HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY, MENUS & RECIPE LINKS week 52 of 2025 ~ BLOG 365.363

Be sure to join Happy Homemaker Monday with our host, Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

LAST WEEK RECAPPED

GOOD MORNING sweet friends. Can you believe this is our last Monday together for 2025? I can barely get my head around the fact that it is almost 2026! I hope you had a blessed, relaxed and safe Christmas holiday with family and friends. Ours was low key and just about perfect.

I’ll be sad to be cleaning up Christmas, but I do wait until after King’s day in January. It just passes way too quickly for me. That said, as I’m organizing my year, LOL 🙂 I’m already planning BLOGMAS 2026 to be even more relaxed than this year was 🙂 So in good clean fun:

It was recently announced that our Eagle’s club is in dire straights financially.There are two sides to a fraternal organization like this. The Aerie is responsible for the business side and the Auxiliary is responsible for the charity side. It is inferred that as a member you will do some volunteering, but unfortunately there are only a handful of volunteers that get and stay involved to keep the place running, the rest only show up for free food or fun events.

For the past 2 years the trustees in charge of the Aerie business side have made financial decisions that one way or another have now jeopardized our very existence on a local level. Of course there are other factors related to our existing issues such as the economy during and after COVID, membership growing older, increased costs related to bands and such as well as the membership resisting paying more when necessary to have the same functions every year. Quite honestly the existing members want to live like it is still the year 2010 and the volunteerism has decreased proportionately also.

I’m an auxiliary member and for quite some time now the majority of the volunteers are mainly from the auxiliary side and quite honestly we’re tired of trying to hold it all together for everyone. I literally work more now (and without pay) than when I held a full time job – not my idea of retirement.

My decision on how much to be involved may soon be made for me. I guess this is a good thing as it is all out of my hands anyway. I’ve been so frustrated with so much of the inner workings.

I am proud of the work I have been able to accomplish over the years in terms of food and gifts for the Holiday families and kids, helping with the scholarship program, writing the newsletter, rebuilding the kitchen after the flood and keeping it organized and stocked, raising money for our charities with Friday night dinners, working special events like the Cribbage Tournament, the BBQ Throwdown, Trunk or Treat, shopping for the kitchen and canteen and so much more…

SIGH, onto happier thoughts and today.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE

We’re FINALLY getting some “regular” colder weather though we’ve yet to have our regularly scheduled deep freeze. The bird bath has yet to get iced over this year. This week is supposed to be fairly clear with highs in the 40’s and lows in the low 30’s to start the week and then warm up 5 degrees or so when the rain returns. Fortunately, the atmospheric rivers hitting the west coast have been either north or south of us and we’re just having a “normal”, even low amounts of rain.

THIS WEEK’S TO DO LIST, THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY, WHAT’S ON MY MIND, PROJECTS, APPOINTMENTS & DVR/TV

TO DO: LAUNDRY & CLEANING I’m pretty well caught up on laundry and basic cleaning. We decided to reorganize much of the Christmas decorations and have the new containers on order so it’s a good thing we always wait until the 2nd week of January to de-decorate and I’ll deep clean at that time. I have some paperwork that HAS to be done by Wednesday and I REALLY want to clean off my desk before the new year so I can start 2026 fresh.
TO DO: GROCERIES & ERRANDS I have a few exchanges/returns to do in town this week and will pick up the few things I need for groceries at that time.
PROJECTS & TRAVELS We’re hoping to take a trip later in January to the coast, but it’s still in the works.
RECIPE RESEARCH & MENU PLANNING I’m good thru 2025 🙂 That sounds more satisfying than it is when you realize 2026 starts on Thursday.
DVR/TV We’re trying to catch up on fall shows as the new season starts next week. I still have 8 or 9 Christmas movies to catch up on also. I at least got through all the holiday cooking and baking shows.
THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY clean sheets… warm socks… hot soup with crusty bread… leftover turkey sandwiches after the holiday… candles flickering as I snuggle in to read a good book…

READING TIME

I started something lighter for now until Book Club meets on January 3rd, Merit Badge Murder, Merry Wrath Mysteries #1 by Leslie Langtry and I should finish it tonight. I’m not sure if she was trying to emulate Jana Deleon’s Miss Fortune series, but it sure has similarities. It’s not bad, but it’s not as good as Jana’s books.

FUNNIES

MENU PLANS

BREAKFAST is always a work in progress for me – it will generally be hot water and a fruit yogurt 😀

	12/29 MONDAY	12/30 TUESDAY	12/31 WEDNESDAY	1/1/2026 THURSDAY	1/2/2026 FRIDAY	1/3/2026 SATURDAY	1/4/2026 SUNDAY
DINNER	WE’RE STILL CLEANING OUT THE CHRISTMAS DINNER LEFTOVERS CORN/YOYO clean out refrigerator night or you’re on your own	FRIED HOT DOGA and MAC & CHEESE	BLACK EYED PEA CHILI and CORN BREAD	SEAFOOD LASAGNA & GARLIC BREAD	I’m cooking at the Eagles to fill in for a friend who is quite sick. We’ll be making Spaghetti & Meatballs with salad and cheesy garlic toast.	BAKED HAM and BAKED BEANS	ASIAN POT PIE
DESSERT					It was my month to make the birthday cake anyway so this worked out okay. PINK CHAMPAGNE CAKE