Hot water bottle

Pictured above is my hot water bottle, and the little flannel sack I made to cover it up. Notice the birds match the rubber of the bottle! Very cozy.

The Fezziwigs

[The Ghost of Christmas Past has taken Scrooge to see his former employer, Mr. Fezziwig, at a Christmas party he once gave...]

"There were more dances, and there were forfeits, and more dances, and there was cake, and there was negus, and there was a great piece of Cold Roast, and there was a great piece of Cold Boiled, and there were mince-pies, and plenty of beer. But the great effect of the evening came after the Roast and Boiled, when the fiddler (an artful dog, mind. The sort of man who knew his business better than you or I could have told it him.) struck up ‘Sir Roger de Coverley.’ Then old Fezziwig stood out to dance with Mrs. Fezziwig. Top couple, too; with a good stiff piece of work cut out for them; three or four and twenty pairs of partners; people who were not to be trifled with; people who would dance, and had no notion of walking.

But if they had been twice as many – ah, four times – old Fezziwig would have been a match for them, and so would Mrs. Fezziwig. As to her, she was worthy to be his partner in every sense of the term. If that’s not high praise, tell me higher, and I’ll use it. A positive light appeared to issue from Fezziwig’s calves. They shone in every part of the dance like moons. You couldn’t have predicted, at any given time, what would have become of them next. And when old Fezziwig and Mrs. Fezziwig had gone all through the dance; advance and retire, both hands to your partner, bow and curtsey, corkscrew, thread-the-needle, and back again to your place; Fezziwig 'cut' – cut so deftly, that he appeared to wink with his legs, and came upon his feet again without a stagger."

--from "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens, first published 1843

Vintage box

This is an interesting piece of ephemera from my family history. This box was given to my great-grandmother, Edda Smith, upon the birth of her fourth child, Arvid Daniel, in December of 1929. My Grandma Leora, his sister, thinks it originally held a rattle, though it now houses large vintage buttons. I like the old typeface and the cute cartoons of mother and baby!

The unfortunate part of the story is that Arvid died at two months from measles and pneumonia. The oldest child, Juanita, who was six at the time, caught the measles at school, and the entire family came down with it, except for my great-grandfather. Edda was sick herself and unable to attend the funeral. She said it was the saddest day of her life.

(I know many moms are questioning vaccines these days, but can you imagine living in a time when childhood diseases were so deadly? Very sad!)

EDITED TO CLARIFY: I didn't mean to take a stance against vaccines one way or another. ;) I haven't done any up-to-date research on the topic as I don't have any children, but when the time comes I will be very cautious about the issue. My comment stemmed from the thought that most Western mothers don't have to fear losing a baby due to a contagious illness nowadays... due to eradication of certain diseases in the population, and improved nutrition and medical treatment! How blessed we are!

Christmas music

Now that Thanksgiving is over, I can listen to my Christmas music with impunity! If I had to choose one favorite Christmas CD, without a doubt it would be Maggie Sansone's Sounds of the Season. There are no vocals on this CD -- just beautiful arrangements of old hymns and carols, with some old English and Scottish country dance tunes thrown in for good measure. Sansone plays the hammered dulcimer and is accompanied by a range of other instruments (recorder, mandolin, viola de gamba, etc.). Sansone's music evokes a very historical feel, and as far as I know, all the tunes are centuries old. Hearing these beautiful old hymns helps me to meditate on the birth of Christ, and to ponder the history of Christmas throughout the ages.

Try it -- you'll love it! (And I defy you to listen to track #8's "Christmas Eve Reel" without getting the urge to dance!) ;)

A winter skirt

I bought some fine-wale, golden tan corduroy at Jo-Ann's last Saturday and turned it into this tiered skirt, using McCall's 5109. The third tier has an attached faux-petticoat made from muslin and eyelet lace. I'm not sure I like how it turned out -- not my style -- so I think I'll try to sell it.

Thanksgiving

We had an enjoyable holiday yesterday with a total of a dozen guests -- some family (my mom's parents), but mostly friends from our church family. Most everyone brought something to eat, so that cut down on the amount of cooking Mom and I had to do. We did brine the turkey this year, and I made some homemade stuffing, mashed potatoes, and an apple pie. Mom worked on making the table look beautiful, and I made place cards for each person. Each card had a different verse about thankfulness or remembering God's goodness to us.


Dad picked out some readings from William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation and we sang "We Gather Together." After the meal, we played baseball outside in the sub-freezing weather, then came inside and played ping-pong to warm up again!

Vintage quilt

(Definitely click for a bigger picture; I've left it large so you can ogle the pretty vintage fabrics!)

Sunday dinner

(By the way, around here it's "lunch" every day but Sunday, when we usually pull out all the stops... such a feast must be called "dinner"!)

