a good day from morning till night

[pensnest]

I got the most beautiful story for Yuletide: a 'Persuasions' fic, about the years between Anne's broken engagement and her eventual reunion with Wentworth. About how and why Charles Musgrove grew interested in her, and why they would not have worked together, and what she learned from the experience of deciding not to marry him.

It's so well written, and captures the characters perfectly.

When the author is revealed I shall have to see if she has written other Austen stories.

*squeee*

*

Before the Deluge

***

A very pleasant Christmas Day in our usual style. I'd made my List the night before—timings for cooking—and got on with it straight after breakfast. Bun was a bit later arriving than I had expected (slight miscommunication) but we had our usual present-opening session mid-morning, and I got a pleasing haul which included a fabulous skein, book soaps (ie soaps inside *beautiful* little boxes that look like books), and 'Scales and Sensibility', which ought to be a fun read.

The roast pork, which I cooked in a slightly different way, was very successful, and pretty well everything worked nicely. It's always gratifying when a roast dinner comes together properly with nothing underdone or cooked to mush.

After lunch we played 'RailRoad', a clever little game with a very simple premise in which everybody gets the same building blocks to play with and yet there is a wide span of points scored. Will play again, possibly today.

When Bun went back home, the rest of us scattered to our separate rooms for some introvert time. I read my awesome Yuletide story! Then I ended up falling asleep on the sofa at about half past eight, so went to bed early.

Comments

[spikedluv]

I'm glad you had a nice day and received a great story!

[pensnest]

The *best* thing about a story exchange is having a happy recipient, but being one is also pretty good. :=D

[frausorge]

Ooh, that's an insightful piece indeed. Yay for a great gift! And congrats on your culinary successes also.

[pensnest]

Thanks! I noped out of making dessert, on the grounds that we had a Christmas pud already and there are so many tasty things in the freezers at Sainsburys. We ended up with a raspberry and blackcurrant roulade.

[corvidology]

Glad to read you had a lovely Christmas!

[pensnest]

Thanks! I discovered last night that one of the soap boxes is actually a music box making it the best soap gift possible!

[minoanmiss]

Hooray :)

[pensnest]

*twirls happily*

[turps]

Your day sounds fabulous!

A roast dinner always seems a little daunting to me. This year my roasties could have done with a bit longer but otherwise, all was well.

[pensnest]

The big secret with Christms dinner is making The List beforehand - work out the time when everything needs to go into the oven (and, possibly, what will *fit*, though I am pampered and have two ovens), then just put everything down with timings and tick them off as you get them done. I don't bother with a List for a regular roast dinner, but Christmas usually involves more than usual amounts of food, including extras like stuffing balls and pigs in blankets, and it's such a pain to find these things in the fridge on the 27th!

[turlough]

Congratulations to getting a great Yuletide story!

Your Christmas Day sounds delightful. I've never tried to make a roast dinner but I can imagine that Lists are the way to go if you want everything ready to eat the same time.

[pensnest]

It's a jolly good first Yuletide! My writer story being appreciated, and my recipient story being lovely. *happy sigh*

The List is not infallible, but it really helps.

[brandywine28]

Sounds like the perfect Christmas Day to me (and I'm thrilled you had the chance to incorporate a little introvert time, because YES)!

[pensnest]

I have to flee at some point and commune with my computer. Our neighbours had the whole family round—17 people!! which sounds like fun and also a nightmare.