BonTexasNY

I almost choked on my gum!

So very beautiful. Merry Christmas!

Looks about right 🤣Fortunately, it hardly snows here. Keeping fingers crossed it stays that way. Oh no, Maryann, hope everyone recovers quickly. You have a wonderful, optimistic outlook.

Would I be bragging if I announce it's a blistering 35 degrees here?

What a lovely, inviting table and tree. I learned from Emma Cruises on you tube that "pudding" in the UK means dessert. Every house is lovely when it's filled with love. I bet yours is the same.

Oh those smiles! Precious. So nice to put a pretty face to your name, April.

Sadness mixed with joy. My sincere condolences on the passing of your beloved brother. And, of course, congratulations on your beautiful granddaughter and her future groom on their engagement. .

I'd love to meet you also, and ARK does border TX! No wonder you wear jackets in "balmy" weather, neighbor. I'll be the one in the thin hoodie. I am so looking forward to our Bella cruise. That excitement never wavered. Just wasn't looking forward to our Feb. cruise as much as Bella's. Meeting all of you will be a wonderful treat for sure!

I have seen people here in TX wear heavy puffy (down?) jackets when the temps "dipped" to the 40s. In the 19 years I'm in TX, I have worn my down jacket maybe 6 times. I like that!

This was not a terrific year for us, but thankfully it's getting better. This thread helped, honest! So I did something to perk us up even more. Checked online into our February cruise. Set sail pass done! I wasn't crazy looking forward to the cruise until yesterday, but that did it, plus we got a 10:30-11 check in time which we were hoping for. Now the excitement begins!

Happy holidays to you and your family as well. Thanking your son for his service. Home of the free, because of the brave! It's 10 degrees here. Thankfully, no falling iguanas 😏

I'm Emerald and enjoy the $125 balcony discount I received when I became Platinum. I'll be 11 points away from Diamond after our 2 cruises in 2023. I don't cruise to rack up points to become Diamond. If I reach it, fine. If not, I'll still enjoy whatever future cruises we book. And congrats on becoming Platinum. Enjoy your balcony discount if that's what you usually book.

My dentist used to tell me that biting on ice is good for business. Tooth pain is no laughing matter. I hope you get relief soon.

It's now 18 degrees here. NJ where my daughter and family live is 36. I think it should be revered but weather all over most of the country is totally wonky. Stay safe, all.

Crazy Dallas area weather. 51 today, Fri. a high of 25. The next 8 days has temps in the 20s, 30s, 40s 50s and 60s. And those are the highs. At least no rain.

Beautiful even upside down! @jagsfan Mimi, gorgeous great-grandkids! @Lionesss Sue, I know you can't get wait to get your hands on Zoey again in a few days.

Cruise question. Last cruise was 2018 so I'm rusty with current info. When are luggage tags available to print? We're 2 days away from checking in to our Feb. cruise. Will they be available at that time? Unlike some in here who prefer a later check in, we're antsy and want to get on board as soon as possible. We're ok shlepping our hand baggage with us until cabins are available.

We also loved Ratner's. Their mushroom barley soup, blintzes and baked goods were legendary although my favorite place for rugelach was Gertel's on Hester Street near Guss pickles.

Loew's Delancey was my go to place for movies. It opened in 1912 and closed in 1977.

Nothing better than Goobers or chocolate covered vanilla ice cream bonbons at the movies. Raisins YUK! Priceless sweetheart girl!

I won't touch anything with raisins in it. I am a chocoholic and I won't ever eat raisinettes. Welcome to the world Zoey! Congratulations to you Grandma, grandpa, the new mommy and daddy Christina and Brandon and the whole family. Let the spoiling begin in earnest!

Raisins? Blechhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh 😝

OOO besides the sweet happy faces, I see some yummy sufganiyot (jelly donuts), traditionally a staple especially in Israel! Following is a short explanation: Why do we eat latkes (fried potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly donuts) on Chanukah? The short answer is because the holiday of Chanukah is about the small jar of oil miraculously lasting for eight days and therefore, frying foods in oil commemorates that miracle I keep quoting the wrong posts. I meant to quote Lenny to wish Toby success on her upcoming procedure. I notice 2 changes when I post on CC. One is that when I click the next page, it brings me to the bottom of the next page, not the top. Not a major biggie. Second change is that as I'm typing, words pop up in grey, continuing what I'm typing. Clicking "enter" does not work. I just have to type over the text CC is offering.

Jack has his eyes glued to the World Cup. Argentina won. Lots of hugging and crying, tears of joy for the winners, tears of sadness for France. I have no idea who he's rooting for. Crowds seem very sedate. Must be full of French folks? We woke up to frost covering everything outside. Temp now is a bearable 54. Friday will dip down to a "high" of 24. no snow in the forecast and I hope we don't get one of our famous ice storms. Since this is the last weekend before Christmas, no shopping for us today even though we could use a trip to the supermarket. So many refer to them as grocery stores which remind me of our neighborhood small, family owned grocery stores.

@Jimbo Your new kitchen looks great even if it isn't finished yet. Love the brick and beams. Puts a nice homey, rustic vibe to the kitchen. How do you survive living in a house with so much renovation work going on?