Holiday Traditions

I spent a little time this week thinking about holiday traditions that have developed in my life over the years. As I made a mental list, I was surprised by a pretty obvious trend: my holiday traditions center around friendships rather than family.

Source: fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net via Nicolas on Pinterest

I suppose it's silly to be shocked by this revelation. My maternal grandparents were snowbirds during almost my entire childhood and as their only grandchildren, we didn't develop any holiday traditions on that side of the family, although we usually did (and do) have one sort of holiday gathering with my aunt and uncle. My father's family all hails from Chicagoland and although Christmas trips to Chi-town dominate my childhood holiday memories, since both my brother and I graduated high school, our trips to Chicago have become increasingly infrequent and less tied to the holiday season.So, for the time being, friends get to dominate my holiday season. It's quite lovely.

Here's a list of some of my favorite holiday traditions:

An annual wine, cheese, and gab fest with the girls from my college's student newspaper. For a bunch of former muckrakers, we clean up rather nicely. ;) This year's get-together is tomorrow. Eeeee! Excitement!

Make a batch of shitballs (peanut butter balls) with my friend Sarah. We've been making these each Christmas (although sometimes not until February, depending on how accommodating our schedules are) since we were sophomores in college, when we made the dreadful mistake of adding water to our melted chocolate. (Oh, the culinary mistakes one makes at age 19.) The chocolate ceased and our peanut balls took on a less than appetizing appearance, although I remember them still tasting pretty good. You say, shitballs. I say, warm Christmas feelings.  

Of course holiday movies factor into my Christmas traditions. Each season I like to watch Love Actually by myself or with my mom, Elf with anyone who happens to be around, and The Holiday . . . because Jude Law in glasses totally makes up Cameron Diaz's less than amazing performance. I got pretty brunt out A Christmas Story during my teenage years, but it's still a classic, I will watch a scene or two if it's on in the background.

The annual craft-o-thon over New Year's with a wonderful group of women bonded by crafts, college, and Ireland is a newer (and wonderful) addition to my holiday festivities. The picture below is the only one I could find in my files where we all look relatively normal. And trust me, any appearance of normalcy is clearly a facade.

Find the perfect Christmas tree with Andy. We have yet to do this. We've been holiday spirit procrastinators this year.

Not quite a holiday tradition yet since I've only done it twice, but I do try to make a batch of potato latkes at some point during Hanukkah each year.

 
What are some of your holiday traditions?
 

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A Visit from the Easter Bunny

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter/Passover holiday this weekend. I spent all weekend worrying about meringue and as a result, I'm having some difficulty adjusting to the real-world projects, concerns, and tasks that come with Mondays. (Sadly, I have yet to make a living wage worrying about if the relative humidity will be too high for meringue to set properly.) 

For the record, the lemon meringue pie was a success and didn't warrant all the worry I threw at it. My meringue had a teensy bit of shrinkage and just a touch of weeping on the top. If you're ever wanting to tackle a lemon meringue pie, there's a fantastic tutorial over at the Not So Humble Pie blog that's definitely worth checking out.

Other than (literally) whipping up the pie, I spent the Easter holiday going for a long walk with my parents at the nearby nature center, then sitting down to a delicious Easter feast prepared by my mom, Andy's mom and yours truly. Because I'm a bad blogger, I didn't take any pictures and since everything was devoured with great enthusiasm, there weren't even leftovers to photograph. (Well, there were, but I ate them.) It was a lovely day. 

The Easter bunny made a surprise visit at the cabin.  This picture doesn't do it justice, but my Easter "basket" is made out of recycled candy wrappers. Not sure if it's an Ecoist, Nahui Ollin or what, kind of bag - the Easter bunny snipped off its tag -- but I'm pretty pumped about it since my current tote bag's handles are turning into a frayed mess.

The bag was filled with all sorts of good stuff: a spring-y scarf, lovely soap, chocolate, and this little lady to join my springtime decorations:

The Easter bunny also brought a TracPhone which will be put to good use during my upcoming travels since I've been without a cell phone contract for nearly a year now.  Don't worry friends, I'm back in the 21st century now . . . sort of.

