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Tonight I will go to sleep with visions of sugar plums dancing in my head… which I will immediately attempt to push aside, reminding myself of my age and and my efforts to move past the commercial aspects of the holiday. Because while sugar plums are nice and all, they lead down a dangerous path lined with smartly wrapped packages and stockings filled to overflowing.
I’ve never slept well on Christmas Eve. The anticipation gnaws at my stomach and my dreams. Meanwhile, my younger brother is oblivious to the magic of it all once he falls asleep. I have spent many a Christmas morning sitting outside his closed door, willing him awake with every ounce of my joy and impatience.
What my family doesn’t understand is that I try. I try so very hard. There is no clock in my room. And even if there was, I wouldn’t use it. Christmas morning is meant to be discovered with the chiming of our old living room clock. I lay there, counting the chimes and waiting for the first rays of the sun (my room gets wonderful morning sun). In more youthful times, I ventured to the staircase to peep over at the tree and stockings around 6 am. These days I wait until 8 am (with age comes self control) and have to grab the stockings from over the fireplace… take a moment to enjoy the idyllic imag… done?… and carry them to our back room where the tree now guards the treasures of Christmas morning.
These days it’s a new type of anticipation, though, that stirs me on Christmas morning. It’s anticipation of those few hours spent with my family, in our pajamas, drinking a hot beverage, and enjoying one another’s company and goodwill. It’s not the presents that pull me out of bed these days (or at least not entirely the presents), but the presence of the one’s I hold dearest.
I hope you have such a presence in your life tonight, tomorrow, and everyday. Merry christmas.
After all the embossing and sewing and knitting and frame matting and mosaic grouting and etsy browsing, I feel as if I can finally make it official:
I love tradition. Especially that of the holiday variety. One of the oldest traditions in my family is the making of The Fudge. My father has instilled in me such a deep appreciation for the process (by process I mean following the recipe found on the marshmallow creme wrapper) and the importance of the constant and diligent stirring of the chocolate over a hot surface that I’ve been known to not break my concentration despite a flaming pot holder mitten. (Note: The mitten was extinguished quickly and efficiently without injury to me or any of my fellow bakers.)
My devotion to Fantasy Fudge has never wavered over two decades, but this year my loyalties are being tested. And before hopping on my plane Sunday to head home to Christmas and fudge production, I may venture outside my standard fare of sugar cookies, chocolate chip, snickerdoodles, and those classic little peanut butter cookies with Hershey kisses sitting proudly in the middle. This year… 2007… may just be the year of the Sensational Peppermint Pattie Brownies, because if there is any delectable combination that can top peanut butter and chocolate, it’s mint and chocolate. And anyway, how can you go wrong with three sticks of butter?
Here is the recipe as found on the Hershey website (hence the blatant product name dropping):
Ingredients:
- 24 small (1-1/2 inch) YORK Peppermint Patties
- 1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter or margarine, melted
- 3 cups sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 5 eggs
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F.(325°F. for glass baking dish). Remove wrappers from peppermint patties. Grease 13×9x2-inch baking pan.
2. Stir together butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl. Add eggs; beat until well blended. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; blend well. Reserve 2 cups batter. Spread remaining batter in prepared pan. Arrange peppermint patties about 1/2 inch apart in single layer over batter. Spread reserved 2 cups batter over patties.
3. Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack; cut into squares. About 36 brownies.
p.s. I can attest to their unworldly goodness thanks to a coworker who also happens to be the most gifted brownie chef I’ve ever encountered.
When you order presents online you get to tear into the packages when they arrive at your home. It’s like opening early presents everyday. For other people. But still.
- All men lead lives of quiet desperation… Never more true than when you’ve been trying to buy stamps for four days to no avail.
- I might actually read my Bible if it was illustrated by Marc Chagall.
- Until yesterday, I had been incorrectly typing “etc.” on a daily basis. My profession: editor.
- I have no idea how I’m going to afford grad school. I start class in three and a half weeks.
- I am still figuring out where my life is going… but I hope it involves a handsome Scot, an urban palace with Scandanavian inspired-decor, in a French speaking country… and lots and lots of travel.
Filing this away for further exploration: “the best websites you’ve (probably) never heard of.“
it’s like christmas a week early.
