When I came across roasted almonds on the blog, Shutterbean, I new it would be the perfect accompaniment to the bourbon fudge. I mean it would be rude not to provide a balanced gift of sweet and salty.

Keith really knows how to make me happy. For my birthday last month, he gave me the most amazing chocolate truffles that were made with bourbon. We're talking little bites of heaven. I tried to pace myself and make them last as long as possible, but well, you see where this is going. Don't worry he's ordered more, but those little bites of heaven inspired the gift giving for this year.

Even our bourbon is festive this time of year!

1. Line an 8 or 9 inch square pan with wax paper.

You may find this hard to believe, but we've had our Christmas tree up for several weeks now. We got a jump start on the holiday spirit when we took my family to Ford's Theatre for A Christmas Carol.  After seeing them off on Saturday morning, we spent that Sunday decking the halls. Of course, Sammy was there to supervise everything.

She wants to ensure people receive a proper seasonal greeting the moment they come into our apartment. As a thank you for her help, and because she's such a part of the family, we had to ensure she has a stocking hanging up too.


I'm hoping I can convince Keith that we should go all out and expand beyond the Charlie Brown tree next year, but it's not looking good. He's grown quite attached to this little guy. I just feel like our tiny tree is overwhelmed by the gifts. I wanted something fresh, which explains this impulse purchase from Whole Foods. Do you ever get sucked into those purchases too? No, just me.

I admit I have a bit of a guilty pleasure when it comes to James Patterson novels. I enjoy that I can pick up one of his books and be entertained. Are they the best literary works? No, but I never claimed they were. I've grown rather attached to Lindsey Boxer in his Women's Murder Club series.