MerRy ChRistMas

I hope this day finds you all well. Happy, healthy and looking forward to the new year and all it has to offer. We experienced a beautiful Christmas snowfall today. It was so peaceful and still afterward. 

While opening our presents our power and wifi went out. I could really "hear" the quiet. No humming fridge, no clanging radiators, no Christmas tunes, no tree lights.  It didn't matter much to us. We were happy together, opening gifts, chatting and telling each other "This is the best Christmas ever!". We say that every year, and every year we mean it. 

I found a new focus today that I will carry into 2018. I am going sink into the stillness of winter and listen. I will listen to God most importantly, to my husband, to my children, to my friends and to the birds.  I will listen without interrupting, without trying to fix it, without thinking of all the other things I "should" be doing instead of listening. 

I will be still.

Wishing you all 

A Merry Peaceful Christmas. 

palm trees and tumbleweeds

Last weekend I visited my friend Holly in sunny California. She is home taking a break from Cambodia, visiting her family in Cali for the holidays. I don't know when she will be in the states again, so I jumped at the opportunity to spend a few days with her. 

It was funny for me to see all the Christmas decorations amidst the palm trees and flowers. 

I met Holly's friends and family, ate Mexican food and best of all...chased tumbleweeds! I had only seen tumbleweeds in movies, so it was a big deal for me to experience the real thing. It was really windy and they were rolling all over looking like a crazy creatures. I needed my girls to see real tumble weeds too, so I ripped a couple of small fresh ones out of the dry ground and sent them home to them.

Last Christmas my husband gifted me with this decorative critter. When I first opened it I was confused. "Why are you giving me a cow?", was my first reaction. He explained that it is a deer and a very cool deer at that, once you insert branches or flowers for antlers. I have been having fun with it ever since. Oh, the name Milkie comes from the fact that I thought he was a cow. Now Milkie is  looking quite fancy with California tumbleweeds for Christmas.

Christmas and a lady

Isn't this rainbow tree beautiful? Such a good idea, and it looks much more amazing in real life. That lady peeking around is pretty amazing too. That's my Aunt Millie. She came to spend a couple of weeks with me and my family. I always liked her, but after spending so much time with her we found that we are kindred spirits.We stayed up each night talking and she shared many stories about her life with me. 

Like how she came to NYC from Puerto Rico as a child and how she met her husband at a dance in Brooklyn. It was just like a scene from West Side Story, he is Italian and even though they were married her father in law never knew that she was Puerto Rican! He assumed she was also Italian and the family kept the truth from him because "it would kill him". That's just one of the crazy things that I never knew. 

I also found out that Aunt Millie can do anything. She wanted a koi pond. So she built one, with a fountain. She can fix your ceiling fan or your toilet. She is an accomplished seamstress, cook, gardener and has a knack for taking in and nursing small hurt animals. She's had every type of rodent, fish, bird and cat. She once turned her son's closet into a coop for a broken pigeon, she housed an abandoned young hedgehog, she saved a baby squirrel and raised it to maturity. She is sweet, humble and always eager to give.

My girls are as smitten as I am with Aunt Millie. We knew it was a good sign when we picked her up at the train station and she had her guinea pig (Piggy-Woo) with her. She is the first person ever to see my girl's taxidermy and ask for a lesson. So, my daughter taught Aunt Millie how to skin and mount a mouse. She got a real kick out of it.  She told us, "See, you're never too old to learn something new!".

Millie is my Mom's sister so I've "known" her all my life, but I really have never known her until now. It's a shame that it took us so long, but I am thankful that we've connected and now my girls have her wonderful influence in their lives. 

This Christmas I found out that there are riches hidden right under our noses. The people in our lives are the greatest gifts we will ever be given, starting with Jesus Christ himself. 

Thank God for the people in your life and ask him to to deepen your love for them. Be deliberate about seeking out that hidden treasure that may be right under your nose.

