  Luckily I don't have to work tomorrow, otherwise I'd have a hard time waking up in the morning for sure.

If you haven't watched Downton yet, please do yourself a favor and catch up on it.  Maybe you'll become cool like me and buy this book after you finish watching it to fill yourself in on all of the British history from the period.  Or, maybe your mother can buy you a shirt that reads "Free Bates" for your birthday and you can wear it out repeatedly in public.  Or not. 

For those of you who have watched the previous two seasons, or who are curious about the show, here's the fantastic trailer for this season:

New Year, New Cookies!

Welcome to 2013!  Now that it's January, life is generally simmering down from the chaos and excitement of December.  I've had a few unexpected days off from work and I've been enjoying them by 1) starting the mornings off with a goblet full of Mimosas, courtesy of a bottle of champagne given to me by one of the kids in my class and 2) reading for luxuriously long amounts of time on my Kindle.  I'm currently re-reading the "All Creatures Great and Small" series by James Herriot.  Three of the volumes were on sale for the Kindle edition awhile back and I bought them.  I read a few of his memoirs wayyyyyy back in 8th grade.  My mom told me about them and I was enchanted.  They're the semi-autobiographical memoirs of an English country veterinarian in the 1930s through the 1960s.  Apparently a very popular TV series in the UK was created out of the books.  There are something like 12 total volumes, and I read one or two back then and was highly entertained.  The set I bought now contains the initial book that opens up the story, about how James became a vet and how he started in his practice in the Yorkshire Dales with the eccentric Farnon brothers, which I hadn't read before.  The stories are hilarious and mind-blowing, which isn't a combination of words you frequently see together.  I'm really having a good time reading them!

I feel like it's always a letdown to post Christmas recipes and decorations after Christmas, but there is one recipe I feel I have to share on here.  It's for a cookie I made over the holidays, but the great thing is that it isn't exclusively a Christmas cookie at all.  Actually, by appearances (as seen in the finished photo below) it could totally be used for Valentine's Day.  The pink glaze is perfect for that. 

I read the Sunday paper faithfully and saw, in early December, that Parade magazine had an annual Bake-Off Recipe contest.  The grand prize winner was for Chocolate Cherry Cordial cookies.   These were essentially little balls of chocolate dough with a maraschino cherry inside, finished off by a cherry glaze.  It sounded so different that I thought I'd try them.  In the end, I made about 4 batches.  I shared them with my family and my parents and siblings went crazy for them, as did Mr. My Blog for Bonnie.  My sister, who doesn't even care for cherries normally, said she absolutely devoured these.  They are simple to make and taste wonderful.  As a matter of fact, I plan on making another batch this weekend, possibly even today.  And definitely for Valentine's Day.  There's a series of progressive photos below of the baking process, and the recipe is included in the link above.  This is my new favorite cookie recipe and I'm going to plan on making them each and every holiday season from now on!

Happy New Year!

Balls of dough, rolled in sugar, about to go into the oven.

A good rule of thumb: these are finished baking when the tops start to crack and crinkle ever so slightly, as seen above.

The finished cookies with the glorious and cheerful pink glaze on them!  These are wonderful!