December 5, 2020
Welcome to the weekend, my friends! It’s finally getting cold here in Ohio. We had the prettiest snowfall this week and we’re getting so excited for Christmas!
My family sat down this week with all the nominations for the Christmas giveaways and we each selected a family to send a Christmas gift to this year. If you sent in a nomination, thank you so much for allowing us to share a bit of Christmas joy with your friends and family.
Today, for the tenth week of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Giveaways, I’m giving away $150 towards the Pearl Handbag by Lo & Sons. (If you choose a bag that falls into that price range, I’ll cover taxes and shipping too. I’m specifying this because there are two colors sitting at the not so fun full price $298 right now.) I love this purse so much that I’ve been carrying mine almost exclusively for several years now. I’ve gone from a frequent purse and handbag shopper to a dedicated fan of this one.
This bag was designed for the organization obsessed – it almost magically holds everything you need without becoming bulky or overly stuffed. Not yet convinced? Watch this video and then tell me it isn’t the most fabulously well organized bag of all time. I LOVE IT. It’s the best bag ever for travel and for daily life as well.
The lucky winner will be able to select the color and material of their choice. I have the Saffiano leather, it never scuffs or scratches and it always looks sharp – even after carrying the same bag every day for years now.
To be entered, leave a comment on THIS BLOG POST telling me the weirdest thing in your purse or pocket right now. The winner will be selected on Tuesday, December 8, 2020 at 11:59pm EST.
SIDE NOTE – these bags are on a serious sale right now. If the pricing on the bag increases to the point where $150 won’t pay for the bag, I will happily send the winner a $150 Amazon gift card instead, if that is their preference.
Here’s the lucky winner’s comment:
ON THE BLOG this week: Homemade Peppermint Ice Cream is some of the creamiest ice cream I have ever made and for the record, it is worlds away from the mint-flavored ice creams you can find in a store.
These Banana Coconut Pecan Pancakes were initially made on a whim, but they wound up being a huge hit with the family. These are hearty, fluffy Banana Pancakes filled with irresistible bits of sweet coconut and chewy pecans.
You only need two ingredients and about five minutes to make this Easy Hot Fudge Sauce. Creamy, thick, rich, and chocolatey hot fudge is a dream (and often a “must have in the house at all times” requirement) for any ice cream lover!
What I’m CRAVING: This Farmhouse Crockpot Lasagna caught my eye this week and I definitely need to try it. All the lasagna flavors we love in a simple slow cooker meal? Yes, please!
My FAVORITE THING this week is our Advent book. We started reading Shadow and Light: A Journey Into Advent by Tsh Oxenreider and I am really enjoying it. Another reviewer described this book as “a genuinely doable, capsule-sized, daily invitation to pause and remember and wait.” I agree 100%.
I’ve looked at many different Advent stories and devotionals over the years and haven’t found one I truly love. So far, this one has been lovely. We’ve been reading the daily pages together each morning and I like that each day is a short section to read with relevant scriptures and a thought for the day as well.
What I’m READING: A Common Life by Jan Karon. This is the 6th book that was written in the Mitford series, it’s a very short novel that was written to tell the story of Father Tim and Cynthia’s wedding day. So, technically it fits in between books 2 and 3. I honestly wish I’d known that ahead of time so that I could’ve read it in chronological order. (I’m fussy like that.)
All of that said, it was fun to see how much the town loved them and how the big day came together. If you have read the Mitford series and love the Mitford characters, the description of the wedding fills in the blanks nicely and it’s a fun read.
What I’m WATCHING: Santa Girl. In a nutshell, Santa Claus’ daughter wants to experience real life at college before taking over the family business and accepting her arranged marriage to the son of Jack Frost. This movie was super cheesy and sweet and silly and it managed to make me both roll my eyes and grin or laugh at different times.
“Christmas is a season not only of rejoicing but of reflection.” – Winston Churchill
Wishing you a beautiful week full of little things that make you smile!
Mary
Annette Hennip says
An epi pen is the strangest thing in my purse right now. I carry it for my husbands allergic reaction problems.
Helen Cope says
The weirdest thing in my purse at the moment is a small shell given to me by a student of mine. I taught him in second grade and he gave it to me the night of his eighth grade graduation, when I was the graduation speaker. He is now a junior in high school. I would absolutely LOVE to have that special shell and my other treasures tucked away in the Lo & Sons Convertible bag! Thank you!
