My Favorite (Holiday) Things - 2009

Posted by on
Before the holiday season gets pushed too far away from my memory, I thought that I'd share with you (and with the future me in 10 months) what I enjoyed since November. This year was a pivotal Christmas season - one of many firsts.

First Christmas morning together (alone!)
First Christmas in our own house (not a Condo or parents house!)
First Christmas with our new babe
First New Years that we went out at 5 pm and were home by 10 pm
First batch of vanilla extract (more on this in another post)
First time decorating our house (inside and out!)
First time shopping for our own child
...and more!

Without further delay, here's my list.

Tammen Tree Farm. Although they keep raising their prices, there's no finer place to buy a tree in the area. I have tagged along with the entire Moran clan for the past 5 years.

Paper Source Embosser. I'm a fan of correspondence cards. They can be thank you's, congrats, regrets, anything. Nat bought me an embosser and I now have 'professional' looking cards every day.

Gene Autry Christmas, Bob Dylan's "Christmas in the Heart" Album, and Sirius Holiday Traditions Station. Sirius promotes "Holly" - which is Channel 3 during the holidays, but it has way too much rubbish on it. (N*Synch and such). The real gem is Sirius Holiday Traditions. Barely any repeats and they turned me onto this baby: Dominick the Italian Christmas Donkey!

As for Mr. Dylan. Well...it is what is is, but I like it. Especially this.



Portable North Pole & Norad Santa. My sister Vic turned me on to the Portable North Pole. If you are a parent, go check it out for next year. Pretty cool customized video. I'm a believer!

Peppermint Joe-Joe's. The chocolate dipped ones are even better than the originals. But...you have to move fast - they sell out all the time. I know I'm supposed to like home-made/house-made cookies best, but these are hard to compete with. (although my mother-in-laws cranberry/white chocolate cookies from Nigella Lawson are pretty good!)

Maple Leaf Cookies from Trader Joe's. Not really holiday-specific, but filled a niche really nicely between Thanksgiving and well....December 1. These didn't last long in our pantry.

The DuPage Model Train Show. Nothing makes me think of Christmas more than Lionel Trains. This has become a bit of a tradition with me and my dad.

Dean Thorsen Photography. We have treasured holiday memories for the rest of our lifetime because of him and his work. How can you not love these?

Comments

Post a Comment

Be nice to each other here.

Popular posts from this blog

Lou Malnati's Salad Dressing Recipe as Published in the 60's

Posted by on
Image
Earlier this winter, I wrote about the old Lou Malnati's menu and mentioned that as I was waiting around for my pie to finish up, I spied an old Chicago Tribune article posted on the wall that included the original Lou Malnati's Italian Salad Dressing Recipe.  The Tribune reporter called it "prized".  We were set to host a little pizza party over the weekend, so I figured I'd give it a shot.  Here's the article as seen through my mobile phone's camera. I'm not a wine drinker, so the fact that the recipe called for Burgundy wine didn't strike me as odd.  I went shopping at Angelo Caputos in Addison - a really incredible shopping experience - and when I got to the wine section I found Burgundy wine was carried ONLY in those HUGE jugs.  And they were dirt cheap.  The only issue is that needed just 4 ounces.  We ended up with a whole-lotta-wine that Nat won't drink. I've taken the recipe and modified it a bit by eliminating the percentage
Read more

Martha Stewart: If You Want To Be Happy....Plant A Garden - Garden Advice - November 2024

Posted by on
Image
Martha Stewart hit me right between the eyes this morning with this quote about happiness.  She says that you can be happy for a year - if you get married.  And you can be happy for a decade - if you get a dog.  But...if you wanna be happy for the rest of your life - plant a garden.  See below. I'm adding this to the handful of pieces of garden advice/garden musings/garden quotes that I've collected here on my blog - including: It is better to plant a fifty-cent tree in a five dollar hole than a five dollar tree in a fifty-cent hole , Conifers should come first , never buy just one of anything , Audrey Hepburn's line/quote - "To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow" and... the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best? Today .  Martha's take on happiness fits right in there with these. I first came across this on TikTok in a promo for her Netflix documentary, but....on  Instagram  is where I found this (nicely laid-out four-panel) Marth
Read more

Tom Thayer's Italian Beef Recipe

Posted by on
Image
TOM’S TAILGATER ITALIAN BEEF COURTESY OF Steve Dahl  and  DAHL.COM Ingredients: One 3 ½ to 4 pound boneless beef chuck pot roast One package of Zesty Italian Salad Dressing and Recipe Mix One 16 oz. jar of hot giardiniera One 16 oz. jar of mild giardiniera One dozen baguettes (French rolls) Directions: In a four-quart Crock-Pot, pour in one bottle of giardiniera. Place the roast on top of the layer of giardiniera. Sprinkle the salad dressing mixture on top of the roast. Add the second bottle of giardiniera to the top of the roast. Cover Crock-Pot and cook on high for 6 to 8 hours. When fork tender, shred the roast in the Crock-Pot and allow it to combine with the other ingredients. Slice the baguettes in half and pile on the beef and giardiniera mixture. ------------------------------------ For the babe's baptism party, we hosted a collection of family and friends back at our house after the church proceedings. We ordered some of the food from Maggiano's in
Read more