Wonderful time of year: Part I

I love traditions of all shapes and sizes, and part of my favorite thing about being a mom is establishing family traditions.  But part of that is figuring out what works for our family, and in what form.  So as we start to pack up the Christmas decorations and music and books, I want to take a moment to reflect.  And to share some pictures.

We start on the first Sunday of Advent.  Our Advent wreath is some fake greenery formed into a ring around a thrift store candleabra.  We light the candle(s) before dinner and after eating sing a verse of “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel,” and extinguish them (using a fancy schmancy snuffer, which makes it ever-so-fun).  Doing the “an-els” was also big motivation for Big Brother to take his plate to the kitchen.  He was  a little enthusiastic with the snuffer, but did a great job with some assistance.  This year I think we did verses 1, 4, 6, and 7 (at least as they’re numbered in the Methodist hymnal we use).  We switch verses every week, but sing multiple verses on Sundays.

Then, on December 6th, the presents start.  St. Nicholas Day is a fun new thing for me, but dovetails quite nicely with my fond memories of hanging my stocking by the chimney with care.  We have special orange pecan French toast (no significance, just a favorite) and discover the contents of our stockings—toothpaste, lip balm, socks and the like.  Oh, and a magazine.  A very important component.

And uploading these pictures has used up my time allotted, so I’ll have to continue next time.

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

 

This is my first year doing stockings on St. Nicholas Day.  Well, it’s my first day celebrating St. Nicholas Day at all, as far as I can remember.  We’ll be out of town for Christmas, so this seemed like a great alternative (this, and traditional presents on the feast of Epiphany—way to spread the joy as long as possible, right?).  Plus, we have this great book by a relative of a friend of my sister.  Well, we have the book, but that doesn’t mean the little one wanted to sit still to actually hear it.  So, I educated myself, and counted it good.

May your Advent season be filled with anticipation,

and joy,

and a feeling of generosity.

California on my mind

I’m going to play a quick catch up.  Peter and I have been on the road, having lots of adventures, and I want to get some of the memories down before they spill out of my mind.  First up, a Father’s Day visit to Father’s family in CA.

I think I’ve mentioned before our unfortunate life-planning in having a baby (the first grandchild on either side) immediately after moving far away from both of our families.  And while Peter has not lacked in the familial love department, it was high time to get ourselves out to visit A.’s side of the family in sunny southern California.

The first set of plane trips were made without too much ordeal.  Peter, like his mother, loved the Biscoff cookies that Delta served.  But there was more excellent food to come!

Cuban black beans, pork, and yucca!

First trip to the beach.  My sweet mother-in-law found a cute lightweight stroller on Craigslist.  As you see, Peter is not riding in it.  We got to the beach and put him in the stroller, heading for a restaurant for some food.  He screamed.  We walked for several blocks like that, me assuring the family that he would settle in.  He did not.  Maybe he was just hungry.  Nope, did the same thing on the way out of the restaurant toward the beach.  Maybe he was just tired.  Nope, later in the week we tried during morning happy time.  No go.  I still have no idea why.

I suppose it’s another lesson about the best laid plans.  I was all set to at least take a dip in the water—I even asked the lifeguard who taught our Parent-Child swim class whether there was anything special we needed to know for ocean swimming.  And then he slept almost the whole time we were there (after the stroller fiasco, that is).  But it was still lovely and breezy, and Peter did wake up for long enough to watch the ocean for several minutes.

Morning happy time in California.  Probably around 5:30 or 6, which is not normally *my* morning happy time.  But we decided that it was easier to just stay on Eastern time rather than switching.  Peter was happy to oblige.  Until the last two days, when he switched to Pacific Time in one fell swoop.  Notice the super-stylish shorts, high socks, and sweater combination.

Other highlights/firsts?  Meeting his paternal great-grandparents.  Meeting the giant dog (my in-laws have an English Mastiff).  Meeting the tortoise (likewise, they also have a tortoise).  Spending quality time with grandparents and aunt/godmother.

Next up, Washington, DC!

Three Sets of Reindeer

Between my husband and myself, we have three sets of grandparents. And I find his grandparents particularly hard to select presents for. So when a local quilt store was going out of business and I saw these adorable panels for $3/yard, that settled it. I'm pretty proud of how good things look together considering the store was pretty picked over by that point. The only thing I got somewhere else was the red sashing around the cornerstones.

The panel shows eight reindeer. I'm not quite sure who's missing, since Rudolph is there front and center.


There's a tradition in my family to read "A Visit From St. Nicholas," otherwise known as "The Night Before Christmas" on, you guessed it, the night before Christmas. Apparently this year they must have gotten into a debate about the names of the reindeer because my dad called and demanded to know what the name of the reindeer that came with Blitzen was. I definitely vote for Donner, but apparently the original manuscript calls him Donder. I think he must be having an identity crisis, and that's why he doesn't show up in these pictures. What do you call the reindeer who flies with Blitzen?

Two Christmas Dinners

Since A. and I got married, we've spent Christmas with his family. Both of his extended families are in the area, so we get to spend time with both sides of the family. Conveniently enough, one family has their big dinner and celebration on Christmas Eve, and one on Christmas day. And their culinary traditions are divergent enough that it doesn't feel like duplication (except to one's stomach, which is exhausted from the deliciousness).

The Christmas Eve menu: pork, black beans and rice, yucca, flan.




Christmas Day: lasagna, twice baked potatoes, brijole/braciole (beef wrapped around eggs and bacon), etc. Only problem is, I forgot to take pictures, so you'll have to make do with a picture of someone else's brijole. Apparently what you fill it with is personal preference, or at least varies by region.


Hope everyone is having an enjoyable Boxing Day!

One Lord and Savior

Mary & Jesus,
originally uploaded by Martin LaBar (going on hiatus).

Merry Christmas everyone! Over the next twelve days I'm going to have my own twelve days of Christmas here on the blog, sharing some of my adventures and creations for this Christmas (I'm a little too excited at my own cleverness, actually).

For me, it's important to acknowledge the whole reason we celebrate this season. This morning at church we were asked to bring up the gifts, and for me it was a powerful reminder that the most important gift we have to give is the offering of ourselves, and the most important gift we receive is the offering of Himself for us.

May you have a wonderful day full of His love and spirit, whether you're celebrating with family of in your own way.

One year!

It's been one year since I married that man o' mine. Thanks to everyone who celebrated with us, in body or in spirit.

And, as a special present to y'all, since I haven't done this yet...want some pictures? (what? twelve months isn't a long time or anything!).



Photos credits all belong to our photographer, the wonderful Cherry Li, high school friend of Adam's and photographer extraordinaire. Seriously people. These are all un-retouched and done without any additional lighting. A girl and her camera. And we don't look too bad, considering it was super hot and muggy (as it is apt to be at the end of July in Boston).

Happy 4th!

Enjoy some grilling, some time with friends and/or family, and some pyrotechnics!