Quiet Christmas

If you read this blog regularly, you know how much we love Christmas. Every little thing is so wonderful, and it really is my favorite time of year. But this Christmas the stockings are hung, but will remain empty. And there are no gifts under the Christmas tree. It wasn't even planned this way. It's just that as the season continued on, we realized it was getting later, and we didn't care about the gifts.

This weekend will be spent just the three of us.  Tomorrow night we are having a pork loin roast with green beans and leek and potato soup. Then onto mass where most of the parishioners will be seeing Nora for the first time. And finally home to cuddle up all cozy, drinking hot cocoa with the marshmallows I'm hoping to make tonight. I've got cinnamon rolls planned for Christmas morning, to be enjoyed with hot coffee in front of our electric fireplace. It will be quiet, calm.

I bought Christmas cards last year, managed to write out 2 and then gave up.  Nora has been fussy and wanting to be held nearly 24/7 lately, and it was just too much.  I planned to make edible treats for some family members this Christmas (and caramels for T!), but those will have to go out for the New Year.

I think, "I should feel guilty, I pretty much disregarded all the Christmas things this year."  But I don't.  I feel content.  The tree is beautiful.  We'll enjoy carols and good food.  And I'm more than happy to just enjoy this little family of mine's first Christmas.  I stumbled across an old post while looking for something and it was the reminder I needed again that this home, this life I'm leading is Holy ground.  And what better time to remember that than at Christmas?

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas or Hanukkah.  Being where you feel most loved really is the best gift, a reminder of our blessings. 

And The Stockings Were Hung

Yesterday was super busy. With Little Miss' imminent arrival, we've been trying to get some last minute things done.  So I laid out the drawers for her dresser and finished giving them their second coat.  We opened the mattress and put it in the crib.  The bags for the hospital got packed the night before and placed next to the door, ready for go time.

And then we tackled the biggie...the sitting room.  After cutting the rug pad, measuring everything 10 times to make sure the rug was placed perfectly even on both sides of the fireplace, and laying down the rug (with at one point me lying across one end while he straightened), it was time for furniture.  We live in a row home, with long, narrow levels.  So while our living room is actually quite large and spacious (since it's been modernized...originally it probably would have been a quite small parlor), it's hard to figure out furniture configurations.  What we had originally planned did not work (no way to get to actual sitting space when we tried putting the tree by the window), so in the end we moved the sofa and love seat 3 times.  Oh yes...with G getting a bit testy about me helping though he knew well enough that he couldn't move the sofa without me at least guiding it. 

So the sofas were placed and the tree came downstairs to go up and this monstrosity of amazingness was in place.  I jumped up on the love seat to hang the stockings from the windowsill.  We turned the electric fireplace on for some coziness and it was done.  We headed to bed, tucked under the duvet we brought out for the first time in forever (last year was too warm, surprisingly)....with Max positively pissed when we moved it from being double layered under him (he's a spoiled kitty). 

We put the tree up a bit early (though not October like G wanted) because it takes so much energy...energy we knew we might not have later on.  The garland is still boxed up to be put on the bannister.  Most of the ornaments are still nestled away...though I couldn't help myself this morning and put several of the new ones I've picked up on.  But the room is set for the coffee table to arrive today, and then the insane decorating and baking season will commence.  We're not doing much in the way of gifts for ourselves this year, choosing instead to purchase things for our home we want (how very grown-up of us, we know).  But for our daughter's first Christmas we want her to see the magic of the room lit by a tree with 1400 little lights, casting a glow that says "She's here because He came." 

So for my 21st day of November I am thankful for a God who gave me this little Christmas time miracle, a baby that a year ago I was beginning to accept might not be in the cards for me.  And as she's not even here yet and I cannot imagine losing her, I am thankful for a God who gave us His son as a representation of His love. 

Blackbird

So today a friend posted on facebook a couple lines from the song Blackbird (originally by The Beatles).  I had been watching "I Am Sam" a month or so ago, and Sarah McLachlan sings it on the soundtrack and I just love it.  

"Take these broken wings and learn to fly.  All your life you were only waiting for this moment to arise." 

This song has some meaning for me, as I stumble down the road of self-acceptance.  I'm in a complicated marriage (best friends growing up together still) where problems are heightened because it's becoming increasingly noticeable that the house is too big for two and that no pet can really fill that void.  But at the same time we're taking baby steps, learning to communicate better.  I'm growing and changing and learning I have to let people in to see me, that breaking down sometimes is necessary to build upwards (basically I actually allow myself to cry rather than fighting it so hard I burst).  I've been as transparent as I can be on this blog, even at times fearful of the repercussions of those I know seeing more of me.  But my main goal for 2011 is to be me with no apologies and no acquiescences to being someone I'm not.  I figure if the person closest to me knows all of me darkness and light and still loves me fiercely than I'm okay.  

