baby alpaca knited scarf

Charlotte at eight years of age indistinctly knows fine yarn. While at the yarn shop she indubitably selects one of the better yarns. She loves to touch and scrunch the different fibers and her tastes are impeccable. A chunky baby alpaca yarn of pink and cream was knitted into a lovely scarf.

And Rose just happens to possess the exceptional flair for modeling the scarf.

sunkissed

Maybe because I woke up to the sound of steady rain this morning when even the cardinals that breakfasted from my feeder seemed hampered.

Or maybe it was the huge deluge of rain around lunch time heard outside while Rose and I were contentedly bringing order to my ribbon supply.

 Eureka! When the sun finally burst forth later during the afternoon I beheld this sight as I was coming down the stairs on my way to fix a cup of freshly brewed coffee for my husband. Their glowing faces gave such pleasure I could not help smiling.

Christmas Eve

"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;
     on those living in the land
     of the shadow of death
     a light has dawned."
                                  Isaiah 9:2

See me in the background?

Today was a bustle with last minute preparations, so tonight a buffet was set with a smorgasbord of food consisting of: ham biscuits, raw cauliflower and broccoli florets, bacon horseradish dip, crackers and an assortment of cheeses, my most favorite being the cheddar with blue cheese.

Merry Christmas to all!

On the twenty-third of December...


          ...I traveled by car for 2 and 1/2 hours to attend the funeral of a family member. 

Bagpipes were played and a bell was struck fifteen times in honor of this firefighter.  A wonderful commendation displaying the brotherhood shared by all firefighters, a tribute containing great taste and respect for the deceased and his chosen profession.

Before I got into my car for the drive home, I embraced my cousin and we agreed it was not good to be only meeting at funerals.

burnishing

On the twenty-second of December...

...the silver was polished.

Pattern: Buttercup by Gorham

something to sink your teeth into

On the twenty-first of December...

... morning dental appointments for all.

I do not know about you, but dental appointments around here are made a year in advance and woe to him who cancels short of death. We feel so "privileged" to have a scheduled appointment. I am sure it is some kind of American Dentistry Associations approach to mind altering.

Then we stopped by our favorite deli to eat Reubens and German potato salad, the best ever.

Home to grocery shopping and making these for a neighborhood Christmas party we are attending tonight.

Prosciutto-Wrapped Asparagus Bundles


2 bunches of fresh asparagus, trimmed
3 tablespoons of olive oil
12 thin slices of prosciutto, separated and sliced in thin lengths
pepper to taste
!/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
After washing and patting asparagus dry, trim ends and coat with thin layer of olive oil. Take three spears and wrap them with one piece of prosciutto. Place the bundles on a baking sheet and bake for 7-10 minutes (depending on thickness of spears). Arrange on platter, sprinkle with pepper and cheese.

The best part is they may be served warm or room temperature, making for a perfect carry-along food.

something to dance to

 On the twentieth of December...

....I will attempt a sedulous catch-up, of sorts.

The forming of gobs of chocolate into balls and rolling them in cocoa, hazelnuts, or pearl gold dust. These truffles are simply a cinch to make.

A total of four Nutcracker performances culminating in success...and relief for all concerned.

Champagne toasts for husband's birthday...

...And a pecan pie that was delicious. 

In days of yore I would have been hesitant to admit it, but now I feel as plump and proud as a fat hen to have thought of it at all, ordered and picked up at the bakery. 

Smart move, indeed! Cluck! Cluck!

pre-show

On the fifteenth of December...

...I was backstage for the second night in a row helping with the dress rehearsal for Charlotte's dance studio's annual rendition of the Nutcracker.

 But on this night Rose was engaged to assist too. All the excitement the dancers were experiencing sparked off them and left us feeling it too. It was a busy and hectic place at times.



It was late, most of the dancers and cast had departed, the girls were waiting on me as I was replacing some trim on one of the costumes.

What's a person to do?

goodies

On the fourteenth of December...

...a morning was spent in the kitchen baking goodies.

yes, we did have a plan.

Specific baked items:

Rolled-out sugar cookies,

chewy molasses cookies,

peppermint bark,

dipped pretzels,

and with perspicuity of the necessity of something chocolate, we added truffles.

 After a full morning of sifting, mixing, rolling, dipping and decorating, Claire had a lunch date to get to and Rose and Charlotte had piano lessons. Therefore, the chocolate is gaining firmness in my refrigerator...still. But there are plans to scoop out little melon balls worth of chocolate and roll them in cocoa and shimmering gold dust.

at the stables

On the thirteenth day of December...

....we assembled a tote-a-long basket with a thermos of hot chocolate and pumpkin bread.

Upon which we headed to the stables, and while Rose rode

 Charlotte and I shared afternoon tea in Christmas mugs, naturally.

In the air there certainly wasn't a" feeling" of Christmas,

Which made sitting outside extremely comfortable for the knitting of a scarf.

And before I go I really must introduce you to Cosy.

The dangling feature out of his mouth is due to a broken jaw and makes him quite endearing, after you get over the initial shock of being a little grossed out.

He's a curious soul.

On the twelfth day of December...

...Internet services went loopy and I was not able to post.

But to give credit it was late anyway and I was rather loopy too.

But I did get snazzy with the making of black and white taffeta yo-yo's

and attaching them to red satiny hats.