I woke up to find a dusting of snow on the ground. I thought for sure it would be gone by this afternoon, but it's still coming down. I'm so . . . enthused.

These guys don't seem to be minding the snowfall.I have peppers, tomatoes, cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi and an assortment of flowers all poking up now. I'll do a second planting at the end of the week.

I'm trying to focus this week and get some extra work done, since the traditional "end of the winter" travels are nigh. I had a mini freak-out this morning when I realized I'm just over a month away from going back to work full time again. On the bright side, that means the Ireland trip is just a year away.  Time to get a fare alert set up on Kayak. . . .

Hope you're having a happy Easter Monday. How did you celebrate this weekend? Who has spring travel plans?

 

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Gettin' Crafty for St. Paddy's

Maybe it's all this talk of an upcoming trip to Ireland. (And yes, by upcoming, I mean 2013). Maybe I'm just ready for spring. Whatever the reason, I'm feeling it's high time to swap out my felted hearts for some St. Paddy's Day appropriate decorations.

Over the years, I've amassed quite a few St. Paddy's Day decorations, thanks to friends, family and having spent a semester living in Ireland. I have a beautiful tablecloth embroidered with shamrocks, a figurine of Irish snowmen, and a collection of St. Paddy's Day kitsch, which includes a set of super classy plastic shot glasses. But that's not enough for this Irish gal and so I have a few plans for adding to the collection this year.

Source: youaremyfave.com via Michelle on Pinterest

Despite having an ever growing collection of houseplants, one houseplant I don't have is a shamrock. I know, right! Actually, back in college, a friend gave me a shamrock for my birthday. Cleverly referred to as "Sam the Sham," the poor little shamrock had a lifespan of about four months before dying of neglect. Hey, it was college and I was easily distracted. It's a sad story, but I'm ready to do better by Sam the Sham II. Time for a live shamrock to be a permanent Irish inspired decoration in the cabin. 

Source: Uploaded by user via Ada on Pinterest

I found these little knit shamrocks on Ravelry last spring. They're made using little bits of sock yarn and I have all sorts of green sock yarn I'm looking to use up. I probably won't "bejewel" my shamrock, but I might knit up enough so that I can make a St. Paddy's Day garland with them.

Source: blog.craftzine.com via Ada on Pinterest

I found this adorable embroidered Irish gal when I was wasting time on browsing on Pinterest the other day. I think she is just about the sweetest thing I've ever seen and she definitely needs a place in the cabin this St. Paddy's Day. I've been doing a lot of embroidery this winter, finishing up a tablecloth I started last winter, so my embroidery chops are all warmed up this project. I just need some supplies - a hoop, muslin, and transfer pencil - and I'm totally making this sweet little Irish lass. 

By the way, if you're looking for some simple and effortless St. Paddy's Day decorations, Katherine over at Irish Italian Blessings has some super cute (and free!) St. Patrick's Day printables. Remember, everyone's Irish on St. Patrick's Day. ;)

Are you preparing for the wearing o' the green yet?

 

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Happy Valentine's Day! And a free knitting pattern

It's a late update for me, but I do hope your Valentine's Day has been full of happiness and time with loved ones. Anyone doing anything special or is everyone waiting until the weekend to actually celebrate?

Valentine's Day's always been pretty low-key day around here. Despite my best intentions, I've never managed to get the house decorated for the holiday and it's one of those holidays that's totally devoid of tradition for me. But this year, I finally got my act together and knit up some little heart decorations with some scrap yarn.

I had enough leftover red Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride wool leftover from other projects to make four little hearts. I felted them up, pulled a ribbon through them and now they hang merrily in a row in the living room window. They make me smile every time I catch them bobbing away out of the corner of my eye.

Pre-felting:

Post-felting: 

As my Valentine to you, here's the pattern for my felted/knitted Valentine's Day heart decorations:

Knitted and Felted Valentine's Day Heart Decorations Pattern

Any errors in the pattern are my own, so do let me know if you have questions!

