My Christmas Formula

Here is my Merry Christmas formula:


x+y+z<a+b+c

x=time spent worrying about what gifts to buy
y=time spent shopping for gifts including driving and looking for parking

z=level of anxiety when you think about your next credit card bill

a=time spent sitting around the house in pajamas curled up with a good book, or a Christmas movie or a glass of wine/eggnog/hot toddy
b= time spent with loved ones doing activities like admiring Christmas lights, sharing a meal, singing carols, decorating, baking, attending a religious ceremony, and drinking eggnog.
c=number of times you engaged in happy conversations with total strangers just because you feel festive.

Does it work for you?

Sure does for me, my abc's are super high this year, and it's only Christmas Eve! I hope you can recognize yourself in these keywords, my dear friends and family! 

Driving in a snowstorm, Gluehwein, Robson Square ice rink, the Real Vancouver Housewives, ballgown gawking, Christmas light hunting on the Westside, tourtiere, feast from Kushimoto Sushi, crab spaghetti with a friend at La Buca,  wandering at Oakridge mall without stopping at the pit,  red meat yumminess at Edible Canada, pretzel and squeezable mustard, plum pudding cocktail, pulling kid in a sled, stomping on snowmen, homemade scones with homemade peach jam, party at the neighbors, looking at the advent pocket every morning, Christmas stories every night, crafts, drooling at Birks, finding gifts at my doorstep, Merry Christmas messages on my answering machine, Nazrin, the Perfume Shoppe owner choosing the perfect scent for me, Dim-sum lunch at the Golden Swan and trying out TanTsan, Pacman spaceship with the weeboys and breakfast for lunch at the Wallflower, transit loops in the city with my kid, Laloo's birthday party, mailbox anticipation, Lussekatters and more, more, more!

I hope that you are all having wonderful holidays and enjoying the company of friends, neighbors, and family.

Happy St-Lucia Day

Nisha makes Lussekatters, 2006

It's been a tradition in my family to celebrate St-Lucia Day, a Swedish holiday on December 13th. There are slightly different versions of how this day came to be and how it is celebrated, but basically, to celebrate the darkest nights of the year, and honor St-Lucia, young Swedish women put crowns of candles on their heads and visit neighbors and friends with sweets. But, you're not Swedish, you might say, and it's true, but years ago my mom decided it would be fun to celebrate the holidays the way they do around the world and we adopted this one quite happily. It was easy, because "Lussekatters" are deelish!

Lussekatters, meaning Lucia's cats are cardamom or saffron buns, shaped more like flowers than cats, with raisins squeezed in them.  My mom got the recipe from a discard library book and as stated on the inside flap; " The perfect holiday gift, Feast-day Cakes from Many Lands will be a welcome addition to every housewife's culinary collection.

Yesterday, I made 3 batches of them because I had a bit of trouble with the yeast. Yeast is finicky; it doesn't activate if your liquid is too cold and easy to kill if it's too hot. The last batch was finally a success! We had some friends over to make them and had a lot of fun! There are different versions of the Lussekatter buns online if you are tempted to try them out, and while you wait for the dough to rise, you can watch this video of the St-Lucia celebrations in Sweden.

Happy St- Lucia Day!

Snowy Little Houses

I've been slowly working on a snowy village to decorate our mantel. I was at the dollar store with the kid and picked up some cardboard houses with ugly pictures on them. I picked the pictures off with an exacto knife which was a pain the a**because, of course, they wouldn't come off in one big piece but in a zillion little bits.

Once the images were peeled off, I cut windows out of each house and painted them white with regular acrylic paint. The fact that I butchered the cardboard trying to get the images off added a nice "stucco" a-la-greek look to them.  I put little fake LED candles inside and looks like some gnomes are home eating dinner. (I unknowingly bought candles that flicker which I'm happy about). A few trees from IKEA and a full moon and presto; a snowy Christmas scene!

ugly boxes

scrapped and painted

(I wish I was good at thinking pictures in the dark-but here they are-a glowin'!)
 

 Snowy village

Spreading the Holiday Cheer Advent Calendar

When I was a kid, at the beginning of December, my mom would pin an advent calendar on the wall for my brother and I. At first, we were happy to open the little doors and see pictures of elves or animals holding presents, until one year when some distant relative send us one with chocolate inside and then after that, pictures just didn't cut it. We had to have a chocolate advent calendar every year. If the chocolate behind the 24th door of December seemed bigger than the others, we would argue about who would get the odd numbered doors and who would get the even numbered doors. I don't remember how we settled that dilemma , but I do remember running out of bed in my pajamas when it was my turn to open the little door.

For the past few years, as I grow older and wiser, (the wiser part might be an illusion...) I take a moment before the holiday frenzy starts to remember what's really important to me during this special time of year. This year, I decided to sew an advent calendar, put little 'treats' in each pocket for the boy and my husband, but also reminders of how to spread good holiday cheer. Here are the 24 cheers I came up with. Hope you enjoy them.

1. Tradition Day. Share your favorite memories of Christmas with others. Start or revive a holiday tradition for yourself and your family. My favorite is making Lussekatters for St-Lucia Day on December 13th. Watch for a post about soon.

