Pooh Sticks

In my husband’s family, in rural England, Christmas Day must involve playing Pooh Sticks after Christmas lunch. This is the game Winnie-the-Pooh devised in The House at Pooh Corner (the game that author A. A. Milne created for his son Christopher Robin Milne). The game of Pooh Sticks involves dropping sticks off a bridge into a flowing … Read more

Reusable Gift Wrapping

Last minute and you aren’t sure what you’ll use to wrap gifts? Don’t reach for paper. All you need to create colorful holiday gift wrap is a cloth bag, a tea towel, or a play cloth. No more post-holiday bags of garbage. Reduce and reuse. Sew a bag. Even last minute, it’s very quick to sew a bag. … Read more

The Holiday Smell of Cinnamon

One of the strongest senses evoking our emotional responses to holidays is smell. For this season in our house, pine and bay (evergreens) mix with spices like cinnamon and ginger. We have spiced pumpkin, spiced smoothies, spiced eggnog, spiced cookies, and spiced cider. There is a lot of cinnamon smell in our house. Every year … Read more