Christmas Eve Blessings

It's Christmas Eve and I have so much to be thankful for!  Four of our five children are home for the holidays.  And although our daughter and new son-in-law are not able to be here, they are with us in spirit.  This year was different from past years but proved to be just as wonderful. 

A few years ago Matt and I decided to begin a new family tradition.  Because the kids were getting older, we decided that we would go out for a nice Christmas Eve dinner.  We enjoyed good food, great company, deep conversation, and that special ambiance that you only find during Christmastime (and no dishes to clean).  For three or four years we have dinned in some very nice restaurants...this year, however, things are a bit tighter and we decided that we would cook at home.  The December issue of Food and Wine inspired our holiday fare...Slow Roasted Pork Loin with Molasses and Balsamic Glaze; Herbed New Potatoes; Gingered Green Beans; Wedge Salad with Caramelized Pecans; and for dessert, Dulce de Leche Layer Cake!

Needless to say, Matt and I spent the entire day cooking, cleaning, and decorating.  It was work, but we both enjoyed it and savored the time spent together in the kitchen.  I still don't get what is happening to me...I don't cook.  I don't bake.  And yet, I have spent hours and hours in the kitchen this break and have enjoyed every moment.  I have a new love for cooking. A new confidence and sense of accomplishment that I have not experienced in a long time.  I would be remiss, however, if I didn't mention that I also have the company of my wonderful husband, who by the way, is an incredible cook!

As we labored in the kitchen, the kids did their own thing.  I forget how comforting it can be to have so much noise and commotion around me.  The boys discussing serious scientific topics (and on occasion the topic would turn to girls), while the girls were busy playing Guitar Hero (which is extremely loud I might add).  It was nice though, and I know I will miss it when our house is quiet(er) once again.

We sat down at the table and said grace...giving thanks for all that we have and praying for those who are struggling, ill, or less fortunate.  The dinner was delicious, but nothing compared to the conversation.  We took time to enjoy one another. We took turns recalling happy times and favorite memories of Christmases past.  We laughed, and cried.  We remembered and looked forward. We celebrated...

It's Christmas Eve, and I have so much to be thankful for.  Here is wishing you and yours a joyous Christmas.  May it be filled with love, happiness, good food and wine...and maybe a little chaos!

We opened our most expensive bottle of wine tonight~ (Kendall-Jackson Raptor Peak Cabernet, 2007)

~Cab Lover

A Chrismas Break Miracle...

I don't know what it is about this Christmas...but I have already opened all my gifts!  I'm not disappointed, and I'm not worried about feeling melancholy on Christmas morning because I have nothing to open.  In fact, I have had the best time this past week with my gift!  For teachers, Christmas break (or any break for that matter) is a SACRED time!  For me, it is a time of rejuvenation...a sort of renewal if you will.  I try not to plan too much, but I also don't want to sit around and waste away.  I want to savor every day, every hour, every minute.  So far...I have!

This year something special happened...my husband bought me a KitchenAid mixer!!!  I have wanted a KitchenAid for as long as I can remember.  My mom had a KitchenAid.  It was yellow...and beautiful...and magical.  Now I have one of my very own!

I am not a baker.  I try.  And try.  But I just can't do it.  That is, until last Friday.  We had planned to get 'the mixer' after I was done with school for the day.  I was rife with anticipation all day long.

After school I met my husband and we drove to Sam's.  I was giddy, like a little girl.  We found our way to the small appliances and I could barely stand it.  So many choices!  Who would have thought that there could be so many colors to choose from.  Red, black, stainless steel, black with stainless steel. I really wanted the red one.  It was gorgeous, but red wouldn't match out kitchen decor.  I'm not much of a Martha Stewart...but still.  I went back and forth, debating with myself about the color...but I just had to have the red one.  I put it in our buggy and skipped down the isle.  Off to the baking goods.

By the time we were done I not only had the most beautiful mixer in the world,  I had new baking sheets, fresh baking ingredients, and crispy, white aprons!  I was ready!  It wasn't until I got home that I remembered that I was terrible at baking...

Armed with the magical mixer, delicious Ghirardelli chocolate, and garbed in my new apron, I set out to  prove something to myself (and to those who have had to eat my cookies).  And guess what?  A miracle happened!  My cookies turned out perfect!  Golden, chewy, sugary goodness!  I made chocolate chip cookies; peanut butter cookies; oatmeal and chocolate chip cookies with cranberries; sugar cookies; fudge; macaroons, chocolate sandwich cookies with chocolate malt filling, Snicker doodles; and...Russian Tea Cakes.  Whew!  I have baked everyday, all day, since last Friday.  And I have LOVED every minute of it (I do have a weird soreness in my feet and back...).

I'm convinced that it's the KitchenAid.  It really is magical.  It has to be.  After all, I have not changed.  I have not had cooking lessons, or spent hours in front of the T.V. watching the Food Network.  It must be 'the mixer'.  That beautiful apple-red appliance that has a new home on my kitchen counter has brought me a week of joy.  A week of rejuvenation and renewal.  For the first time in many, many years I have taken plates of cookies to my country neighbors.  I spent an hour talking on one neighbor's couch...we have not talked like that in years...

Yep, it's a miracle.  And just in time for Christmas!

It turns out...wine and baking are a great mix (Sonoma County Korbel Cabernet, 2007)

~Cab Lover

Out of the mouths of babes...

Well, I did it again this year.  I woke up on Friday (the last day of school until Jan. 3rd!!!) with a bad attitude.  As a teacher, these days are always dreaded.  Valentine's day, Spring break, Halloween, Fall break, Christmas...they are all the same.  The kids are wired and the teachers are tired!!!  We teachers, force ourselves from the comfort (and safety) of our warm beds, and somehow muster up enough energy and courage to go to school.  It's not a pretty sight.

But then, and this is what I always forget, something magical happens.  The kids surprise you!  The little boogers say or do something so kind and sweet that they make you feel like the Grinch on steroids!  On this Friday, I cried more than once and was reminded just what it is that makes me come back each day.  It is, after all, not about me...but about the kids.  It was the card I got from Lindsey that simply said, "I love you Miss Marci, I love you still."  Or the hug (and kiss) I got from Jackson.  Or watching Christian help Ms. Elisha put on the necklace he gave her.

These are the things I cherish.  These are the kids I cherish.  This is why I teach!

Merry Christmas to you and yours!
Here is a link to our family Christmas card:
http://smilebox.com/playEmail/4d6a45784d544d354e4446384e4463314d6a55334e44593d0d0a&sb=1

~Dessert wine tonight (Korbel Port, 2009)

Cab Lover