Pallet for Home

Finishing my TO-DO lists

Saturday, December 26, 2009

I had several things on my Holiday To-Do's 2009.  I'm happy to say I finished nearly everything, and some things exceeded my expectations!


Rest, relax and have fun! (done, but we haven't played enough games, so I'm making that a priority for this last week of break.)

Make Christmas menu (done and easily implemented with the help of the family!  Note to self:  assign your maidens their tasks ~ everyone needs to do a part, and everyone is joyfully willing to help.)

Finalize charitable giving plan (done, and much giving has already occurred.  Online giving can still happen before the end of the year, so any 501-c-3 organizations you want to bless would love to hear from you!)

Make New Year's menu (not done, but only because New Year's plans are not yet firm!)

Make a baking plan (done.  We had oatmeal/chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin pie and orange/cranberry muffins for Christmas Eve & Day treats, and they were great.)

Purchase pre-lit tree (post holiday! I'm glad I put this on my list, because I would have completely forgotten.  I'll need to look on Monday.)

Begin writing Christmas Cards (done. Not only are the Christmas cards done, but I have also just finished the Thank You notes.  Being organized really helps make this easy.)

Mom's Night Out (done)

Get kid's Christmas list (done.  Well, sort of.  The kids didn't really give me a "list" this year, which is sad.  It means they've grown up.  But, giving was super easy, because both the girls have developed particular interests and hobbies that make gift giving a joy!)

Choose co-worker gifts (done)

Decide on Angel Tree programs (done)

Make Teacher Appreciation gifts (done.  We didn't have to do much this year, because again, the teachers clearly favor certain things like Starbucks coffee, and homemade chocolates, and for the teacher that travels frequently, travel kits make shopping a breeze!)

Make a gift list (done)

Gather ingredients (done.  I will need to restock my supply of certain ingredients, like canned pumpkin, which were consumed during this baking season.  I was amazed to discover that I only had to puchase one can of pumpkin and almond bark for my holiday baking, because I had such a stockpile of everything else from last year!)

Make Thanksgiving menu (done.  I'm keeping a Holiday control journal again this year, as I have done in years past.  Since we used the Williams Sonoma brine again this year, I couldn't figure out how to make homemade gravy with the too-salty drippings.  I'll need to figure this out before I make another brined turkey, and I'd also like to find a homemade brine recipe like the WS Apple & Spice brine, which, at $18.50 a jar, is pretty pricey.)

Labels: the holiday to~do list