Tuesday Thoughts

Hello, friends. If you read our latest Saturday Selections, then you know already that Mom and I are on a cruise this week. Don’t worry…….we’re not alone. We have our husbands, Little Miss, and Yankee’s parents along for a pre-Christmas get-away. We are in the Caribbean and left out of San Juan. These islands are in need of tourists and their dollars, and we are happy to do our fair share.  Mom and I are writing this post together, and she will start it out with her thoughts.

 

Have you heard of Book Bub? I have been using it for a while. It’s an email service that offers free and very cheap ebooks for your ereaders.  When you sign up, you select the types of books  you enjoy reading, and then you get a daily email that lets you know when books in your favorite genres are on sale or free at different venues. It is free to sign up, you can read the books on any reader, and the books are yours to own.

 

In case you are wondering why you haven’t gotten a full-house tour of our homes decked out for Christmas, here’s why.  First off, we are gone this week, plus we will be gone another week this month.  Neither of us could see the point in doing a lot of decorating when we really won’t be home very much to enjoy it.  Remember, we try to keep it real for you and try not to do a bunch of stuff just for the blog.  Also, there are such elaborate decorations already out there in blogland, that we just can’t measure up to.  And, frankly, since people have been posting their Christmas decorations since early November, you are probably sick of them by now.  We have enjoyed doing some little crafts, though and sharing them with you.  In fact, we have one ready for tomorrow.

Little Miss has really gotten the Christmas spirit.  She has been enjoying her advent calendar, singing Christmas songs, wearing Christmas outfits, and watching Christmas movies.  Last year it was all so new to her, but she understands it this year and is filled with excitement.  It’s such a joy for us to watch, and we love Facetiming with her twice a day.  We get to talk to her during her breakfast and during her afternoon snack.  She is quite the conversationalist and asks good questions.

 

 

This is the home of Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban which is for sale in Tennessee.  Here’s the tour.  It’s refreshing to see that it almost looks like a normal house…..almost.  Obviously, the clutter has been cleared out, and I plan to clear a whole bunch of clutter after Christmas.

And speaking of Tennessee, if you are into antique shows, then you might want to mark your calendar for February 2 – 4 for the Antique and Garden Show of Nashville.  The keynote speaker is Charles Spencer, who is the late Princess Diana’s brother.  He will be talking about Althorp, the family home.  (By the way, his wife is American.)  This is part of what the website says, “For over 500 years, 19 generations of the Spencer family have resided at Althorp. Join us as Charles, 9th Earl Spencer, discusses the story of Althorp and the family whose driving passions have included art and priceless antiquities, culminating in one of the finest collections in the world. Hear how Earl Spencer navigates the blend of rich family history and the demands of running a modern estate visited by thousands.”  Some of my friends and I already have our tickets.

 

 

Jordan and I have been using Allrecipes.com since she was in college.  In fact, she introduced me to it.  My mother gets their magazine, and I think she got tired of my cutting out all of the good recipes because she subscribed for me.  I have shared many of their recipes here on the blog, and so if you like good food magazines, you might want to check it out.  Now, here is Jordan with her thoughts.

Yankee got one of these the other day, and it is awesome to have on hand.  This is an all in one patch kit.  You just need this little tube and you can smooth the goo and then sand once it dries.  It’s so clever and practical, and it has been used to fill some drywall holes around our place already.

 

 

My book club did an ornament exchange last week, and I decided to DIY my ornament.  Thanks to my silhouette cameo for a Christmas gift one year,  I was able to make this little ornament.  Oh, and did you know coasters make the best base for an ornament.  I bought these silver ones at World Market.

 

Cheers!

 

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