There was nothing said about the food....

As I have been mentioning (each time I see a Christmas catalog), I love Christmas. And because some direct ancestor of my husband is either Scrooge or the Grinch, I am only allowed to listen to Christmas music and watch Christmas CDs after Halloween. It is very hard to be strong--I can almost smell the spirit of Christmas--the turkey, the pies, the cranberry sauce...or is that smell coming from my kitchen on this sunny October 85 degree day in Dallas?

Why it is!

See today at the grocery store, I clutched my list and made my way through the produce trying very hard to watch prices and stay in budget. And then I saw them. A beautiful little box of fresh organic cranberries--so plump, round and red. I had to have them. I could not leave them there. They had to be in my cart. And that is where they went.

When I got home, I told the girls I was making some orange cranberry sauce to go with dinner that night.

"Mom," Miley giggled. "It is not Thanksgiving. It's not even Halloween." (The scrooge blood runs strong through her little veins.)

"Well honey, "I had to think fast. "You know I like to try out various side dishes before Thanksgiving to make sure it will be OK."

"So what kind are you making?"

"Orange fennel."

She shook her head. "Mom, we had the orange fennel cranberry sauce last year and I hated it because I hate fennel."

She had me. I was busted by the ten year old with the memory of an elephant.

"Well, I wanted to make this again to compare to the new stuff," I blurted out and began to zest the orange.

"Whatever. Have you bought the High School Musical 3 tickets yet?"

"After we enjoy the cranberry sauce and ham dinner--without complaints," I smiled.

The magic of HSM works again ;)