Been a while ....

Between ambulance trips and hospital stays and bits of recovery here and there, the extras have fallen to the wayside - meaning the blog.

So here's a bit to just keep us going.

Our little kitchen is, well, little, and space is at a premium.  We planned it very well those 20 years ago, but there was this corner ..... and squatting down and moving serving dishes around to get the one I wanted was proving to be challenging to my knees.  Werner, can you help?

Of course he can!

Here's the cabinet.  You can see how it can be a little hard to navigate.

And here's all the stuff that fit in there!  Who'd a thunk?

Problem solved:  Werner made two shelves that can be fully extended and everything (except the toaster) fit back in.  Wow.  It is so much easier.  Thanks, Werner!

Holiday Round-Up -- Christmas, New Year

Ah well, need to clean up the old year and get started anew.  It's already 2015 (Happy New Year!), so here's a wrap-up of end-of-year festivities.

After returning from the USofA and after not quite acclimating to local time, we had Christmas Eve dinner with friends and their family.  Fondue, songs, conversation. It was warm and comforting.

 

There was no time for a tree this year, so some Christmas red amaryllis stood in. That worked just fine. Christmas Day, we were on our own for a late breakfast and a gourmet dinner for two with the fine china and the crystal goblets, since we are of course Gourmets:  breast of duck as a centerpiece for sides of veggies and fruit.

And what fun using Skype to check in with all the family, every single one.   I think back to all the various ways  I tried to stay connected in real time - calling cards and call-back services and who knows.  Technology can be a bear, but it can be such a boon.  Wish I had a snap of Mother leaning into the picture as if she could touch us.  And as accustomed as the younger generation is to all these wonders, it is still just fun to talk.

Then it was off to our German folks.  Same old, same old - fantastic crispy goose with red cabbage and potatoes, happy times together and fun opening presents.  I particularly like Amina in an FSU cap!!

New Year.  Same as last year, almost, but this year. We met in town at Ulli and Ilsemarie's, had wild boar goulash instead of cheese fondue (but we will have to have cheese fondue soon because I can already taste it!) and of course a bit of dancing and spouting off fire into the air.  We Germans do our share -   so much per year.  But I will refrain from commenting on our waste. We all need a little playfulness.

And now, back to work.  Werner's making our workroom look a bit more finished after the invasion   of the plumbers a year ago. 

I am working on getting the stash under control. On tap:  more doll clothes, a couple of baby quilts, and eyemasks filled with lavender.  Orders anyone???

USofA Fall 2014

It's not so complicated.  Arrive and depart from Orlando.  Visit family in three different locations, friends in two others.  Drive a lot. Eat a lot.

Piece o' cake.

After greeting the little ones with jumping up and down and hugs, we started on prep for Thanksgiving - our second  within a week!  It was a feast for 23 with Crissy's family from various Florida locales plus the snowbirds from New York.  Everyone contributed and of course there were leftovers, but less than you'd think.  Twenty-three people can put away some food!

Friday we packed some cold turkey and cold steak sandwiches, rolled ourselves into the car and headed off to St. George Island to spend the weekend with Nancy and friends, get some beach time and watch the BIG GAME with like-minded folks.  The weather was amazing.  (Spoiler:  it remained that way the whole time we were here.)  We had more turkey leftovers, all yummy, walks on the beach, a visit to Apalachicola and of course THE GAME.  Again, FSU made it ugly but pulled it out.  Still undefeated.

Each night I was lulled to sleep by the waves.  Nancy says it can get on your nerves after a while, the constant surf, but I would need to spend a couple of years there to prove that to myself.

Sunday we packed up again and landed at Michelle and Joey's.  The little ones (who are of course not little at all) greeted us with jumping up and down and hugs.  Really!  That was fun!!  It was a good thing that we had most of Sunday to catch up and chat and talk and look at stuff because the rest of the week was B U S Y.

The tree was erected and Joey got the lights on, but ornaments didn't come into contact with the tree the whole week - NO TIME to get everyone together at once for so long.  There were soccer practices and soccer games (Hunter scored a great one!), school of course, meetings and homework.  We found time while everyone else was busy to do a little shopping and beaching.

And sewing.  The kids got little trees of their own to decorate their rooms and Hannah said Ohhhh MeeMaw, I neeeeed a tree skirt!  Of course she did.  And Michelle said quietly in my ear You know you'll have to make two.  Of course I knew, and I did.  They were impressed and I was happy.

 We made time for a trip to the beach.  Can't really get too much beach time on these visits.

