Raige Creations

Anisina  :  in memory of, in commemoration of, in remembrance of Thanks to everyone who suggested tunes for today's Music Monday!  Only one could be chosen, and the suggestion that we could ease into Monday over our coffe with this one made it the winner. It is an added bonus that Anisina is a special word, meaning: remembrance, memory, recollection . A perfect way to start this, for most of you, short week as we prepare for Thanksgiving.  Source: Pinterest Remember, those people who grate on your nerves this Thanksgiving could teach you something. Enjoy the stories they can tell over that pie you have to unbutton your pants to eat.

I am thankful for  Red Velvet Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies. My daughter and I made these together yesterday.  We ventured out in the snowy and very cold weather together to get the necessary ingredients. We had never made these before, the recipe is in a kindle book I got  for her  last year. This was the first recipe we tried. It was a  kitchen  adventure, full of clogged mixers, chocolate chips falling off the cookie balls, oh so sticky dough, and hands that looked bloody when we were done.  Good times.  And delicious cookies.  Life is Good.

One Organized Person - this is NOT my list.... There is much talk about 'how to handle' Thanksgiving:   How to deal with extended family , how to cook the bird, how to make the pies, how to make certain side dishes ahead , the secret to carving breast meat , how to set the table , what to wear on Thanksgiving , and there are even playlist suggestions for Thanksgiving music !  Now THIS could be fun to try to do..... Just reading all this stresses me out! Our game plan this year is much simpler. The big thing for me is I took today off, meaning 3 days in a row off for me. Ridiculously huge. So did I choose to spend today running around preparing home made desserts and prep-ahead side dishes?  NO. WAY.  I am sitting with my entire family, hubby and all three kids, enjoying the banter of video game talk, joking about being so hungry but everything to eat involves work (! - like getting a bowl and cereal out is tough...oh yeah, milk too...oh the eff...

Opportunities arise when you least expect them. And sometimes they involve things you never thought you would  try. The key is to let go of your limits, to step outside the box. Sometimes it is finding your way through a coffee bag. An opportunity presented itself at the beginning of this month that Raige never thought of. A coffee grinder had some coffee bags they wanted to see turned in to other things. They didn't want to just sell the bags, they wanted to give them to someone to inspire them to create, and then they wanted to showcase those creations in their coffee shop.  Coffee bags. Burlap. This is a medium Raige had not explored before.  The question to Raige was: "So, are you a seamstress?"  Raige: "What??? Um, NO. I would certainly not call myself a seamstress. But I CAN sew a bit."   Thank goodness Laura was as willing to take that leap of faith as Raige was. She gave me a bag, and thus began the journey through a coffee bag. As with any ...

It hadn't occurred to me that people have already started travelling home for Thanksgiving until someone mentioned it to me.  But then again, I am not one of those that is travelling. Since our move, our holidays have been small affairs, just me and hubby and the kids. We haven't had to travel to celebrate and we haven't had to entertain. I had told myself that holidays are much less stressful that way. That is true, but this year suddenly, I find I am missing those holidays. The bustle of packing the car with the dish to pass, making sure the kids have things to do to keep them busy during the 'boring adult time', the good food and drink with the extended family, the abundant leftovers. This Thanksgiving will be another holiday that I only have to entertain hubby and the kids. I probably wouldn't have thought much about that if my youngest hadn't suggested this song, by Bob Crosby , for today. I asked him, "Where did you hear THIS song??" It ...

There are 4 weeks until Thanksgiving and 8 weeks until Christmas. We are officially starting the holiday season, and thinking, or stressing, about what gifts to get for Mom, Dad, kids, aunts, uncles, friends, etc. If we are also working full time, running our own small businesses, planning to entertain, or some other time consuming task, shopping can end up on the bottom of the list of things to do.  Warm Gingerbread Cookie Wishes by inkandscissors   Therefore, I am happy to bring you Wish List Wednesday , a new weekly series running each Wednesday for 8 weeks, from now until those few days before Christmas, when stress is at its peak. It will assist you in your search for great gift ideas, and even menu suggestions or tips for getting ready for the holidays. And to make it even easier, each week will focus on an item that can be purchased right form the comfort of your computer, no rushing out to the store to wait in line. You can create your s...