*** Holiday Planning 2023 ***

[Harriet]

.
★˛˚˛*˛°.˛*˛°˛.*★˚˛*˛°.˛*˛°˛*★ Holiday *★* 。*˛.
˛★_██_*.。*../ ♥ \ .˛* .˛。.˛.*.★* Season Is *★ 。*
˛. (´• ̮•)*.°。*/♫.♫\*˛.* ˛_Π_____. ♥ On Its Way ♥ ˛* ˛*
.°( . • . ) ˛°˛/• '♫ ' •\.˛*/______/~＼*. ˛*.。˛* ˛.*。
* (...'•'.. )°*˛°╬╬╬╬╬˛°｜田田 ｜門｜╬╬╬╬╬*˚ .˛ ...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We're going to have to acknowledge the calendar! It is pointing the way!

There's already chat about decorating for Halloween, and about costuming, a month ahead!

If you're really on your game this year, maybe you're ALREADY looking at a holiday plan/calendar you enjoy and may have on hand.

We certainly miss our own CEO's site "Organized Home" on which she hosted the venerable Holiday Grand Plan (by Katie Leckey), The House and Holiday Plan, formerly known as The Houseworks Holiday Plan, and The Christmas Countdown, specifically for Christmas planning in just 6 weeks.

If you are using your own copies/notebooks of these, please let us in on how it's going. Or, let us know any other references you may have.

Whatever plans you have, please use this forum to enjoy posting about progress or frustrations!

Don't forget that if you choose to create handmade gifts and/or decor, that right beside this thread, the Art, Craft and Needlework thread posters definitely want to hear about your creativity!

To refer to your own previous thoughts, reminders, ideas, menus, we're blessed to still be able to do that through previous Holiday Planning threads. Just scroll down the Creative Home forum topics to find 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, etc.

[Nancy]

You would be interested in this I put a pumpkin on my porch for decor today!

[Harmony]

I put my fall wreath on the door and a clear plate with silk autumn leaves and little plastic real-looking gourds on the dining room table. More decorating than I've done in a few years!

[Harriet]

I'm planning to make some cute homemade treats for Trick or Treat children. Hopefully, there will be some funny things that everyone won't already have seen over and over! Definitely PG. Comedy, not drama.

I've ordered a very purple food coloring/flavor that is Ube (two syllables), which is purple sweet potato or yam. Thought that would be a conversation piece made into some kind of treats. Also, some sprinkles that include little eyes. Already had white candy melts.

I bought a top made of an allover leaf print - very orange, lol. I'll make a headpiece circled with either real leaves (free!) or some kind of colorful paper cut into leaf shapes. That will be the extent of my costuming.

Dd43 and dd25 are brainstorming going to a local fall festival with trunk-r-treat and indoor games Saturday evening. They would probably take only dd43's two youngest, and the young man might go since there's a hayride. I don't think it's my cup of tea.

[Nancy]

My family are making plans and getting a menu dgd has a spread sheet for the dishes who is bringing what.
I said I'd take veg. in my crock pot again this year.
Sometimes I do up a jello salad but it was not eaten last time because of so much food so I will get the stuff in case they want it but will wait to see if they ask. If not I enjoy it and I'll do a smaller one for me to have here.

[Harriet]

Thinking of Harmony's pretty front door and hoping she can get back to it soon!

The headpiece worked well for a costume without ruining a headband, and I put an explanation of how I attached to it in the A, C and N thread.

I made two kinds of orange cupcakes in cute paper liners -
melted witch was just a green frosting with candy eyes, looking out from under a hat made of a Bugle and half-Oreo. Those had been dipped into melted white candy pieces colored with the ube purple, rim sprinkled with sprinkles.
The second was malted milk ball spiders. The same dark purple candy was piped in "V" shapes onto wax paper, which, upside-down, made spider legs after they hardened. The spider sat on an orange cloud of frosting so the "knees" stood up when pushed into it a little.

I did not get around to the rice krispie treats, which was really fine. I was surprised how much time decorating cupcakes took. By the time you make pipe-able candy and also frostings and deal with dipping, eyes and sprinkles, the time flies.

Dd43 got her siblings in a text chat and decided on Christmas already. It surprised me that she said to ds it was his turn to host and he immediately texted back yes it was. They have a plan for the 23rd, I believe. I noticed ds is already working on his kid's lists in A-River.

As far as Thanksgiving, I don't think we can all get together. Dd43 and family will be at her in-law family.

[Nancy]

I have been bringing up items one at a time from the basement when I do my morning walk around down stairs.
I am making progress on it now just the mini tree and a few more items to come up.

Talked with dsis about some ideas for family where she is the meat and cheese option & some friends who are talking about the
home made bread she might do mini loaves could be wrapped with cellophane or on a saucer maybe on a breadboard even in a basket.
She might take em for bingo prizes too.

[Nancy]

Got those items in a tote I emptied out.
Have gotten some fun serving trays the metal ones in red and white will be great for deviled eggs,
meats cheeses, cookies snacks or whatever.
Also found a tree shaped pan with the label still on it for fun times doing what ever a person would want it to hold.

I got out my Christmas themed art books for inspiration.
Got a "Teas of Christmas" book I luv that one I've had one before & gave it away.
Got the Gooseberry Patch Christmas edition vol. 3 today while I was out thrifting as well.
Those are always fun to browse through.

Plus a red pc brief case type carry bag also would work for books, needle work or planners!
I luv bags!

I have fabric in Christmas prints too. Hoping to get to them next month, I need to order zippers to go with those.
Last year I got myself an assortment of teas like 40+ tea bags.
I liked it so much and my sis had just gotten her self an electric teapot so I ordered one for her her birthday is this mo.
I have 99 percent of the holiday decor for Christmas upstairs now.

[Nancy]

Holiday Grand Plan comes up on my fb feed.
Do you all have any fun type holiday traditions books or movies you always like?
I like the gooseberry patch ones and tea one.
I mentioned in an earlier post.
Snow themed one for kids about a mitten comes to mind.

[Harriet]

Dstepdil is having us over for Thanksgiving. She is frustrated that dd25 can't get her in-law family to agree on a time, so that dd25 doesn't know if she can go to dstepson's and dstepdil's even for a part of the time. Oh well, I can't tend to everybody's business. I do understand the in-laws, since family is traveling to get to them and may not be able to say exactly when they can be there.

I've been doing more thinking about gift making. There is one I'd really like to give - a large size hot pad rectangle of many squares. I did decide on some restrictions on myself IF it was something I tried, so that I wouldn't just perfectionist myself to death.

Dd25 keeps promising she'll work on card art for us, but with the new rush to get presents for the in-laws for their early gift-giving, it keeps getting pushed back.

Would really love to have a tree this year that is more like an actual tree-size tree, but that is dependent upon better storage here and another project that keeps getting pushed back. (smile)

If things don't work out on some hopes, it's okay. It's still meaningful.