Cookies, Trees and BM's

Art told me the Boiler Man (here after known only as the "BM". An abbreviation that is very suiting in more ways than one) would be here Friday. I came home to a cold house (again) and Art said, "Well, he said he'd be here today or tomorrow", meaning Friday or Saturday. Since he didn't come Friday I felt the chances of the BM coming Saturday were pretty slim, and what do you know? I was right. Shocker!

I woke up Saturday morning and it was forty-six degrees.

I've been keeping the woodstove going, but when it's only fifteen degrees outside, it's hard to keep up. Right now it's fifty-nine, which is a damn heat-wave considering what it has been. As a friend told me the other day, "Think of how much money you're saving on propane", which is very true...I guess.

Other than that it was a good weekend of which I have titled "The Weekend of Holiday Preparedness". I had a bake-a-thon with my mom where we made so very many things that will make me fat but that will also keep me warm: Popcorn balls, Russian teacakes, English toffee, peanut brittle, spritz, sugar cookies, peppermint almond bark, and haystacks. We also made cinnamon applesauce ornaments that should be ready in a few days. They are very easy to make and smell wonderfully:

Equal parts applesauce and cinnamon
Mix together until it forms a dough
Roll out dough to desired thickness (about 1/8-1/4 inch)
Cut out shapes with cookie cutter and use a straw to cut out a whole for the string/yarn/ribbon
You can just keep re-rolling out the dough until you're tired or don't have enough left
Place on newspaper to dry for a few days (we tried sticking them in a low temperature oven, but they just cracked so it's best to just leave them)

I also put up the Christmas tree and decorated it but that's all I had the energy for. I go through an every-other-year cycle when it comes to decorating for any holiday. Last year I decorated everywhere and this year I only felt like digging out the tree. The lights are on outside and it looks just lovely reflecting off the newly fallen snow.

I know, it sounded like bullsh*t to me, too.