From Christmas

the joy a candle brings

December nature
a pose in pretty dresses for mama
an advent wreath transformed
presents for us

Presents for Jesus

I can't thank you enough, Ann. Though we gave

of our excess, she spent every last dollar from her piggy bank.

a precious kiss

Christmas

Christmas day at the Grimms. Beautiful. The audio from my camera doesn't do those voices justice, but I think you'll get the idea. Oh how they glorify their Father in heaven! Please take a few minutes to enjoy the entire montage. (As an aside, sixteen years ago that gentleman singing the negro spiritual pushed my husband all the way to my dorm room to ask me on our first date. Then he rang the doorbell and walked away. Thank you, Leon!)

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

The Journey Over Already?

About every hour today we move St. Joseph, Mary and the donkey from the furthest point in the house closer and closer to the stable. Only I just found them in Bethlehem already. Apparently the girls thought the holy family should all just get on a plane, "cause Mary was hurting and St. Joseph couldn't take it anymore".

So, do I move them back? Mary looks so rested and peaceful.

All is ready...

...for tonight's beautiful mystery. As much as possible, we'll spend today contemplating the love of Saint Joseph and Mary on their arduous journey to Bethlehem, and the suffering they wholly and willingly assumed for the love of the Infant they carried, for God and for us.

Gasp, I think I'm going to cry already.

If you're crazy-busy today - with cooking or cleaning or guests - but need some brief meditation reading to feed your soul, here's a simple but nice commentary on our Savior's birth. An excerpt:

There is a great paradox in the mystery of the Incarnation, the Son of God taking on human flesh that we might be clothed in his divinity. Scripture says "he became poor that we might become rich" (2 Cor. 8:9) -- rich not in material things which pass away, but rich in the things that last -- eternal life and happiness with the Triune God-- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Incarnation is the mystery of this marvelous exchange: "O marvelous exchange! Man's Creator has become man, born of the Virgin. We have been made sharers in the divinity of Christ who humbled himself to share our humanity." (Antiphon I of Evening Prayer for January 1st)
~

Read the rest here.

Breathing Again

The preparation around here is winding down. I'm glad. The last few weeks have been very busy. I thought I'd accomplished most of my Christmas preparation in November, giving me lots of time for a restful Advent, but it's clear now that my perception of what I'd accomplished was wrong. Truthfully I had begun much of the work early but didn't actually finish what I started - for example, all my cards were ordered early, but they came back printed wrong (we had orange faces). So I reordered (we still have orange faces, just lighter now), and just finished addressing them this past weekend. Then I lost a gift that was to be included in a box I'd planned to send in early December. I just found it yesterday, so to the post office I went this morning.

Today I really am quite at peace, not much more to do. We're spending Christmas day with the G Family, which is always tremendous fun. I think there will be over a hundred guests (all family). How do you feed such a crowd? So far there will be four hams, one turkey, one pork loin and one rib roast, lots of side dishes, salads, and a myriad of desserts. Lots of wine and champagne and drinks for the many, many kids. Everyone brings something. Or two or three somethings. It's going to be marvellous.

pincushion-ornament (my only handmade gift

this year. I made a lot of them.)

So Special

My husband and I bought his secretary a gift card to an upscale department store and laughed at it's oxymoronic tone:

_________ deserves this special gift.

chosen just for you by ___________

(Bold and enlarged letters not added by me.)

Christmas Dinner

Christmas dinner is perhaps my favorite meal of the year. Most of the side dishes I choose vary from year to year, but the main course - a standing rib roast, and the potatoes - gratin dauphinois (a fancy term for scalloped potatoes), have been and will always be at my dinner table. Both recipes are positively tres magnifique but surprisingly easy - perfect for Christmas dinner, when you want to enjoy a delicious meal without spending all your time in the kitchen.

So, in case you haven't yet decided on your menu, I'm sharing both of my most treasured recipes here, with notes. The first one comes from my brother's friend who is a chef. The potatoes are my humble but delicious creation. Enjoy, and do let me know if you made one or the other (or both!) on Christmas Day.

PRIME RIB (aka standing rib roast, or ribeye roast)
I always use a boneless roast - some say a bone-in roast adds more flavor but I haven't found this to be true. The half-submerging of the beef just prior to slicing gives this roast plenty of good flavor! I also prefer saving myself the trouble of slicing around thick bones which makes carving burdensome. And FYI - Costco has a great selection of reasonably priced rib roasts at Christmas time, and they're always delicious.



garlic cloves (approx. one head of garlic, or to your liking)
extra-virgin olive oil (enough to saute garlic and coat the roast, perhaps 1/3 cup or so?)
McKormick Montreal steak seasoning
brown sugar
1-2 packets McKormick Au Jus mix

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

1. Cut garlic cloves in half. Saute in olive oil until brown. Reserve garlic oil.

2. Cut slits in bottom of roast and stuff with half-cloves of garlic.

3. Rub roast with reserved garlic oil, Montreal seasoning and brown sugar.

4. Cook at 500 degrees for about ten minutes, to brown the roast. Reduce heat to 200-250 for remainder of time.

5. In a large pot or dutch oven, make au-jus according to packet directions.

6. Remove roast from oven when done or almost done (medium rare on your thermometer for best flavor, no more than medium). Drop roast into boiling au-jus for further flavoring and cooking, about 5 minutes.