2.  Rethink Giving Day! Before doing more holiday shopping, think about what you already have; books, games, toys, clothes, jewelry, magazines etc...and think about people who would like to receive a gently used gift.

3. Cheerful Budget Day. Set an amount for holiday spending which feels comfortable for you. Make a list of people you want to give gifts to and research the cost of these gifts before you go out to shop. Set aside a portion of this budget for special food and libations too.

4. Charity Day. Choose a way to share your resources this holiday season. Maybe it's not volunteering at a soup kitchen handing out plates of mashed potatoes, maybe it's just popping a coin in an expired meter for someone. Do what makes sense to you even if it appears to be a small gesture. It all counts.

5. Smile Day! Use your smile to spread good cheer today.

6. Happy Friend Day. Call a friend you haven't talked to in a while and wish them Happy Holidays.

7. Listening Day. Instead of contributing to a conversation by giving your two-cents or talking about an experience you've had, contribute by being super curious, asking lots of questions or just plain listening.

8. Neighbor Day! When the weather gets bad, we all cozy up in our homes and don't see our neighbors as much. Make a point to connect with a neighbor today. Give them a call, knock on their door, make extra food and share or leave a small gift at their door.

9. Story Day. Find one of your favorite books, place a note or a Christmas card inside saying something like: "Hi there stranger! Hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. Happy Holidays!" and leave it somewhere for someone to find.

10.  Hug Day! Give someone a hug, not a quick squeeze, a nice long hug as if this person was going away for a long, long time.

11. Quiet Day. Seek quiet moments throughout your day. Create them for yourself; two seconds in the car before starting the motor, reading in bed before sleep, watching the weather through a window, taking a walk outside etc...

12. Red and Green Day. Get in the holiday spirit by wearing red or green today.

13.  Spread the Fruit Day! Staff rooms are notoriously bad for the waistline during the holidays.  Resist the temptation of another "treat" by stuffing fruit in your bag before you leave for work. Take extra for others.

14.  Someone you know hasn't heard you say "I love you" in a long time. Find or call that person and tell them. If you haven't told them in a long time or ever, they might be a bit shocked or weirded out, but don't worry about it. They'll get over it and love you back for it!

15. Make space for your new socks and underwear day! Throw away all your lonely socks and questionable underwear; what a way to get ready for the new year!

16. After You Day! Let people pass in front of you today. In front of your car, in front of you in line-ups, through doorways, on the bus for a seat etc...

17.  Give a Man a Compliment Day!  Men in your family, friends, co-workers even men you don't know.

18. Coffee Day! Bring a coffee to someone who looks like they might need a boost.

19. Rewrap Day. Use your creative self to find ways to wrap your gifts by reusing what you might already have on hand. Look around a home and at the office and collect materials. The internet if full of ideas and tutorials so take a look here or here or here.

20. Service Day! Imagine being in the shoes of the people who give you service today; mail workers, cashiers, bus drivers, store keepers etc. Give them a big smile, a big thank you, a card or a small gift.

21. Do Less Day. It's easy to get caught up in the holiday frenzy, even if you have your zen on, so to slow things down, take things off your to-do list. Ask yourself if each task is really necessary and if you can do without it. Scratch things off the list with pleasure.

22.  Spread Gratitude Day. Write or make a mental note of everything and everyone you are grateful for. Share it with others and they too will be reminded of all that they are grateful for.

23. Holiday Planner Appreciation Day. Someone you know has been running around, preparing the holidays to make them special;  someone is shopping, decorating, menu planning and cooking. It might be you, your spouse, a friend or a family member. Take a moment to thank them for their effort.

24.  Turn off the House Lights Day! Spend some time in the glow of your Christmas tree, light a fire or candles.

Sock Monkey Advent Calendar

Advent Calendar Treats

There are a zillion ways to make your own advent calendar, just take a look on Pinterest or you can buy one made of 24 little paper boxes at Ikea and fill them yourself with chocolates, little toys, snacks, love notes etc... Happy Advent!

Kicking Off the Season with Homemade Wrapping Paper

I saw an advertisement on television the other day with a supremely plastic family shopping for their holiday decorations. They were standing in front of a giant wall of matchy-matchy decorations; rolls of wrapping paper, gift tags, bows, ribbons, boxes of balls, garlands, bobbles, icicles, ornaments, and Christmas tree lights all in turquoise and silver. All ready to go and in this worry free color combination sure to match any home decor. BAM! Insta-Christmas!

Not my kind of Christmas. Yup, we're busy during the holidays, but so what?  It's a perfect time of year to get creative and to try to minimize our time at the mall. The key is to start early. Okay, not right after Halloween kinda of early, like some manic businesses who need holiday based decorations at all times, but you know, about mid-November.

Every year, I love to invent my own wrapping paper. I use left-over paper, stickers, string, paint, whatever I have on hand. Here are papers I've been working on with my boy:

Collage Wrapping Paper

The kid's craft station and our recycling bin is full of leftover bits of papers, stickers and string which I collected and glued together on a large piece of paper. Then I covered the whole thing with lots of white glue. To finish it off I ran it through the sewing machine, going through it in random directions to give it strength. I think it turned out really festive!

