First, the odds!  I mentioned a few months back about taking some pictures for a friend’s work that would be published in a magazine.  It was a bit of a stretch for me, but I felt good about it when it was over, and resolved to stop thinking about it.  That worked pretty well until unbidden it would pop its head back up on my radar and I wondered if maybe something had gone terribly wrong.  Well, in fact, it did not.  This past week the magazine came out and my friend and her mom’s amazing work was staring out at me from a magazine–a national publication.  Oh, and I had a photo credit too.  Gasp!  It was a pretty cool moment, but I definitely think it qualifies as odd in my life.  I trust you will indulge me few pictures below, some from the magazine, and a few of my favorites.

And for the ends, I bookended this past week with a giveaway on both sides.  First, I made two more mini loaves of that persimmon bread, and I am still just as in love with it as I was last week when I mentioned it.  I have some persimmons ripening now and I can’t wait to make them into bread.  Those two loaves accompanied two very festive poinsettias for a few elderly church members.  I just donated this year, so I didn’t get to do any of the deliveries.  Next year I think I will need to see if there are any openings on that front, as I definitely missed that part.  Still, making the bread is part of it, and I enjoyed wrapping the loaves and the delivery to the delivery person.

Maybe it was because I missed the delivery, that I really didn’t feel that official.  I felt a second loaf was in order, and I took it way back to one of my first loaves I made and shared here on the site, my basic no knead bread.   The bread was to be a hostess gift for a holiday party, and I felt it would strike the right note of sincere appreciation for someone opening up their home to share some holiday cheer.  I don’t know if I was not paying close attention the first time through when I whipped up the ingredients, but I tasted a little of the dough, and in addition to being suspiciously wet, it was way, way too salty.  My bet is that I shorted the flour, but I am not really sure.  That dough ended up in the trash, and I started over resolving to pay much closer attention the second time through.  The next day the loaf baked up beautifully, and I got to deliver it while it was still warm.  That is, without a doubt, absolutely my favorite delivery to make.  Real life and real schedules don’t always allow for that, but there is a magic of handing over a still warm from the oven loaf of bread that is frankly unique and wholesome.  I really cherish it.  It didn’t hurt that my lovely recipient even exclaimed, “Is this still warm?!?”