My Christmas wish for all of you is that you have that in your life.  Someone who loves every nook and cranny, all the complicated crevices we have as human beings.  And that you search for the light within you but don't feel shamed by the darkness, the moments of imperfection.  That you learn that failing at something does not mean you're a failure.  And that as cheesy as it sounds, yes, all you need is love. 

I probably will not be posting again until after Christmas as I have a list as long as my arm, a dinner party, and a baby brother plus birthday to prepare for. 

Merry Christmas to you and yours. 

Making A List So I Can Check It Twice

I did something to my lower back this evening that has made standing up, sitting down and moving too much a pain in the rear.  And with a million kitchen things to do, I'm a little perturbed.  But I figured that a list would be a smart idea so that once I get going, in my haste to finish it all I don't forget.  So, here is my things I need to make in my kitchen before Christmas:

* Rosenmunnar--- Swedish thumbprint cookies that are a huge favorite for us.

* Gingerbread house---The dough is ready, the icing is made up, I need to cut it out and bake it!

* Candied orange and grapefruit peels--- We've been saving up our peels for a couple days so I can get on this and make this for G!

* Marshmallows--- Um, I might have possibly nearly eaten all the ones we've made because I discovered the joy of having a gas stove is the ability to roast them inside!

* Whole wheat bread--- I need a couple loaves to go along with things this week.

* Caramels--- So family and friends know I love them....I was supposed to make these, oh, 2 months ago!

* Fudge

* Peppermint Bark

* A smoked salmon and goat cheese torte--- Taking to a party on Christmas Eve.

It looks like a lot, but I'll get on a roll and do several things at once.  Anyone else baking up a storm?

Decorating For Christmas

Sunday after Mass ended G and I stayed behind to help decorate the church for Christmas.  As we're currently the youngest adult members of the church we knew it would be helpful for G to run up and down a ladder, and I found use in being able to lift dozens of pots of poinsettias up and down stairs over and over as we tried to determine the best arrangement.  (My deferment to the elder members of the church slowly turned into enthusiastic ideas the more my arms ached!)  In the end, it looked beautiful, with brass candle holders wrapped in greenery going down the aisles ending in an alter full of red and white flowers, Christmas trees and a huge nativity.  I'm excited for mass for Christmas!  

I made G into a Christmas elf!  Notice the pieces of garland stuck behind his ears.

And don't forget to enter my giveaway for the leather 2011 planner HERE!

Blessings

The gift my parents sent arrived the other day.  My mother had it gift wrapped from Sur La Table.  Then the company placed the invoice on top of the present so it immediately told me what it was.  Surprise!  Eh, we were pretty sure we knew what it was when we realized it was heavy enough to go through the floor if we were to accidentally drop it.  Since that occurred my maman told me to go ahead and open it and use it if we wanted to.  My parents generously blessed us with the Staub coq au vin pot we had had our eye on, and as I type it's finishing up a roasted chicken that will be made into soup in the same pot.  Might as well break it in immediately, yes?

*EDIT* The first part of this post was written last night (I ended up being up a total of 39 hours, madness I know).  The soup turned out amazing, the chicken was delightful, I roasted it with the lid on for most of it, removing it at the end to get a golden crisp skin.  The chicken was hands down the most moist poultry of any kind I have ever made!  Those little nubs on the Staub pot lid worked perfectly! I'm considering ordering the cassoulet kit from Sur La Table for our Christmas dinner rather than making a large meal. 

G and I loved the way the skin got super crisp....we forgot to take a photo until after it had been sampled!

Then we decided to go ahead and order our Simplex tea kettle, since this summer the company decided without further explanation to close their doors after 103 years of business.  I had contacted the company that distributes them here in the U.S. inquiring about the product and was told they had shut down and that the distribution company was sold out.  But still, Sur La Table seemed to still have some.  So I went to order it and realized that they were completely sold out of every version.  I had a minor panic attack and made G instantly call the store in Annapolis to see if they had any in stock.  Well, thank the heavens we got the last one other than the floor display!  They held it for us, we went immediately to pick it up, and it just brewed a perfect pot of water for our french press (our tea is in the mail, so it's coffee for now). 

So two of the 3 big items we were wanting from Sur La Table are off the list and we could not be more happy with them.  We were not expecting such an amazing gift from my parents, but we promise to put it to lots and lots of use!  The tea kettle should last us at least a decade with proper care and the pot should probably be something I pass on to my grandchildren when I no longer cook.  Thank you Dad and Maman!