Tons of glue is the key- brush it on with a paint brush.

Wait until it's completely dry and use a wide or decorative stitch

I also collect our coffee bags because they are non-biodegradable and the only coffee company that takes them back is way out in Burnaby, so I decided to re-purpose them.

I cut them open lengthwise and washed them out

I sewed them together piece by piece like making a quilt

I added more colors of thread and zigzaged all over it

My kid is modeling the new coffee paper

I cut the paper and sewed pouches

I can't decided which I like best, the silver lining of the printed side

Christmas Eve Mass

Yup, I'm one of those "practicing" Catholics who occasionally go to mass. There were a lot of us at Christmas Eve Mass. Most of the time, I am conflicted about being Catholic, there is so much I disagree with and yet, I forget it all when I walk into church. There's something really magical about a packed church on Christmas Eve...

Last year, I was pregnant and about to have my son. I thought a lot about Mary, traveling on a donkey (she's must be blessed to suffer that) and having her baby in a pile of hay. How brave she was to have this child and trust that everything was going to be okay. So I sought comfort in that. That I could be brave and that my birth would be great. And it was!

This year, I thought about us, us on earth, children of God. I thought about my son, how much I love him, and then I knew how much God loves us. As his children, we can fall and make mistakes, and he will always love us. Isn't that comforting? That we are always loved?

God loves me, even if I only "practice" occasionally.

A Christmas Present to Myself

... Knives.... you know you have these your drawer, don't try to deny it!:

• The one that wobbles from side to side making your cheese slices more like cheese lumps.
• The one that feels like an axe, winding it up way above your head to get any cutting power.
• The one that feels like a saw, back and forth, pushing hard and working up a sweat just to get through the skin of a tomato.
• The one that gives you blisters! Blisters? Yes, blisters!
• The one that should be for cutting, but is only good for poking the toast out of the toaster
• The ones that are rusty, bent, and dented, the ones you grab out of a friend's hand, and say: "Oh, no don't use that one!"

So this year, as I notice that I spend a lot of time in the kitchen preparing meals for my family, I decided to splurge. Get the best tool of the trade, and drop the cash on the counter! $161 of pure joy! Presenting my new Henckels 8" Professional Chef's knife, all the way from Germany!

I came home and tested all the crappy knives on a potato. Then I pulled out "Henk" and massacred my potato with a giant smile on my face and what feels like butter in my hand. I've made a special place in the drawer for him with little "Henky" which we got as a wedding present. All the other knives have gone on to knife heaven.

I am definitely adding "Henk" to my previous post "Mommy Tools of the Trade" along with my slow cooker and our dishwasher!

Christmas Shopping is a Breeze!

Yup, I've decided that it's actually easier to shop for Christmas with a kid in a stroller. This means:

a. There is no time to browse- I had to know what I wanted and where it was before I left the house
b. Wherever my stroller got stuck, that's as far as I'd go. If I can't reach it, I don't buy it.
c. I didn't enter stores with crowds, line-ups or salespeople I couldn't identify from afar.
d. No easy parking? No shopping.
e. I used simple language: Man-need soap with man smell. Shirt-red-large.
f. I said no to stores with narrow aisles, breakable merchandise at stroller level, narrow doorways, and salespeople who followed me around.

Isn't it great? Knowing what I wanted before I left home and then choosing stores I knew I could push a stroller through made the whole thing so much easier! No more hours of browsing, humming and hawing about will so-and-so like it? or maybe I should get it elsewhere in case it's on sale etc....

As for wrapping? It was great! Baby sat with me, ripped and crumpled the paper, pulled the tape out of the dispenser in ultra long strips, mangled the ribbons and undid most of what I could manage to finish. I loved it!

So next year, if you need a good way to limit the shopping frenzy, take my kid along. I'll stay home and sip on eggnog. :)

Getting Ready for the Season

Yesterday I found myself looking online to rent dishes to host a Christmas dinner for 10 people. Rent dishes for a dinner? No, maybe go to Ikea and buy stuff. More Ikea stuff. Am I crazy? Where will these 10 people sit? 6 inside and 4 on the patio? "Whoaaaa les moteurs"- as my mom would say. Pull the horses back, bring the sheep in, chew your carrot sticks.... slow everything down.

I seek simplicity. Abundance of simplicity. I am seeking it even more now that I have an 11 month old during this holiday season. Tonight, the power went out in the neighborhood. I came up from the underground parking and everything was much blacker. Baby and I came in, lit some candles, sat on the couch in our jackets and read stories. It was simple and lovely. Just like the night Baby Jesus was born, in complete simplicity, I will keep this in my mind. I will take time. Today, I started my simple and beautiful season with a small rosemary bush shaped like a Christmas tree. This will do.

Less running around in the stores, more time with friends.
Less line-ups, more walking in the snow.
Less gorging, more tasting.
Less spending, more giving.
Less stressing, more enjoying.

Right. 'tis the season to be jolly, darn it and that's what I'll be.