You will forgive me one more

Gifts from Kris,
originally uploaded by hjdong.

Christmas eve post? Particularly if it contains a contest, or two, or three?

You will remember my winning of the contest from Kris, here? Well, my prize arrived on Christmas Eve and I was gobsmacked. Absolutely never expected such a prize. What to begin with? Perhaps with the small things, which I had secretly coveted? See the bit of red? Well, those are hand carved rubber stamps, which I have seen are particularly crafty people's blogs, but have stayed away from myself, as I still bare a sizable scar from cutting cheese as a child. However, I now own two with no scars at all. Squee! And, a poem, on handmade paper, which I prompt framed and is part of our winter decorations (most of which, I must say, you saw on our Christmas table, except for my rather large collection of Christmas books and some wreaths, which we get yearly). A wonderful early reader, an old book, which makes it so much more precious, "The Buttons At The Farm". And chocolate (now gone) and tea (steadily being enjoyed). So many thanks to Kris!

The second contest: I entered, and *again* won a contest, this one from Trampled by Geese. Now, what's the chance of that? A sudden run of winning contests? Perhaps I should play the lottery? Well, maybe not.

I think, the signs point to a contest of my own. Now, since I have already indicated that I would cheat for Chelle, I will have to state that the winner will be pulled from a hat. No cheating. Cross my heart. But I won't out and out disallow her either. I'll even let Darren pull the winner. No special announce the contest on your blog and get more points stuff; that's way too complicated for me.

So, here's the thing. I would like to hear your New Year's traditions. We are working out traditions here. Last year, we tried to have New Year's at noon, but forgot, and ended up having it at GMT (I think, at least, it's always New Year's somewhere unless you really forget). We had s'mores and drank apple juice. This year, there will be no s'mores because if I see one more marshmallow, I'm going to scream. I think it will be finish the Christmas cookies or the get tossed and hot cocoa.

If you don't have a New Year's tradition or just want to answer this as well, what is one piece of never fail advice you can give. For me, it would be, if you eat croutons, don't buy the boxed stuff. They're easy and cheap to make. Just take any bread you have lying around, cube it, melt butter (or heat olive oil) in a pan, toss them in, add some herbs and spices (whatever you likes), and toast them. Healthier is in the oven, but, not as tasty. But still better (and cheaper) than that cardboard tasting box stuff. My only caveat is that I tried making them with cornbread once. It didn't work.

Contest ends Jan. 7th, and the prize will have something homemade (but not knit, sorry folks, next year it's almost all about me), and other things that say something about me. And that's all I have to say about that.

The Stockings were hung by the Chimney

The Stockings were hung by the Chimney
Originally uploaded by hjdong

by the chimney with care.

First, thank you all for your kind comments on my Christmas table. And I know. It's nearly the New Year and I'm still on Christmas Eve. I promise, it all hurries up after Christmas Eve.

My other sister, L, knit the stocking on the left, the one for Jamie. When we were growing up, her grandmother knit stockings for my brother and her (not my grandmother, on of *those* complicated families). As we grew up, all three sisters learned to knit, practically simultaneously, all as adults, independently, living in different states.

Now, I knit the right hand two stockings. And, I really can't explain about them. See, all three stockings are knit from kits from the same company, so they would coordinate. It is, of course, a question of gauge (the difference in sizes). But you would thing she had knit the two far stockings and I had knit the middle one, and very tightly I might add. But no, that's not the case. I did not gauge swatch because, well, no one had to wear them. The only possible explanation: for the middle one, I got a new needle. I actually went into a yarn store and bought a new needle. With Jamie. With him there with me. In a yarn store. There is a chance I got the wrong size and just never noticed.

Anyway, back to the mushy stuff. My sister offered to knit Jamie his stocking. She half thought, probably half hoped, that I would say, "No, I wish to knit it myself." But, when Jamie opened his gift he said, "It's a stocking." And when I said, "Your Aunt knit it for you." "Oh, well then it's *really* special." And so it will become part of the the family mythology, every year, unfolded, hung up. Really special.

Christmas Eve Dinner

Set for Christmas Dinner
Originally uploaded by hjdong

A bit late for this post perhaps. I did just sit down to write this, well, 4 hours ago, add to it that Darren changed my entire photo system so I would have a super fancy back up system (which I desperately needed) and a new cataloging system (according to him, I desperately needed it) and now I have no idea how to get my pictures on-line in a timely manner. I was going to resize multiple pictures and put them in through blogger, but I am exhausted. So, this may be a short post or I may post about multiple topics and you can look at the pictures in flickr. We'll see how long I last.