 Another side trip to Tallahassee for a Hannah soccer tournament. Hannah's team was 1 for 3, not bad, and I have even more pictures and experience to share with my German doubters that Soccer Rules!  During half-time, Werner searched Joey's car for an umbrella.  I hate to tell my German friends that the sun was relentless and we needed shade!!

And a side trip within the side trip to the annual fall craft fair where we met up once more with Nancy.  We all found some goodies for friends and family

Too fast, the time was gone and we had to leave.  I can't tell you how strange and sad it is to say goodbye to folks and still be here in the USofA and know I will not see them again on this trip. 

We  headed for cooler climes, north to Atlanta.  It was a good bit cooler, but always sunny.  There were frequent visits with Mother.  She's doing quite well for 94, still walking around the building every day.  Wouldn't you know, there was a staff member there whose mother was from Germany, so we spoke a little German (and confused mother a bit, I'm afraid!).

Eli had a birthday (11) and we got to see a lot of the Reids at another get together.

And don't forget Art with a capital A!  Friday we went with Julia to the High Museum of Art and saw three lovely exhibits there - a private collection with Cezanne as a centerpiece, a photo exhibit from an early 60s LIFE Magazine piece and a few iconic portraits of our founding fathers.

And live theater!  Carla, a seasoned pro, and Tim, the novice, performed in a little theater production that was really good and quite entertaining. Bravo!  Mostly it was time with the sisters and the BILs and that's all good.

Heading south again.  Heading to the beach again.  This time it was Flagler Beach (though I unfortunately got it confused with Fernandina Beach -- don't ask) and a short visit with old friends from high school days. That's more than 50 years ago now.  Time marches on.   More beach walks, more sounds of surf, more shrimp, more talk and more pleasure.

And now full circle.  Back to Orlando.  It's the last week of school before the Christmas holiday, or more politically correct, the winter break, so there's still homework, and school. But there's time for fun too -  cookies for a crowd.

 

And a non-sewing project for Dylan's cousin for Christmas.  Frozen, of course!

 And we got to have a little early Christmas gift giving with the kids just for ourselves.  What a special treat!

 And now it's done, the bags are packed though I think I am not really ready to go.  I hope the next few months fly by so we can do it all again!

A Tale of Two Thanksgivings

I can't say I planned it this way, but what a happy accident!  I got to have Thanksgiving twice this year!

Of course our German friends would be devastated if we didn't do our annual feast; we start talking about the next one as soon as the current one is over!  This year's menu didn't stray far from the standard one:  turkey and dressing, mashed and sweet potatoes, beans, black-eyed peas, cranberry sauce and plenty of gravy.  The soup, always different, was pumpkin with ginger and coconut milk.  Very good, but I think a bit  more coconut milk next time would do it better.

Steps must be taken!  Set the table.  There are still the "bird" plates from long ago, but I prefer the older ones. And the centerpiece is always a bit small since it has to be removed to make way for the food!

The bird - at 7.7 kilos a bit more than usual.  We tried for a 6 kilo one but none were to be had.  I guess that was OK since the folks at the market gave us a discount since it was too big.  That's weird. 

 We did a dry rub this year instead of the brining and it was still very moist and yummy.

 After the feast, a bit of a walk to make room for the dessert.  It was a beautiful day, though (since it is Germany and it was November) a little on the coolish side.

And finally dessert - pumpkin pie, pecan bites, apple cake, which was a total disaster in my humble opinion.  No picture.  Unceremoniously into the can.

Before dessert was over, Jeremy and Nicole arrived on their way from Rotterdam to Berlin and helped take care of leftovers.  But there was still enough for sandwiches the next day and the day after, and the day after.....

AND THEN it was time for Thanksgiving AGAIN, but this time in Florida where it was warm and sunny.

The furniture was removed from the living room, rental tables and chairs set up for the 23 lucky folks.  Dylan helped Mom get the napkins ready and Grandma Loucks' china helped grace the table.

 Appetizers?  Well, when the folks come a couple of hours ahead to visit, you need some munchies.

 Then it was time!  Lee + Crissy took care of the turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes and corn and everyone else pitched in - beans times two, mushroom and artichoke casserole, sweet potatoes and more.

 

And dessert, of course. There were lots of pies, but this cake took the cake.  Chocolate tower cake.  Tall as a tower.  Seven or eight layers with lots of icing between, chocolate dollops on top and chocolate sprinkles on the towering side.

It was a family feast to remember.