A Whole New Year

The week leading up to Christmas was filled with highs and lows. The anticipation of the holiday kept me in good spirits. I spent a bit of time with a dear friend and received some lovely tea themed gifts, including a cow shaped creamer- something I always wanted but never bothered to get for myself. I was determined to not get stressed out over the holidays, to take life's challenges as they came and to not become an evil version of a Martha Stewart wannabe. The release of control allowed for me to be at ease, which is huge step for me.

I baked "Sinful Squares" for Christmas Eve. I love the combination of salty and sweet flavors in this treat.

I baked homemade mini-mince pies. My Dad had made the mincemeat and canned it. It is such a treat to open a jar of that stuff and use it for pies or cookies. My sister does not really care for mincemeat, but I'm a bit of a mincemeat junkie. So, when I discovered mini-mince pies, I totally jumped on board. My father is rather fond of them and over the past few years they've become a Christmas Eve tradition.

For the first time in my life, I made homemade Panettone. I've never had it before, but I knew that it was popular in some cultures, so I thought I'd take a stab at it. The process of making it is long, but completely worth it. I soaked my craisins and raisins in a ginger lemon tea for hours before folding them into the dough. I baked the bread in a large coffee can. The end result was nothing short of amazing. I used a recipe that I found on the King Arthur Flour website, via Pinterest. I think that I will make this every Christmas Eve to enjoy on Christmas morning every year, from now on.

Unfortunately, the Christmas morning spirit was broken by the passing of my beloved grandmother. This is why I've been off the blog for a week. The rest of the day was spent in a quiet rest. I wasn't in the mood for celebrating. The next day, I took my time and gently prepared myself for the arrival of my sisters and their families who would be coming for Christmas, that Saturday. I was a bit broken from events that occurred on Christmas Eve and Christmas day, so after facebook messaging between my two best friends, I decided to go to one of my their houses and stayed there for the day. This break from things was just what I needed to pick myself up so that my nephews could have a great holiday with their auntie and their grandparents.

When my sisters and nephews arrived I felt a bit better and it was nice to see my nephews enjoy the tree and the treats I made. They had a good time and that was nice to see, that would have been exactly the way my grandmother would have wished for it to be. Christmas was her favorite day of the year, not just her favorite holiday, but her favorite day.

I have a large collection of wonderful gifts that my grandmother had made for me over a few decades. These Christmas gifts I will treasure and I will continue on her tradition of crafting and baking. So, for the rest of the year, more crafts will be coming this way. There will be some changes, not to this blog, but in my own world; I'll keep you updated on that as things progress.
 Until next time~ Toodahloo!