Christmas Countdown….Day 16…visiting Santa

River was very excited to visit Santa and to sit on his lap. We always say that you can ask Santa for one item. So she thought about it and thought about it and finally came up with her one item…….”a sparkle ball toy that I can bring into the house.” Then Santa asked what else she wanted, which always happens, and every year our kids are at a total loss for words because we tell them they can only ask Santa for one item! Sometimes they even get so tongue tied that they can’t even remember their ONE item. They one year, Quinn, was so excited to see Santa, that when he asked what he wanted for Christmas, he went totally blank….and after a few seconds…blurted out……”a toothbrush!”

Also, I had to run out the other night to do some errands and when I came back, Tuesday was very involved in a project. She was working completely on her own and had gotten no help. When she was finished with her project, she proudly showed it to me….a manger! I loved it…it is so detailed…..she even took a pin and made little holes in the sheep to make it have a wooly effect!

Christmas Countdown….Day 15…Yule Lads

One of our favorite Christmas traditions is the Yule Lads. Christopher and I went to Iceland seven years ago. There we learned about the Yule lads and we have been participating in the tradition ever since! The Yule lads come down from the mountains during the last 13 nights before Christmas. Children leave a shoe in their window each night. The Yule lads sneak into each house and play a prank on the inhabitants before leaving a little treat for the children. Children who are not good, receive rotten potatoes in their shoes.

Each Yule lad is unique and carries its own traditions. Such as Stúfur, or Stubby, who is very short, therefore it is important to put a stool by your window so he can reach your shoe. A favorite in our house is Hurðaskellir, or Door Slammer, who is very noisy and slams all the doors in the house before he goes on his way!

Eventually, all the Yule Lads arrive and then make their way back to the mountains. On Christmas eve, children who do not receive new clothing, are in danger of being eaten by the Yule Cat! This tradition originated from the fact that Icelandic children were responsible for helping out with the preparation and production of new garments each winter. To make sure the children worked hard and concentrated while working, the adults would scare them with horrific tales of the Yule Cat!

You can read more about the traditions of Iceland and the Yule lads at this Iceland website.

Waiting for Santa…..

We heard the firetruck and went running outside…..then we waited. And waited. And waited some more. And it was cold. We would hear the firetruck and police cars, but then the noise would fade. We were hopeful, but then sad and impatient. We grew colder and colder, but we kept waiting. And finally, they came, they really came…Santa on the firetruck!

Three years ago today….

My youngest was born…River Hazel McDonald. It doesn’t seem that long ago. I can remember that day quite vividly. Luckily it was a Sunday. Early in the morning, my water broke and I knew things were happening…so I woke up Christopher and said we should wake up the kids and call my mom. Then we called my mother-in-law, who lives in Maryland. Once my mother arrived, we chatted and she told us to get going to the hospital. But I wanted to stay and talk some more. I figured the less time at the hospital, the better. Then I decided I needed to make a fresh cup of coffee, so that when my mother-in-law arrived there would be fresh coffee. About a half hour later, my mother said we had to go right then or we’d give her a heart attack…so off we went. Well, thank goodness we did leave then because on our way to the hospital..things started to speed up and I almost thought we wouldn’t make it! Without going into all the details….twenty minutes later…..little River was born!

Where the Wild Things Are….

I just finished a custom order that is too cute! It is a Where the Wild Things Are custom woolie. And I am now offering it in my Etsy shop!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=36320901

I love doing new projects! I am trying to put together a sewing tutorial for a Where the Wild Things Are Hat pattern and mittens pattern! Check back soon.

Christmas Countdown….Day 7

One of my favorite things to get out is our mangers. We have a lot of mangers. A lot. And each one is completely different. I love them all. They are all special and they all have memories and meanings. We have to get creative about where to put our mangers because we have cats. If we aren’t careful the cats will get to the mangers and this is not good. So, furniture is rearranged and knick knacks are put aside to make room for the mangers.

This year I have inherited some of my mom’s mangers. Her favorite and most treasured Christmas item was her Hummel manger set that her mother and father and sister gave to her in 1960. Every year, when I was little, she would get this manger out and talk about it and how much it meant to her. We were never allowed to touch it because it was so breakable and special. When I had children, I would help my mother get out her manger set and my mom would tell them about how special it was and how much meaning it had to her. I would tell my children to never touch it because it was so special. Well, this year we went and picked it up from my mother’s house and set it up in our house. It seems strange..to have it sitting in my house….not at my mom’s house. It feels wrong, but right at the same time. She talked about how she wanted me to have it when she died. As I set it up….I told my children they couldn’t touch it because it was so special…even more special now…..now that my mom is gone….

Christmas Countdown….Day 4

So yesterday we got some more Christmas things out..surprise surprise. We got all the fun dishes, cups, plates, utensils and placemats out. Tuesday and Quinn aren’t so thrilled with them anymore..but River had a blast.

We also got out some of our more “obnoxious” decorations….obnoxious in a good way! One of the favorites is a wreath that has a train around the outside. It is motion activated. It lights up and plays Jingle Bells while the train goes around the track. The problem is that it seems to be motion activated by EVERYTHING! Especially about 2 pm in the afternoon, when the afternoon light shines on it…..And it happens to be in the same room where I sew…….

