I'm one of those people who's firmly in the "Not A Fan Of New Year's" camp. Every single New Year's Eve, I end up either bored and anxious that I'm not having The Best! Time! Ever!, or, as with one year, living through an unfortunate incident involving Lemondrops.
Too cute.
Instructions here.
Baby basket inspiration for $60 and under.
(SensatioNail Gel Polish / 1 week after application.)
The reason why I don't ever, ever get salon manicures: I don't know whether I don't wait long enough for my nails to dry before returning to normal activities, or whether I just have color-repelling fingers, or what, but I am completely incapable of making newly polished nails maintain their pristine state longer than two or three hours. And insta-chips are maddening when you've just sat in a salon for forty-five minutes and shelled out something in the range of fifteen dollars.
Maddening.
So I do my own manicures.
Well, that Christmas Eve didn't exactly go smoothly.
There was the no-water problem (see paper plates, above). And then there was a little issue with the chicken. As in, I put it in around 5:15 to be done for a 7PM-ish dinner...and then at 6:45 checked on it and saw that it was a little...
...raw.
See, I have to light our stove manually, which means I have to turn the knob to low and then more or less stick my head into a gas-filled oven with a lit match in order to cook anything. And that means that every so often (like on Saturday) I forget, in my relief at having lived to light the stove another day, to turn the heat up to whatever it's supposed to be set at.
Bacon sandwiches (the keys to success: use the fanciest bacon you can get your hands on - think applewood smoked, super-thick-cut, et cetera - and butter your English muffin on both sides before smushing in the bacon).
And Chai Lattes made in the Keurig (really).
In a highball glass (over ice or not; up to you), pour 4 oz white wine (I used pinot grigio). Add 1 oz. St. Germain elderflower cordial, 1/2 tsp lemon juice, and top with a little champagne or club soda.
With love from our family to yours.
Washing dishes in the bathtub.
Because there's no water pressure in the kitchen.
On the single day all year during which I do the most cooking and baking.
But it's Christmas, so, you know...
This is what we're doing.
