Category Archives: holidays

The Fairies! They’re Back!

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Have you wondered what happened to the Fabled Fairies of Thanksgiving? They made an appearance several years ago, along with a Butterball turkey. Last year we went to Grandma’s for Thanksgiving. I hope the fairies travel over the river and through the woods to wherever you need them.

 Thanksgiving Dinner? No problem! I’ll call in the fairies. They’ll do everything.

The laundry fairy washes, dries, and presses the table linens, including the cloth napkins. If she’s feeling generous, the sheets and towels might get folded, too.
The turkey fairy will practice her specialty and make sure the bird is cooked and carved just in time for dinner. White meat and dark, it’ll all be moist and savory and leave just enough leftovers for sandwiches and a turkey noodle soup.
The baker fairy will take care of pies, pumpkin and otherwise. He’s an expert on flaky crust, selected spices, and the perfect portion of whipped cream. Don’t let that Simple Simon guy get in the way; the kitchen’s too small for anyone who begs to taste the wares.
The brownie — the cunning little house elf — will clean the home thoroughly, put the leaf in the big table, and get the extra chairs out of the basement.
I wouldn’t dream of neglecting the wine fairy: the sommelier so tiny she only recommends, never lifts, a bottle. Her taste is impeccable. Now if we could stop her before she over-imbibes and falls asleep on top of the piano…
Did I mention the decorator fairy? She’ll fix the fireplace mantel with something tasteful and seasonal before she makes sure the couch and rocker are properly arranged for the annual holiday gladiator contests known as NFL football.
The ambiance fairy keeps the wood fire crackling in the fireplace, the aromas wafting deliciously through the home, and the family discussions neutral and apolitical.
The kitchen fairies: really, there must be a whole crew of these talented sprites. One to do the shopping early and avoid the crowds, another to make sure the cranberries are perfect (and local, of course), and a magical maestro with the potato masher. Then we’ll need a feisty fairy, one with attitude — yes, you, Tinkerbell, you can make the coffees.

Mom, you can send the fairies over to my house now that we’re hosting the annual family Thanksgiving dinner. Let them know that I’ll have their room ready and their favorite cookies baked. If they arrive on Sunday there should be enough time to get everything done.

Wait. What do you mean…they’re…not….real?

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Veterans’ Day

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In honor of Veterans’ Day, I offer you an encore post from a different holiday – Memorial Day. Enjoy.

Every year we start Memorial Day by throwing our lawn chairs in Amigo’s bike basket and hitting the road for half a block to stake our claim on a good place to watch the parade. Seriously, it’s half a block from our home. We watch from the front yard, and when the police are putting the traffic barriers up, we head over and park ourselves in the road under our favorite shade tree. Here’s Amigo and MIL cheering on the municipal city band. Chuck? He was relaxing.

Amigo didn’t look excited to see my alma mater march past. Well, at least he applauded.
I tried to get my neighbor’s son in this shot with his baritone – instead, it looks like part of the seventy-six trombone section from Music Man.
And then we went home. Home, to help out our “real live veteran in our front yard,” as Amigo put it. FIL didn’t want to struggle all the way down the street with his walker, so he settled under our mock cherry tree and read a book. We gave him a little flag next to his lawn chair so he could be part of the festivities.
Happy Memorial Day Veterans’ Day, everyone. May your family members in the services stay safe and return to you soon.

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Art in the Park and the Garden

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We are fortunate to live near a sizable park in the center of our fair city. This park plays host to a number of events, public and private. Family picnics, outdoor church services, 5K run-walks, and more take place here, about half a mile from our home.

One such event is Art in the Park. Participating artists show and sell their pieces all day. Food trucks set themselves up nearby and prepare for hungry crowds. Every year we go, and every year we see something wonderful. This year was no different.

This year's theme: ceramics

This year’s theme: ceramics

Art has value as art, and art can be practical and useful, too. I treated myself to a spoon rest for the stove – blue like my kitchen, and decorated with daisies, of course. Of course! The other pieces are ceramic stakes to label my herbs. “Chuck” has been asking me to label them for years because he gets rosemary and thyme mixed up (parsley and sage he can handle). These little stakes are beautiful, practical, and add a little art to the herb pots on the deck.

Oregano!

Oregano!

Rosemary!

Rosemary!

Thyme in a bottle!

Thyme!

The final purchase was, typical of my shopping prowess, a purse with Hmong needlework. It sort of matches my wallet. Well, maybe I should just say it coordinates with my wallet, another needlework piece.  Hmong work is detailed and colorful with repeated shapes and patterns. I wanted this one on sight.

So folks, here it is: Daisy’s visit to Art in the Park. Not shown: lunch, snacks, and gift(s) for family members who may read the blog. Giggle. 

Art in the Park goodies

Art in the Park goodies

The kettle corn in the back was fabulous. Nothing from the microwave can even come close. Even the foodstuffs were works of art.

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Independence Day!

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Long ago, a wise leader spoke these words as the Continental Congress adopted the first draft of a courageous document, the Declaration of Independence.

“I am apt to believe that it (Independence Day) will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival…It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, and sports, guns, bells, bonfires, illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward, forevermore.”

— John Adams, in a letter to his wife, Abigail

Amigo and I are home today. Our plan:

Watch Brewers Baseball in the morning (games and sports)

Patriotic Sing along at noon (shows, bells)

Grill burgers for supper (bonfires, perhaps?)

