We take our time with the Christmas tree. We’re old-fashioned like that, waiting until Twelfth Night to take it down. So today, we simply laid out the ornaments on a table. They’ll slowly make their way onto the branches over the next couple of days.
Category: Christmas
LEGO Snow Village
Kicked off the decorating with LEGO gingerbread houses designed and built by Dwight. Decorating the tree can wait for another day.
Handel’s Messiah
Handel’s Messiah at Orchestra Hall from the nosebleed section, aka the gods (UK English). First performed in Dublin in 1742 it still sounds good today, even from the cheap seats.
Cactus Blooms, Christmas Looms
Our Christmas cactus is living up to its name, with many buds still waiting to open. We won’t assemble the tree for another week, but Dwight is busy creating two or three gingerbread houses using his architectural LEGO.
A Merry Countdown.
My thoughtful sister-in-law has gifted us an early Christmas present: an advent calendar filled with 24 miniature wine bottles, all different. Each day we’ll open a new door to reveal another liquid delight.
Nativity Scene for Sale Unbundled
With Thanksgiving behind us, Christmas selling is kicking into high gear. As I headed to get a haircut, I noticed a manger scene on sale outside an antique store. The ensemble is priced at $295, but can be purchased piecemeal. A baby Jesus that lights up is a mere $40, the manger is extra.
Twelfth Night
Today’s Twelfth Night, so followed tradition and took down Christmas decorations.
Fruitcake
Enjoyed a slice of my mother-in-law’s excellent fruitcake. I grew up in the UK where most people seem to love fruitcake, not so much here in the USA. The BBC Website instructs cooks to feed the cake with alcohol every two weeks until Christmas. That might explain the difference.
Sated
We ate well, not too many leftovers. They’ll be making surprise appearances from the fridge and freezer over the next couple weeks.
Christmas Eve
Kicked off the festivities with lefse for lunch (a nod to Norway, Dwight’s distant heritage). Tonight: fish pie (a nod to the UK, my heritage). Christmas Day dinner will nod to North Africa (just because…).