Christmas And Snow

We didn't exactly have a White Christmas, but we sure did have a white Christmas Eve.  I visited Rose Tree Park on my way home from my parents' to check out the lights in the snow.
Christmas Day was colorful, quiet, and full of food and family.  Lilly Allen (the dog) was a lovely subject.  Thanks, Lilly!

Ballet and Books

I have seen The Nutcracker over 100 times.  This is not an exaggeration.  As the sibling of a ballerina, an actual ballerina, I have seen my sister dance in almost every role over the last 20 years.  This year she performed with Pages to Pirouettes, a local group that puts on free shows for local communities, including preschools and senior centers.  Last week, my parents and I went to watch her perform at the Free Library of Philadelphia, which was a treat both because I was able to see Erin entertaining so many small children (and giving them a little lesson afterwards!) and because the building is so beautiful.

 

Punk Rock Flea Market

I heart the Punk Rock Flea Market.  It's a warehouse full of tables, featuring everything from crafts and art to vintage clothing to housewares, snacks (one table really had a jar of peanut butter, a jar of jelly, a knife and a loaf of white bread.  really.), and oddities.  One table featured 1950s trivets and postcards, and the table next to it was handmade jewelery and prints.
The biggest difference between this year's (December) market (there's more than one a year) and last year's was the inclusion of some roller derby demonstration, which was pretty awesome.  I've never seen roller derby live, and while the participants were by no means competing, they were surely fun to watch!
In the end, my sister and I walked away spending very little but filling our little bag with some vintage scarves, a wool poncho (which I wore today, and love!), and a copy of Riki-Tiki-Tavi, a Rudyard Kipling story we read as children.  Not bad for a few hours on a rainy Sunday!

Cookie Day!

When I was a little girl, my Memom would have one (very) brave day when she would have her grandchildren over and we would all bake cookies for Christmas.  There were 7 children and one very small Memom.  It was a joyous, messy time.  We would sing songs and dance around and we all wore aprons, even the boys.  (She usually had help from at least one of her daughters.  We were still a handful.)  It's one of my favorite childhood memories.
Our family is in a limbo stage now: we are all adults, my Memom is gone, and there are no small children (yet...give it a few months!).  But limbo gives us the opportunity to create our own traditions.


My dear friend Jacqi and I had Cookie Day this weekend.  Just the two of us, while her husband was coaching basketball, making tons of cookies and watching Christmas movies, breaking for brie, fruit, and some sausage for lunch.  We used her ancient pizzelle press, with a family recipe for cinnamon pizzelles, (which are TO DIE FOR), and some fancy modern day devices as well (food processors are incredible tools).  Eventually Stephen came home, poured himself a glass of milk, and ate, and ate, and ate.  And I'm sure ate some more later that night (as did their family, my family, my office, etc.).   Everyone approved.

It was such a great day.  Making food is slowly becoming one of my favorite things (although I don't like making more than eating it), and having this time to share with Jacqi makes me so happy.  Someday, we will have babies running around, and might not have the time to just enjoy some warm, cinnamony cider and each other's company.  I treasure these moments with my friends so much.  Our time is precious, why not spend it baking?