Kim T says
Hand sanitizer. Cant wait for the day when I dont go through a quart a week.
Honey Uphold says
i carry a box cutter and an airplane size bottle of bourbon….either could save your life in an emergency!!! 🙂
Anne Felts says
I carry a buckeye in my purse for good luck!
aketch says
I’m embarrased to say I found a broken watch strap at the bottom of my purse, which I have been meaning to pitch out for oh, maybe five years or so. Merry Christmas!
Wayne L. Christensen says
Thank you, I am new to your site and like what I am reading and seeing. I am also a writer, photographer, and artist with a life long passion for cooking.
The oddest thing I have in my pocket at the moment is lint, which has taken the place of a mountain of things I carried daily to and from work, which I had dispersed to several pockets which I needed or thought I needed for work. I am now retired and no longer need to be prepared for every thing that may come up in a ten hour day. My bag was worse because it carried art, writings along with documents for work.
I like how you introduce a light on yourself and the things you like, or are working on. Good job!
Jane Ervin says
The weirdest thing in my purse right now is small bag with a toothbrush and small toothpaste from my dentist’s vist over a month ago!
Jackie B says
I am not sure if this is where I am supposed to comment for the purse giveaway but here is my answer. The weirdest things in my purse are a Beretta pocket knife and a measuring tape. Thank you for this opportunity. Your blog is my favorite and I use more of your recipes than anyone else’s. Jackie B
Terri Kurtz says
The weirdest thing in my purse are “poop bags” for my dog.
Cheryl Juhl says
Right now I’m carrying around a small project bag with sock knitting in it. I’ve been carrying it everywhere. So glad to see your pictures. I have family in Medina, Ohio and I love it there. So sad I can’t be there for Christmas this year. I miss my grandson. Happy Holidays.
Cheryl
Alanna Smith says
I am kind of drooling over those purses. Ever since I got to trade in a diaper bag for a purse, I just can’t get enough of them!
The weirdest thing in my purse right now is a travel-sized container of Vaseline. Sort of like the father in My Big Fat Greek Wedding who thought windex could cure anything, I am absolutely CONVINCED that Vaseline solves a world of problems, from chapped lips to helping skin to heal after I’ve scratched a bug bite too hard… It’s the greatest cure-all ever! I never go anywhere without some!
Amy S. says
My purse holds a dog chew toy. Our 5 month old Pekingese loves dropping surprises in my purse. It may be a chew toy, a fluffy squeaky toy or his much loved sock ball. Thanks for the giveaway. Happy holidays!
Diana Volk says
At first thought I want to say that the 3 masks in my purse are weird due to the fact that they never used to be in there. However, I do currently have one of my dogs leashes in my purse too!
Linda says
The weirdest thing in my purse right now is a very small protection sprayer, pepper spray or whatever, that is so small and so old that I doubt if it could protect me! Makes me feel better though.
Lilly says
I’ve been carrying a diaper bag backpack as my purse but hardly need it anymore as my baby is a toddler now! So I’m ready to upgrade to a purse of my own again!! 🙂
Joan Skovira says
Hi, Mary
I really, really enjoy your blog and your recipes!
The weirdest thing in my purse is a small blue plastic dove with a scrap of yarn tied around it.
It was one of our grand-daughter’s favorite toys before she and her parents moved to Oregon.
Especially now with the covid outbreak I use it to remember her and our love for her !
Eleisia Whitney says
The weirdest thing in my purse right now is a small bottle of white appliance touch up paint. Before COVID-19 we took care of our grandchildren every Monday. We picked them up from school on weekdays and stayed the day at their house on school holidays and then had dinner with the family. I always carried the bottle of touch up paint because they occasionally had nicks in the paint of their appliances and I would cover them with the paint. I did chores around the house to help them out. And of course, we played games and did crafts with the kids.
Susan Broughton says
The weirdest thing in my purse right now is a light bulb lol. I brought it with me to match it at the store to get another one but anyone that would see it probably thinks its weird lol
N. Rogers says
The weirdest thing in my purse right now is a package of thumb tacks as I just created a flyer to sell some winter snow tires and I need to hang the flyer on the bulletin board in the lobby entrance of our local grocery store.