Hattie's 6-Month Birthday

To celebrate Hattie's 6-month birthday we had our friends the Rookses and the Lundeens over to enjoy some food, wine, and my favorite Christmas movie, White Christmas. Natalie, Soren, and Hattie enjoyed crawling around and playing together (or at least near each other). In honor of the movie, I created an all-white menu. Sorry, no pictures this time. We enjoyed gorgonzola and carmelized onion tartlets, Italian white bean and sausage soup, bread, salad (technically that was green), white wine, and hard apple cider. For dessert: rum balls (which I rolled in powdered sugar), hot cider, and mulled wine. The food was not as striking as our all-black Halloween menu, but it was just as tasty!


Andrea made Hattie an adorable hat for her birthday. I had mentioned the other day that Ryan wanted Hattie to have a hat with ear flaps. My talented friend went home and invented a pattern for one, complete with ties that have become Hattie's new favorite chew toy. Thank you Andrea!

Christmas Meme

Daja tagged me to write about Christmas by answering a set of pre-written questions about the holiday. If you want to learn about how I celebrate with my family and friends, read on. (Spoiler alert: Eggnog is involved.)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?

Wrapping paper, color-coded by who the gift is for (my side of the family, Ryan's side of the family, and friends) to make sorting easier.

2. Real or fake tree?

Real. Even in our tiny apartment we had a real tree that was no taller than 2 feet!

3. When do you put up the tree?

When we have time to go together to choose one. Usually in the first couple of weeks of December.

4. When do you take the tree down?

We left one up so long that I re-decorated it for Valentine's Day!

5. Do you like eggnog?

I love it, but am very picky about it. My favorite is Strauss Family Creamery Organic Eggnog. It's not too sweet or too thick.

6. Favorite gift received as a child?

Once, when my Dad was unemployed and money was tight, my mom made us all rice socks--just festive toe socks filled with rice that could be microwaved (a huge blessing in a house with no central heat). Though I have had several replacement rice socks and bags since then, I still keep that one because it reminds me of how special that Christmas was and how much the Lord blessed us during that time.

7. Do you have a nativity scene?

Five, actually. I have a hand-carved wooden one that was given to me as a high school graduation gift from the parents of one of my sister's friends. There's also a glittery traditional one given to us as a wedding gift by the worship director of the church Ryan and I grew up in; a Vietnamese one with people who look like thimbles that Ryan gave me last December 1 (the day we always set up our nativities); a Playmobil nativity that I got for our then-not-yet-born baby last Christmas; and, finally, an African nativity made from banana leaves that Ryan got for us for this December 1. Ryan wants to collect nativities from around the world and hopes to get a new one every year.


8. Hardest person to buy for?
Bret Rooks.

9. