reality check?

 According to the long-range forecast in the fall

we were supposed to be in for a

brutally cold winter.

 Summer had been so hot and dry and forecasters

were predicting the worst

for winter.

 This morning we awoke to a dusting of snow

and wonderfully intricate patterns

of ice on our windows.

First it had rained - then cooled off enough to leave the snow behind.

It's December 31 and most lawns are still sporting their grass.

The next few days are supposed to be colder but then

milder temps are once again in the forecast.

Is this the extent of our "brutally cold winter"?

I rather doubt it!

lights with a meaning

One thing we've noticed and appreciated so much

is the attention the French give

to nativity scenes as part of their

outdoor Christmas decorations.

Of course there are other things thrown into the mix as well

but the nativity scene is often

front and center.

christmas eve drive

 The weather was gorgeous and mild on Christmas Eve.

We drove a bit around town and in the country 

to watch the sun go down.

 We came upon the graveyard and were surprised to 

see it full of candles.

At first we thought the candles were

in clear pails.

 But looking closer we saw that the "pails"were

actually made of ice.

It was beautiful.

We learned that having candles lit in the graveyard on Christmas Eve

is a way for the living to celebrate this precious season

with their dear ones who have left this earth.

 We went home and enjoyed our traditional cheese fondue

around the coffee table

with our precious loved ones who are still on this earth!

chillin' in the sun on boxing day

There's nothing quite like sitting in the sun on a winter day.

Yesterday, at 12 degrees C on the back deck, was the

ultimate warm winter day.

I cleaned some windows and Howard and Beth

enjoyed just sitting and soaking up the warmth.

We did get a rather nasty taste of winter later on in the day

when the wind blew in a quite ferocious storm complete with rain

and snow.

My windows?

No comment.

 The salmon that was put on the grill at the height of the blizzard?

Delicious!

christmas day

 There are a lot of international students at the college the girls attend

which makes our girls feel right at home!

 We were blessed to be able to share our Christmas dinner with two of them.

They are two lovely young people. 

Can you guess which Asian country they come from?

The "peace" sign always gives it away!

merry christmas from the kindly robin

Another piece of Katy's artwork. Makes one smile.... :)

merry christmas from our home to yours

good memories

 

It's mostly at Christmas when we feel a bit nostalgic and our thoughts turn to Germany. We enjoyed 12 beautifully wonderful Advent and Christmas seasons there. What a blessing to have those memories. On our last Christmas we got a huge dump of snow right before Christmas. These pictures were taken on main street on December 21. The snow was all gone by Christmas Day so we never did have a white Christmas in Germany. But this particular night felt like Christmas Eve and magic was in the air. People were out walking in the snow enjoying this enchanted evening.

 "Our" tree from our house was the Christmas tree of honour in the square that year so the town belonged to us that year! Here's the story of the tree we graciously donated:     http://www.rubydueck.blogspot.com/2009/11/good-and-bad.html

christmas calamity

 ‘Twas the night after decorating the Christmas tree so fair

Not a creature was stirring except for ladybugs here and there

New stockings were hung on the wardrobe with care

The old ones too small – it didn’t seem fair

The family upstairs getting ready for bed

Had visions of decorating still in their heads

The tree was so perfect – their ornaments so fine

They’d laughed and they’d chatted – they’d had a great time!

When suddenly downstairs there arose such a shatter

I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter

Katy cried, “No – the tree!” I replied, “Can it be?”

And down the stairs we all dashed

Oh the tree – what was smashed?

Yes there on the floor in the living room door

Lay our beautiful tree – oh our joy was no more

With the stand still attached and the lights all intact

We were puzzled as to why

Our poor tree had been sacked!

So we picked up the tree – the stand came along

We cleaned up the water – no one had a song

And there on the floor we started to find

Small pieces of memories the tree left behind

A glass star and angel – a ceramic Christmas tree

But most of the damage did not affect me

Katy’s bird and an angel from places we’d been

Could there be more than that? We searched with chagrin.
Yes her favourite – most favourite small girl from Alsace

Had lost her poor head – oh what was the chance?

We looked and we hunted -  we gathered the mess

But where was the head? – it was anyone’s guess

And suddenly Bethany cried with delight

“It’s here on the tree!” What a glorious sight.

It took quite awhile to anchor the tree

But why did it fall? What a mystery.

Howard got some good twine and secured it quite well

We were reminded of when our tree often fell

In Brazil it was tough to prop up a tree

It never seemed like the stand would agree

To hold up the tree for the whole Christmas season

But there it was obvious what was the reason

I thought and I thought when I went back to bed

I couldn’t quite get the idea from my head

That the tree is too heavy for our fine German stand

I think I’ll be filling some bags with some sand

Today we will pick up the fragments we know

And piece things together – to the store we will go

To buy some good glue to put them together

The snow will not stop us – whatever the weather

So this is the end of this story of woe

Although it be sad – with eyes still aglow

We think of how blessed we have been through the years

A few broken ornaments do not bring us tears

God’s walked in His kind gentle way all along

We have joy in our step – and yes – there’s a song.

nanaimo bars

Every Christmas season I make at least two rounds of Nanaimo bars. The first usually leaves the house on a fancy plate but the second stays in the freezer for consuming at a slow pace - if at all possible...

 I have perfected the Nanaimo Bar over the years and I have to say that mine are very, very good. I never put as many crumbs in the base as the recipe calls for otherwise the base is hard and crumbly. You know exactly what I mean. The base I make is soft and almost chewy.

 The yellow creamy part has also been adjusted. I never make it as thick as suggested and I add about 2 tablespoons of vanilla pudding powder to the mixture. It gives it a special little kick that is just delicious.

 The final layer has also been altered. I spread the chocolate as thinly as possible - like a wafer. There's no need for a 1/4" of chocolate on top. It makes the bar too hard to bite into thus squishing the yellow out the sides and making a potentially embarrassing mess.

Voila! Another perfect batch. This one provided Katy's final English class students with a real Canadian treat as well as delighting many at our church's Christmas banquet last night. There I was told that my Nanaimo bars looked like something from Costco, but sure didn't taste like it! I took that as a compliment!

the invasion continues

 

Every day we find at least 2 or 3 lady bugs in our house. The one pictured here is the second one I found yesterday. They seem to like hanging out in my pantry but we can't figure out where they're coming in or hiding out before they suddenly show up. Someone told us the other day that people actually "import" lady bugs into their homes for the winter to help control fruit flies. We don't seem to have a problem with fruit flies but I suppose if we did we'd certainly have enough lady bugs to keep them under control!

st. nicholas tag

December 6 - St. Nicholas Day. It's a German tradition for children - no matter how old, I figure! This year I had the privilege of filling a "shoe" for the son of friends of ours. German goodies are very easy to find in this country so it was no problem being authentic in my choices. Of course there were a few extras included that one won't necessarily find in Deutschland.

 At any rate the finished product was quite delightful and I hope the recipient of this package was just as thrilled as I was!

As for our household - one shoe of goodies was delivered last night and the other one waited outside a door until this morning. The days of wanting candy-filled shoes are gone so the treats have become more "mature". Works for me!