M e r r y   C h r i s t m a s   &  G o d  B l e s s  Y o u   &  Y o u r s

The Christmas Goose

Each year my husband reads aloud Dicken's A Christmas Carol to my daughters. Each year I pull out Dining with Dickens by Dicken's great-grandson, Cedric Dickens. And each year I ponder what to cook for Christmas dinner. This year like every other year I dream of that mythical Dicken's Goose. This year I actually did it. I sourced and purchased a 12 pound freshly killed free range goose. It was much bigger than I had expected. I asked people's advice and of course read many opinions online of how to roast my goose. The more I found out the more intimidated I got! Goose seemed to be a love it or hate it thing. 

My Dad gave me advice, wished me much luck and asked for a play by play of my goose preparation. He had roasted a goose ONCE. Never again he said. "It's tough, it's greasy, it's not worth it", he said. 

Dining with Dickens advised "hanging the goose in an airy place overnight" before roasting. I asked my husband for help with this step. He rigged it up with bungie cords in the garage. Am I glad that he not only supports but enters into my hair-brained schemes! 

I roasted it on Christmas Day and I think as far as gooses go it went very well. Crisp flavorful skin and juicy meat.  I made traditional accompaniments- apple sauce, cranberry sauce, wild rice with roasted chestnuts. Was is worth it? 

Well, for the experience...definitely! Though I will probably never do it again. 

What I am enjoying more than the meat is all of the broth I made from the goose's bones and the jars of fat. (which is very abundant with a goose) I heard that the quality of meat will show when you simmer the bones for broth. If the bones have a lot of impurities there will be a lot of scum at the surface to skim off. This bird produced no scum! So I am comfortable using it's fat for sauteing vegetables. A little goes a long way. I use a tablespoon for cooking 4-5 servings of veg.

Do you have any experience with goose?

small things

My daughters gave me these small and wonderful gifts. Teeny things seem more precious and magical. My 15yo had a little acorn 3D printed for me and my 11yo crocheted the tiniest fly agaric mushrooom. I love them both! 

Well, here's a small thing that was not supposed to be so small. I have a bad habit of not making size gauge swatches before starting a project. Eager to get going I just start knitting. In this case I knitted a whole sweater and then realized that I have a sweater way too tiny for me. I'll sew up the side seams later today and then I'll know how small it really is. That will determine which daughter will be getting a new sweater.

I got this lovely Cubics interchangeable circular needle set for Christmas and have started the sweater seen here on the cover of New England Knits. All of the sweaters in this book are done on circulars. Starting my new year of knitting off right, I did make a swatch for the correct size this time. 

Wishing you all a Very Excellent New Year!!!

Honoring Christmas

As a  Christian I believe and keep the true meaning of Christmas- Jesus. I also completely enjoy the traditional trappings of Christmastime. I  revel in this time of year. The world celebrates, they have parties, hang lights, decorate trees and strive to spend more time with they ones they love. Some may even stumble into a church. Their actions may not convey their beliefs but they are still reminders of the birth of Jesus and his blessings which are poured on us all whether we choose to  believe in him or not.

 I trimmed the tree. (happy to have my new Moomin House  ormanent)

I decked the halls, the mantle and yes...even the skulls for Christmas.

 I made little tags while fondly thinking of the people who will receive them.

I baked cookies with my girls. Yes! More Moomin.

And a gingerbread house for them to decorate.

We even had fun celebrating this one's Christmastime birthday (two years old) with veggies and a new hairstyle.

Sure I have fun with holidays and seasons, but I never forget who it is that gave us the seasons, the animals, the beauty of this earth and then even his own life.

I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. ~Charles Dickens

Christmas Doings

Now that the doing is over, I can relax and look back on what was done.  Here is my latest advent wreath, I make a new one each year. Of course I  feel the need to sneak mushrooms and acorns into the  decor whenever possible. Sure the mushrooms are fake but they made it look much nicer, like a walk in the woods.