Do you have any of those obnoxious Christmas decorations that you just love anyway???????

Christmas Countdown….Day 3

We have a lot of Christmas/Holiday traditions in our family. I love them all. The first thing we get out is the Christmas music. My in-laws used to live in Maryland and when we drove down for Thanksgiving, we would bring all the Christmas music for the ride.

The next thing we get out are all the Christmas stuffed animals. I don’t love these as much as the kids love them. We have lots of musical ones that are loud and get quite tiring after the first day….the kids love to play them over and over and over!

The next thing we get out are the Christmas books! These I love and so does everyone else! We have A LOT of Christmas books. Every year it is fun to get them out and reread them all. Some are more loved than others. Six of my favorite all-time favorite Christmas books are:

1. The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Anderson. When I was a little girl I would read this story over and over again..I always hoped that the little girl would find a home and not freeze to death..but the story never changed. I actually have found some newer versions where the little girl doesn’t die at the end..but that just isn’t the story….When I read it still..I think it is so beautiful and sad….it always brings a tear to my eye.

2. Santa’s Favorite Story by Hisako Aoki and Ivan Gantschev. Even though I am not religious, I love this book and the story it tells. It is simple, yet complex. And the illustrations are gorgeous! It is a story about a sleeping Santa and how the animals are very concerned if Christmas will go on with a tired Santa. It talks about the true meaning of Christmas.

3. A Dozen Silk Diapers by Melissa Kajpust and Illustrated by Veselina Tomova. This might be my all time favorite of the favorites! The story is so incredibly..cloth diapering mothers will love it! It is such a creative story…and the illustrations are vivid and so unusual and beautiful. It is about a family of spiders who wonder what they can give as a gift to the new baby Jesus.

4. The Night After Christmas. This story reminds me of the Little Match Girl. I received this book as a gift a long time ago and took it to heart. I am an animal lover and the little dog in the book is so loving and kind. It is about some homeless toys and how a little homeless dog helps them all. In the end, he doesn’t find a home, though he helps everyone else find one……such a sad ending!

5. The Snow Child which is a folk tale retold by Freya Littledale and illustrated by Barbara Lavallee. This story is about an older couple who always wanted children and never had any…so finally a little snow child comes to them and becomes their child..but she must go away every summer. Again, it is a sad story, yet beautiful.

6. The Night Tree by Eve Bunting. This is a very nice story about traditions and nature. A family that goes into the woods every year and decorates a tree for the animals. So simple, yet important.

Post Thanksgiving….

I started out with great intentions…of taking a million photos of Thanksgiving and filling my blog with them…but then life took over and I forget to take any pictures. But I did take one picture first thing in the morning, when I started cooking. Since we are vegetarian, we have vegetable pot pie on Thanksgiving..in our house…that is our tradition. We did have a great long weekend and enjoyed hikes and the wonderful weather, family and friends!

Toilet training is going great! River is earning many stickers and fun prizes! Before long…she may be a big kid

soon..though she keeps saying she isn’t sure if she wants to be a big kid.

Surprise…Rainbow Cupcakes….

I saw these rainbow cupcakes on a couple of blogs…you can also make a layered cake. I have been wanting to make them forever! I finally got around to it yesterday. I did them secretly…so my children couldn’t see what I was up to..I wanted them to be a suprise. I didn’t want to use a boxed cake mix…so I hunted around on the internet for a good cake/cupcake recipe. I think I found a winner! These were the best tasting cupcakes!! I haven’t had a cupcake in a long time…and these cupcakes were incredible! And so easy….especially if you just make the normal recipe.

First, you have to buy the Wilton Icing colors. They come in special little containers. I got them at Michael’s..you can buy them individually or in sets. You can’t get these bright colors with any other type of food coloring. They are just so bright and vivid! A lot of fun.

Basically, you make the recipe and then divide the batter up into as many colors as you want to use….then put a little bit of food coloring into each bowl of batter. Mix well…..and then dollop them into the cupcake molds. You could also make a multi-layered cake….either each layer could be a different color or just use the same dollop method to put the batter into the two cake tins.

I also found an incredible buttercream icing recipe! I found both recipes on allrecipes.com. I love that site. I did twick both recipes a bit, according to some comments that had been made about each.

My children loved biting into them and discovering the tie-dyed effect!

Simple White Cake

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk

Original Recipe Yield 12 cupcakes or 1- 9×9 inch pan

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×9 inch pan or line a muffin pan with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Pour or spoon batter into the prepared pan.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven. For cupcakes, bake 20 to 25 minutes. Cake is done when it springs back to the touch.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving Calories: 209 | Total Fat: 8.9g | Cholesterol: 56mg

Buttercream Icing

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons milk

Directions

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, shortening, and vanilla. Blend in the sugar, one cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the milk, and continue mixing until light and fluffy. Keep icing covered until ready to decorate.

Nutritional Information

Amount Per Serving Calories: 181 | Total Fat: 9.8g | Cholesterol: 13mg