Planning for Christmas Presents

The Secretary and Carpenter like to make presents for Christmas. Ok, me, the Secretary, I really like to make presents. Besides being less expensive than shopping, making stuff means that I end up giving people presents that are actually meaningful (at least to me), and bypassing all that that crappy shopping pressure. Normally, I love shopping. I like to look at stuff, sort through stuff, pick out cool stuff, and find the secret awesome deals. But when it comes to shopping for presents I get completely stressed out. I end up spending hours walking from store to store trying to decide if this is more special than that, and "Will they actually like it, or do I just like it?", "Is this not expensive enough?", "Too expensive?", "Will they think I don't love them enough if I just get them socks?", "But what if they are really awesome socks?", "Is it dumb that I get them a blank journal every year?", "But they like journals," "What does it say about me?", "If I give them this, does it make me look cool and interesting?", "Does it seem like I didn't think about them enough?", "Where is the money for all this crap coming from anyway?", "And yes, this is all just crap anyway."

So yes, I've given some disastrous presents. Most of the disasters were purchased. I almost always feel great about the ones I've made, and I think the people who get them feel great about them too. (Except for the one time I made a scarf for my friend that ended up being about 15 feet long. I was aiming to make it sort of long, because he likes Dr. Who, but after he wore it a couple of times, it stretched out so ridiculously long that he couldn't wear it. I don't even feel that bad about it though, because it sure was cute on him while it lasted.)

The Carpenter I have have gotten together and made some nice Christmas presents. Past hits include homemade mustard and a hat we invented that can turn into a neck warmer. My dad particularly like his hat/neckwarmer because he says when he wears a hat, his head gets too hot, so he opens up the top like a vent.


We've been talking about making a friends & family cookbook for a long time, and this year we're going for it. We've got a plan, we've sent out an email, and we're waiting for the recipes to come rolling in. The first recipe we got is my aunt's coffee cake. Just to test it out, I made it for breakfast on Thanksgiving and it was delicious. The batter was so moist and creamy that I almost wish I hadn't even baked it. It was also very good when baked.

We're hoping to include pictures and anecdotes from people in addition to the recipes. I'm going to submit butterscotch chocolate chip cookies. I can't wait to see what the Carpenter is going to put in. We've been promised a recipe for "Daddy Joe's Egg Nog" (which I'm hoping is mostly bourbon and cream) and a bunch of other amazing sounding stuff. I think this is an extra good present idea, because we've tricked everyone into helping make their own present. We're going to put it all together, bind it in some cute way that we haven't quite decided yet, and send it out in time for Christmas (we hope!).

Here are the instructions we sent out to our loved ones:

Dearest Friends and Family,
For the Holidays this year Secretary and Carpenter will be making the first edition of a Friends and Family Cookbook. We are going to include recipes, pictures, and stories for the recipes. But to put it together, we need your help in getting us your recipes. You will, of course, receive a copy of the entire Cookbook this year.

We want a recipe that is somehow signature to you, and one that you feel strongly about. If that's some sort of awesome PB and J with walnuts and fluff or whatever, bring it on. There are no rules about where the recipe comes from (could be from your favorite cookbook- just let us know that) nor does it have to be some sort of food perfection- simple is totally fine.
So, assuming you want to submit a recipe, here is what we need...

Name of Your Recipe:
Your Name or Names (family name, or team name acceptable- just give us your real names as well):
Explain how you know Secretary and Carpenter:
Address:
Email:
Contact Phone Number:
(will be printed in the cookbook, so a person could contact you about any questions on your recipe)
Ingredients:
(do not be afraid to use un-scientific measurements, like handfuls or pinches- no need to buy a beaker and a scale- tell us how you make it)
Directions:
(explain in your own words, either cookbook style, or narrative. Whatever is best for you)
Story about the recipe:
(or you can include a story as a part of the directions)
Send us a Picture of you- and if you have it, a picture of your dish:

That's it! (might seem like a lot of work, but just think about getting the secret recipe to our Landlady's famous pasta Gravy- and it is totally worth it) And if you wan to submit more than one recipe- by all means, do it! But we may edit based on length.
Yeah!!!

Looks like it's going to be a pretty good cook book so far. Have I spoiled it now that you know what you're going to get? Eh, you knew already, didn't you?

Warmest regards,
Secretary