I was inspired by the The Complete Dickens Christmas issue of The Storybook Home Journal to make this Christmas pie. It is a puff pastry 'package' filled with beef, carrots and gravy. I enlisted my husband's help, an extra pair of hands made the process go smoothly. While he cut out the decorative shapes I worked quickly getting the filling to stay in the dough parcel. He came up with the idea to paint the "berries" before baking with beet juice to make them that pretty red.

My new fish and fungus apron. My friend Andrea, who always knows what I like, gifted me with this mushroom print dish towel. Much too crisp and nice to wipe up slops, I decided to make it into an apron adding an interesting fish print I love but so far have had no use for.

Who is that cutie in my apron pocket? Her name is Mei and she is our new guinea pig. Over the holidays we lost two of our beloved piggies, Penny and Pumpkin. Our remaining girl, Woogie has not been doing well finding herself alone for the first time in her life. She has lived with us and her two cage sisters for the last five years. Yesterday we brought lovable Mei into the family. Woogie has perked up and is acting like her old self again. 

Tea with Squirrel

I’ve never had a tea cozy of my own. Sure I’ve made them to sell and made them for gifts, but never made one for myself until today. Each year when the temperature drops and I have need of a cozy I grab a kitchen towel, wrap it around my teapot and that’s that. It works so well that the real need is gone so I figure why waste the time making one when there are so many other things pressing. This adorable squirrel pattern was so simple and quick that I couldn’t resist it. I whipped it up today from a piece of berry wool felt. It would have been done even faster but my sewing machine has issues with metallic thread and I wanted  gold stitching for this festive Christmas season. Tonight while the children were finally nestled all snug in their beds it was just me and the squirrel for tea. He did his job while I glanced through some of my inspirational Christmas books for more ideas of things to make and do.

Good morning! Merry Christmas.

I was awakened this morning by my daughter standing at my bedside whispering “mom...Mom!”. I did not want to get up. Jumping to the conclusion that she was eager to go downstairs and see what gifts awaited her, I said “It’s too early. It’s still dark outside.” “But Mom, the sun is coming up RIGHT NOW!  It’s so beautiful, it’s red!” So, I dragged myself into their room to find both girls pressed against the window oohing and ahhing and squealing. The little one said, “I’ve never seen a sunrise before!" The big one replied, “It’s God’s Christmas decoration!”  I was now fully awake and eager to lavish gifts on both of them.

I wish you all a Joy filled Christmas.

Oh, Come, Oh, Come Emmanuel 

(The first and last verse)

Oh, come, oh, come, Emmanuel, 

And ransom captive Israel, 

That mourns in lonely exile here 

Until the Son of God appear. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 

Shall come to you, O Israel!

Oh, come, Desire of nations, bind 

In one the hearts of all mankind; 

Oh, bid our sad divisions cease, 

And be yourself our King of Peace. 

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel 

Shall come to you, O Israel!

Translated: John Neal, 1818-66

Learning how to eat...

Six months ago my husband found out he has diabetes. His sugar was really high and we had to make immediate changes in the way he eats. I have always been known as a healthy eater, preferring a combination of whole foods, raw foods and what I call “happy” meats (animals treated fairly). But, after our six hour class on how to eat as a diabetic I have revamped my own eating as well as my husband’s. Seeing what sugar does to the body was an eye opening experience. It effects all of our systems. Sure, we need sugar, it gives  us energy. But, too much of it is disastrous to our health. In a very small nutshell, these are the main changes in our eating habits.

-Cut out sugar, especially refined. Since I am not diabetic I can have some, but it’s very limited. I never realized how much sugar was going into my cooking. A spoon of honey or agave here and there was the norm. Now it’s stevia only for savory cooking. 

-Carbs=Sugar. This was a revelation to me. instead of reading how much sugar is in a serving size, read the carbs. To your body, they are sugar.

-Beans, peas, corn...they are carbs. We no longer treat them as vegetables in this house.

-Last, but not least is portion control! This is so important. We are eating the delicious foods we love, but limiting the amount.

Six months ago my husband’s doctor wanted him to loose 30 pounds. He has done it, just by eating a little differently. I do find that I am cooking more meat than before, there must be a certain amount of protein at each meal. But again, the necessary serving size is much smaller than the typical American diet. 

