December 28th

Well, it's snowing. We expected it -- an insignificant blanket of very wet snow. You wouldn't take out your skis for it, but I'll hand it this much: it's very pretty.

At least for now, in the morning, when I head out to feed the animals.

Not one of our 12 animals (cats and chickens) likes to touch the stuff. Wet and cold on their clawed legs or pink paws. They just want to stay sheltered. This would be less problematic if 1. they all got along and 2. if the farmhouse stayed empty, or with just Ed and me. Every animal here is terrified of visitors and so after spending a luxurious morning on the warm farmhouse vents, they ran like crazy once the young families began to arrive.

I'm doing a farmhouse brunch today. By coincidence, all the menfolk are sequestered in their own bubbles for reasons of work, but everyone else is here. Three women and a brood of kids. And it is lively and lovely.

And there is a sacher torte (you know this cake, right? -- almonds, apricot jam, chocolate). This was my one surprise for the-day-after-Christmas dinner: the original sacher torte from Demel's in Vienna. I used to bake these fairly regularly, but this time I really wanted to try one that claims to be the real deal. Except it did not come on time. In fact, it was five days late. That's late enough for it to start drying out. Still, I figured it would be fine for brunch, with a cup of milky coffee. 

Other brunch foods? Croissants, held over in the freezer. Breads, also rebaked, honey cake from my last trip to Madame's honey shop. That's the doughy stuff. Bacon and Norwegian salmon for protein. And cheeses -- a Swiss one, a Wisconsin one, and the beloved Baby Bells for the littlest kids. Eggs, not farmette ones because the hens are not laying this winter. Or if they are, we have no idea where. A fruit dish that is huge, but which is emptied out twice as I restock it. And cheese sticks and the sacher torte. All easy stuff, but it does take a couple of hours to throw it all together. 

They're here!  No one is dressed for snow play and in any case, the wetness of the snow is very unappealing, but still, the temptation is there: just to try, for example, the sled. One quick second.

Inside, the five cousins have a really good dynamic by now. Sometimes the older kids band together, other times, the three girls group over a shared interest, and every once in a while all five join forces. 

 

 

 

These guys really love each other -- a mutual affection and acceptance that is handed down from these wonderful daughters of mine...

We eat.

They play some more. We take a "with grandma" picture.

And then it's time to take the young ones home for naps. One quick walk! -- plead the older three. Fine. All of you. Go take a walk!

(Wait up for the little one!)

(The magnificent five!)

In the later afternoon, we gather again, this time at my older daughter's home. There, the older kids find the requisite snowpants and finally, they are given unfettered time to romp outdoors. 

Only after they get thoroughly wet and romped out do they come inside.

(look who's up!)

(archery)

And dinner? Well, my son-in-law has some Estonian lineage and he has taken to cooking up an annual dinner for all of us which we call (with a large degree of enthusiasm) our Estonian Christmas. The dishes he prepares are all straight out of the Estonian kitchen. A pork roast, barley with mushrooms, scalloped potatoes, followed by a fantastic currant meringue cake. 

Our Christmas season began on Thanksgiving weekend with an outing to the Christmas tree farm, followed by the evening tree trimming. All of us, at my daughter's house. It ends tonight, also at my older girl's home, also with all of us there. In between -- all those weeks of planning, shopping, cooking, with a birthday stuck in the thick of it (Juniper's!), and a Nutcracker outing, and lots of music thrown in, because my playlist is so long and I do not ever tire of it. But of course, the joy is in these gatherings. The conversations. With the kids, most of the time off playing, in the background, though sometimes demanding our attention, because, well, some of them are still so young even though some of us are getting to be so .... less young! 

 

 

 

Together, on these beautiful days of December. 

(Back at the farmhouse, one last look at the tree...)

A thrilling set of days. Absolutely the best!

with so much love...

December 27th

Oh, these days, these days! They make up for the crummy ones that occasionally litter the timeline. Too perfect, too beautiful and really, so simple! Family walks, meals, outings, shopping for notebooks, more meals shared, all of us, happy, playful, together.

Not much writing for today. Just photos with a few explanatory notes. You'll appreciate that the best of days require the least of words. 

*     *     *

Up many hours before dawn. So is Ed. He offers to feed the animals and then he is off for some momentous stage of his machining project.

Breakfast, light. With the world's best red berries.

*     *     *

An all-family meet up at the Arboretum. It's just above freezing. Despite the early hour, or maybe because of it, the kids are energetic! What better place for that!

(Juniper, the youngest, has her work cut out for her...)

(timed release selfie!)

A stranger with a camera (and a huge lens) comes up to me and asks if the kids would like to see an owl. He's spotted one just a few branches up in a tree. If they can stay quiet and don't scare the big bird... 

They stay quiet and it is positively awesome. (It's a Barred Owl and thankfully it was not feeling territorial so our ears and caps are intact. Those owl eyes! So beautiful!)

*     *     *

Brunch at Hollander. (It describes itself thus: comfort-food fare served in a European-style cafe with a vintage-chic vibe..) I'd never been there. I thought it was perfect for us!

The eatery is at Hilldale (an outdoor shopping area) and since we are there, I gave the kids one last gift: $25 (max!) each to spend at Paper Source. Do you know this store? It's an expensive card and stationary shop, but they've added little gifty items and all kids love it and parents rightly see it as way overpriced. The older Madison two have ballet class right next to it and each week there's a lot of begging to go in and "just look." We never do, because we are older and wiser. If you care about your credit card limits, you'll stay away. But today, I wanted to see what they could accomplish with $25. 