Because December is just a happy month…
- Amiina: both their music and the knitting bag in their online shop
- Knitting instructions on YouTube
- New York magazine’s “Reasons to Love New York” issue
- The Muppet Christmas Carol in theatres
- Finding the perfect Christmas present
- The UK covers of David Mitchell’s novels
- Roommates who go to London and buy a copy David Mitchell’s first novel for you to complete your library
- Her fabric
Blogs are fun.
I fought this reality for a long time, preferring to journal in a far more private way about far more private topics. But it turns out I enjoy not only sharing personal (though not too personal) anecdotes but also favorite books, stores, projects, recipes, music, ect. I’ve been neglecting this aspect of my blog lately, and as this is as much a record for my own personal reference as it is for any wayward reader who found their way here, please indulge me as I update.
Reading Update:
26. The Sharper Your Knife the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter and Tears at the World’s Most Famous Cooking School, by Kathleen Flinn
27. My Life in France, by Julia Child
28. Denyse Schmidt Quilts, by Denyse Schmidt (yes, I even read the patterns! a new obsession begins…)
29. I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman, by Nora Ephron
Crafting Update:
Christmas cards–check.
grandma’s scarf: started! I’m using the ubiquitous My So Called Scarf pattern. If you’re like me even with the glossary this pattern will read like Greek (note: I cannot read Greek.). For the knitting challenged such as us, some goddess put a video of herself following the pattern on YouTube. Ah, technology.
mom’s apron: fabric purchased and looking pretty in the craft corner. I’ll be using the basic pattern found in Lotta Jansdotter’s Simply Sewing.
new quilting obsession: double check
In the kitchen:
On Sunday I received a tutorial in crepe making from Emily. I’ll try to rustle up the recipe soon.
Otherwise I’ve been relying on boxes of pasta for cheap dinners this week. Perhaps more excitement will take place in my tiny kitchen after the holidays.
Up this weekend: Holiday baking.
Shopping update:
I’ve expressed my joy at the existence at the existence of Ipso Crafto in the past. And as I love convenience when it comes to shopping, let me just say that my joy increases exponentially that right next door on Barracks Row is Stitch DC. Wednesday was my first time stopping by, but it will not be my last. I was delighted by the friendly service and charming atmosphere. A quick stop in both these stores was precisely what I needed after diving into the world of Denyse Schmidt quilts and Bust magazine’s Craftacular in NYC over the weekend.
the online shopping world: I recently stumbled upon Purl Soho for all my knitting and quilting needs. I could browse their fabric selection for hours… It’s a must visit the next time I’m in New York!
And finally…
Music Update:
Current phase: All things Scandanavian. Yes! Such a phase does exist! Meaning when I’m not listening to Christmas tunes and ditties, I’m on the hunt for free soundbites of Sondre Lerche and Kings of Convenience. I’ll be buying music from both of them after my bank account has time to recover from Christmas.
End update.
There is only so much one can say about New York City and dear friends that hasn’t already been said by Carrie Bradshaw, so I’ll let the pictures do the talking.
Everything really is bigger and brighter…
The tree! Finally! Read the rest of this entry »
On Saturday, I walked into the Macy’s on 34th Street in Manhattan and stumbled out mere minutes later looking shell-shocked, no doubt, and feeling a bit violated. Eight floors of humanity, madness, and congestion. No amount of “White Christmas” or “Home for the Holidays” filtered throughout the store could have preserved an individual’s Christmas spirit. And in those few moments, I made a vow to myself: This year I was shopping online. Making this vow, I never realized what new avenues I would be opening to myself.
In the past, I always preached the importance being out among the masses preparing for the upcoming holiday. I relied on that sense of community. No more! When you can settle in comfortably on your couch surrounded by the people you love and the cats you tolerate, put on your own Christmas mix, make a warm mug of cocoa (and spike it if you’d like), and pop open your laptop that, my friends, is about as close as I come most days to the true meaning of Christmas.
And oh the presents you can find! Vintage concert posters on eBay, handmade calendars on Etsy, eco-friendly shopping bags on reusablebags.com, free sewing and knitting patterns for aprons and scarves, and magazines from the past whose cover images offer us a sense of nostalgia and pride and comfort in our world. The Internet offers freedom from the dictates of Christmas lists. No longer must one settle for what they find on the shelves, but instead can find the gift that matches the person. It’s a treasure hunt. And the love poured into the search brings real meaning to tradition of exchanging gifts. Shopping alone has turned shopping into a far more personal quest. An unexpected holiday surprise.
