03 | December | 2008 | AuburnChick's Adventures

Christmas Memory #3

Posted on December 3, 2008 by auburnchick

When I went to Target yesterday, I picked up a bag of Andes Candies.

This leads to my next holiday memory…

Day 3 – Holiday Memory

I mentioned yesterday how, after my mom remarried, we were better off financially. Well, better finances meant Christmas parties! Boy did they throw some big ones too! I especially remember one in particular. We lived in Colorado, so we experienced the full effect of snow and Christmas. One of my favorite things about the parties was the food. What a delightful array of stuff that was not part of the menu on regular days.

Mom worked feverishly on her specialty items…coconut balls, sausage balls, and other scrumptious yummies. There were trays of deli meats and all of the fixings for petite sandwiches. My favorite thing, though, was the egg nog. Oh my goodness! Such a sweet concoction!

Interspersed throughout the house were candy dishes filled with Andes Candies, as I call them. They are the thin mints that you sometimes find on your pillow if you go on cruises.

This candy used to only be sold during Christmas. I believe it’s sold year-around now, but I still limit myself to buying it during the Christmas season. I have a small wooden train that I fill up with the mints, and my children do not like for it to go empty.

Ahhh…the tradition continues…minus the parties, but who cares. The candy is what’s important here.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: Andes Candies, christmas, thin mints | 2 Comments »

How To Wrap a Present – The AuburnChick Way

Posted on December 3, 2008 by auburnchick

Why do the days you spend at home pass so quickly, while the days you are stuck at work seem to creep by?

I thoroughly enjoyed my non-work day. I stayed in my robe until 10:00, when I had to make a mad dash to get lunch money to Rooster (yes, the kids forgot money AGAIN!) before his lunch at the ridiculous hour of 10:35. How in the world do they expect kids to concentrate the rest of the day after eating lunch so early? Who in the world wants to eat a chicken sandwich at that time of the day?

But I digress…

After dropping off the money and running from the office quickly lest I get put into a classroom by someone who assumed I was there to work, I drove to an antiques store to exchange a teapot I had purchased a few weeks ago for my mom. Here’s the one I brought home:

Teapot for One

You can take the teapot off, and then you have this:

Because the store was downtown and, thus, close to the law firm where I used to work, I decided to drop in and say hello. It was a little strange going back…dressed very casually in blue jeans and a sweat shirt while everyone else had on business attire. Still, it was good to see my friends.

After I left, I visited Target where I did a bit of miscellaneous shopping. I picked up a new roll of wrapping paper, tape, and a neat wrapping paper cutter (demo’d below). I also picked up a few propane tanks to replenish Mr. Heater. It was fun to browse without the crowds.

Then, the real fun began.

I went home, determined to wrap a few presents. Now, this was a big deal for me. I remember last year. I was desperately trying to put the finishing touches on a few papers while studying for finals. I barely got my shopping done in time, and presents were wrapped in a hurried fashion (with the ribbons, of course).

This year I’m doing better. I cannot believe how much freer I feel.

I thought it would be fun to show you how I wrap gifts, given my post yesterday.

Before I get started on the “how-to’s” of it all, remember that part of the fun is the suspense that the recipient will experience. In my home, it’s a running joke that you’re not getting what’s on the box. For example, I wrapped a gift for Rooster in the following box:

Rest assured that the boy will not be receiving a lamp for Christmas.

So, once you’ve found the proper box, you need the proper equipment. For this lesson, I used the ruffled hats and booties:

Next, you need wrapping paper, ribbon, tape, and a cutter:

I bought the gift wrap cutter with a $1 coupon I found on the box of tape I purchased.

The cutter works GREAT! It has a little slot where you insert the paper, cutter flush to the surface you are working on. Then, you just slide it across the paper. The back side has a slanted edge that you use to run the ribbon across, thus curling it.

Now, here’s a little something that makes my wrapping different from other people’s. When you’re taping the edges down, make sure you fold over the edge of the top layer that will be taped down. This gives a cleaner look to your package.