Monthly Archives: November 2011

Nov 23

Thanksgiving Prep: Day 3

Wednesday:

Glasses: check, grubby house cleaning clothes: check, I am not leaving the house today!

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I’m way happy about it too!

This morning I got to sleep in… I got to rest until 6:45 a.m., and it was awesome. The kids slept in too, it was a total Thanksgiving blessing. I loved not having to get up and get everyone out in the cold weather. Thade was concerned when he asked “what are we going to do today” and I answered “nothing, enjoy your vacation”. He still doesn’t know what to do with his new found free time.

I’ll be working though. Today I’ll be cleaning the main living areas of the house and the bathrooms too. I don’t have to have everything perfect though, my Mom and Brother don’t mind. I like that too, the stress has melted away this holiday (and that’s pretty rare for me).

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To Do List:

  1. Prep the dishes. I’m cooking today what I can, and I know it is silly, but I like to arrange the non-perishable items in the dish that they will be cooking in. That way I know I have enough pots and pans to get the job done.
  2. Wash the potatoes, and prepare the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Dip
  3. Write up my cooking/baking order list for tomorrow. I have a lot to cook, and I want to make sure I have my timing down.
  4. Put away seven loads of laundry, empty the upstairs trash cans, and dust the surfaces.
  5. Clean the bathrooms too, and take out the trash
  6. Line the baking pans for the Turkey and Ham
  7. Wash up any dishes that we are using for tomorrow, make sure they are neat and tidy.
  8. Quick clean the kitchen and put away any unnecessary items. Crock Pots and bread maker to the top shelves to make extra room for tomorrow.
  9. Make turns 3 and 4 on the Croissants, line the baking sheets for proofing and baking tomorrow
  10. Get some gazelle time in, I have less stress when I exercise a bit and keep my mind occupied
  11. Dinner is extra easy tonight, thank goodness
  12. Take the pie crusts out of the freezer so they can defrost, and make sure there is plenty of ice
  13. I think that’s good, get ready for tomorrow

The kids are all home today too, and they boys are being pretty good so far… Agnes and I are hanging out, and she is enjoying some pancakes.

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She is in a pretty cheerful little mood today.

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I got the Vanilla mints finished last night, and I got my arm work-out first thing this morning.

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Turn 2 is done on the Croissants, turn 3 will be done this afternoon, and turn 4 after dinner. I’m baking them first thing tomorrow morning.

Time to get to the cleaning…

Till tomorrow,

nicole

Nov 22

Thanksgiving Prep: Day 2

Tuesday:

Today is Thade’s last day at school for the week, and I feel a little rushed this morning. He is really excited to go to the Thanksgiving feast, and the weather isn’t too friendly today. It is cold and rainy, and Dylan is bummed that he is done with school for the week. Agnes isn’t too happy about getting out this morning. Thankfully after 3:00 p.m. we are in for the week.

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I ran a little late last night folding laundry, and triple checking the shopping list. My stomach still hurts from the new meds, so it is hard to make a shopping list full of food… I think I’ve got it all together though, my goal for Tuesday’s shopping trip is to get everything we need for the next seven days. I don’t want to have to go back to the store until everyone is back in school.

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James was super sweet, and brought me breakfast. It was unbelievably good too. He brought me a Sausage Cheese Biscuit from the Donut Station and it was crazy tasty!

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I was super hungry too. I had been working on the Croissant dough.

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To Do List:

  1. Clean the litter-box, I slacked off yesterday and didn’t get that chore accomplished
  2. Take out the trash, tomorrow is trash day, and I don’t want to forget it (better get this done early)
  3. Get the turkey into the fridge to thaw. I use just a bone-in Turkey Breast, it is simple to make, and tasty too.
  4. Cut up the veggies for the veggie tray, and stock too.
  5. Grocery shop, get it all for the next week. Wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving too, and best wishes if they have to work on Friday.
  6. Organize the kitchen, and get all of the extras put away. My kitchen is extra cramped this week, I’m cooking ahead, and stocking up, and losing my mind in the mess
  7. Incorporate the butter in the Croissant dough, and make the first turn. I’ve still got two more days of rolling, turning, and hoping that they turn out just right.
  8. Wash and fold three loads of laundry
  9. Make the Vanilla mints for Thanksgiving (I’ll be doing this while watching the debate with James)
  10. Round up all of the pots, pans. and baking dishes that I will be using to make dinner, and give them a quick wash.
  11. Make extra ice for Thanksgiving
  12. Get pizza! We have a new pizza place that just opened, and this week is a great time to try it out. I’m going to take all of the help I can get.
  13. Relax, call it a night, and hope that the kids sleep in tomorrow.

