Making Merry

Last week it was fall leaves and now we are already spotting twinkly lights and talking about Christmas trees. Like any other month of the year, December can fly by too quickly, so I have fully embraced holiday preparations and making merry for the weeks leading up to Christmas. We stay away from most of the shopping and commercial aspects, but I am planning plenty of time for baking, sharing treats, and basking the glow of the lights that deck so many of the trees around Portland and elsewhere.

I have had this advent calendar idea for a few years and although Amos barely understands what Christmas is, I decided, why not? I came up with an activity for each day, things like read Christmas books, make salt dough ornaments, buy a toy to donate, make hot chocolate, or brunch with friends.  A combination of making, decorating, giving, and experiencing. I hope that it will become a yearly tradition that can grow and change as our family does. For now, I am trying to keep it simple knowing that I can change, add, or switch activities if we need to.

I see no reason why every day of the year can't hold small delights, acts of creativity, and ways to give, but I am especially excited to make a point of finding these things each day of this month. Preparations and anticipation (in just the right sized doses) are part of the celebration, wonder, and good cheer that can be part of the whole season.

Celebrations Together

November reminds me that we are firmly in autumn and that I should enjoy it while it lasts for winter will be here soon. The warm days spent outside and the cold days spent in a new seasonal rhythm are both equally welcome. The wind sighs through the tree branches, bringing the last leaves to the ground. Jack o'lantern smiles turn to mush and we move gradually into the holidays and festivities that begin later in the month. For these few weeks, though, I find calm in the gray skies, early sunrises, and nights made cozy by the bright lights inside.

Halloween was the first holiday that we got to explain to Amos and celebrate with his full involvement. Carving pumpkins and baking together, talking about trick or treating and the monsters who would come to our house for treats got me thinking a lot about what family holidays will be like for us. On Saturday, after carving pumpkins and while the seeds were still roasting, we were all in the kitchen. Amos and I made gingerbread while Ray prepared dinner. I thought about this as one of the many beginnings to many more warm and cozy celebrations together.

Ray and I have enjoyed small, quiet celebrations for the past several years. We've created a few traditions of our own (thanksgiving pie contest, christmas lasagna) but have kept things very simple. The beginnings of these experiences as a family is a chance to reconnect with the excitement and wonder that I felt on many holidays as a child. Being a parent gives me a completely different perspective but no less delight in sharing these special days with my family. Already, I look forward to the way traditions will come together and the way they will change and evolve as we do.

Every day, Amos asks about 374 questions and I find myself calmly explaining things that I didn't know I could so clearly express (not every time, but more often than I would expect). Explaining a holiday is definitely on the trickier end of the spectrum of questions. The day after halloween Amos was waiting for darkness when we could light candles in jack o'lanterns and trick or treat again. But, a few days later, we talk about how halloween day is over even though there are still spider webs, ghosts, and skeletons on people's houses.

And now we are sliding into a few weeks of regular days and settling into a late fall routine. Time for small projects and planning for bigger preparations, more holiday explanations and the anticipation of gathering with extended family and friends. Time to enjoy the season, the weather, the celebrations together.

Things to Make and Share

This year, we are planning to focus more on spending time with the people we love and care about rather then spending money on things to give them. But, for me, it hardly feels like Christmas if I don't have things to make and share. I've compromised on a scaled back, short list of things I will share with people that I see, rather than sending lots of packages. For me, making things is a huge part of the joy that goes along with the music, twinkley lights, and sharing good cheer.

I avoid most of the busy and stressful parts of the holidays but I often think that making some things yourself could be a good antidote to all of that. Of course if adding one more to-do will make you feel like the Grinch, then you should make yourself a cup of cocoa and take some time to relax. But, if you're like me, a small project and some good podcasts (or Christmas music, if you prefer) is the perfect way to feel the truly joyful and generous spirit of this time of year. Here of some my favorites from the archives and elsewhere.

Edible Gifts:
Hot Cocoa Mix
Chai Concentrate
Chocolate Peppermint BonBons 
Lemon Curd
Homemade Mustard

Favorite Amazing Body Products You Can Make (and people will love!):
Thanks to Ashley English/Small Measure for these recipes which I make and use all the time.
Homemade Lip Balm
Homemade Body Scrub
Homemade Body Butter

Gifts You Can Sew:
Potholder Tutorial (this would go perfectly with some edible gifts or ingredients)
Reusable Fabric Bag (excellent for wrapping)
Relaxing Eye Pillow (goes well with some homemade body products)

I just put up my festive garland which I am always tempted to leave up year round, but I like the surprise of seeing it each December.

Happy making and making merry!

In Mid-December

Every year, I seem to wait for just the right moment to start my Christmas preparations. Starting too soon makes me think of the the way stores roll out holiday decorations earlier and earlier every year. But I like to start early enough so that I can enjoy the spirit of the season and build those cozy feelings that are essential to the holidays. I can never quite get the timing right. Ideas for baking, decorating and giving come to me when it is practically too late to accomplish all of them. I always think: next year I'll start sooner. So far that hasn't happened.

But here we are in mid-December and, while I would like to be more organized, maybe this is the best time to just enjoy the season. I think of the cookies we bake, the foods we serve, the way that families gather this time of year and the importance of these traditions that knit us together. Then there are the years when traditions seem like a burden or they fall by the wayside. I remember the year that someone stuck a sombrero on the top of our family's Christmas tree, then there was the time that we decorated a ficus tree instead of a fir. Momentary decisions that made us smile, made life easier and are still woven into the tapestry of my memories.

So this is the year that I stitched together stars for our tiny tree. Maybe I'll hang them next year, too, or maybe I will make something else. Our Christmas shrub is an upgrade from the Christmas branch that Ray and I have had for the past few years. The stars are a little too big for the tiny tree, but I love the look of imperfect stitching and the way that the colors and textures contrast. I cut the shapes out of two layers of white fabric and tucked a bit of cotton quilt batting in the middle. The tight stitches of the sewing machine bind it all together.

Maybe next year I will start sooner and get more done, but it is fun to create and decorate when inspiration strikes.