QUICK THINGS TO DO TODAY:
- Are your kitchen sponges or dish scrubbers old and yucky looking? Need to replace them?
- Need to go grocery shopping for the week? I highly recommend doing it before Wednesday afternoon, and avoiding stores on Wednesday and Thursday if you can help it. Crowded, crowded!
- Fill up with gas if needed, so if you have to go out doing errands this week you won’t have to stop for gas.
- Do you have a fireplace? Have wood for festive fires for this week? You might especially want to get firewood if you have company coming over.
- Speaking of keeping warm, your guests might not be used to the temperature you keep your home. If you keep it cold, be sure there are plenty of blankets, warm socks and clean slippers to offer.
- Doing ok on coffee and tea to serve guests? Or to keep yourself caffeinated while you cook?
- Need to write any Thanksgiving cards to mail out soon?
- Visit the bank or post office tomorrow or Wednesday, before the holiday, if needed.
TODAY’S PROJECT: Thanksgiving Prep
Use this time to pack, cook, bake, learn a new recipe, clean the house, write holiday cards, spend time talking about gratitude with your children, read books together, have a game night with your family, sort the pantry, go shopping, or do other pre-holiday things you might need to get done.
Don’t forget to build yourself in a little “sit down and relax” time, whether you spend it in a hot bath, a rocking chair, a cafe you snuck away to for 45 minutes, or on your couch idly flipping through magazines.
I’m throwing a very small, very cozy “pre-Thanksgiving” dinner party the night before Thanksgiving. It’s for friends who aren’t leaving Seattle for the holiday, but who are spending Thanksgiving hosting at their own homes. I won’t see them on Thanksgiving, so I thought it would be fun to hang out casually the night before. Most of us are organized enough we’ll have our holiday prep done so we can relax on Wednesday evening. I’ll serve healthy food that has nothing to do with the types of foods we’ll eat the next day. I’m thinking strawberries, veggies and dip, salad and fresh orange slices. Just keeping it simple.
So my tasks are vacuuming, cleaning some muddy dog paw prints off the floors, spritzing the house with fragrance spray, and tidying the guest bathroom.
LOVELY BLOGS: Historic Cooking School
What an intriguing idea for a blog. I can’t believe I haven’t seen this blog until today. It covers vintage kitchens, old cookbooks, and cooking lessons. Learn how to make an 1880s cranberry recipe, how maple syrup is made, and what to do with acorns.
LOVELY FOOD: Chocolate Turkeys
L.A. Burdick is selling these adorable chocolate turkeys for Thanksgiving. A box of four costs just $15.
http://historiccookingschool.com/
LOVELY MOVIES: Jane Eyre
I initially wasn’t too excited about the thought of yet another Jane Eyre adaptation. But then I became intrigued because Mia Wasikowska (who played Alice in Tim Burton’s film) stars. Also Jamie Bell, the cute little boy from “Billy Elliott,” all grown up. Judi Dench should be so much fun to watch as Mrs. Fairfax, too. The film will hit the big screen in the spring.
LOVELY READS: An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving
This is Louisa May Alcott’s classic short story. It’ll make you hungry as you read it!
An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving, at About.com
Skating With the Stars, at ABC
LOVELY LINKS FOR TODAY
Best Places for Holiday Travel (MSNBC)
Breastfeeding Mothers Use Facebook for Milk Sharing (Time)
Butternut Squash (Old-Fashioned Living)
Laid Back Guide to Thanksgiving (CNN)
Mixed Mushroom Soup (101 Cookbooks)