I broke with tradition yesterday twice and cooked the turkey without stuffing it AND I made the stuffing/dressing with sprouted grain bread (Alvarado Street Bakery). The stuffing turned out amazing and I highly recommend it. I didn't dry the bread at all before using it, just cut it up and added celery, celery leaves, thyme, shallots, leek, garlic and some of the broth from the giblets. Oh and butter. And apples.

The kids wrote up their Christmas lists for Santa Claus today. Samuel sent his off in a hurry, in the mail, direct to Santa Clause, The North Pole. We usually get a reply letter from him after a couple of weeks. Eva opted to hold onto her list and leave it for Santa with his cookies and eggnog on Christmas Eve. I was remembering leaving lists in the fire place? at one house I lived in while growing up. I had completely forgotten this memory until reading something about this tradition somewhere out there on the Internet. Fascinating what memories are still in there somewhere.

I am happy to say that our rat Charlie is feeling a little better and has regained a bit more mobility in his leg thanks to the anti-inflammatory meds I have been giving him. I think his leg is permanently wounded but it isn't purple any more and he has more energy. It is hard for him to sit on my shoulder and move around because of his foot being not as flexible, so I have to move slower than usual and sometimes give him a hand, but it is definitely an improvement.

We are reading the second book in the Mushroom Planet series- Stowaway to the Mushroom Planet...we are suspicious of one of the new characters and there is a distinctly suspense-ish feel to the beginning part of the book. And at long last we got Comet in Moominland after a couple of friends highly recommended it. Looking forward to reading about the Moomin Trolls, particularly after reading so many troll stories of late.

I at long last have Oscar Wao back in possession and need to hurry up and finish it before I need to return it again...It is really just such an amazing book, night and day with some other fiction I have tried to read recently. Wondering what will come along to read next.