Hello, friends! We're ready for the Friendly Fill-Ins challenge, and we'd love for you to join us. My amazing co-host Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two fill-in statements, and I came up with the second two.
1. _________ is my favorite Christmas song.
2. _________ is a Christmas decoration that I treasure.
3. Though 'tis the season for _________, I much prefer _________.
4. If I could create a new Christmas tradition, it would be _________.
My answers are below in bold.
1. "Carol of the Bells" is my favorite Christmas song.
(I often give the answer "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" to this questions, and that wouldn't be a lie. If I'm in the mood for a fun Christmas song, I go for the hippo every time. But, if I'm looking for something more powerful, that's when I go for "Carol of the Bells". I've loved this song for as long as I can remember. I'm a huge fan of Manheim Steamroller's version, but I enjoy pretty much any rendition of "Carol of the Bells".)
2. My new wooden reindeer are a Christmas decoration that I treasure.
(I have a lot of Christmas decorations that are sentimental. In trying to decide which one to put as my answer, I couldn't make up my mind and started thinking about a couple of new reindeer I just got this year. I know it sounds weird to already see them as sentimental, but my mom got them for me when she and I were at a craft fair recently. As a kid, I loved those wooden reindeer ornaments made out of old-fashioned clothespins. Do you know the ones I mean? My mom made some long ago and my sister and I would stick them onto the tree each year when we were kids. Well, back to the craft fair from this year, a cute old man was selling giant versions of these clothespin reindeer that he'd made out of repurposed wood. I fell in love with them, and my mom ended up getting them for me, as well as some for my sister, since we share fun memories with the smaller, original versions of the reindeer. I'm pretty sure I snapped a photo of Evan with the new reindeer the other day, so he'll share them with you on Monday.)
3. Though 'tis the season for gingerbread, I much prefer the chocolate goodies.
(Don't get me wrong, because I do enjoy some good gingerbread and each year try my hand at creating such cookies. But, I much prefer chocolate and so also always make at least one dessert of that nature, such as chocolate peppermint bark or fudge or even chocolate pie. I also love me a good peanut butter cookie, even better if it includes chocolate. Each Christmas I make peanut butter cookies decorated to look like Rudolph's face. His eyes are chocolate chips, his nose is a red m&m, and his antlers are broken pretzels. I love those.)
4. If I could create a new Christmas tradition, it would be something to benefit shelter animals.
(I try to make at least a small donation to one or more local animal rescues each Christmastime, but I have yet to create any sort of consistent tradition with this. I really want to. One year I created a box for cats and a box dogs, filled with food and treats and toys, and delivered them to our local humane society. I want to start doing something akin to that each year, but perhaps to also benefit more of the smaller rescues in our area.)
Though her tree climbing chaos has settled down a bit as she's aged, Eddy is still rough on Christmas trees. She prefers to live in my bedroom, as she dislikes most other cats (she loves Evan and tolerates Thimble, but that's it). So, in my bedroom, Eddy has her very own year round Christmas tree. During the festive season, she gets a very loosely hanging strand of battery-operated lights on the tree, as well as a red ribbon topper made of cloth. The ribbon she had for many previous years finally fell apart after much abuse from Eddy. So, this year she has a brand new one. We'll see how long until she's shredded the newbie, but for now it's looking quite festive.
Eddy wishes you all a festive Friday!
We previously mentioned being cautious when using lights on your Christmas tree, due to the various hazards they pose, such as electrocution or a kitty or pup getting tangled. That being said, also be sure to keep this same concept in mind when putting up lights or other decorations outdoors. After all, outdoor animals, such as squirrels, birds, or stray or feral cats, can also potentially be put at risk by Christmas decorations. Try to prevent dangerous situations by taking precautions, such as never leaving any parts or pieces of decorations loose, as both indoor and outdoor babies could get tangled up or ingest something dangerous. When it comes to cords, whether indoor or outdoor, try to find a way to safely secure them, such as by taping them to a wall or the ground. You certainly don't have to forego decorations and all things festive, but do keep in mind the safety of both indoor and outdoor critters.
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