Welcome to Christmas at my place! Because it’s my first Christmas in my own home in 12 years, I started early this year. The day after Thanksgiving I got to the lot well ahead the Black Friday crowd to buy my live tree. I choose a shapely little three foot Dwarf Colorado Blue Spruce in a bucket. I’ll move it outside in January. In February I’ll plant it to replace the tree we had to cut down due to sever damage after the ice storm. It’ll make the yard less forlorn.
Spruce is the smell of Christmas for me because we only had Sitka Spruce in my area when I was a child. My dad was very selective when he and my brothers went out to find the perfect tree. He wanted it as full and with branches as evenly spaced as possible.
Sitka Spruce are a little scrawny if you’re used to bushier Pines and Spruce. He went so far as to drill the trunk and wire spare branches into the holes in the empty spots so the tree would be fuller and more balanced. He was as finicky about the lights and always strung them himself, carefully running lights along the length of every branch from tip to trunk.
It took hours and certainly gave an amazing and magical lighted effect but I lack patience for that level of perfection and have adopted a very haphazard method. It would make my father shudder but it makes me smile. And looking at the photo, it still carries sufficient magic, wouldn’t you say?
Snowball cookies were among my favorite holiday treats. Perhaps you know them as Melt-a-ways, Russian Tea Cakes, Butterballs, or Mexican Wedding cookies but we called them Snowballs since Alaska generally had a while Christmas. I created a super delicious sugar-free version since I avoid sugar whenever possible. If you’d like a copy of the recipe, jot me an email to mahulili@mahulili.com and I’ll happily send it along to you.
I think this year it might be especially important to find ways to feel the light and magic of the holidays. It’s Christmas, not Covid, after all. Making a little holiday magic might be very important to keep your head right and spirits up so we don’t get humbug.
If you don’t decorate, perhaps create a special altar or an arrangement of candles, or seek out holiday songs that you actually like. You could also put some holiday spices like stick cinnamon, orange peel, cloves and star anise in water and simmer them on the stove to fill your house with aromatic cheer. Or buy fir, pine or spruce oil for your diffuser.
Get eggnog and add a wee touch of bourbon or rum, or drag out the nearly defunct tradition of sending Christmas cards. Splurge on a beautiful dozen to send to those you most miss and wish you could hug or share a meal with this year. Or perhaps find Holiday video and tv programs to stream, call people and swap childhood Christmas stories, even if they were mostly painful… it’ll feel good to be supported.
I’ve loved sharing holiday at my house with you and I’ll put more photos of my various special moments on Facebook as we go along. Today I’m sending you peace and contentment from my heart and home to you and yours.
And love too, as always,
MaHuLiLi
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