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My arms hurt.

Till tomorrow,

nicole

Nov 21

Thanksgiving Prep: Day 1

Two posts in one day! I was going to share some of my tips and hints for holiday cooking and hostessing, but I just couldn’t get the wording right. I decided instead to do a little daily journal of what I’m doing to get ready for Thanksgiving. I’ll hopefully have one up every day until the big turkey day.

Monday:

I’m using the little time that I have… Dylan is in school for the morning (his only day this week) and Agnes is napping. I’m putting away laundry, and washing up a quick three loads of laundry. I stopped to do a little exercise on my new gazelle, and flipped on the Cooking channel to give me some motivation to get started. 30 minutes on the gazelle done, and I’ve decided on a pastry

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To Do List:

  1. Finalize the Thanksgiving menu
  2. Check with attending guests, and see what they are bringing (that way there aren’t any duplicates)
  3. Write up the shopping list, and add coupons if I can. I am shopping for the next full week, I don’t want to have to go back to the store until after next Monday. I’m going to try and avoid the Black Friday crowds entirely.
  4. Start the Croissant dough, first proof in the fridge
  5. Make the pie crust, and put it in the freezer
  6. Clean out the freezer and clean out the fridge too.
  7. Take out the trash, and take care of any icky chores (litter-box)
  8. Wash the dishes, and pay the bills. With the kids home from school I don’t have much time on the computer, so I had better get anything that I have to pay close attention to done today.
  9. Fold the three loads of laundry tonight after taking Thade to Tae Kwon Do
  10. Watch some Football and call it a night

This week I’m keeping our meals simple, and with minimal leftovers. I’m going to need the extra space in the fridge for Thanksgiving dishes. I’m also taking the help on Tuesday, and checking out the new pizza place!

Till tomorrow,

nicole

Nov 21

Turkey Time!

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Thanksgiving has to be one of my favorite holidays (right next to Halloween)! I love to cook, and cook extra big for the holiday. I also like to stay home, so I love to treat my out-of-town guests to an extra tasty meal.

Getting it all together can be a bit tricky. There is a lot of planning involved. I start back in Spring making a Turkey a month. I know it sounds silly, but there is a method to my madness. I only have the one oven, and lots of dishes to prepare. Starting earlier in the year helps me get my timing down, and we can eat for a week on those turkey leftovers. I also test out any new recipes way in advance. I’ll bake a few extra pumpkin pies during the Summer and Autumn months too, trust me, you do not want to have a pumpkin pie failure on Thanksgiving.

I luck out though, James loves Thanksgiving, so he doesn’t mind having a mock-Thanksgiving dinner a few times a year. The turkey freezes well too, and you can make a crazy amount of Turkey stock to use for other dishes.

This week the kids are out of school, so I am getting as much as I can done in advance. I only have this morning to myself, so I am starting the most time consuming dish Fresh Croissants. I’ll start thawing the turkey tomorrow, and finish any shopping too.

I’ll do a quick clean of the downstairs living areas and bathroom too before any guests arrive. I’ll also prep any dishes that I can the day before. I’m excited though, I can’t wait to get started!

So what is your favorite part of Thanksgiving?

Nov 19

On The Road To Wellness

I started one of my prescriptions today. I’m allergic to penicillin, so I’m on a different type of antibiotic. I can’t be out in the sun, and just sitting at my desk, I got a pretty good sun-burn.

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So far my stomach hasn’t hurt, so I can totally deal with the rosy cheeks. I’m feeling so much better though. Thanks again to all for the get well wishes.