Anyway, as well as you can see in the picture, I am finally debuting most of my gifts from my sister for my birthday/Christmas: my grandmother's china and silverware. We used it for Christmas Eve (nothing broke) for the first time. As you can imagine, it is quite a sentimental gift. My grandmother ate off of them everyday, put them in the dishwasher, treated them, as, well, dishes. While I don't intend to be quite so casual, I do intend to use them fairly regularly, because that is how fond memories of them are made.

Everything on the table (with the exception of 3 glass votives I picked up after Christmas on clearance last year) has meaning to me in fact. Crystal wine glasses from a friend who got them during a semester abroad in college, clay water goblets I got during a field study in Montana, a wooden bowl from a trip to Alaska with salad tongs that were a wedding gift, Jamie picked flowers "all day" and then "arranged" them in his sand bucket, flowers Darren got for our anniversary, a snowman made from Jamie's footprint, two nutcrackers, one bought each time Jamie has seen it, a snowman cookie jar given to me by a good friend, and a candle and beaded ring given to me by Chelle, before we were even friends.

A table set with love.

And you'll have to wait for more.

So, if a woman is half

of 70, got married at 20, and had her anniversary yesterday, how many years has she been married?

Now, convert that to days :-).

Darren took the day off yesterday and we all went to see the Nutcracker, including my sister and baby niece. It was the kid's version (i.e. and hour long). Jamie saw it last year as well, and he just loves it.

Then, my sister, self same person who recently was in an accident, took Jamie to her apartment's movie theater to watch The Polar Express while Darren and I went to dinner.

Like grown ups. By ourselves.

Gifts

'Cause that's what it's all about, right?

Jamie drew me a picture with "Happy birthday, mama" on it, all caps, spelled almost right (moama, because he started to write mom and changed his mind). He also made me an ornament, wrapped it, put it under the tree, and when Darren got home from work, announced, "I made you an ornament for Christmas." "I thought it was for my birthday." "Um, it's for all of us." "O.k."

Darren got up late at night and went into the garage (a place I won't venture in the day time) and made me a swift (used for winding yarn). I was quite excited and used it immediately, although I really didn't need any yarn wound. I had asked for him to make me one, but would have bet he didn't (too much going on). And, the one he made was much nicer than the link I should him. One day, I will take pictures of it in action. I do not hide my knitting for him nearly as well as he hid this project, perhaps because I won't go in the garage. He also got me the composter I have been wanting. Now, I need someone with a lawn :-).

My sister, M, had given me my gifts earlier, at Thanksgiving, because she was moving, remember? They deserve their own post and will one day get them.

My sister, L, knit Jamie a stocking and it came in the mail. It also deserves its own post and will one day get it.

My mom gave me two of my favorite things, coffee and chocolate. I am enjoying them now.

I also went this weekend to a cookie exchange. I made marshmallows; I used Martha Stewart's recipe, here, but found a whole world to marshmallow making here, and in the spring can imagine yellow lemon bunnies, pink strawberry and blue blueberry eggs, all homemade marshmallows, way better than peeps. Sorry to peep fans. In the meantime, I have scraps of leftover marshmallows (I cut them out with cookie cutters for the exchange) that I am going to dip into chocolate today, as well as some candied orange peel I made back with the mandarin oranges.

So, more posts need to be done, but for now, I am going to sit back and enjoy the gifts of my friends and family, physical and spiritual.

It's my birthday

If a woman is halfway to 70, how old is she?

We're going to my sister's, hang for the day, a nice peaceful day; that's the plan.

Breakfast is cooking. Jamie is . . . playing? at least content, as I am not being bellowed for.

All is well.

Happy golden days . . .

Look at Me!
Originally uploaded by hjdong

This is Jamie's favorite new saying, that he is having golden days. Book club days are golden days, today must be a golden day, for the school to playing ratio, and ice skating and looking at lights was a golden day.

Rarely do I appear in family photos, being the photographer. However, Darren does not ice skate, so this is one occasion where I am captured (and not at my best I might add). We took him to a rink, once, when he was 3 1/2 (I think). I was quite impressed that he was able to sort of skate this time. He was extremely impressed he was able to sort of skate this time. And told everyone in three feet how well he had done. He loooves ice skating. We then took in the lights and some dinner.

The lights are displayed on a local hotel. As we walked by, bundled in our winter gear, we pass by some pasty people, baring their pasty arms, checking in, staring at us, hats, scarves, sweaters, coats, mittens. And in my case, wool socks and Birkenstocks. It's 60 degrees. Welcome to Southern California. Yes, we really do find it cold.

