Whoosh, Christmas Day has come and gone, but I am very glad to hold to the 12-day Liturgical Season of Christmas and happily enjoy my carols, tree and other decorations for another 9 days 😊.
Brian brought my tree late last Saturday afternoon and I was able to decorate it while cooking dinner. My fears about Thomason and the tree have been (so far!!) unfounded as he has shown little interest in the actual tree although has twice tried to get behind it and grab Mandu who thinks she is invisible when sitting there on the radiator. Apart from losing a few pine needles when Thomason pushed into the corner the tree has stood proudly and has been a particularly fragrant balsam, I just love coming downstairs in the morning and enjoying its fragrance.
There was very little office work this week. I did need to make a few trips to the bank with end of the year donations and some late payments that had to be deposited but otherwise CTM email correspondence ground to a halt and I’m expecting the coming week to be the same; a blesséd time of respite between the seasons.
Sadly, I did not receive the expected visit from my Godsons and the parcels containing the Newfoundland mittens I knit for them are still sitting in a basket under the tree. When they reached Ottawa their mother discovered that the van needed repairs, then it was Christmas Eve and Day, then we had an ice storm, and today they fly back to Winnipeg. It is very disappointing, as I haven’t seen the boys since last August and do not know when they will next be back East.
I did have several other visitors. Christmas Eve morning Jillian and her husband Victor came for morning coffee, Christmas Day Alexander, Sarah and baby Serena came for breakfast and later that morning my 4th Godson, Tighe came with his Mum, brother and sister so that he could open his gift (Nfld. Trigger Mittens 😊).
Otherwise the week has been peaceful with time for reflection, lots of knitting (more mittens!!) and listening to lovely Christmas music. Steven (who until recently boarded with me) sent me YouTube links to 2 Christmas concerts he had attended in Halifax and I very much enjoyed watching those, even spotting him and his family in the audience 😊
I shall be doing a little baking this afternoon to stock up on shortbread and I’m also boiling up a giant pot of food for Thomason. Yesterday we were unable to leave the house due to the ice storm but this morning we managed to trek up to the grocer and I brought home a very heavy pack basket of provisions to replenish the pantry. Unfortunately a blizzard is predicted for Monday so I’m not sure when I will make it to the grocer again thus this afternoon Thomason and I will make another trip for a few more items too heavy to add to this morning’s basket.
Since it is now time to break for lunch I’ll finish this up later this afternoon…
Hmm, almost dinner time. This afternoon I took Thomason for another long walk, stopped at the grocer and got brown rice for his batch of food, made Wholemeal Shortbread and Chocolate Shortbread Fingers, mended a quilt and now my attention needs to turn to supper. With the shortbread baking in the oven I think a Yorkshire Pudding is in order, with a salad and some nice gravy.
Before I go to get that ready, here is my recipe for Wholemeal Shortbread. It is really nice served with a strong cheddar and some juicy red grapes 😊
Wholemeal Shortbread
- 1 cup unbleached flour
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour
- ¼ cup oat bran
- ½ tsp. salt
- 12 Tbsps. butter, at room temperature
Place the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Add the butter and process for approx. 2 minutes or until a smooth dough is formed. Press the dough into a 9” spring-form pan. Bake for 30 minutes in a 300º oven. Remove from the oven and prick decoratively with a wooden skewer then score with a sharp knife into 8 pieces. Return to the oven for a further 15 minutes. Cool on a rack then remove from the pan.