This is a great way to use up some scrap yarn and the hearts knit up very quickly, so you can have a stack of fuzzy hearts to scatter around your home in no time.

Ideas for your felted hearts:

• Embroider the initials of a bride and groom-to-be on the heart and use as a gift tag for a wedding gift. 
• Knit up in multi-colors and use for Christmas tree decorations
• Hang in your windows (like I did) for happy little Valentine's Day decorations 

It's been a busy couple weeks around here. We had company this weekend (hooray!) and now with the middle of the month upon us, deadline day is once again neigh. It's nose to the grindstone time around here, but all is well. 

Happy Valentine's Day!
 

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On Being Calm

Things have been hectic around here lately. Here's part of the reason for the slight madness: my Star Trib article which went live online yesterday afternoon and is in today's paper in the Taste section. Check it out; even if my fish lineage is kind of shady as one commenter so kindly pointed out.

I've just survived another deadline week. Actually, it was more like a deadline fortnight this go 'round. But I can't fall into my usual post-deadline protocol. (Aka, slack off until the next assignments roll in.) While I did sigh a big sigh of relief when the last assignment went flying out of my outbox yesterday morning, there's still plenty to do  I'm headed out of town next week for the holidays and won't be back for a week and a half. That long absence means blog posts and commentaries need to be written ahead of time and some work hours need to be banked.

I'm often told how calm I look. I'm not quite sure where this misinterpretation springs from, but you know the whole thing about not judging a book by its front cover. I think that's what's going on here.

I may look serene on the outside (Really? Really?) but inside I'm more often than not a pile of nerves. I like to put my head down on my pillow at night and stew for a good half hour on all the things I need to get done. I think it's a family trait. Perhaps because we're a rather quiet bunch (at least when in public) we're mistaken for being cool, calm and collected. Only we know we're really stressed out nut jobs with high blood pressure issues.

So while it is a weight off my shoulders to have those articles written and invoices in the mail (Maybe there will be Christmas in Whoville after all. . .;) the fact that I no longer have deadlines hovering over my head like a piano means I can turn my scrambling thoughts to such things as: actually buying Christmas presents, putting up the decorations, packing, and maybe writing one blog post this month that's filled with coherent thoughts. (Haha.) 

Maybe, just maybe, one of these days, I'll feel . . . calm: cool, calm, and collected.

I'll get back to you in January on that.

Anyone else tasting that holiday stress yet?

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Elves, elves, everywhere!

I have further excuse for giving "Holiday Season 2011"  a squinty, slightly cynical "grain of salt" once over.

At the annual cookie bake this past Friday, my mom lent me a copy of David Sedaris's Holidays on Ice. The collection includes Sedaris's now infamous "Santaland Diaries," which chronicles the Christmas season he spent working at Macy's, along with several other holiday essays and short stories. 

Now, ladies and gentlemen, if you live in a cabin in the middle of the woods, far removed from the onslaught of CHRISTMAS! that television and other media spew out at America from about November 1st onward, reading David Sedaris is going to give you a slightly skewed perspective on the whole holiday season. Rather than focusing on the warm fuzziness that's meant to bond us all during these snowy, present filled days, Sedaris tends to highlight the strange (and often strained) absurdity that really makes the holidays a universal experience.  He is snarky, irreverent, and often downright ridiculous.

Since posting last week about this holiday season taking a little longer than usual to kick in for me, I've found many others who are feeling a little low on the Christmas cheer meter so far. (We must not be singing loud enough!) This most wonderful time of the year can bring about a lot of unique stress - presents and subsequent money worries, get-togethers, winter driving, balancing family time and work obligations - that doesn't happen any other time of the year. Keeping hold of the reigns of the holiday season is tricky, exhausting, and sometimes, just downright impossible.

So I posted the line from Elf that pays homage to "Santaland Diaries" on Facebook to see if anyone else was feeling rather Crumpet-ish. (Crumpet was Sedaris's elf name.)

Instead this happened:

An honest to goodness Elf quote off.

