Fact: Ham ranks as the festive favorite One of the showstoppers of Christmas dinner is carving the roast beast, whatever species it comes from. Google searches for “ham” and “turkey” both spike during December, according to Google Trends data. Spiral-cut ham edges out the bird as the most popular choice for a Christmas table. The jury’s still out on whether people prefer ham or turkey sandwiches the day after, though.
We were up and ready to go when the doorbell rang; we forgot today was the installation of the new cup rack in the kitchen! Now we can add more of Mary’s collection to be seen and enjoyed by all!
I love it when the coffee kicks in, and I realize what an adorable badass I’m going to be today.
We had some blank wall space!
Each “small hole” holds two good-sized coffee mugs, and the biggies will hold the beer steins Mary, and I have collected. We love coffee in the morning; in fact, my blood type is coffee.
Now we can display collected cups from all over the world.
We worked in the office, paying bills and organizing things until lunchtime, but the contractor was not done. So we made lunch at home just in time to leave for the 3:oo PM dentist appointment in Huntington Beach. Well, 1/4 the way there, we got a text message suggesting we cancel and reschedule because he was already two hours behind due to emergency surgery.
We kept going straight, avoiding the 22 and stopped by Dianne and David’s, dropped off a little present for Dianne, and then headed to Yang-Ming to order Christmas Daya dinner. We have plenty of food to celebrate the day, and they will deliver the food to us on Christmas Eve at 9:00 PM on their way home!
They deliver at 9:00 PM Christmas Eve, hopefully not down the chimney!!
The combination of Christmas and Chinese food is iconic. According to Google Trends , more people search for “Chinese food/restaurant” during the week of Christmas than any other week the year. It isn’t just internet searches either. On December 25, Chinese food orders increase by as much as 152%, according to GrubHub I
We also had a class of wine at Yang-Ming’s to settle us down for the next two stops.
Next was Ralph’s market; we got the last-minute goodies for Christmas Day and then went to CVS for meds and other necessities of life.
We got home just in time to unpack the car, put the groceries away, and head to Dru’s home for dinner!
We dressed, applied our finest red shawls, Christmas lights, and Santa hats, and drove three miles to Dru’s lovely home. We are prepared for a splendid evening. I can hardly wait to tell everyone about the benefits of eating dried grapes. It’s all about raisin awareness.
We dressed for the event.
I spotted the apple on the plate; it tasted better than it looked! Dru is from the South and is a magnificent chef de parties!
I had to get the recipe for these wonderful apples!
We had nut-encrusted pork chops with mashed potatoes, spinach, cranberries, and a magnificent apple! Quite a meal! Like magic, everything disappeared!
I fooled everyone; I had mine on already!
A feast fit for a king!
We arrived right on time at 6:00 PM and did not depart until after 9:00 PM as we had a super time visiting with friends and sharing our most delightful stories about growing up. Tom was the “kid” tonight, and he learned a lot from us “older folks.”
Tom, his mom, and Dru
We laughed and giggled for hours, just having a joyful time. No matter how busy you are, it would be best to find time to catch up with friends over a nice dinner party. I told everyone my secret when I go out for Mexican food. I eat my tacos over a Tortilla. That way, when stuff falls out, BOOM, another taco.
Mary, Paul, and Kenny
I could not resist telling everyone I ordered a chicken and an egg from Amazon. I promised to let them know.
In the kitchen, serious discussions are underway!
I got gas for $1.39 today. Unfortunately, it was at Taco Bell.
All good things must come to an end, so we departed in the Silver Fox for the three-mile journey home.
We are going home with tummies full!
It was a lovely evening with swell people we have known for quite a while. Arriving home, we brought Scout inside; he was on his thrown, keeping the elephants away from our backyard. Since we got to the new house, we have not seen a single elephant yet; good boy Scout.
OK, we are going to bed now, but you can look for Rudolph’s red nose in the picture below! That should keep you up!
Can you find Rudolph? Click the image for a larger size!