Here are some practical changes that I made to a few common meals.

Falafel, a favorite since our college days. Now I skip the pita bread since the chick pea balls are carbs. There is also rice in the stuffed grape leaves, so I am mindful of the serving size. 

Chili used to be served in this house with rice or corn bread. But as I stated above, beans are carb. I replaced those sides with a low carb whole wheat tortilla with sauteed onions and eggplant. Cheese and basil on top. This meal gets a side salad too.

A meat and potatoes meal here. Sweet potatoes are better for your blood sugar levels than white potatoes. They are rich in complex carbs and fiber, so they help your body maintain stable stores of energy. This Curried Sweet Potato Salad is from Prevention's Sugar Solution Cookbook, the only diabetic cookbook I own because from what I've seen it's the best suited to my taste buds. I served this potato salad with grilled flank steak, snow peas and jicama.

This is what I do for tacos. More filling than shells. You can't really get enough filling into those little shells, so I break a couple and heap on salad and then everything else. This was so low on sugar and carbs I could even have a sweet something for dessert.

This is green pea risotto and basil shrimp. Okay, so this one's not exactly a common meal. But it was really good and I would never have found it if I wasn't obsessing over a stack of diabetic cookbooks from the library. Sorry, I don't remember what book this came from. I never have risotto rice on hand, so I use sushi rice and it's just as creamy and delicious. This one needs a vegetable and a side salad to be a complete meal.

Now that The Holiday Season is here I must tweak my Christmas baking. I will bake and I will make my traditonal family favorites. But, I am also experimenting with stevia, using fruits for sweetening and grain sweetened chocolate chips. Whole grains make a difference to your blood sugar, so I will be mixing up my flours and maybe replacing with ground nuts too. I'll still use some sugar, when it's really needed. I'll let you know when I come up with something good.

Special Gifts

I have been blessed with a husband who is attracted to and appreciates the same things that I do. So, it is no surprise that I am head over heels for the gifts he picked for me. My birthday is very close to Christmas so I received not one, but two wonderful pieces of hand made pottery from Bauman Stoneware. This photo of the pumpkin teapot and acorn casserole speak for themselves of their amazingly gifted creator. All I can say is that they are beautiful and magical as everything concerning Christmas should be.

Christmas baking

The snow is piled up outside. The tree is trimmed with favorite ornaments. Fairies, mushrooms, nesting birds and woodland critters adorn it's branches. Oh, and the red lights are twinkling, I do love my red lights. The Christmas music is playing. It's time to get baking. As a child of the 70's (not the healthy hippie 70's) I was raised on a lot of packaged food. Potatoes and cakes came from boxes and vegetables came out of cans. But, come Christmas time my mom would bake cookies from scratch and she did it very well. As far back as I can remember Christmas we had the green acorn cookies. Mom would make the dough with the big wooden spoon, no mixers here. Then she molded each little acorn by hand. After baked and cooled she dipped each one in melted chocolate to make the acorn cap. They are buttery, kind of like shortbread, but flavored with almond extract. When I got married I started making them our tradition too. This year I also made a batch of sugar cookies that we have yet to decorate. They are from my late Grandma Jean's 1963 "Cooky Book". They are called wonderland cookies and we cut them out in fun animal shapes: pigs, owls, chicks, rabbits plus hearts and diamonds. It's just not Christmas though without the green acorn cookies. That big, gorgeous brown glass acorn ornament is a new gift from a special friend who really knows what I like.


Each Christmas I make a birthday cake for Jesus. I also like to make a buche de noel. It's a french roll cake filled with whipped cream. It's a less sweet alternative to the buttercream iced birthday cake. I decorate it with merengue mushrooms and strawberries. Of course I take any excuse to put cute little mushrooms on my table!


When serving this cake to company, one friend was notably disgusted to be eating mushrooms with his cake! I took this as a mighty big compliment at the realism of the little shrooms.