Country Woman December/January 2022

Linherited a love of all things holly and jolly from my mom. When I was a kid, we’d spend a long weekend decorating our house for Christmas—decking our halls with boughs of greenery, taping paper snowflakes to our windows and singing off-key to Bing Crosby songs while trimming the biggest tree we could find. So I’m thrilled to be joining the staff of Country Woman just in time to work on the holiday issue. I now have a home of my own, and I can’t wait to hang page 11’s sweet sock wreath from my door. The centerpiece and table settings on page 43 will probably be making an appearance on my dining table at some point this month, too—I never need much of an excuse to throw a dinner party! And…

Night Light Nothing brightens our spirits quite as much as a beautiful display of twinkling lights, whether it is inside or outdoors. If you’re particularly proud of the way you decorated your home with strands of lights for the holidays this year, please share a few photos or tell us more about the project. Your submission might appear in our next December/January issue. Raise the Roof Have you ever designed and built a dollhouse from scratch, or found a clever way to customize a store-bought dollhouse with one-of-a-kind touches? If so, we’d love to see what you did! Small but Mighty The adage that “good things come in small packages” certainly applies to gardens. Share your best small-space gardening tips with us—your response could be featured in an upcoming issue. Share your story: countrywomanmagazine.com/submit See page…

Sweet and Sour I wanted to try my luck at canning some sweet pickles after reading Janis Parr’s June/July story, “Help from the Hoosier.” Her recipe was very thorough and easy to follow, and after giving it a try I am happy to report that I ended up with five jars of the best sweet pickles ever! ANND MARY BHARLDS FREDERICKSBURG, VIRGINIA Sew Happy Loved the August/September quilt issue. I don’t have a lot of experience, but I really enjoy spending time in my sewing room. My favorite projects are quilts with panels or appliques! CARLYN TIMM HERRON, MICHIGAN Stitch in Time The August/September quilt issue was so special. I just had to share my Travois ladder (built by my son Brian), on which I showcase a few of my great-grandmother’s quilts. The project ties together four…

Q: How do you keep holiday messes to a minimum even when friends or family are visiting? Simplify! Cut back on the number of dishes you serve, the presents you give, the events you attend. Focus on what’s truly important. MIBHDLLD BOINDR ROCHESTER, INDIANA As soon as I start cooking, I fill the sink up with hot, soapy water. When I’m finished with a pot or pan, I drop it into the sink so that I have less to wash after the meal. JABKI EARION VEGREVILLE, ALBERTA Invest in crock servers! You can prepare dishes ahead of time and keep them on low heat until ready. SUZANND SDNTNDR CASSATT, SOUTH CAROLINA When baking cookies, I cover my table with a plastic tablecloth and put small amounts of each type of decoration in unbreakable dishes. Then, once everyone…

Tell us about yourself. I have been married to my amazing husband, Cavid, for more than two decades. We have four children and we live in the most beautiful place I can imagine. Palmer is a small agricultural community that is situated in a beautiful valley and surrounded by mountains. What are your hobbies? I love to read, knit, journal and play lots of board games with my family. I love gardening, too, but am not particularly good at it. The weeds always win. Who inspires you the most? I have some amazing friends—women who have been through so much and encourage me to keep my head up and lean on my faith when times are tough. What makes you a country woman? The mountains, the wildlife and the midnight sun—I get to experience all of those…

Winter is quiet in Missouri’s southwestern Ozark foothills, but the town of Noel starts bustling during the Christmas season. In the generous spirit of the holidays, volunteers at the Noel Post Office have handstamped the same greeting on Yuletide cards for nearly 88 years. It’s a rubber-stamped bright red wreath or green Christmas tree that says, “Season’s Greetings from Noel, Missouri, Christmas City, USA.” Each year, in addition to the cards people bring in, as many as 40,000 cards arrive from all 50 states and several foreign countries to request the special holiday greeting. The post office staff can’t handle this monumental task alone, so about 30 volunteers handstamp the cards at a small table in the lobby. Dot Harner has coordinated the volunteers for about 10 years. “Beginning in early November, I call…