If You and I Had Coffee | vol 41

If you and I had coffee...

I'd invite you over for a low-key date that involved a variety of flavored coffee pods and tea bags and a box of those store-bought donuts. You know, the ones with the powdered sugar on them. Even though I'm fighting a cold, I wouldn't want to miss out on my opportunity to chat with you before the holidays are in full swing. We'd plop down on the couch and probably turn on a Christmas movie to play in the background. Maybe White Christmas, which is one of my favorites.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I'm feeling a little jealous of my friends who live in the Midwest because so many of them are posting Instagram pictures of the snow they are getting already. The forecast has hinted about some winter weather here, but so far, not a flake has been seen. I love snow and it always puts me in the mood to bake, so I make sure I'm stocked up on all the pantry staples whenever Mother Nature decides to blanket this mountain with the frozen precip. I have a huge list of cookies and candy I want to make over the holiday season, and the sooner I start, the happier I'll be.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd share with you this interesting article that I'd read recently about the importance of not making your children hug adult relatives over the holidays. I could relate to it so much. I have never enjoyed showing physical affection to someone unless I'm very close to them, and can remember how uncomfortable large extended-family holiday gatherings made me when I was a child. I never enjoyed visiting Santa at the mall and sitting on his lap for a photo, so the idea that there would be kids out there who shy away from that kind of thing, even if it's an aunt or uncle, makes a lot of sense to me.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd tell you that I've made a decision to discontinue the use of Google advertising on the blog, at least for the time being. I do enjoy the option to make a little extra money on the side, but Adsense just released a new feature that places ads anywhere on the site, and I found that some of my content was covered up or shifted off-screen completely. Unfortunately, there were few options to change the placement or choose where I wanted to allow the ads to run. After researching the problem a little, I learned that it was a common complaint after this feature was added, so I decided that it was better to turn them off until the kinks were worked out. In my opinion, nothing is worth that great a headache.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd ask you where your favorite places were to get candles. I love burning candles and have some favorite brands but have noticed something strange lately. Some of the candles are leaving a black soot up the wall wherever they are being used. I've never had problems like this before, especially with brands that claim to be clean, soy-based products. It worries me because if they are leaving that much pollution on the wall, I can't help but wonder what I could be breathing in. So, I think it's time to start shopping for new candles and would love to hear any recommendations you have.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd share with you that this season, I've had to step back and listen to my body more than I ever have before. Health hasn't been my friend lately and this is usually the time of year where I'm pushing myself to prepare for the big holidays. Between cooking our family Thanksgiving meal for over twenty people and all the holiday baking I enjoy doing, the season is so busy. I'm working on planning a schedule that will allow me more days to work, but spread out so I have plenty of time to rest in between. I've also decided (with the help of my mom and sisters) that this Christmas, I'll just do a big grazing board instead of cooking a full meal. Many of my siblings are married or partnered up, so they usually split the day between our family and the in-laws. It will be much easier to have more snacky foods instead of preparing a meal and juggling everyone's schedules.

If you and I had coffee...

I'd ask about what you and your family do for the holidays. Do you celebrate with extended family or keep it more intimate? Of course, I'd ask what kind of food you do and if one person cooks or if everyone contributes something. Or maybe you go out for a meal or order take-out? I'm always curious about how different families celebrate holidays around the world.

If you and I had coffee...

We'd finish the rest of our movie, not wanting to rush our laid-back meetup - and probably have another donut. No shame here, right? When it was time to go, I'd give you a hug and promise that we'd do it again soon. I'm sure it will be here before we know it. Maybe next time, we'll have some snow!


Now, it's your turn! If you wrote a coffee date post, I'd love for you to link up below so we can all meet together! Just click the "add your link" box and follow the instructions to submit.

If you link up, please hop around and visit some of the other bloggers who are joining us. Coffee dates are all about meeting friends and building community after all, and link dropping doesn't help with either. ❤

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What would you like to chat about over coffee?

Every second Tuesday of the month, we gather together with our favorite hot beverages and catch up. Care to join us? Our next coffee date will be on Tuesday, December 10th. Hope to see you there!

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