My mom and I have been doing a bit more hostessin' than usual lately. Today we had some new friends over for Sunday dinner after I visited their church this morning. On the menu:

• pistachio-encrusted chicken
  
• butternut squash puree
  
• fruit salad (bananas, pineapples, mandarin oranges, pomegranates, and shredded coconut in yogurt)
  
• green salad with broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots
  
• Snickers pie

Dad and I promptly worked this off by taking a walk in the 65-degree weather -- it's so beautiful outside today!

Geranium petals

Feminine winter wear, part II

Thanks all, for voicing your opinions on my last post! Seems like the plaid tiered skirt and the long, A-line skirt with pleats at the bottom were the two favorites. You did a good job of picking out the most practical designs. I tend to get carried away with wanting to sew fancy things, but then my every-day wardrobe is neglected.
I do have a tiered skirt pattern, and behold, I found a pattern similar to the bias skirt yesterday -- Butterick 5042. I also have several lengths of wool already that will make lovely winter skirts, but I've been too chicken to cut into them, since I wasn't sure what style of skirts I wanted. As always, I will share the results of my sewing projects with you as I finish them! Thanks for your encouragement! :)

Feminine winter wear

Although I like to wear feminine things, I find I have a harder time doing so once the weather turns cold. For one thing, I don't have as many winter skirts as I do summer skirts! A few weeks ago, I flipped through some magazines and catalogs for inspiration, then did a few doodles of skirt designs I might sew. Alas, most of them are not practical (and would that sewing were as easy as doodling!). ;) Are there any that you particularly like?


(Click for larger image)

Christmas at Bracebridge Hall

Another Christmas book recommendation: Christmas at Bracebridge Hall by Washington Irving. This book was written in 1822 and is Irving's charming portrait of an old English Christmas. Here's a funny excerpt from the church service on Christmas Day:

"The usual services of the choir were managed tolerably well, the vocal parts generally lagging a little behind the instrumental, and some loitering fiddler now and then making up for lost time by travelling over a passage with prodigious celerity, and clearing more bars than the keenest fox hunter to be in at the death. But the great trial was an anthem that had been prepared and arranged by Master Simon, and on which he had founded great expectation. Unluckily there was a blunder at the very outset -- the musicians became flurried; Master Simon was in a fever; everything went on lamely and irregularly until they came to a chorus beginning, "Now let us sing with one accord," which seemed to be a signal for parting company: all became discord and confusion; each shifted for himself, and got to the end as well, or, rather, as soon as he could; excepting one old chorister, in a pair of horn spectacles, bestriding and pinching a long sonorous nose; who, happening to stand a little apart, and being wrapped up in his own melody, kept on a quavering course, wriggling his head, ogling his book, and winding all up by a nasal solo of at least three bars' duration."

Sticky toffee pudding

For Guy Fawkes Day (Nov. 5), my Mom made sticky toffee pudding for dessert. We first had this decadent dish in Aberdeen, Scotland, at a well-known fish 'n' chips restaurant called The Ashvale. It's been a favorite ever since!

Sticky Toffee Pudding

• 3/4 cup pitted and chopped dates
  
• 1 cup boiling water
  
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
  
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
  
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
  
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
  
• 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten

Toffee Sauce:

• 3 tablespoons butter
  
• 5 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
  
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  
• Additional heavy cream for accompaniment (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175*C). Lightly grease a 11 x 7-inch baking pan; set aside.
2. Place the dates in a bowl and cover with the boiling water; mix in the baking soda and vanilla; set aside.
3. Whisk the flour and baking powder together in a small bowl; set aside.
4. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well. Stir in the flour mixture and mix well; then add the date mixture and mix well.
5. Transfer batter to prepared baking pan, spreading out evenly. Bake for 40 minutes.
6. To make the toffee sauce, melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the sugar and cream. Simmer gently for 3 minutes.
7. Poke the top of the hot pudding with the tines of a serving fork and pour the sauce on top.
8. Place under a hot broiler until it bubbles. Take care, as it burns easily.
9. Serve warm drizzled with heavy cream or if desired whip the unsweetened cream and dollop it on top of the pudding.

Makes 6 to 8 servings. (Recipe from Cooks Recipes.)

Contra dancing

On Saturday, my parents and I headed to the "big city" for an evening of contra dancing. From my internet researches, I found that contra dancing descended from English country dancing, so I reasoned that it would be somewhat similar, and likely to be fun. I went without knowing at all what to expect!

It was interesting to see all the different types of people that came to the dance. ;) Quite the variety! There was a bit of a female surplus, but ties were provided for the ladies to wear if they danced the male role with another female partner. More experienced dancers were kind enough to give me some pointers, and I was able to pick up the dances quickly.

The ladies and gents lined up in two long lines opposite each other to start every dance, and then partners worked their way up or down the lines through various walking steps and formations. One common step, called the "swing," involves spinning your partner in a waltz hold -- the quickness of the spin depends on the man who's dancing with you. My parents complained of dizziness, but I didn't have that problem and rather enjoyed the faster spinning! :)

Now that we know what to expect, next time we'll invite some friends along to enjoy the evening with us.