What I CANNOT live without in the winter is many, many things, but these are my top items! Then again, SNOWMAGGEDDON 2019 proved there are things I CAN live without, but choose not to. 😀
The one thing I am absolutely sure of is that if I have a sore throat, dry skin, cold feet or hands, cold food or catch a cold I am NOT a happy camper so I go out of my way to prevent that. I like to try and not go out unless the temperature reaches AT LEAST 40°, but I don’t hibernate well either so that is just a pipe dream of a rule.
I try and drink a cup of green tea every night and try to make very balanced comfort food meals to warm up my family from the inside out.Though I openly admit that comfort food wins every now and then when it’s bitterly cold and wet.
I also have a newer and occasional favorite hot toddy, a Lemon Aval Pota Hot Toddy courtesy of McMenamins one of our local favorite resort chains.
LEMON AVAL POTA HOT TODDY
2 ounces Aval Pota Whiskey
2 bar spoons QUALITY honey
Juice of 1 small FRESH squeezed lemon
- Pour ingredients into a coffee glass or mug and top with hot water.
- Garnish with a lemon zest twist.
Here are the links to a few of our favorite soups and stews for you.
- Russian Cabbage Soup
- Split Pea Soup
- Red Chicken Chili
- Black Eyed Pea Chili
- Cabbage Roll aka Wagon Wheel Soup
- Navy Bean & Ham Soup
✨Top 2 Winter Beauty Essentials?
- A NICE HOT SHOWER to relax and clean out the pores.
- A super moisturizer to keep away dry skin!
✨Top 2 Winter Fashion Essentials?
- I wait ALL year for it to be cold enough to bring out the boots & UGGS!
- Turtlenecks and flannel layers!
- Scarves and gloves. I have color combos to match anything AND everything.
✨ Favorite Winter Accessory?
- HATS, GLOVES & SCARVES of course!!!!
✨ Favorite Winter Nail Polish?
- Red for Christmas with glitter of course, but normally a pinky, purplish mauve. I just have too much red in my complexion to wear red all the time.
✨ Hot Cocoa or Apple Cider?
- Homemade hot cocoa and MUST have marshmallows and or whipped cream!
- Apple Cider if it is made into a AVAL POTA TODDY!
✨ Favorite Winter Candle?
- Apple and Cinnamon, though that seems to be waning for me and I’m liking more mellow marshmallowy scents.
✨ Does it snow where you live?
- Yes, but after the SNOWMAGEDDON of 2019 with a week long power outage that left us freezing or the SNOW/ICE storm of 2013 that left the cul-de-sac as an ice skating rink, we hope for more moderate levels of snow this year.
✨Have you ever made a snowman? Snow Angels?
- Absolutely! And a snow woman and snow kids!
✨What is Your Favorite Holiday Movie?
- IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE tops the list! Home Alone, Miracle on 34th Street and they never get old either. And a Hallmark sucker every year for their new movies each year. And yes, Die Hard is a Christmas Movie 😀
✨What’s your favorite holiday drink?
- Coffee
- Hot Tea
- Hot Cocoa
- Hot toddies – never been an eggnog fan
✨Candy cane or Gingerbread men?
- I like the chalk style peppermint, but I’m not real keen on actual candy canes and I like soft gingerbread men and sugar cookies.
✨What’s your favorite holiday/Christmas song?
- This is a tough call – depends on my mood… White Christmas, Silent Night and I’ll Be Home for Christmas, but I LOVE The little Drummer Boy version by David Bowie and Bing Crosby.
✨What is most important to you about the Christmas holidays?
- That it is genuine and homemade for the most part. Christmas is not a commercial holiday for me. I believe in trying to remember the real reason for the season and keep the Christmas spirit in my heart and life ALL year long. I LOVE hosting little get togethers and dinners with friends and family. A favorite girlfriend came for dinner last night and the table looked absolutely gorgeous and then I served bacon cheeseburger balls with mac and cheese 😀 so it’s not about fancy food just time together to enjoy each other’s company.