Thin-Paper Day

 The two newspapers were light as a feather today.  Unfortunately, the same could hardly be said for the lady carrying them to the house.  

Yes, there's a definite contrast this morning of thin papers and fatter readers.  

What a food binge it's been! I've enjoyed every bite, even if I've paid for it all with the "holiday stomach."  

Yup, that holiday stomach is really good at telling me that I really should not have enjoyed that delicious New York cheesecake dripping with Montana huckleberry sauce and Joyce's home-baked huckleberry pie after that wonderful Christmas dinner prepared by my sisters. 

But . . . we walked to their woods to watch the annual Christmas bonfire, set up by Kevin and continually stoked by Kevin, Jim and Annie.  Some of us did sit in chairs and admire the flames while taking in the warmth, but we also walked back to the house.

So, that activity should have given us free license for the delectable dessert.  Right?

Who needs a license when it's holiday season and tables and counters are filled with home-baked delights!

It needs to be eaten, so we take our responsibility seriously.  The stomachs can take a break later when the calendar says it's time for the annual New Year's resolution starvation diet.

For now, the stomachs just have to deal with a little extra work. 

My stomach was pretty busy yesterday while my fingers stuff goodies on skewer sticks. After purchasing the SPAM cookbook in Hawaii, I resolved that we would use a recipe sometime during the holidays.  

And, of course, I picked the easiest selection in the book.  It still took time, but the artistic results turned out pretty well for me.  Not everybody shared the enthusiasm, but still the plate looked nice. 

And, by gollee, it had been a few years since I had served Spam much more frequently, but it hits the tastebuds favorably.  

My most vivid reminder of Spam feeds takes me back to Camp Neewahlu on Lake Coeur 'd Alene when the Campfire Girls' cook Ginger would fill metal tubs with scalloped potatoes and top them off with a full layer of Spam slices.  Then, they'd go in the oven and later all those campers and staff members would gobble up every bite. 

I always loved the days when Spam was on the menu. 

It's been a good Christmas.  Bill, Annie and I have enjoyed some quality time together, and we all had a good time visiting with Bill's sister Margaret and Willie over the phone yesterday.  

Willie reports that all is well in Boise where he, Debbie and Swiss Miss have spent the past few days. 

We've had a good time with extended family and topped it off last night with the bonfire followed by those decadently wonderful pieces of pie.  

And, this morning while carrying those thin newspapers into the house, my stomach grumbled.  I'm hoping to let it down easily and maybe not eat quite so much on this beautiful day.  

But then again, if I spend a lot of time outside, maybe I can earn one more day of eating too much.  Those spam-filled skewers await.  Yum! Yum!

Happy day after Christmas.  Hope yours was a good one and that other stomachs were on overload yesterday.