Wednesday, December 4, 2013

I'm Liking the Holidays These Days

I don't like the holidays all the time. Heartbreak, job loss, death, overall blues means that sometimes I'm a full-on scrooge.

For me, there were some happy times, some godawful sucky times. . I am trying to count blessings in my "advanced" age.

My brother and I in Rock City, Tennessee in Summer 1970. Santa had a hangover, I think.
Therefore, to all the people I care deeply about who are going through a tough time, I truly empathize with your feelings and respect your right to hate the holidays. I also will remember that, when I enter into my own dark times again as I know I will, it is important to remember that happiness and misery happen to us all and neither is permanent (with a loose reference to Proust). But to those of you sickened by the holidays, I really hope you'll still love me after this.

I whipped up this banana cake with a chocolate chip/walnut filling and topped it with a salt caramel glaze. It didn't even make it to Thanksgiving.

My daughter helped make Thanksgiving sides. My son started to help but ended up with his first roux burn. Not liking that it traumatized a kid who is already averse to most food.

My grandmother's sweet potato casserole that I think is way better than marshmallow topped yams!

This is Andy. He and his wife host Thanksgiving. A friend brings a fried turkey but their featured main is grilled teriyaki salmon that has become such a tradition I can't believe this wasn't on the menu back in the 1600s.

It's rare to get a decent photo of all four of us. This made the Holiday card.

It's so fun to just go into a bustling kitchen and get a big dinner together. 


We usually put up our tree the Friday or Saturday after Thanksgiving and somehow managed to keep to that this year. 

Let's not forget Chanukah! The same family that hosted Thanksgiving had to do it all again for even more people on Saturday for latkes and songs and candles and drinks and food, food, food. 

My kids have adopted Nathan and Matias as their cousins. Blood be damned!

Lovely pic of my husband and his sister!

Happy. Merry. All that.

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