Angels All The Way

Merry Christmas Everyone and Happy New Year! Let's just get that out of the way shall we?

Today is Boxing Day, the day I usually in a prompt and efficient manner, dispose of my Christmas Tree. But, as it only went up 3 days ago, I promised the kids I would leave it alone for the time being, say, tomorrow. I love christmas time, really, I do. But when it's done, I'm done. Be gone holly, be gone tree, be gone little red sleigh and ceramic house. I want order here people.


But I'm giving my tree a break this year. The poor thing was snatched off the Christmas Tree lot at Home Depot at a rock bottom price as there were only a couple days left until the big day. We lovingly decorated it with all our favourite ornaments and memories. Went to bed ready for Christmas Eve and I woke to find it laying face first on my carpet, acting all embarrased like, as it had poured all it's water onto my presents and soaked my rug. Thank you Amelia. Hope you had a good time tugging that ornament off that you just had to eat and pulling the tree down with it. So we propped er back up. Tied her to the Curtain rod and redecorated the whole thing. Randi dragged the carpet upstairs and over the banister in an attempt to dry and I stuck all the presents by the fire to warm up. And there was my angel, the pinnacle of the tree, holding her little lights in each hand that don't light up anymore. They are little blackened bulbs now. But she keeps smiling even if she is not lighting the way.


We are angel people, not star people. My parents had a lovely little angel with gold foil wings, alabaster hair and a beautiful wax face that had been delicately carved. One year the angel hung out too close to the fire and that was the end of her lovely little nose and rosebud mouth.


Recently, my son's girlfriend told me about an angel her mother used to own that they always put on the tree top. There she was, holding her two little lights in each hand much like my angel used to, and as Mara (at that time about 9) gazed in wonder those little lights suddenly blazed up and became flames of fire. Chaos ensued and the scored angel was promptly disposed of. Can you imagine what a little girl would be thinking as this angel decided it was time to torch the tree???


Even though some angels go bad and try to burn down your house or not light at all, or turn into a blob of wax, we still stick with them. It's angels all the way in this house.

Cookie Belly and Other Christmas Maladies

I don't really have to point out to any of you that Christmas is coming down the pike like rollerblades down a hill right now. We are in the thick of it. Shopping, decorating, celebrating and baking.

But Christmas doesn't come without its issues. You can't have a rose without thorns ya know.
To name a few: stress, perpetual busy-ness, a few extra pounds, hangovers and of course cookie belly.

Cookie belly plagues my household a lot at this time of the year. Both myself and my new daughter aka ballerina billet Kelli have a passion for baking, especially cookies. And then we sample the dough at different intervals, sample each batch, sample when they are still hot and then when they are cold and voila, you have a cookie belly. That's a belly that feels far to full and uncomfortable with a major sugar rush at the same time. The next morning you wake up with pants that have shrunk on their own accord.

But it's worth it. They are beautiful cookies inside the belly and outside the belly. The other day we spent an afternoon baking and decorating sugar cookies. Works of art, every last one of them! We are both good little bakers. In fact, I'm feeling a little peckish and Kelli just baked up a new batch of gingersnaps. Soft and fat pillows of gingery, spicy, sugary goodness....mmmmmmm. Bring on CB!