It reminds me of, what I personally think, is the wisest part of Sedaris's "Santaland Diaries", the part when he acknowledges just how alike all humans are:

All of the adults ask for a Gold Card or a BMW and they rock with laughter, thinking they are the first person brazen enough to request such pleasures.


Santa says, I'll see what I can do.


All of us take pride and pleasure in the fact that we are unique, but I'm afraid that when all is said and done the police are right: it all comes down to fingerprints.

But being alike isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, when it comes to Elf quote-offs, it can be downright comforting. 

What's your favorite holiday reading material? What's your favorite holiday movie? 

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Eggnog Pancakes: A Tutorial

Things are feeling a little more festive around here lately. Still no tree or decorations up, but after Andy and I spent a good portion of yesterday reclaiming the kitchen, living room, and bathroom from the ever encroaching clutter and filth, I'm actually able to envision how a tree just might fit into the cabin.

I realized one reason it's been hard to think of Christmas as being just around the corner is the fact that we've been firmly rooted in "deer season" for so very long now. On Thursday night, we finally finished making venison sausage - a double batch of chorizo and like a quadruple batch of wild rice sausage, which I think is this year's winner in the sausage taste test. Now that the chest freezer is filled with 60+ lbs of processed venison, I can officially take off my butcher hat and pull on my Santa hat.

So we're making little steps towards the holiday season. One giant leap towards downright festiveness came when I made a batch of these yesterday morning:

That's right, eggnog pancakes. Mmmm, noggy goodness. I've mentioned these pancakes before, back in the blog's infancy, but good things are worth repeating and this time I'm actually going to show you how to make them.

Before you all go eggnog hating on me, let me say,  I'm not a huge eggnog fan either. A small glass of it once a year is plenty for me. However, I really enjoy the faint eggnogy, nutmegy flavor the eggnog gives these pancakes. Of course, adding eggnog to pancakes makes these probably the most ridiculously fattening holiday treat you could cook up. (But see, I used light eggnog - health food!)

Eggnog Pancakes

1 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1 egg
3/4 cup eggnog (you can use light)
1/4 - 1/2 cup milk
3 Tbsp melted butter

Sift together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together egg, eggnog, 1/4 cup milk, and butter. Combine dry and wet ingredients until just blended. Be carefully not to overmix: some lumps may remain- don't worry about them!  If batter seems too thick, add more milk until desired consistency is achieved. (I prefer my pancakes quite thin, so I end up adding the whole 1/2 cup of milk.) Drop batter in large spoonfuls on heated, grease griddle. Cook until bubbles form and bottom is golden brown, then flip. Cook on other side until golden brown. Serve warm with real maple syrup. Merry Christmas! 

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Calling Off Christmas

Speaking of Christmas, (we were, weren't we?) Andy and I have made an unofficial decision to call Christmas off this year.

No, we haven't been isolated from community and popular culture for so long that we've become curmudgeons who will in no way acknowledge the holiday season. I fully plan to deck the halls, bake the cookies, play the carols, get together with friends and family, etc. etc. when the holiday season truly is upon us.

(I've been spending an extended weekend in town, splitting my time between Andy's mom's place and my parents' while Andy deer hunts and after all this time in the land of fast internet and cable t.v., I feel a need to inform the world's ad agencies that Christmas is not just around the corner. Let's hold our horses, shall we?)

Despite my firm belief that Christmas is not imminent just yet, the holiday season and all its fuss and spending has been on my mind lately.

For one thing, I've been assigned the annual holiday gift guide for the publication I'm a contributing writer for. I spent some time with Mom in the shops downtown yesterday, trying to figure some new exciting spin to put on the same ol' items from the same ol' stores for this year's guide.For another thing, it's apparent that between tires, teeth and nonexistent internet (aka, technician visit!), discretionary spending funds are going to be pretty much nonexistent this December.

There's also the little fact that we don't really need anything. Sure, there are plenty of pretty, nonessential items I'd love to have, but when I look at my life objectively, it's clear we want for nothing. Our freezer and pantry are brimming with delicious, homegrown/homemade food; the closets are stuffed with clothes and footwear; we have two cars; plenty of firewood to keep us warm through the winter; we cover our monthly expenses; and there's enough money to cover the aforementioned expenses without too much strain or stress. So why make things stressful by feeling we have to go all out with presents this year? 

