I started early yesterday morning (Nov. 17) on Pumpkin Bread. I whipped up a batch and got seven mini loaves. I only bake three or four loaves at a time and I rotate them halfway through, turning the pans and moving the pans around on the oven rack. They turned out beautifully! I'm working on the next seven lovelies now. Mom sent the aluminum loaf pans in a care package. I had canned pumpkin left over from last year (thank goodness it has such a good shelf life!).
The kitchen smelled so good and the loaves look so tempting. Even Charlie said, "Bread!" So we had a slice each and put the rest of the loaves (enrobed in foil) in the freezer. They'll make great presents in December and I love having it on hand, to have with tea.
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| That's mine on the right! |
After all the Pumpkin Bread was baked and packed away, I went into town to shop for stocking stuffers for Lisa. It's another one of our traditions. I think we started soon after she got married in 1980. We decided that boyfriends and husbands (particularly ours) aren't much interested in Christmas stockings. Especially filling them with goodies. So, we decided to do stockings for each other! Mostly it's just Christmas paraphernalia - earrings, pens, playing cards, CDs, videos, coasters, candies, note pads, etc. Sometimes, there will be a surprise or something lavish. It's the idea of taking care of each other that we love, though. We both have the most fun filling the socks!
We talked on the phone about whether we should continue after I moved to England and, as usual, we both had the same wish - to carry on as normal! So, we have to get it done early and mail them to each other. Because each recipient has to stuff her own stocking hastily before bed on Christmas Eve, the stuffers have to be individually wrapped. It may be a corny tradition, but by still filling each other's socks, we fill our distant living rooms and hearts with the love and spirit of a sister. The cookies are the same way - only it all happens in the kitchen.
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