I am doing NaBloPoMo this month. 30 blog posts in 30 days. Come join me. #nablopomo2020
FEELING | so relieved and elated that Joe Biden (and Kamala Harris) won the presidency. This was definitely the highlight of this month. I’ve never been one with a nervous stomach, but I am not exaggerating when I say that my heartburn stopped the day when they announced Biden as the next president-elect.
ENJOYING | the mix of running, cycling, yoga, and strength training that I’ve been shaping into a solid at-home workout routine these last few months (thanks to the Peloton app).
EATING | homemade Vinschgauer rolls. They’re a specialty from South Tyrol, the region of Northern Italy where I went skiing every winter when I was growing up. The rolls are mostly made with rye flour and spices, such as fennel and caraway seeds and they taste amazing. Jon was a bit skeptical at first (the scent of fennel and caraway seeds can be a bit overwhelming) but he said they were absolutely delicious, which is true! Also, soup!
DRINKING | (big pots of) peppermint tea. I got my big thermal carafe out of the garage for the winter months.
FOCUSING ON | making this holiday season extra special. Jon and I are (kinda) used to not always being able to see family for the holidays, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t sad that this year, it wasn’t even an option on the table. After our summer plans had been canceled, I had for sure hoped that we could have made plans for Christmas, but with COVID raging around the country, we are not going anywhere.
LOVING | the fall temperatures and the first rain. I am ready for the cooler season now. Bring it.
PLANNING OUT | my Christmas shopping. I’ll be keeping it pretty simple and light this year (I think), as I will do most, if not all of my shopping online.
TRYING | to come up with a game plan for our holiday cards. Are you sending cards this year? (If you’ve been around, you know I’ll be having a roll call a little later this month (so I can gather and/or update your addresses!)
WEARING | yoga pants all day, every day.
PURCHASING | a meat grinder attachment for my Kitchenaid Mixer, plus a cookie press attachment, so I can finally make my own “spritz cookies” for Christmas this year. I am beyond excited. I’ve been talking about it for years, never made the purchase because my Mom usually sent me a Christmas package with spritz cookies, so I didn’t have to make my own, but since this is definitely not happening this year, it was time to invest. Real German Spritzgebäck (spritz cookies) are made with chilled dough and you need a meat grinder and attachment to get them in the right shape. Cookie presses won’t cut it.
READING | Separated by Jacob Soboroff, who has documented Trump’s infamous zero-tolerance, migrant family separation policy. If it’s on your to-read list, buckle up! This is some tough sh*t.
EXCITED | to be hosting the 5th annual Secret Santa (Mug) Swap 2020 again this year. If you missed the post, you can find all the details here. You have until tonight to sign up if you’re interested in participating. I’ll be sending out the info to the swap participants tomorrow! I’d love for you to join us!
What is currently going on with you?
I think we will do new year cards this year. Too much going on with the birth of the baby in early December! It’s the best time of the year for mail so I look forward to the arrival of others’ cards!
I’m currently anxiously waiting for our covid test results. We all got tested yesterday morning because Paul had a runny nose and I had a runny nose/sore throat. Those are the most common symptoms for covid but we figure we need to be extra careful. Our only place for exposure is daycare so if we test positive, that’s where we got it… But hopefully it’s just a common cold. Our numbers are so bad here that we’ve decided to keep Paul home until after delivery. He was going to keep going until this coming Tuesday but we decided to keep him home for an extra week. It’s going to be a long couple of weeks, though…
Ugh, I hope your tests come back negative. That’s scary.
Good morning my sweet friend! Always nice to read what’s going on in your neck of the woods. It is a different and difficult year for so many but I love that you are looking on the bright side and figuring out a new normal for this year.
Also I’ve never felt as elated as I did when they announced the Biden/Harris win ❤️ Thank goodness for some happy news to come from 2020!
And I’ve never heard of spritz cookies (or that bread!). Both sound delicious!!
The Biden/Harris win truly was the highlight of this majorly shitty year.
You’ve never heard of Spritz cookies??? Ask your mom about them please!
Those Vinschgauer look great! Any chance you’d share the recipe? My husband loves them as well but when we buy them in Franken they just aren’t quite the same. :)
I’ll send you the recipe via email! :) Thanks for stopping by!
Those rolls sound so interesting! And YASSS for bread and soup weather!
You know we are sending cards! I will have to sign up when you do your roll call!
Currently… had a great run this am and found a re-hid a rock in the preserve!
Yes, please add your address to the list when I do the roll call. Would love to add you!
This may have been a really, really shitty year for so many people but that Biden/Harris win is the bright light we needed! YES!!
Separated sounds like such an interesting book, but an incredibly hard topic. I’ll have to be in the right frame of mind to read it!
It’s an important book, but incredibly dense and heavy read. I still recommend it (for some time, when you’re in the right mood).
I am dreading the decision on what to do with Christmas this year. We usually spend it with my parents and sister in our country home but since they are not to strict about staying home I am not so sure… but being all by ourselves and going to church alone (if that is even possible) does sound a bit sad to me. What do you do on Christmas once the eating and unwrapping is done?
We’ve celebrated Christmas alone for a few years in a row now and we’re getting “good” at it. We eat, we unwrap a couple of presents (and save some for Christmas Day, as is the American tradition) and then we make hot chocolate and we light candles and watch a holiday movie on Christmas Eve. It’s actually quite nice.
Great blog, so nice to land here via NaBloPoMo as part of Melisa’s round up, and catch up on some of your posts! You have a great community here with comments and exchanges that remind me of old school blogging. I can’t believe we are looking at December around the corner , snowing today for the first time that I think it will stick -looking at decorating the house for the holidays, which will be much quieter than usual this year .
Hi Karen, thanks for stopping by! Oh, the good old times of blogging… how I miss them.
Love so much of this. I felt exactly the same when Biden & Harris won… although, as you know, the ongoing attempts to subvert democracy have kept me fairly anxious. Sigh. Apparently Republicans don’t have brains OR spines. Makes you wonder how they stay upright…
I read your reply, above, where you wrote about how you typically spend Christmas Eve. That sounds lovely… I really need to do more, as I don’t have lights or a tree! I might have to splurge on some lights this year. They’re so cheerful… and can stay up through what promises to be a long, cold winter.
So sorry you cannot see your families, and that it wasn’t even an option. I completely get it. Not an option for me, either. I know we’ll get through, it’s just not easy when you can’t even make the choice!
I am so with you on hearing Biden/Harris one, and now that they are FINALLY moving the process along, I am even more relaxed. We have a long road to go, but I see good things happening. I love Spritz cookies – I’m sure I’ve never had the original German version, but I grew up with Spritz cookies (as did my mom) and I can’t wait to eat some this year.
-Lauren
I’m SUPER thrilled about Biden-Harris (and like your heartburn going away, I started sleeping better almost immediately, even with the continued shenanigans of the current administration).
I just finished my first cross stitch project in twenty years. (Had to wear readers and use a bright light to get it done because it’s been twenty years, but I did it!)
I’m getting ready to wrap Hanukkah and Christmas gifts soon. I finished my shopping very early this year, trying my best to support local and small online shops (but I still had to fill in with Amazon, since I’m not going into any physical stores).