Coffee mugs are the new T-shirt

 

Lunch with my former co-worker on Sunday was a lovely catch-up.  She included me as an "Emerita" member of the team by presenting me with one of the mugs she got for the whole team.  She said she had considered T-shirts, but coffee mugs are one size fits all.  I'm cool with coffee mugs, in fact have quite the collection already, and I prize the design she worked on herself, representing not just the team but the tool we used to produce our piece of the system.

We sipped on coffee (decaf in my case) and noshed on salads while filling one another in on lives and pets and kids and what's happening at the old stomping grounds.  

The weather moderated even more Monday, getting up into the 50's, and Ember and I took advantage with a long visit at the dog park.  She came home from that nicely tired out.  I am grateful for the days when we can do this.

During puppy nap #1 Sunday I baked the Oatmeal Scotchies, the original recipe, that I haven't yet told "the kids" I shall be bringing on Christmas morning.  Now to just keep my own hands out of the cookie jar!  I gave some of them to my former co-worker.

During puppy nap #1 on Monday, I unwrapped and laid down the area rug in the family room.

Like everything else this year, there's a doggy reason for this.  It is to give her better footing for some training games that I want to do in that room.  It is yet to be seen if the area rug will survive it.

Sure enough, as soon as she was let into the room, she went after the far side of that rug, digging to chew on the pad under the rug.  I distracted her and put the gate back up.  I figure we'll have to do a few "introductions" to the room with some other things, like simple commands, games, treats, etc., to make that attractive nuisance less attractive.

We had an appointment for her heartworm test at the vet's office.  This is required once a year to have her on Simparica Trio for pest control.  The test came out negative, which clears her to continue on the preventative for 2025.  She has moved up a weight class for her dosage now, at about 90 pounds (she wiggles on the scale).  But the old weight class topped out at 88, and this one goes up to 132, so it will probably fit her adult weight.  I ordered six months' worth.  

Interesting observation of the day:  I notice that if Ember's doing something I'm not happy with and I get her jazzed about putting on her harness (the new one), she seems to become "all business" ready to go on our next mission.  It worked to get her away from that area rug and head over to the vet's office.  It worked again after puppy nap #2 when I figured we'd try this into to the area rug again.  We just went out in the back yard on harness and leash, took her off lead and the two of just existed out there, watching people walking by, listening to sirens or dogs barking in the distance.  It was something like 47F, a really pleasant afternoon to be outside.

After I fed Ember her supper, I decided to tackle the cheese puffs.  The plan was to form them, freeze them, and have DIL bake them Christmas morning.  I thought I might do this during puppy nap #1 on Christmas eve day, but I was feeling it Monday after supper, and I started my annual tradition:

Prep the dough.  16 ounces mild cheddar cheese, cubed, 3 Tbsp softened unsalted butter, 1 cup flour (barely had a cup), sifted with 1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper.  Process in the food processor until it is in crumbles and can be worked.

  

Shape each ball, a good handful of the crumbles.  Add more until you have enough dough to cover the filling.

Insert the filling (in this case it's a sausage bite).

and in this case, it is a green olive with pimento.

I made about a dozen of each filling and put them in separate containers so I can tell which ones are olive and which ones sausage.  Yay!  The son and I will get our olive ones!

Bake on ungreased cookie sheets in a hot (450F) oven for 10 minutes and serve hot.

Merry Christmas!  I am now a bit ahead of the game!

And Happy Festivus to those who Seinfeld celebrate!

Life is good!  Spark on!