After much angst, many calculations, changes of mind, comparisons, deliberations, they finally chose their loot and honestly, they did just fine!

(Sandpiper is hiding!)

*     *     *

The older kids went with their moms to the movies (dads stayed with the younger two). I considered going along, but honestly, I cant sit through a movie when I'm under-slept, so I went home to tidy up and take care of the cats. 

We meet up later for supper downtown, at Lucille's. This has been our favorite supper place with all the kids and parents for a while now. It's mainly a pizza restaurant and it is so... cheerful! Especially around the holidays.

 

*     *     *

Are we still in a period of "the holidays?" For me, as long as these guys are still here, we are on a holiday roll! 

With so much love....

Second day of Christmas

This afternoon, my younger daughter packs up her family and travels with them for a Christmas up north. In Wisconsin. Honestly, this extended two day celebration is just perfect for old me! When all five grandkids are together, there is usually some degree of chaos -- very fun, very lovely to be part of, but I feel I can never focus on any one of them. Add gift giving to the mix and suddenly the farmhouse is all discarded wrapping paper and tossed cardboard. With each young family coming here for their own Christmas with me, I have chance to actually feel the depth and beauty of every moment. Today will be the younger set's turn.

So I wake up early! Actually super early, though Ed says that's in my head. I swore I was awake when the cats outside started fighting with cat no. 7 aka Pancake (at 5 a.m.), but he said he could hear their screeching and my snoring. He must be making that up, because I do not snore! (Well, to the best of my knowledge...)

I have a full day ahead of me. But let's start things slowly. It's colder outside, but still above freezing, and still a bit wet...

("where is everybody?")

My breakfast isn't at home. My friend's in town, attending to family stuff and so she and I meet up at a downtown coffee shop.

This meeting is a tough one only because she has so much on her plate right now! If you're feeling overwhelmed, believe me she probably has double the load you do right now!

As long as I'm downtown, I drive over to the grocery store. I'm not terribly good (yet) at shopping for the whole week! We're running out of berries. Kids are coming from left and right in the next few days and our fruits are dwindling. 

Ed is away doing his machining work all day long so I have a chance to put the house in greater order. And to bring down the second batch of gifts. Smaller boxes this time. Yeah!

I have enough time to sit down and enjoy a quiet lunch. Or is it breakfast part two? Somehow lately these have been hard to distinguish.

Oh, here they come!

 

Presents. Joy. Exuberance. Music. Love.

Evening comes and the Madison family is here now as well...

 

(the art bunch)

 

 

(hide and seek, sort of)

 

So we have 11 for dinner -- my favorite number!

We do an old favorite -- Laotian take out. No one wants to cook a big meal today.

Kids play, grownups exhale. I mean, come on, we've survived a very full December. We deserve to put our feet up.

The kids' bedtime always dictates an early(-ish) ending to the evening. Who am I kidding -- it may be the kids' bedtime, but us grandparents are happy to wind it down at a reasonable hour as well. Especially this grandparent, who insists that everything needs to be cleaned up and put away before she can sit down on the couch and think back to the beauty of the day.

And it was beautiful. Every bit of it!

December 25th

 Is it Christmas in your home? Well then, Merry Christmas! Merry anyway, even if you're not a Santa/tree/manger/presents/Yule log/carols person. We all could use a huge dose of merry and bright!

Busy day here, at the farmette. Of course, animals need our care no matter what, so off I go, into a gray and too-warm December morning. This was not the year to give kids sleds! 

Christmas breakfast. Lovely, yummy, special.

(with cat, me at the camera)

(with me cat at the camera!)

And then I have to get at it: dinner is at the farmhouse tonight and we have to get it together. Priorities?  Ed cleans, I bake. I can't bring down presents until the house is vacuumed. (And here's a mental note for next year: no wish lists with huge items (in terms of physical size) allowed! The wrapping was monstrous and it took many trips just to carry the big boxes downstairs. Oh fine, I take it back: if Sandpiper wants big trucks and Snowdrop wants a squishy cat, and Sparrow wants whatever Snowdrop wants, so be it.) And the Yule log -- I have to bake it in the morning so that the filling (orange cream) can set before I frost it this afternoon.

Too, there is the matter of roasting chickens. I like the method suggested by J. Kenji-Lopez Alt. Problem is, for our dinner of seven, one chicken is too little, two are too much. I was hoping that the butcher would sell me half a bird, but he wouldn't so I'm stuck with two. Given that I want to spatchcock them, I need to figure out what pan could hold two butterflied birds and fit in the oven. That process is one huge pain: flatten the birds, nope, wont fit, scrub the useless pan, go on to the next. While the cats watch wistfully, hoping that those birds (4.5 lbs each) are for them.

That is my morning. And afternoon. And really, it's not hard. Past Christmases had even more meals and it had the tumult that comes with having young kids at your feet. This one is quiet (but for the music!) and productive!

Okay, Yule log done, despite warped pan and uneven oven. It always comes out just fine -- it may be fussy but it's easy to fix cracks and twists along the way.

Table set, potatoes peeled, beans trimmed, chickens seasoned. Let the roasting begin! 

And here they come!

Farmhouse gifts.

Farmhouse foods. Farmhouse fun. It's splendid to revel in this season of sharing.

Dinner. The chickens look great!

You have to admire the kids' stamina. They've been running on excitement turned to max power since wake up time this morning. I ask them to decorate the log with twigs, currants and raspberries. And powdered sugar. They are on it!

Merry and bright indeed!

With so much love on this beautiful day.