The Crafty Lizzard

I apologize for this last Photo being a few days late. We had a massive influx of people at my parents' house for Christmas -- we sat down to dinner (which actually happened on sat) with 16 people. The whole house was filled with people, noise, and smells of cooking. After dinner (well, more like lunch) we sat down to open presents...I don't know how it is in your family but with mine, someone always, I mean, ALWAYS ends up with ribbons on their head! This year it happened to my oldest niece, Cora -- almost 21 years old and still gets ribbons in her hair! :)



Then, after that melee was over we had entertainment from the 4 year old Carly's karaoke machine. It took her a little bit to get it but then we got every Christmas carol in the book. (Sorry, I didn't get a pic of this but I was helping with dishes halfway across the house.)

Finally, some of us had to escape the confines of the house...especially since it was a balmy 65 degrees. This let the kids get some energy out and of course, let some of us big kids have a little fun too! My nephews and niece ended up having races -- the boys having to hop to keep slow enough for the new razor scooter. These are (from left to right) Zack, Carly and Ben trying to outdo each other.


We had some nice discussions about how our traditions came to be, how we've added to those traditions, the many memories, and of course the family members no longer with us. Each year gets a little more crazy and hectic -- but worth it just the same.
Merry Christmas!

2 Days Before Christmas
...Holy Night

That song is my favorite part of Christmas Eve church. I love the harmony and I love doing it in a candlelight church. There's a stillness in that moment, a peaceful stillness. I love having my dad and brother(s) around to sing with (sorry, mom, but your voice just isn't fun to sing against.), and I love the organ -- simple and beautiful.
Merry Christmas to all!

3 Days Before Christmas
A New Tradition?

Every year I try a few new holiday recipes. Usually they end up being cookies...this year I decided to try something a little more towards candy -- sugared cranberries. While not quite sugar plums, the taste of these certainly danced in my mouth. I'm a sucker for anything fruit related (except for cantelope, don't do cantelope.) and these are both sweet & tangy, easy to make, pop in your mouth and are mightily addictive!

4 Days Before Christmas
...BRRRRRRRRRR

It was SO cold this morning! This is what appeared on my window this morning. I like the wintryness (if that's a word) but oh man, was it cold. Not a good thing to wake up to someone on the radio telling you there's a wind chill of -4 degrees!! If it's going to be this cold I would love to have some snow to make me smile a little. (Maybe just enough to build a snowman!)

5 Days Before Christmas
Yummy!

Ahh...the first family tradition -- Kleesals!
I'm not quite sure where this recipe came from but they showed up every year at grandma's house for Christmas. What could be better than a fruit or nut filled pastry that you can pop in your mouth? With mom not wanting the task of making these every year the job fell to me. I wasn't able to bake them with my grandma and learn from her that way. Luckilly, I was able to have her taste them and give them the stamp of approval!

6 Days Before Christmas
...Dressed in Holiday Style

Ever since I was a little girl I have loved looking at city lights. I remember driving home from grandma's and being told to look back at downtown Cleveland. How Beautiful. I went downtown tonight and thought to get some pictures of the cityscape but the best picture I got was this one. Taken out my front windshield I snapped before I focused! Even the blurry lights are pretty!
You know you're a city girl when the traffic lights make a neat holiday pic!