EOW No. 32

Happy new year folks! We've made it through the first full week of 2025 (it feels like by the skin of our teeth).  We've been in Dallaska 3.0 for the last two days - luckily at our house, the snow / ice hasn't been overwhelming and since the temps stayed in the 30s, no need to worry about the water situation at the barn.  No power outages either (phew), just one very cabin fever-y dog.  Everything is supposed to melt in a few hours so I'm enjoying the snow powdered landscape while it lasts.

I hope everyone had a good holiday season - it was a whirlwind tornado at our house for two weeks.  We had a lot of family in town and they all stayed with us, which was really fun and chaotic, but I definitely needed more time at the end of the break to catch my breath.  Bryan's parents and grandmother got to visit our Country Club and stay out there for a few days, which they really enjoyed.  My sister's boys continue to get more fun as they get older and I'm hopeful that we'll get to see a lot more of them in the future.  

Meanwhile, it was a rough end of the year for Bowie.  At the beginning of November, we had a benign tumor removed from his leg.  The stitches holding the wound open didn't even last 5 days.  They busted open and the vet said that they would be likely to open again if they restitched it.  So instead, I did hydrotherapy on poor Bowie's leg for almost two months.  There was so much gauze, vet wrap, and antibiotics involved - I never want to wrap another leg ever again.  Luckily, the wound is completely closed up now and even the scabs are gone.  Life with an active sporting dog is never dull!

Now for some delightful links...

Y'all, this roasted cauliflower soup is the best non-dairy, veg only soup I've ever made!  It has kept me nice and toasty this week.  I doubled the garlic and lemon in the recipe, left out the butter, and added spinach.  So good and I felt like I was getting quite a bit of veg.

Also, this past holiday season was the first one ever where I did not made iced Christmas cookies.  With all of the guests we had, I simply ran out of time.  I did make this NYTimes lemon-turmeric crinkle cookie though and everyone who tried one really enjoyed them, they did not last long at all.  They are not too sweet (which holiday treats typically are) and the yellow from the turmeric make them really gorgeous to look at.

This lip mask has been saving my face as the heater has been pumping nonstop for the last week.  I apply it before bed and it keeps my lips hydrated through almost an entire day - I rarely need to reapply chapstick.  I gifted a tube to my sister while she was visiting and she gave me immediate feedback that it worked!

I hope that everyone takes a little time to take deep breaths and reserve a quiet moment for yourselves this weekend.  Onward and upward, right?