Lace and learning about Fun Traditions

Second Monday of the Month:
the Colonial Lacemakers monthly meeting ... today in my house.

10 am. The table is laid for lunch later. Since James and I just came back from TN on Saturday, all the Christmas decorations were still up ... and I decided not to break my neck over it to un-decorate but make a party out of it.

But first serious lace making. We were 9 this time so had to spread ourselves out in living and sun room. Welcome to a brand-new lacemaker. Brenda is very eager to learn to make lace. We are happy to share whatever we know.

Wow, everybody is bent over their work.

Lunch. Soup, salad, dessert AND Christmas crackers. We had some good laughs taking turns reading the jokes we found inside the crackers.

1)  Why did the scarecrow win so many awards?

2)  Why did the bacon laugh?

3)  Why did the rocket lose his job?

Enough? Right!

And everybody was a good sport and wore the crowns found inside too. Crowns? Here is the royal wave!



1)  Because he was outstanding in his field.

2)  Because the egg cracked a yolk.

3)  He was fired.

And back to work but no more pictures. Too busy lacing and talking. I was eager to ask Lali, our friend from Barcelona, Spain, about her Christmas traditions since I had already caught snippets. She told us all about "tio". It is a log dressed up as a Catalan mystical figure. Children have to feed it every day starting Dec 8 with cookies or sweet wine.

 
I found the above picture on the internet. But what happens in the afternoon on December 25th is so funny. It is very well explained here and it is so funny. And here is a cute video James found about it. The link to Wikipedia even has the words to the song.

The tio only "poops" (the word Lali used) little presents. The Three Kings bring the real presents in the night of December 5th.
The 5th January is the night that Kings Parades take place all around Catalunya as the three kings finally make it to town collecting letters (wish lists) from children ahead of the much anticipated delivery of presents the follwing morning of Kings Day on the 6th.

Lali also told us about their New Year's eve celebration, called Noche Vieja. 

For many years, Spanish people have had the custom to celebrate New Year’s Eve with grapes ! This event is called “Campanadas”. On the last day of the year, the 31st of December, everybody has to have twelve grapes ready to eat when the clock starts to chime at midnight. Each time the clock chimes, they put a grape in their mouth. By the time the clock has finished chiming, everybody has to have finished the grapes so the New Year can start, but nobody finishes eating the grapes on time.

Eating the grapes is a lot of fun because everybody starts the New Year with a full mouthful of grapes. It is not possible to finish eating the grapes by the time the clock finishes chiming. You can buy small cans with 12 grapes, peeled and unseeded, in supermarkets.

This tradition started for the spanish people because one year there was a big grape harvest and the king of Spain decided to give grapes to everybody to eat on New Year’s Eve.

www.epicurious.com says: This dates back to 1909, when grape growers in the Alicante region of Spain initiated the practice to take care of a grape surplus. The idea stuck, spreading to Portugal as well as former Spanish and Portuguese colonies such as Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru. Each grape represents a different month, so if for instance the third grape is a bit sour, March might be a rocky month. For most, the goal is to swallow all the grapes before the last stroke of midnight, but Peruvians insist on taking in a 13th grape for good measure.

She also told us that lately a new tradition has emerged: men and women wear red underwear.

Isn't this interesting? I love it!

And now it is time to pack the Christmas decorations up for a year! Sigh!

Fun in Nashville

We had a lot of fun with Helen, Ben and William this week. And the weather cooperated too.

On Tuesday the 3rd of January it was VERY cold but the sun was shining so lovely and warm that we bundled William up. See what he has on his hands? Poor darling doesn't have gloves or mittens so Helen had the bright idea to use the new wooly socks I had just finished. He doesn't mind.

 He doesn't mind as long as Grandpa takes him on a walk.

James and I took him to the Library again ... Mother Goose on the loose at 10:30 am.

William has fun and so does Grandpa, haha.

You can watch a short video if you click here.