Poor in Money, Rich In Love

I'm on an Alcott kick of late.  I have something to confess.  Though Little Women is my absolute hands down favorite book ever (partially because it is so cemented into the framework of my childhood), I have never read anything else by Alcott before.  I wonder if it's because I worried that like many authors I love some of their other writing may not actually be as well written?  But, as G is in the middle of reading Little Women (finally!  I mean, I did read his favorite book, a sci-fi one called The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress way back when we were engaged.)  and due to the season we picked up a collection of her Christmas stories from Barnes and Noble.  We just finished Bertie's Box (the first story in the book) and it was a delightful little tale of a selfless boy's desire to create Christmas for others less fortunate. 

I love this season because it is a time when G and I have always attempted to avoid getting caught up in consumerism.  We both have commented that though this season money might be tighter than we'd like it to be, realistically we're blessed to have enough of the things we want, enough of our needs, and more than enough of love.  Honestly, we've said we're filling each other's stockings....but I don't think either of us is sure what to do with that.  Instead we've been doing things together.  Whereas normally I bake alone, he helped whip those marshmallows into shape.  And he's going to be helping with the maddening cookie baking this evening.  We're making a huge batch of sugar cookies and icing them.  (I say it's work, but G loves these type of activities!)  And hopefully later this week we'll be assembling our first real gingerbread house together going by a Martha Stewart project for a Colonial Gingerbread house.

We do these sorts of things not just because we enjoy them but as practice.  Someday we will have a boisterous family surrounding us.  And something G and I wholeheartedly agree upon is wanting to already have traditions in place that make the children's childhoods magical.  And for me, the idea of every year doing a gingerbread house sounds pretty magical.  Doing that while drinking hot cocoa and warming ourselves next to a fireplace while Garret reads stories and we listen to Christmas music.  Often times the way G and I choose to live sounds old fashioned, but hey, it works for us!  

Reading the Alcott Christmas stories takes us back to a time when oranges were common in stockings because they weren't something you could just get any time you wanted one.  A time when singing songs together was lively entertainment.  And when the holidays were celebrated joyously as a time for family and friends to gather near.  A time we hope to be able to recreate through the years.  

Oh, and for those who are curious, meet our dream house.  At nearly 2 million, it's a little out of our price range (for now), but she's absolute perfection (having been built in 1765).  

Ahh, to dream.

*And if anyone knows of a good site for free blog templates or an amazing designer, please let me know.  I'm looking for something simple, like a damask in black, purple, grey, yellow.  I'm planning on attempting to make a header with photos (found some instructions for that) and re-vamping this blog a bit.  I'm also considering merging the two (Une Vie Chic and Une Maison Chic) into one for the new year.  Change is good, right?

Christmas Time Is Magical

I have always loved the Christmas season.  And not because of the gifts.  Quite frankly, though we were spoiled rotten I can remember very few of my gifts growing up.  G is the same way.  But what we both remember is loving all the little things about this time of year.  One of my favorite Christmas songs is "Silver Bells" because I can remember learning to sing it in elementary school and just loving how it made me feel inside.  Our house is one filled with old fashioned Christmas music, particularly religious songs such as "We Three Kings" and "The Little Drummer Boy."  G and I get so excited to make candy and cookies and this year I'm hoping to give mincemeat pies and a figgy pudding a whirl.  We both get antsy to decorate the tree, to sit with hot cocoa and just enjoy it's glow.  It is a magical time that I wish went on all year.

Unfortunately I've found that this time of year has become very hard for me.  The best times we had in England were during the Christmas season.  The Santa Run for the children's hospice, the Christmas Fayre, the store displays, the Christmas teas, the feeling in the air.  Because in England, Christmas is still very traditional, people wish each other Merry Christmas so often it shocked me at first, and the towns are decorated how I imagine all places should be for the holidays.  We're hoping to go back sometime in the next couple of years for Christmas (staying at a bed and breakfast), but for now I'm choosing to not let it get me down and instead bring that Christmas here.  

So bring on the madness of attempting to roast a goose and bring on the stockpiling of chestnuts.  Bring on the caroling and bring on the mulled wine.   Our church here is always beautifully decorated for Christmas, and I cannot wait until Christmas eve Mass.  G and I have chosen to only fill each other's stockings this year, because we feel blessed that we don't really need anything, and our wants can wait.  I'd rather spend my time baking and singing than shopping for unnecessary things in crowds that aren't very merry or bright.  I got to wish someone a Merry Christmas the other day as we bought ornaments and I got giddy at the act.  I wish life was like this year round, but perhaps that would make it seem less magical?

So here is to what I hope is a beautiful Christmas.  May there always be cheerful carolers and shining lights so bright.  Now, does anyone know where I can get a horse drawn sleigh?  (Kidding, I don't need recommendations.... I've already searched them out and someday we'll own one!)