At least for now, the warm spell is over, and in Maine, December finally feels like December.
This morning I woke up to find we’d had a dusting of snow overnight.
And there was frost on the outside storm windows.
But all is warm inside our house on the edge of the woods.
On Saturday, I started my Christmas baking and made cookies, chocolate chip. Most went into the freezer—raw and rolled into balls. But I baked some to be eaten ahead of time.
The Santas are out, here, there, and everywhere. Carol Ann, of the lovely blog Fashioned for Joy, asked me to share some pictures of my Santa collection. Ask and you shall receive.
This week, more Santas will be coming out. There will also be more baking—pumpkin bread and ice cream. I’ll make a big batch of chili. All for the freezer to be ready for the big weekend.
And of course a flurry of cleaning. After focusing on my new book Of Time and Magic for so many months, the cleaning is much needed.
Ho, ho, ho!
Notes From the Hinterland 
The snow shovel appears acclimated and to be ready to go. Cheers to your Santas on display …. but one cookie looks a bit out of shape for some reason.
You sound very organised, well done.
Love the Santas! Your organisation puts me a little to shame 😁
May you, Clif and kids find a winter wonderland and Christmas joy!
Thanks, Gayle. Same to you and yours!
Joyful pictures, and someone has made a start on the cookies
I love, love, love your Santas! Thank you so much for giving me an early Christmas present. I enjoyed scrolling through your compelling photos: the first Santa flies with joy (enhanced by the well-placed “moon” ornament); the second makes me smile with his sartorial dignity; the third seems rascally; and the fourth beckons us onward. I’m still peeking at them.
My baking starts soon too. And many thanks for mentioning me!
Your Santas are gorgeous and those chocolate chip cookies look absolutely delicious!
Trying to get through my To Do list today and tomorrow so that I can hopefully start baking more cookies. I froze one batch of sourdough einkorn chocolate chip (unfortunately I burnt the second batch- ugh…totally forgot it was in there for ‘one more minute’) and a dozen gluten free brownies. I’m excited to bake this year which is interesting because I couldn’t have cared less last year!
“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas”!! The snow is pretty, but I’m glad it’s yours, not mine. Although in retrospect, perhaps snowy Sheltie paws are easier to clean than muddy ones!
I can tell you with some authority that snowy Sheltie paws are much easier to clean than muddy ones. 😉
You make a good point!
🎶 🎄❄️ It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
It certainly is.
Hi. Your chocolate chip cookies look real good. What other types of cookies do you bake?
Thanks! I often make thumbprint cookies, peanut butter balls, and shortbread.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! We had a dusting of snow too, but it’s gone now. Your ornaments remind me that I, too, have a bunch of Santa ornaments. Somewhere. Yours sure are pretty! 🙂
Many thanks! More snow is forecasted for the weekend.
Love the santas too – and the baking! You are so much better organised than me.
Because of having arthritis, I have to plan ahead. Plus I work from home so it’s easier for me.
I love your Santas. I freeze cookies in balls just like you do, and they bake up great. Glad you’re getting all ready for the big family holiday. We got a little more snow than you did. I actually had to move it off the driveway, but I could push it so big deal. Enjoy your baking.
Thanks, Judy! Do you bake your cookies when the balls are frozen? Or do you thaw the balls first? I always debate which way is best.
I usually turn the oven on, and then I get the cookie balls out of the freezer and put them on the pan. They get a little defrost time sitting out, but they are not totally thawed.
Sounds like a good plan.
It seems a pity to freeze cookies when you could just be eating them all straight away.
That would be an awful lot of cookies!
Oh goodness. Cold weather, baking, cleaning, Santas. You’re inspiring me. I really like the Sanat with the green diamonds in his vest and the one who’s dress like a wizard in a cloak…
Yes, yes! I love those Santas too.
With so many other matters to tend to, a dusting of snow is enough. On a cold day, with the prettiness of a dusting of snow outside, staying inside with the smell of freshly baked goodies is perfect.
It sure is. For the weekend, heavier snow is in the forecast.
Snow, Santas, and homemade cookies–a perfect start to your December, Laurie. I hope it will only get more cozy and festive as times goes on. 🎄
A perfect start, indeed. Onward, ho!
What a delightful nudge for me to be ‘getting on’ in my preparations for Christmas! I hope to wrap gifts today and start baking tomorrow. My youngest granddaughter would love a ‘real tree, Granny’, but as they wilt so quickly in this heat I will only pick and decorate one a day or two before they arrive 🙂
Real trees are lovely. Several years ago, we made the sensible decision to go with an artificial tree. But I do miss having a real tree.
You are indeed very organised, lovely to see your cooking and also your decorations…it sure is looking like Christmas!
A-w-w-w, thanks! Nowadays, because of arthritis, I am so slow that I have to plan ahead. But I can still do things, and I sure do love Christmas.
I love all the prep work you are doing! And, of course, the Santas are adorable. It is freezing here in NH and I also spent the weekend baking up a storm, hoping to warm the house up a little bit. It was lovely!
Thanks, Katie. Christmas is coming!
Wonderful to see some snow!! Love all the Santas and cookies and hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas!🎄
Many thanks! Same to you and yours.
Your Santas are wonderful! I don’t have a single Santa, but I have a good number of angels, including a pair that belonged to my grandmother. Tomorrow, I’ll do some baking from her recipes: traditional Swedish cookies like Spritz, and a fruitcake-like cookie that begins with a pound of bourbon-soaked raisins. There’s a clerk at our local liquor store who always laughs when she sees me coming — she knows I’ll be buying a pint for the cookies.
Those cookies sound wonderful. (I’ve never made Swedish cookies.) That is one boozy cake. Mary Berry would approve. 😉
I’d never heard of Mary Berry, but when I looked her up and saw that her most famous recipe is said to be a ‘lemon traybake,’ I approved, since I love lemon. Now I have to look up the definition of ‘traybake.’
Mary Berry is a gem. Worth watching old series of The Great British Bake Off just to see her.
Please send emergency food parcel to the UK immediately; around 500 cookies would do nicely, thank you! 🙂 And regarding the flurry of cleaning, if it’s waited all this time surely a further delay (until after Christmas) wouldn’t do any harm…why do today what you can put off until 2023?! Ho, ho, ho indeed.
Phew! 500 cookies. I think we need to call in Santa’s elves for that.
What a lovely variety of Santas! Your cookies look good – no wonder one had to be tested just to be sure. I’m not sure about the cleaning though, that is much less fun.
Thanks so much! The cleaning is not fun, but necessary from time to time. 😉
Your Santas are so festive, Laurie. And nothing like all that frost on the outside of the windows when the inside is warm and smelling of cookies. Enjoy the holiday season, my friend. ❤ ❤
Thanks so much! And happy holidays to you and yours.
Things look festive and lovely in the little house in the big woods, Laurie. Merry Christmas and every good wish for a wonderful new year. xo
Many, many thanks!
xo
This year has gone by so quickly! I can smell the baking cookies! I used to make CCCs, many many years ago.
Chocolate chippers are a family favorite.