Advent in nutshell, by a voice of one calling in the wilderness, my number one choice (just edging out Alan Bean and Pete Conrad and Dick Gordon) for historical figure I’d most like to have dinner with, John the Baptist-
“Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. And all people will see God’s salvation.”
Take a minute to get Handel’s version stuck in your head. It makes the baking and ironing and gift wrapping and bathroom cleaning and tree decorating pale in comparison, but we’re definitely in a season of waiting and preparation and anticipation.
The holiday recipes are selected,
and make ahead meals are making it into the freezer.
The Advent calendar has caused zero tears this year, after a revamping of its contents. Barely any candy, but lots of notes that say things like Look at Christmas Lights! or Go To Church! It’s more of a guide through the activities of the month and that is working much, much better.
Our tree is filled with handmade ornaments from the boys’ school.
I have a desire during December for our whole house to be filled with so many Norwegian touches that people will come in and be surprised when we don’t speak Norwegian, similar to how I always feel in the restaurant at Ikea when I hear someone speaking Spanish instead of Swedish. I typically head to Ikea to look for Scandinavian decorations, but this year I choose the day poorly and went when I was miserably sick. I didn’t even finish my meatballs and I neglected to buy any decorations. Lacking a new supply of straw garlands, I started making things. I’ve also listened to hours of Christmas music and watched almost every movie in the house for background music while trying to finish handmade gifts. Finally, I’m at one gift to go and I’ve resorted to The Sound of Music on a continuous loop. December is only overly busy here because we make it overly busy.
Back in November, I decided to make Christmas neckties and bowties for the boys. A few days ago I decided to stay up until midnight so I could finish the ties and not waste the money I spend on supplies. The neckties were simple and sewn entirely by hand with a pattern from The Purl Bee. The bowties should have been very simple, but the tutorial I found online had screwy measurements so I ended up making everything two or three times to get the sizes correct. Now Rush and Tate are all set for Christmas fancy dress, assuming they will be in the mood to wear ties.
My rules for behaving civilly on the furniture are being sabotaged by –me. If I’m trying to cook dinner and the boys are diving headfirst onto the couch, I whisper, “Stop jumping on the couch, guys.” They get along so well when they’re crashing the furniture.
And speaking of sabotaging, if I ever notice that Tate is missing or silent, he can always be found hiding in the pantry, door shut, trying to get into the Chex Mix supplies.
When Rush talked to Santa at his school party, he was a little too nervous to say anything other than hello and give him a high five. Trent and I reassured him that he had plenty of time to get a letter in the mail. He let Santa know that he would love “a bike with a chain and Woody boots” (aka cowboy boots) and that he can pick out something great for Tate.
Panther and Jetty are not so subtly posing around the house, both trying to be December in Kitten Calendar 2013.
And back to my people, the Norwegians- Scandinavian cookbooks always, without fail, talks about food to bake when friends stop by during the holidays. This year, we have the fabulous privilege of being the coffee and cake stop for two families of friends travelling from Austin to Beaumont. It’s my dream come true! Off to prepare dough for Fyrstekake!