Yes, I am the person who retailers hate and who is in no way stimulating our floundering economy.

Not that I won't be purchasing Christmas presents this year. But I'm approaching the gift giving this year as a way to share a small token of love and appreciation with the people I love rather than go through the sometimes stressful, sometimes frustrating process of trying to figure out larger (and more expensive) items for everyone on my list this year.  Maybe we'll just do stocking stuffers for everyone this year. Maybe small themed baskets. I haven't decided yet, but I'm hoping for a simple, but sincere Christmas this year.

It seems like this year "presents" giving us a wonderful opportunity to focus on all we already have. Why let Christmas crowd out the autumn holiday we should really be stretching out over the entire year: Thanksgiving.

Have you ever called off Christmas? Will your Christmas spending this year stay the same as prior years or do you plan to cut or expand your budget?

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Happy Fourth!

A happy Fourth of July to one and all! Hope you have a wonderful, refreshing summer day filled with celebration. I'll be spending the holiday at work and trying to finish up a freelance assignment (and other sundry tasks) before the Tipsy Crafters descend on the great North Woods tomorrow for a long "weekend" of crafting mania. It should be one busy, happy week. Please forgive me if I'm MIA.  

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Happy St. Paddy's Day! (With Irish Soda Bread recipe)

Rainbow in Waterford, Ireland, April 2008

 Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! I hope today brings you a bit o' Irish luck and finds you wearing a touch of green. If not, you'd best get some green on, else you're liable to be pinched! Personally, I'm debating between pulling on my "Kiss Me I'm Irish" t-shirt or my "Made in Ireland" t-shirt this morning. Ah, life's tough decisions, eh? 

I was planning to have an Irish Soda Bread tutorial today, but ran out of milk. The result of our milk "outage" is two-fold. One, I've been forced to eat dry Cheerios for breakfast. (True story. Things are pretty grim around here.)  Two, you're getting pictures of my St. Paddy's decorations instead of step-by-step bread instructions.The recipe and story for the Irish Soda Bread is at the bottom of the post.

My family's always celebrated St. Paddy's Day.  My dad's paternal grandparents are from Ireland and I was lucky enough to study abroad just 20 odd miles from my great-grandfather's hometown during my sophomore year of college. I returned to Ireland in 2008 and now am experiencing the heartbreak of watching first my brother and now my parents head off to the Emerald Isle this winter. (Boo to good financial decisions!) Thankfully, my brother was sweet enough to share a taste of Ireland with me. A box of 12 Cadbury Mint Crisp bars (deliciousness) arrived on my doorstep yesterday.

I've accumulated a fair amount of St. Paddy's Day decorations over the years. A friend gave me these snowman a few years back and I love them so much, they're on display from Christmas through the end of March.

 Remember Beanie Babies? This little lass, "Erin," I think, comes out every St. Paddy's Day.

 I bought my Irish flag in the Dublin airport back when I was studying abroad in 2005. It's huge, so it always ends up over a door.

No St. Paddy's Day celebration is complete at our house without a loaf of Irish Soda Bread. My (English) mom found the recipe in a magazine/newspaper in her newlywed days and made it for my (Irish) dad each March. I brought the recipe with me when I studied in Ireland and I can assure you, this bread has graced many an Irish oven. Because yeast doesn't always cooperate in Ireland's damp, cool climate, you'll find soda bread, a quick bread, on just about every traditional Irish breakfast table. Although the sugar coating in this recipe isn't traditional, it's too yummy to pass up. I always put the raisins in, but you can take 'em or leave 'em, depending on your feelings towards raisins. Don't worry, even though we're out of milk today, I made a pre-St. Paddy's Day batch earlier this month.

