Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Celebrate: Word Counters

Counting my words again. 

Today my fellow Word Counters and I are sharing our monthly group post. The bloggers who are joining me this time all picked a number between 12 and 74 and sent it to me. I gave the numbers out as assignments to other bloggers who are then challenged to write something (or a few somethings, as the case may be) using that exact number of words. Today we all share what we came up with.

Word Counters, a multiblogger writing challenge | Developed, run by and graphic property of www.BakingInATornado.com | #MyGraphics


I got the number 47. It was submitted by Rena of Wandering Web Designer.

As I've been doing in these Word Counters posts, I've chosen a theme and am using my word count multiple times in keeping with the theme. This month I've chosen the theme Celebrate.


Celebrate in 47 words

~ So much to celebrate in such a short time; candy filled Halloween to Thanksgiving turkeys to more Christmas parties than I can count to the ten days of Chanukah and then New Year's. Wouldn't it be great if we could spread October through December out a bit?

~ From October through December, three of us have birthdays too. Because between the candy, turkey dinners and champagne filled night, we need to fit in more celebrations, gifts and cake baking, right? Lucky for me, my birthday's in the beginning of October, before everyone's all celebrated out.

~ As much as I enjoy them, and I end up participating in a few each year, cookie exchanges in December where more often than not the sidewalks are covered in ice are not a the best plan logistically. Cookie crumbs going in, sliding on your butt going home.

~ One year I talked Hubs into driving us to our cookie exchange. Rolling his eyes, he picked up my friends with their cookies, booze and appetizers in their driveways, (they lived on either side of me) and drove us to the exchange, two doors up the street.

~ Problem with our plan was he drove us there. Yes we had cookies, appetizers and booze to carry, but we were sober. Then later on, carrying our cookies in our hands and our booze on the inside, we stumbled home. Not pretty, but laughing the whole way.

Oatmeal White Chocolate Spice Cookies are a favorite seasonal cookie reinvented. A little chewy, a little sweet and filled with big bold spice flavors. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #cookies

Oatmeal White Chocolate Spice Cookies
Oatmeal White Chocolate Spice Cookies are a favorite seasonal cookie reinvented. A little chewy, a little sweet and filled with big bold spice flavors. | Recipe developed by www.BakingInATornado.com | #recipe #cookies




~ When the boys were little, Chanukah shopping took forever as they received a gift for each of the eight nights. Then my family would send money, which went into their college funds. Since they didn't understand that, I had to buy both boys gifts from them too.

~ Each year I'd go into the boys' classrooms to do a Chanukah presentation. I'd read a (nothing religious) Chanukah book to the class then donate the book to the teacher. I'd teach them the dreidel game (using starburst candies), and end sharing donuts (like the traditional Sufganiyot).
 
~ We were never big New Years Eve celebrators. It always felt like more hype and less real fun to me. When the kids were little we'd get together with friends and their kids on New Year's Eve for Chinese food take out, that was perfect for me.

~ We had a New Year's day tradition, an open house. We'd clear out the living room, put long folding tables and chairs in there. I'd set up a dining room buffet, packed with breakfast foods (and there's be mimosas). Friends would come and go all day long.

~ To all of the people who support me by reading this blog, I hope you all get to celebrate the season with friends and loved ones, smiles and laughter, good food and drink. And I wish for you all a happy, healthy, safe and prosperous new year.

Here are links to the other Word Counters posts:

Spatulas on Parade



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Oatmeal White Chocolate Spice Cookies        
                                                                      ©www.BakingInATornado.com


Ingredients:
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/2 stick margarine, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup molasses
1 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup quick oats
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:
*Cream butter, margarine, sugar, brown sugar and molasses until smooth. Beat in the egg.
*Mix in flour, quick oats, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, salt and baking soda. Finally, add the white chocolate chips. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover cookie sheets with parchment paper. 
*Roll dough into about 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheets. Press down gently with the heel of your hand to flatten just a little.
*Bake for 10 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from the baking sheet to cool completely.

18 comments:

  1. Thanks for the peek into your history. (Oh, and the cookie recipe, too.)

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  2. Love how you do your word counts, but besides that I have learned so much about being Jewish from you and I envy your beautiful traditions.

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  3. YUM I could do white chocolate spice cookies! LOL drove you two doors down? I didn't do any cookie exchanges via mail this year and know no one here to do it with in person. Maybe next year.

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  4. I can tell you, as someone whose birthday is today and my sister in law’s is 12-20, celebrating can really get....interesting? When my mother in law was alive, her birthday would have been tomorrow! Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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    Replies
    1. Lots of birthdays clustered around this time of year, in our family too.

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  5. Those bikkies look nice thankfully there are only 2 birthdays in December

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    Replies
    1. You're lucky to be able to spread family birthdays out through the year.

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  6. It sounds like some great traditions and ways to celebrate. My prayer is that you are having a wonderful time this year also.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Mimi, I've been sick but I'm getting better now.

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  7. Well done. And what a marathon! You need an extra month before January just to recover!
    One year, our church family celebrated Chanukah in a Night in Bethlehem. It was absolutely wonderful! Everyone had booths all up and down the 'street'. My own family taught everyone how to play the dreidel game. Next to us was the Winery which, because we're teetotalers, served different kinds of grape juices. Probably a good thing we don't drink because we made a LOT of trips next door...

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    Replies
    1. Sounds like a really fun night, I would have loved to have played dreidel with you.

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    2. Your family loves celebrating, no doubt. I envy you that. We celebrated birthdays and all the holidays by gathering together
      Christmas and Easter there were special music programs and church services. The children had their school programs, usually at Christmas. We visited our Aunts and Uncles.

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    3. What wonderful memories, for most of us, holidays are and were all about family.

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  8. Love your celebrations! Wonderful what you've done with 47 words.

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