November ends. December begins, with its month full of dark nights, wintry cold, seasonal holidays, festive parties, and family gatherings.
Let’s be sure to have some fun tonight or this week before the crowds completely make restaurants and malls unbearable. And before we get wrapped up (so to speak) in holiday preparations and all the busy times ahead.
QUICK THINGS TO DO TODAY:
- Need to send any thank-you notes?
- Look over your past month. Did you achieve goals you set for yourself? (Whether they involve personal growth, housekeeping, crafting, cooking, socializing, de-cluttering, travel, book-reading, journaling, etc?)
- Make a meal that cleverly helps you use up your last leftovers from Thanksgiving.
- If you’re wearing slippers at night a lot, do you need to launder them? They can get sweaty and a bit smelly. How about your family members?
- Try to remove two items from your bathroom counter and store them somewhere else.
TODAY’S PROJECT: Pick-A-Spot Cleaning
I don’t want to involve myself in an enormous project, since I’m working today and trying to make time to go out in the evening. So I’m going to pick the very worst spot of my house and work on improving it.
Right now the worst spot is my downstairs living room. I’ve let some of my eBay things creep into the room, and it’s very dusty from having the dogs wander in and out of the door. I need to vacuum, dust the TV and the stand it sits on, dust the bookcase and lamps, mop the dog’s bathroom floor, and launder the slipcovers on my two couches, then put them back on the couch and fluff the pillows. I also need to wipe off the red acrylic tray I use to keep remotes and beverages on.
That way when I get home tonight, I come back to a nice clean fresh room to watch TV and cuddle the puppies in!
LOVELY BLOGS: Teenie Cakes
Teenie Cakes started off as a blog about muffins and cupcakes, but has since grown to include desserts and dishes for entertaining. I think you’ll enjoy the gorgeous food photography here, as well as recipes for pecan pie cakelets, cranberry orange coconut muffins and cauliflower gratin
LOVELY BOOKS: Home Economics
“Vintage Advice and Practical Science for the 21st-Century Household” is a charming book of reproductions from vintage homemaking books and magazines. It approaches homemaking as a domestic science, and provides charts, recipes, and advice on economy. I think this is a great gift book for people interested in homemaking and retro living. And the illustrations are so charming!
LOVELY FOOD: Vosges Marchesa Collection
The new Marchesa Truffle Collection might be a perfect gift for the fashionista in your life. The attractive packaging shows a chic woman, and the truffles are topped with edible real freshwater pearl dust.
LOVELY LINKS FOR TODAY:
Before You Volunteer Abroad, Think What Harm You Might Do (The Guardian)
Dazzling Holiday Cakes & Cupcakes (Better Homes & Gardens)
De-Stress After the Holidays With Luxury for Less (MSNBC Travel)
Eat to Beat Colds and the Flu (Canadian Living)
Little Frosty Christmas Cakes (BBC Good Food)
A Sophisticated Slushie: Granita for Grownups (NY Times)