Reindeer Season

I love pancakes. I love waffles too, but fun food wise, they are not as versatile as pancakes. That is why so many of our fun food creations use the medium of pancakes. Adding bacon, a few berries and a dab of whipped cream and a delightful reindeer emerged. Daniel and Kevin were at work, Nathan ate his later (and cold), but Matthew, Malia and I greatly enjoyed noshing on Rudolph’s head. It was a winner.

 

Here We Come A-wassailing

Just before Thanksgiving, we all sat down together and talked about what we wanted our holidays to look like this year. Things were obviously going to be different, but that gave us the opportunity to talk about what traditions and activities were important to us and which ones could be left by the wayside. We came up with a list of things we wanted to make time for and going Christmas caroling was one of them. I haven’t been Christmas caroling since I was in college and I don’t think any of my kids have been either. It seems to be one of those traditions that has quietly become a thing of the past. But not for us. We decided to shake things up a bit and celebrate Christmas old school style.

This evening we bundled up, came up with a short set list, decided which houses to visit, and started singing. We sang to about sixteen different people/families, including one stranger we happened to cross paths with while making our way from one house to another. The reception was warm, and I think we added a bit of light to our neighborhood.

After caroling, we talked about our experience over cookies and wassail. The Spirit was definitely with us as we sang carols celebrating our Savior’s birth. We added some joy to some homes. We lifted some Spirits that were in need. We did a small service for just a few of our wonderful neighbors. And we found joy in doing so. We all loved the experience we had this evening and I suspect it is one that will be added to the list of traditions we want to continue.

A Mountain of Gingerbread

When we were inundated with gingerdead men in October, I decided we should revisit the delicious cookies with a more traditional gingerbread theme in honor of Christmas. In the past we have made gingerbread houses with graham crackers, but I’ve never actually baked gingerbread to create dwellings. With multiple houses needing to be created, I got online and found a set of cookie cutters that would create a charming assortment of tiny houses. There was a recipe included with the cookie cutters, but I have a gingerbread cookie recipe I really like so I opted to use that one instead. I mean, why waste so much time and effort on a recipe that may or may not be delicious? I’d rather stick with known results. The info I did glean from the untried recipe was that five cups of flour would make enough cookie dough for two houses. Armed with that information, I tripled my recipe so we would have enough dough for five houses and a cookie Christmas tree.

From how today’s baking went, I’m not sure what the cookie cutter folks are smoking or if they are just making cookies an inch thick, but five cups of flour makes enough cookie dough for at least four houses. My fifteen cups of flour made five houses, a nice tall cookie tree and about five billion gingerbread men and women. Seriously, there is a mountain of cookies sitting on my counter. It’s a good thing we like gingerbread!

 

Performance #2

When I was in Madrigals my senior year in high school, during our Christmas season we did somewhere in the neighborhood of a hundred performances between Madrigals and Concert Choir. Today Nathan got to sing for the teacher Christmas lunch at the high school which takes his 2020 Christmas season performance count to two. And this year, that actually feels like a boon. Pretty much, we’ll take what we can safely get!

 

A Prescription for Laughter

In the midst of a pandemic there are generally two choices in terms of mental health: curl up in a little ball and cry or make the best of it. We have tried to make the best of it and in the process, we’ve learned to laugh a bit about the crazy circumstances in which we find ourselves. I absolutely love Malia’s teacher (and miss being able to volunteer in her classroom) and like us, she’s developed a sense of humor. It’s completely normal for the elementary school set to make a Christmas tree ornament in school during the month of December, but I’m betting not many kids are bringing home ornaments like the ones Malia’s teacher had the kiddos create. I laughed. Out loud. Which is a good choice mental health wise.

 

The Smell of Home

I love baking bread. There’s just something about the smell of yeast, the satisfaction as it rises, the mouthwatering aroma as it bakes. It’s the ultimate comfort food. My mom taught me to bake bread when I was young and my binge watching of The Great British Baking Show throughout the spring and summer gave me some new tips. This year’s first nod to fun holiday themed food was a crispy, wreath shaped loaf. It had a lovely crunchy crust and a soft interior. Let me tell you, this recipe is going to be making some non-Christmas appearances on our table as well. It may not always be wreath shaped, but it was a wonderful success that my entire family enjoyed and the perfect accompaniment to a bowl of hot soup. Yum!

 

Hark! The High School Angels Sing

Last night we had a 2020 miracle. Nathan actually got to have a concert. All the kids were masked, seating was limited, and the audience was socially distanced, but it was still a concert. Not being able to perform has been one of the hardest parts of his performing arts classes this year. It is really hard to stay motivated enough to work on the music when you know no one is ever going to hear it. One of the conditions that had to be met before the concert was that the kids participating had to be tested for COVID and have a negative result. That helped stem some of the anxiety about being so close to so many people on stage and allowed the kids to have a moment to share what they have been working on. It was good for us to, being able to have a bit of normalcy in this Christmas season. Because who doesn’t love Christmas music?

 

Even More Elf Antics

Due to quarantines and stay-at-home campaigns, lots of folks have had more time to spend working on hobbies this year. It seems things the North Pole went similarly because Jingle Jangle learned how to play the drums this year. I suspect he is in an elf band at the North Pole, but since his cronies all visit different families in December, we only get to enjoy his rockin’ drumming skills. And maybe that’s a good thing. Between Nathan’s piano, Matthew’s trumpet and Daniel’s sax, we have everything we need to fill in the rest of the music. 😊