Lorihadams-- hi guys...been busy!

[Farmfresh]

My daughter got like 12 barbie dolls....nine of them are still in the boxes in the top of her closet....she hasn't even missed them.

We did a non electric xmas again. No toys or anything involving electricity for the kids.....puzzles, art supplies, dominoes, squinkies for Maddie and littlest pet shop and zoobles for tyler. He also got 3 nerf guns....a pistol, double barrel shotgun, and crossbow. He's gonna be set come hunting season next year....he's had lots of practice with his toy guns the last 2 days. Papa gave us a .22 that we will use to squirrel hunt with the kids.

My granny got us 2 cases of paper towels... I only use paper towels during hunting season when we process meat to absorb excess moisture prior to vacuum sealing. The rest of the year I use bar towels and homemade napkins.

So how was everybody's holiday?

The excess Barbie situation reminds me of when my girls were little. My mom (crazy old bat that she was) bought them about 10 Breyer collectible horses each when they were about 3 and 5. I let them pick two each to play with and we "put the rest away". Mom was sure they were stored to appreciate in value, but we had REAL needs at the time so I took the rest back to the store. Even back then those things were incredibly expensive. I had enough money to buy the girls new curtains, quilts, sheets and even bed ruffles for their bedroom with "horse money".

They were both really thrilled with a new fancy bedroom and never missed a single horse!

I also use towels and napkins around here, yet my MIL always bought me paper towel things. (Why do they seem so insistent?) I would just save the towels for really disgusting tasks, like cleaning up new puppy pee !

She asked me once about the fancy paper towel holder that she had bought me and did not see in use, so I took her down to the basement tool room and thanked her once again for the shop towel rack! After that she seemed to get a clue.

Christmas this year was great! Full of puppy piddle, family and friends. Having little kids at Christmas is exciting, but bigger kids are easier to shop for. This year my D1 and SIL got a roll of fencing and some replacement roof panels for their barn and my son got some clothes, a toaster oven and some cash to help pay bills from when he was unemployed.

Everyone in my whole pyromaniac family also got Blast-Match fire starters for their bug out bags!!

 

[Javamama]

scratching head over the cases of paper towels...

I'm so glad it's over too. Too much travel. Too much food. And now MIL thinks because i caved and went to 2 gatherings on 2 separate days (requiring out of town travel) that it will set a precedent for all the years to come It will NOT!

 

[lorihadams]

Now....let me explain the paper towel thing. My granny is a paper towel addict. She buys cases of the things from Sam's Club once a month. Toilet paper, paper plates, and tissues too. If there is ever a shortage and I'm desperate I know where to get some.

Every time she comes here to visit she brings paper towels with her. Seriously. Every time her 8lb chihuahua goes to the potty she wipes her butt and her feet with paper towels. Seriously. Well, she makes my papa wipe her. Now I love her but I guess everyone has to have their own eccentricity and paper products are hers.

 

[lorihadams]

Oh, and the food thing...someone please send my mother another memo stating that if more than one person in the house is GF then just make the whole dang meal GF. She made 2 of everything....one regular and one GF. Problem was there were about 15 side dishes and desserts, and then a turkey AND a ham. We had to eat dinner with our plates in our laps cause every square inch of space in the kitchen was covered with some sort of dish. Then we all had to keep asking her which were which.

 

[Farmfresh]

The multiple dish thing she should figure out after that one!

I even did this at first. I guess I was afraid that the GF food wouldn't be good enough for other people to like.

Now I have learned. Sometimes I will make one or two non-GF dishes and just warn the Celiacs in the room.

 

[lorihadams]

We had 2 banana puddings....2 batches of brownies.....2 batches of pancakes.....2 batches of sausage balls.....2 batches of gravy....it was retarded. I could go on and on. They make too much food every year anyway. Every time we have any function where we have to bring a dish my mother brings like 12....no, I'm not exaggerating.

For our xmas dinner Thursday night I made the turkey, sweet potatoes, grean beans, greens, and GF brownies. The kids wanted gingersnaps so I made those too and my MIL brought mac and cheese. There were 8 of us. I'm still eating leftovers. I DETEST throwing out food. When everyone leaves granny's house they leave all the food there and it is just my granny and papa. They can't eat it all and they end up tossing it in the trash. Such a waste. I took the GF brownies, sausage balls, and banana muffins home with me. She cooked like 3lbs of bacon Saturday morning....we had a whole ham and turkey, why cook all that bacon?

Shut up OFG, you're not helping....

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

I made gluten free Chrismas pudding this year, and it was a HUGE hit.
When we have company over, I do not go out of my way to make a gluten something for them.
GF food can be fabulous, and there is no reason to think otherwise

Lori, you'll just have to throw a GF banquet in a year or so, to get all their tastebuds drooling for that version food

 

[Farmfresh]

Every time we have any function where we have to bring a dish my mother brings like 12....no, I'm not exaggerating.

Too bad my mom is not still alive, we could have got the two of them together on things. When MY mom went to a function where she should bring a dish she would always bring a single stick of butter, or a sack of ice or two cans of pop ... and I am not exaggerating either. :/ Between the two of them we would have been good.

 

[Denim Deb]

Lori, how do you do fecals? That's something I've been wanting to learn how to do for a long time. And, how do you know what you're actually looking at? Plus, which type of microscope do you use? I have 2 different types, one that takes slides and a stereo microscope.

 

[lorihadams]

I don't rightly know how to do a fecal yet but I got the microscope and got ahead of myself

I assume you schmear some poo on a slide and hop to it.

Looks like this is gonna be my next research project....


I went hunting yesterday when hubby got home and had 6 does come across the field on the other side of the creek again They wouldn't cross over and get into an open spot so I had to watch them walk away.

I did have a really pretty owl fly across the field and land in the branch above my head....that was pretty cool! I'm paying for my little outing this morning though....my nose is all stopped up and I've been hovering over the teapot all morning so I can breathe.