Slice approximately 1/4" thick slices and serve immediately with au-jus on the side.

GARLIC-ROSEMARY SCALLOPED POTATOES
If you have a guest who claims he doesn't like rosemary, this recipe will convert him. Works every time. :)



about 3 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (Cuisinarts are great for this part.)
6-8 garlic cloves, 1 cut in half, the others minced
2-3 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary
5 Tbsp. butter (salted is best, for flavor)
salt and freshly ground pepper
3 cups heavy cream


Preheat the oven to 325.

Rub a casserole dish (ceramic or glass, 13x9 or smaller) with the cut garlic clove and butter well. Arrange the sliced potatoes in even layers in the dish, adding bits of the butter, minced garlic, rosemary and salt and pepper between the layers.

Pour the cream over the potatoes and top with final garlic-herb-butter-salt & pepper combination.

Bake about 1+1/2 hours.

If potatoes need browning (it will depend on your oven), raise the heat to 400 during the last 10 minutes of baking. Serve and enjoy!

(Photographs borrowed from Williams-Sonoma, though they're not actually the recipes I'm posting here. They're a close resemblance. I'll post my own pictures after the holidays, if I remember to take them!)

Is this really the fourth Sunday of Advent?

Our Savior is really coming this week? In many ways it seems like I've been waiting forever for Him to come and rescue me. In other ways there seems so little time to finish preparing. Either way, this recent picture is a perfect representation of our anticipation - our running toward the birth and promise of all Love, all Joy, all Peace. We're no longer waiting, but sprinting....with excitement and pure, unmistakable joy.

On My Mind

What she ponders. I can't wait to get my copy in the mail - a Christmas present, to myself. What can I say, I love Love.

If you need a lesson in proper dining etiquette...

...you've come to the right place.

There's a proper way to eat bow-tie pasta.

You mustn't eat at a nice restaurant without

blowing bubbles in your drink.

And there's only one way to really roast marshmallows.

######

(I reserve the right to delete the above photo at any time.) And so I did. Hope you had a good laugh while you could! :)

Silly Superficial Question

Can a girl wear a gown both for Christmas AND for her First Holy Communion? Is that too cheesy? Am I the only mother who thinks of having her daughter wear a special dress for more than one occasion?

Oh, and it would make a lovely Easter dress too. :)

What say you?

And no, it's not the gorgeous gown pictured, though that's available here....if you can afford it.

The Lord gave,

and the Lord hath taken away: as it hath pleased the Lord so it is done: blessed be the name of the Lord.

Our adoption fell through. We'd suspected something was wrong for several days prior to the official call from our agency - we just didn't know what was wrong. Really we still don't know the whole story. What we do know is that God knows best. We are as grateful for this outcome as we were to learn the good news in the first place. It is all Good news.

I'm relieved to have confirmation. I'd been pacing every last inch of my house almost nonstop from last Wednesday into the beginning of this week, wondering. Now I don't have to wonder. I'm also grateful it happened this early on in the process. Had I another few weeks of anticipation, I would have been very attached to this baby. It's quite amazing how a simple image can change your heart so quickly. Oh, those beautiful sonograms.

On the positive side, we're resuming all our seasonal plans....a Nutcracker performance, local Christmas festivals, parties, parades, and a long-ago planned family vacation in January. (Thank you Lord, for not allowing us to cancel our plane tickets - we came so close!) Most importantly we're eagerly awaiting the beautiful birth of our Savior, the Healer of us all.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention how incredibly wonderful my husband is. The extra embraces, those strong arms around me, those beautiful flowers. I almost feel guilty....really, I'm not sad. There's no cause for sadness in my house. The mere presence of my two girls and the possibility of self-pity are a contradiction in every way.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your outpouring of joy! I. LOVE. you.

It's A Girl!!!

St. Andrew answered a Christmas novena early this year! She's due to arrive January 10th, but we've been told she may come two to three weeks early. A Christmas baby!! Here she is:

That we will prepare for two births this Advent season has us thrilled beyond comprehension, and I have so much to fill you in on! More details to come...soon! In the meantime, please offer a prayer of thanksgiving on our behalf for this most beautiful Christmas gift, and beg Our Lord to pour his love and mercy on the selfless young mother who now bears her child....for us.

I love you all!