Bantry Brown Bread 
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup raisins, chopped
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 1/4 cup buttermilk (or just add a little vinegar to the bottom of your measuring cup and use regular milk)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon water

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift together flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into medium bowl. Stir in whole-wheat flour and currants. Cut in the butter until mixture resembles small peas. Stir in buttermilk. Turn dough out onto lightly floured pastry cloth or board. Knead 10 times (or until all the dry ingredients are worked in . . . I've never had a problem with "overworking" this dough). Shape into 7-inch round loaf. Place on cookie sheet. Cut a cross in top of dough. Bake for 40 minutes, remove from oven. Combine 2 tablespoons sugar and water in saucepan; bring to boiling. Brush over hot loaf. Return to oven for 5 minutes, or until bottom is golden brown.

Best enjoyed hot out of the oven, slathered with Kerry Gold butter, but also transports well for treks in search of the end of the rainbow. Until you find your pot of gold, here's some more Irish scenery and a blessing to wish you well this St. Paddy's Day.

Irish Road, Inishmor, Aran Islands, April 2008

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

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Je t'aime

As we already know, I'm not one for Valentine's traditions. Not that I'm against sickeningly sweet little bunny Valentine graphics. (Because I'm not.) Rather, living a life in the woods, far removed from television and box stores and their constant warnings of the impending holiday, the day can come and go without so much as a good chocolate sale.

I'm not much of a romantic. (Just the other day, Andy said "You know, you hide your true cynical nature pretty well on the blog.) Despite being a closeted cynic, I often get called upon to write the romance guide for Valentine's Day. (What the heck?!) So here's this year's tips for defrosting romance. Enjoy the over-the-top, sheer ridiculousness!

As neither a Valentine's Day basher or lover, I see both the merits and demerits of the day. I do tend to forget to pick up baking chocolate the week before the holiday and now am left with absolutely no way to declare my love this evening with a wonderful Magnolia Bakery chocolate cake or brownies. But then true love probably doesn't need an over-the-top chocolate cake of sheer ridiculousness.

Because I think Valentine's Day is meant as a reminder. A day to slow down and acknowledge all the lovely people (don't forget all those great family members and friends!) who make your everyday life just that much nicer. And honestly you don't need grand gestures of diamonds and roses to trigger your memory.

After thinking about it for a short minute, I know Andy deserves kudos today for putting the extra blanket over me before he leaves for work on cold mornings.  The endless chauffeuring during the winter months. The laughter. The miracle of always wanting to spend more time with each other.  

How do I love thee? Oh, let me count the ways. . . .

(Enough to post this picture!)

Happy Valentine's Day!

P.S.  Be sure to stop back tomorrow when Emily from The Happy Home and I have a guest post swap. If you've been wondering about copywriting, tomorrow's the day to learn about the profession, right here at Of Woods and Words!

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Valentine's Traditions?

In general, I've never met a holiday (or a holiday tradition) that I didn't like. Epiphany is my signal to start thinking about taking down Christmas decorations. Mardi Gras calls for a King's Cake, if I remember. I love decking myself out in red, white and blue for the Fourth of July. By the time October rolls around, I'm pumped for pumpkins and subsequent turkeys and the decorating of trees.

But Valentine's Day? I have a pretty poor track record with doing anything exciting for good ol' V-day.

I usually have big plans.

Like making everyone I love one these woolly little hearts:

Or whipping up one of these guys:

Or, or, or . . . .

Yet, I never seem to get around to it. It's not that I view Valentine's Day as a strictly Hallmark holiday that doesn't deserve the time of day. I think it's nice to take a day to be sweet to all those who make your life a little lovelier. Maybe the holiday falls just a little close to Christmas. Come February 14, I often find myself still fumbling with the reins of the new year.


Valentine's Day have come and gone in my life and now it seems as though none remain. When I was little, my brother and I used to wake up on Valentine's Day morning to find a collection of small trinkets by our seat at the kitchen table. A relationship or two back, I used to receive flowers for the day, although something about the fact that I had to pout to get them made them feel not terribly sincere. Our first winter together Andy and I exchanged cards, but only because the relationship was long distance at that point.

So I go into this February with no Valentine's traditions in tow. No matter. Perhaps the most important thing Valentine's Day can do for us, regardless of how we celebrate, is to start the spring thaw in our very own hearts.

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