Christmas Eve 2019 - Mom's

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Mom moved this past spring from her condo to senior living apartments which was another change in our Christmas routine. We'd spent to last 11 Christmas Eves doing cheese fondue and steaks at her condo in Edina. Her new place is as equally charming and comfortable. 

Since her move I'd forgotten we were storing her artificial tree in our basement and she never asked for it. I offered to bring it over a few days ago but she said she'd just pass on the tree for this year and would decide if she wants to do one next year. I brought over a little tabletop tree that I'd left decorated from last year. Dale was unaware of I even had it and was a little taken aback that I could produce a decorated tree like Mary Poppins magically pulling something out of her nanny bag. 

Anyway, dinner was lovely. We finished out the evening with Baba dessert. My favorite dessert from childhood which was introduced years and years ago by Grandma Jean. 

Christmas Eve 2019 - Kalle Anke

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Settled in for Kalle Anke at around 2:15 which is a little earlier than usual. 

I put in a DVD called Disney's Merry Christmas Songs which is a sing-a-long. I used to show it to the kids at a school a worked at a number of years ago. Great fun and lots of memories.

Didn't finish the DVD before heading to the Christmas Eve service but we watched some more of it afterward and before heading over to Mom's for fondue. 

There's been some concern in recent years that the tradition in Sweden may eventually go away as younger folks are used to on-demand watching due to DVDs and now streaming. It's my understanding that viewership, once at a height of around 50 percent of the population, has dipped to "only" a third of the population. However, home video has been around since the early 1980s and the tradition is still strong. I read that as recently as 2016 cell phone use dropped 28 percent and calls to emergency services fell 16 percent during the broadcast of the show. 

I find that my own version of Kalle Anke on the 24th provides a nice transition from the more secular aspects of the season to the more religious. 

Click on the link below for an article from Slate magazine on Kalle Anke.

https://slate.com/culture/2009/12/sweden-s-bizarre-tradition-of-watching-donald-duck-kalle-anka-cartoons-on-christmas-eve.html

Christmas Eve 2019

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

It's been a rather quiet and low-key day so far. Dale went to the gym this morning while I stayed home and did a little more work decorating the tree. I also got some preliminary cleaning done as we're having, Mom, John, and Noel over tomorrow for Christmas Day dinner. 

Got Athena on a nice walk. She's sleeping like a baby now. The weather is unseasonably mild. We're at 38 degrees as I write this.

Dale and I went grocery shopping at Kowalski's yesterday but went again this afternoon for some last minute items. I'm making a sweet potato casserole for tomorrow. Mom was a little disappointed to find out I'm using canned sweet potatoes but I convinced her to cut me a little slack as it'll be my first effort. 

Holiday Season 2019 - Dale

Monday, December 23, 2019

Dale

Holiday Season 2019 - A Christmas Story & The Shark's Tooth Tiki Bar

Friday, November 29, 2019

Lunch with cousin Leo today. We had a wonderful time visiting with him. After lunch Pete and Steph had to go to work so Mom and I stayed home with the kids. We watched Christmas Story which Abby, Xander, and Emma had never seen before. They seemed to really like it. 

After the movie we had dinner and then opened up the tiki bar Abby set up. Abby and I made up a tiki drink just for the evening. The beverage was made with about a third of an average sized tub of rainbow sherbet, one cup of Hawaiian Punch, and one cup of pineapple juice all stirred together. We divided it into 5 glasses and then topped each glass off with ginger ale. It turned out great and it was enjoyed by all!

By the way, Emma named the drink the Shark Bite and I named the tiki bar the Shark's Tooth Tiki Lounge. 

Holiday Season 2018 - Making Krumkake with Mom

Sunday, December 9, 2018

After church Dale and I headed over to Mom's to make krumkake. She hasn't made it in years and asked me last week if I'd like to come over and help. Of course I said yes!

Pictured above is a krumkake iron exactly like the one Mom used to have. She's made them for as long as I can remember - every year for a long time and then more sporadically. I think she quit making them after Dad died. The iron shown above could be used on a gas or electric stove burner. I don't know how well they'd work on more recent ovens with  glass tops. Anyway, a friend loaned Mom an electric one which is pictured below.

I helped Mom put the batter together. 

I was in charge of getting the batter on the iron and closing it. Holding it shut for about 45 seconds did the trick. 

Mom took care of getting the cookie off the iron and rolling it. The whole process was pretty quick with two people. Having a double rather than single iron didn't hurt either. 

The recipe Mom used was a "new" one. I have that in quotes because the recipe came out of a Star Tribune Sunday Magazine newspaper insert from back in 1988. Mom saved it all these years with the intention of someday trying it. Well, someday came today.

The recipe comes from a woman named Hilda Kringstad and is not too different from the one Mom has used for years. The difference is that Hilda's recipe calls for using whipping cream that's actually been whipped before adding it to the batter. Regardless, these krumkake were much better than the ones I've gotten at the grocery store and at the very least equally as good as the ones from the recipe Mom used for years!

Dale loved the krumkake too. 

I'd say Mom's and my endeavor was a success and it was great to relive a wonderful old holiday memory.

Christmas 2018

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

Upon returning from the hospital Dale and I got the house picked up and started some dinner prep. I had a chance to set up the manger scene. The one I used this year is a copy of the one Mom had growing up. 

Mom came for dinner around 3 p.m. and we ate at 4:00. We made a chicken pot pie with broccoli on the side. Mom showed me a photo of Uncle Denny's great-granddaughter (!) and we then talked with him on the phone. 

We took some photos and then watched the IT Crowd on Netflix at Mom's request. She has a couple episodes she absolutely adores watching. I think this is the third year in a row we've done so. 

Roulade and coffee for dessert. It was a lovely laid back get-together.