On Wednesday we all went to Longhorn Steakhouse in honor of Helen's birthday coming up (since we can't be there on THE day). William is very good to take anywhere but at the end even he got a bit restless and we had to find something to play with. Did you know that the advertising things on the tables make nice frames to peekaboo with when you take the advertisement out? Sorry, Longhorn, we might have made the paper a little bent ... but it was a Christmas advertisement anyway.











Peekaboo, Mommy!
















Friday was our last day for now in Nashville. Helen had time for us all day. It was such a lovely warm day. We were out in t-shirts on the back porch talking with the neighbor. Grandpa was trimming the edge of the carpet (which Omi should have done a long time ago).
William loves being outside. You can see it when you click here.

After lunch we went to Centennial Park.

William loves that playground there.

Even if his hair stands up on end in the (plastic) tube.












You can see a short video
here and
here  and 
here  and 
more here.

After we had walked around the lake with William in the stroller, we had to make one stop at a shop. William was "out" as soon as he was in the car seat.

Back home Helen worked on her Block Lotto square of the month. Cutting and sewing curves! Helen does such a great job. 

We had worn William out. He was not quite his usual happy-self. But I have to post this photo anyway ... see those curls?
















Saturday ... on the road again ... and back in Virginia.

2011 > 2012

When we change from one year to the next we humans tend to "take inventory". I already do most of it when I write our Christmas letter in the beginning of December. And I always come to the same conclusion: with all the ups and downs ... we are so blessed. 2011 was a very eventful year and it ended very well too. Christmas Dinner with Sarah and Wade, New Year's Eve Dinner with Helen, Ben and William. What else can parents ask for?

Thursday: Driving all day.
Friday: Helen and William came to visit and then James and I were allowed to be sitters all afternoon. He is such a fun little guy.


Click here to see him playing "Peekaboo" with Grandpa.

Click here to see him find his old teething toy on his shelf. He is working on getting two more teeth upstairs and 2 more downstairs. Is this the reason why his nose is running a little?

Saturday: We had brought a new car seat for our car from Virginia and it needed adjusting. William was supervising.

He loves car seats and couldn't get into it fast enough. The adjusting took a while but he didn't mind at all. He was only a bit cross when he had to get out in-between for Helen to do something underneath.

 He was so ready to go somewhere. He laughs when you hold his jacket out for him. So we went to the Providence shopping center.

After shopping we had lunch at Olive Garden. He was so patient for so long.
















Trying to bite something with his four front teeth.

















And then I finally finished William's quilt. Here is a picture in night time light.

And this is how it all began in July 2010. Fabric needs to be pre-washed.

The original idea. I couldn't find a pattern of interlocking rings to I had to make it up myself. I wanted to put a picture of somebody in William's immediate family into each ring.

A selection for Mommy Helen to choose from.

I already had talked about some of this in this blog.
The quilt was ready and only needed the pictures. Since the selection of the pictures was very involved, I decided that they would be added after the quilt was finished.

Helen is telling William who all the people are.

 William is approving.

 Helen is ironing the the pictures on.

 Picture taken in day light. The navy blue is not so easily photographed, but just right for a boy. He is supposed to use it.

Another reason for ironing the pictures ... every year one picture of William can be added ... see 2011 with the date on the photo. All Helen has to do is send the picture and I can send the ready photo transfer back to her. When he is old enough, he can choose "the picture of the year". It should be fun.

When the family cuddles up on the sofa under the quilt, they can tell William about Aunts and Uncles, Great-Grandpas and about all the people who love him.


It was such a nice New Year Eve dinner that I totally forgot to take pictures. James had made a really nice beef roast in the oven. We had very nice discussion (but unfortunately didn't solve the problems in the world). William did some entertaining too but at 9 pm you could see that he needed his bed. James and I stayed up with some champagne.

And since I had already started with my resolutions for 2012 before the new year (concentrating on finishing already started projects!) I finished knitting William's second pair of woolly tube socks. All I need now is a needle with a big eye to sew the ends away. I am going to make that list today and the socks and William's quilt don't need to be on it. Yeah!









We wish all our friends and family a wonderfully blessed New Year 2012.