The holiday preparation continues! I've decided to do a lot of baking this year, because Christmas cookies are awesome. Last year I made my chocoholic brother a batch of fudge. He loved it, but later that day he said to me, "You know what else is really good in fudge? Walnuts." (Nut allergies run in my family and I couldn't remember if he was one of the people contending with it, so I left them out).

So this year I'm making fudge with walnuts, fudge without (for my niece, who is allergic), candied orange peels (because they're festive and very, very easy), spicy gingerbread cookies, jam thumbprints (they're a family tradition), and a riff on Northern European Christmas breads.

I'm also making Christmas cards. My roommate and I are going to buy craft paper, glue, and other card-making supplies tonight. And then tomorrow I'm going to put a big pot of soup on, make a loaf of bread, turn on some Christmas music, and we'll make cards. That should be fun :)

Today I bought supplies for making the fudge and the candied orange peels, since those are things that will keep well for a long time. I also took a trip to my neighborhood thrift store. I saw a lot of stuff that would be really cute and useful with a coat of paint, but decided to wait on any new projects. I did buy a CD of Celtic holiday music (which I'm listening to right now), a whisk, and a working Sunbeam electric hand-mixer (I've had my eye out for an electric mixer for a while). My total was $7, not bad at all. I love finding treasures.