However, when we arrived at the restaurant to find that a high school jazz band was playing a benefit (Jamie's immediately reaction was to put his hands over his ears), we opted to eat outside. "Outside?!" the maitre de says. "The heaters are on?" "Yes, and I guess you're dressed for it." We sure were.

Hope everyone is taking time out for some golden days of their own. Merry Christmas, a bit early.

News of our flood

was greatly over exaggerated. And except for a slightly sore back from sandbags, we're fine.

We had a busy weekend, as December seems to be, with book sales (which I should not be allowed to as books and self-control don't belong in the same sentence with my name. Oh wait, here's one "Holly has no self-control when it comes to books."), Christmas parties involving lots of kids playing balloon volleyball over restaurant tables, and, my proudest accomplishment, finally getting all my gifts and cards packaged and ready to mail. I say that as if there's a lot, which there's not, but it's still my least favorite job. And today, they will all be in the hand of the USPS and off of my mind.

Santa came to the Christmas party and brought the kids a gift; he does every year. This year he brought Jamie a wooden blocks and marble set (for some reason, the Santa that comes to this party brings something not on the list and that's o.k.). It was a fairly simple set (read not super expensive, because those suckers get expensive fast) but it was really neat to see Jamie play with it. He thought he had mastered blocks (he had told me as much the other day when I suggested he build Santa's village, "Oh, I can build a city really well, it's the same thing"). But then, how to get this marble to roll down these blocks? There has to be an angle, the holes have to line up, what happens if this goes there? And then, when you're done with that, they make fine ray guns.

I won!

It's the very first time I've won a blog contest. Chelle, who is having a bad time at the moment, so we won't be too hard on her, wins them all the time. I'm pretty sure people fix them (oh, wait, it's the second time I won a blog contest. I won one of Chelle's. But I know she fixed it for me. I would do the same for her. That doesn't really count. Not that Jamie didn't love the prize and all. But it's not that same high as winning randomly) for her. See, that's how I know people fix them for her. Because I would fix them for her. She's just the kind of person worth fixing contests for.

Can we get back to me?

hs3kinder at Family fo Five was having a drawing for her 100th post. And I won! Who hoo. Thanks to hs3kinder. See this post was supposed to be about her blog and . . . me.

Hope things get better Chelle :-).

The rains have returned

I get to try out my rain gear
Originally uploaded by hjdong

Sometimes it feels as if I am running from one disaster to another.

We have 3" of rains predicted for tomorrow. Some of you are saying "so?" or even "eh?" To clarify the depths of this disaster, we got 3" of rain last year. And we have pretty much dirt for landscaping. So that means floods.

Darren got up early this morning to get sandbags; we spent yesterday with my sister (more about that later) only to find that our nearest Lowe's and Home Depot were sold out. You know, everyone was preparing yesterday. So, I called the fire department, who told me, why yes, they had sand bags. Was my house flooding? Because they were happy to provide sand bags to anyone whose house was flooding. And I thought the point of sand bags was to keep your house from flooding. Silly me.

I have called around and located some sandbags. Hopefully, they will still be there when Darren has his lunch break, because I don't think I can really get a sufficient number in my car. Then, he can get them (I think Jamie and I will be spending our afternoon filling and placing them) before the rains come. Anyone remember when i was wishing for rain? I'm just never happy.

On the bright side, my sister got out of the hosiptal yesterday. We were there for the world's longest release. Jamie finally broke and had to be taken to the park. The first thing he said to a medical personnel who entered her room, "I'm not sick, I'm just visiting." Don't even think about giving this child a shot.

Other than the inability to do anything with anything vaguely resembling efficiency, the thing that most struck me was the hospital's total lack of security. We stopped at the information desk; I expected to sign in, get visitor's sticker's something. Nope, we got directions. No concern about the five year old bundle of germs we were bringing with us. I get hassled more getting in and out of a Costco than of the trauma ward of this hospital. Bizzare.

The good news is my sister is doing really well. She was quite determined to leave the hospital (with good reason :-) ). She still has a lot of recovery to do, but soon this will be a memory. Thanks for all the warm wishes.

She's going to be o.k.

You never want to start a conversation with these words.

I had all these things I was going to post about this weekend. Rain and hikes and mountain lions tracks. And then, "She's going to be o.k."

My sister was in a car accident this weekend. She's going to be o.k. She's in the hospital; it was serious, but not as serious as it might have been. It will be a pain in the ass and alter her life, but ultimately, not life altering.

My niece was at home.

If she wanted to spend more time with me before leaving California, she just had to say so. Really, the dramatics.

A little humor. It never hurts.