“A woman voting for divorce is like a turkey voting for Christmas.” Alice Glynn

And I’m back after a do nothing Sat and a hair and nails Sunday. Pictures are (if they’re not my decorations) of Heathrow Country Club were I attended an event last week.

Today we’re doing a dangers of Christmas that you may or may not know about but which I thought was interesting and since it’s my blog you’re stuck with them.

And a little Out–and about Lander to complete our ramblings.

“Bad hair day? You’re a virgin, you’ve just given birth, and now three kings have shown up — find out the happy ending at a church near you.”
From a 1996 Christmas advertising campaign of the Christian Advertising Network

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[Welcome to my Kitchen I even have a little stuffed Santa on the coffee maker…The end of all my top cabinets have snow flakes on them…and I also use a reindeer gift bag and a Flamingo Santa plate to added to the ho ho ho feeling}

Did you know that many egg nog recipes includes raw eggs which are dangerous to consume…..many people think that the alcohol added kills any salmonella or other nasty creatures that might be lurking in those eggs, but that’s just not the case. So what to do?

First avoid egg nog at parties and entertainments where you can’t confirm what’s in it. Most bars and restaurants don’t serve the raw stuff but….oh and the eggnog in your grocery store is cooked and so you can enjoy it and serve it to your friends without any worry.

Oh and you can purchase pasteurized eggs and FYI most healthy adults will have no problem drinking a bit of raw eggs in their nog without any problems, like eating a bit of cookie dough….but even a healthy adult can make themselves unhealthy by overdoing the nog or the cookie dough and the raw eggs.

(I love this garland–it use to have lights but they don’t work anymore…but with all these cute characters on it—it’s work keeping—this year it’s hanging over my sink where the pass thru goes into my breakfast room)

“There is nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child.”
Erma Bombeck (1927-1996)

(another small stuffed Santa wanna be adorning a taste of honey)

This is actually a game called Strange and Dangerous Christmas an action game, with 50 different levels, puts you in defense of your home and it’s contained Christmas tree and presents against thieves using what ever you can improvise in the home for your weapons.

And did you know that one of the most dangerous place for the holiday is the kitchen, with all the frying, boiling and baking people are prone to get burned and cut a lot….children and visitors that aren’t helping with preparation can be in the wrong place at the wrong time either be injured themselves or injury someone who’s doing preparations for instance. Add alcohol and these things can get crazier….I guess driving isn’t the only thing we shouldn’t be drinking and doing this weekend.

(Here I have a Santa plastic mask on my cookie jar, two small stockings from the handles on the cabinet…a tin with Christmas décor….another plate this one with a snowman….al to lively up my counter)

“God bless us, every one!”

Tiny Tim in Charles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’ (1843)

(A scroll-type corner handing)

Did you know that Mistletoe and Holly are poisonous to your pets? Even Christmas trees can be toxic (at least on the level that it irritates the mouth and stomach when the limbs are chewed on) though the fir oil usually only causes drooling and sometimes vomiting (which can also be a side affect of ingesting Poinsettias which sometime also occasionally causes diarrhea as well).

Oh one more injury to your pet can result from running into or otherwise plunging their heads into the Fir tree, for in fact the needles can cause corneal abrasion.

(more snow flakes—these on my refrigerator)

“Now Christmas comes, ’tis fit that we
should feast and sing, and merry be:
Keep open house, let fidlers play.
A fig for cold, sing care away;
And may they who thereat repine,
On brown bread and on small beer dine.”
from the 1766 ‘Virginia Almanack’

“On top of that same refrigerator a couple of present bags…one with a tiny stuff teddy bear inside and the other supporting a plush Santa.”

We all use care with the light on the tree to avoid shocks for instance, but did you know that every year there are many, many children who actually swallow the bulbs?

And that’s not the only way Christmas can be bad for your health: Stress, alcohol, late nights and parties can all contribute to your lowered resistance—add the cold weather that so many areas experience during this happy (“White”) time of the year–and you have a sure fire recipe for catching at best a cold and at worst the flu.

(Using Christmas-themed plates or bowls, as well a hot pot holders and salt and pepper shakers combines function as well as décor…I added a Santa head (wooden), a small drummer boy–hanging from a spoon and the picture of a polar bear to add to the season feeling.)

“At last the dishes were set on, and grace was said. It was succeeded by a breathless pause, as Mrs Cratchit, looking slowly all along the carving-knife, prepared to plunge it in the [goose] breast; but when she did, and when the long- expected gush of stuffing issued forth….”
Charles Dickens (1812-1870). ‘A Christmas Carol’

“A tin of a snowman atop the cabinet and a left over cover for some cookie tins I sent out to friends…oh and the bear is a handing present tag, just a little something that makes it more festive at little cost to the decorator.”

Oh and when we’re looking at health problems–did you know that it was found that there is a marked increase in allergy complaints during the Christmas season with the Christmas tree being a major cause–oh and artificial trees aren’t far behind, seems they build up dust and stuff in their branches which also causes problems for many people. And studies have shown that a lot of the allergins in the live trees are from molds including aspergillus, penicillium, cladosporium and alternaria http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/your-christmas-tree-could-killing-7008703 . But others are just allergic to the pine tar or other components of the tree itself.

Now if your family and you don’t have any major allergy problems this should not be a problem…if you do then it could cause allergy and asthma attacks. But the mirror went on to say: “In around one in 500 people, such as those with a compromised immune system, the mould will settle and grow inside their airways, and will cause the sudden onset of a cough and fatigue that won’t shift.”

Solutions include spraying the tree with a mild bleach solution before bringing it into the house to just taking an anti-histamine if it’s just a mild sniffles, There’s also hosing down the artificial tree before bringing it into the house (as well as better storage methods). Having your doctor check you for specific allergies couldn’t hurt and will help you decide your décor next year. And if you’re one of those people who have a compromised immune system (i.e. persons undergoing chemo treatment for instance) you should discuss this issue with your doctor as it could result in serious even life threatening health problems.

(a teapot and another snowman figurine setting high above the kitchen to be admired but not in the way)

Christmas is a time when you get homesick — even when you’re home. ~Carol Nelson

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Get into the celebration for Cait’s nomination: http://www.cbs8.com/story/34031644/outlander-star-caitriona-balfe-celebrates-her-well-deserved-golden-globe-nomination

And check out Outlander revitalizing Scottish fashion: http://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/designers/a16511/how-outlander-is-revitalizing-scottish-fashion/

and the return of the kilt: http://www.elle.com/fashion/news/a40493/dressed-to-kilt/

Christmas is a necessity. There has to be at least one day of the year to remind us that we’re here for something else besides ourselves. ~Eric Sevareid

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Pot holders are another great décor item…like the bear above…

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Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall. ~Larry Wilde, The Merry Book of Christmas

on the long counter I have one of those flimsy carpets holding a gaggle of snowmen…from Salt and pepper shakers to a couple in a bucket and a holder for spreaders for cheese and the like and can’t forget the snow lady and baby–two separate figures that I’ve combined as mom and kid.