Christmas

As a child, Christmas was such a magical time.

I remember the tree and the trains and village that seemingly went for miles underneath it.  I remember my Dad sitting up the tracks and making sure that the trains worked, and my Mom doing a lot of the landscaping, complete with roads made from used, dried out coffee grounds that she would begin saving about a month beforehand.

I remember my Mom making dozens of varieties of cookies, candies, pastries and quick breads. Some of those things I completely only associate with this time of year to this day, and many I have tried to replicate, but haven’t been able to duplicate. I remember her two large, metal trays, one green and one red, that she brought out to arrange the bounty of sweetness on, wrapped with foil that got more and more crinkled as more and more hands reached under for a treat.

Of course we have our own traditions and will continue to build on those as a family as time goes on, and as Daniel becomes a little older and the magic of the season begins to resonate with him.

Most of the actual crafts pertaining to this holiday I will list under the gift ideas, since most that I do are to be given away as gifts. I will focus more on the treats of the season, and share some special recipes with you, that certainly couldn’t fall into the healthy category, but are special enough not to be missed!