In general, relax.

Have a great holiday!

Top row: Chuck, Daisy
Front: Amigo, La Petite
Photo, of course, by La Petite.

Photo by La Petite originally posted in July of 2009 – worth a repeat

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The Holiday Roller Coaster finds a Level Track

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We, the whole family, have been on a roller coaster of emotions in the last month. This is one of those roller coasters that turned us upside down, swung our feet in the air, brought our stomachs to our throats and then suddenly dropped them down again. Then came a holiday weekend.

We decided to keep it simple. No travel, no major dinners, no large family gatherings.. Comfort food. Relaxation.

Chuck, the family Iron Chef, agreed on keeping it simple. He planned to get out the grill, weather permitting, and create a surf and turf. I baked a plain yellow cake in two rounds, and then Chuck made it into a bunny shape. Amigo enlisted La Petite and her friend to dye eggs. And that, my friends, was plenty.

Bunny!

Bunny!

Sometimes the best way to handle a potentially stress-filled weekend is to simply step away from the madness. We took a collective deep breath, said No to anything complex, and took care of ourselves.

That, my friends, is priceless.

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Art Unexpected

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You never know what kind of artistry will turn up at the O.K. Chorale. Easter brought a cake of Chuck’s design.

Bunny!

Bunny!

Bunny! Bunny!

Bunny! Bunny!

La Petite and Amigo and company colored eggs.

Eggs-actly perfect

Eggs-actly perfect

La Petite and company created a Jackson Pollock inspired work using the melting snow and the egg dye.

Performance Art, Ever Changing

Performance Art, Ever Changing

Easter was entertaining. I wonder what Mother’s Day will bring?

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Bunny Wisdom

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This list beats the heck out of learning life’s lessons in kindergarten. In a home like ours, it’s no surprise to find it in my archives. Here you are, readers; don’t worry, be hoppy.

Everything I Needed to Know I learned from the Easter Bunny

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

Walk softly and carry a big carrot.

Everyone needs a friend who is all ears.

There’s no such thing as too much candy.

All work and no play can make you a basket case.

A cute little tail attracts a lot of attention.

Everyone is entitled to a bad hare day.

Let happy thoughts multiply like rabbits.

Some body parts should be floppy.

Keep your paws off other people’s jellybeans.

Good things come in small-sugar coated packages.

The grass is greener in someone else’s basket.

The best things in life are still sweet and gooey.

An Easter bonnet can cover the wildest hare.

Krumpet says hello.

Krumpet says hello.

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That’s my wrapping story, and I’m sticking to it.

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Several years ago I vowed to stop buying wrapping paper. I didn’t say I’d never use it or reuse it, just that I wouldn’t buy any more.

  • Very little wrapping paper is recyclable.
  • Commercial gift wrap can’t burn in a fireplace, either; it releases too many chemicals.
  • Most wrapping paper will wrap one gift and then end up in the garbage.
  • Gift wrap costs add up. The shiny patterned paper is expensive.

Amigo doesn’t like the philosophy. In fact, he’ll only help me wrap if we’re using real gift wrap. I compromised by using gift wrap I’d rescued from the wastebasket when the school PTA cleaned their closet. We wrapped with rescued and reused papers, and the gifts look great.

He doesn’t object to my green version of gift tags. Every year we take stock of the previous year’s holiday cards, cut them apart creatively, and with the help of a little ribbon and a hole punch, turn those cards into unique and lovely gift tags that cost nothing but a little time. We’ve done this since before he was born; maybe that’s why it feels natural to him.

We’re a little behind on the wrapping process this year. My limited mobility meant less shopping in town and more shopping online, and then facing the challenge of gathering all the trimmings and trappings in one place without overdoing the stairs. Luckily, Mother Nature provided me with a blizzard that cancelled school and gave me some quality time with Amigo to attack the wrapping task.

Thanks to my spreadsheet gift record and my online shopping prowess, the majority of the shopping is done. We need a few little things, and I might enlist Amigo in a short shopping trip Saturday to finish up. It’ll be a surgical strike, with a list we’ve made and checked twice, and we’ll come home and finish wrapping.

Maybe I can sneak some of my eco-friendly and frugal methods past my wrapping assistant that time. Or maybe not; after all, he reads my blog.

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Another Reason to be Thankful

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This could have gotten lost in last week’s holiday posts. It could have been mixed in with my friends and their Facebook “Thirty Days of Thanks” memes. It could have been buried by the busy-ness of a holiday week, when few regular readers have a chance to keep up with their favorite blogs. This piece didn’t get lost because I shared it initially with a small number of people. Now that the first in a long stream of holidays has gone its merry way, I’ll share this item with the rest of the world.

Background: I composed the first draft for our national blog last year, but it wasn’t really suitable for what was needed at the time. The marketing folks who run the web sites contacted me on Monday and said, Hey, Daisy, can we run it this week? With a few minor changes, it will make an excellent post for a Thanksgiving theme.

Of course I said yes. The revisions were, as they said, few. My content was still mine and still sounded like my voice on paper. So, folks, don’t be shocked by the picture (I’m not a smiley coffee mug in real life) or the real name. Follow the link below for my most recent contribution to the Connections Academy national blog..

I’m thankful for a wonderful job in a rewarding and evolving field. Read the entire story here.

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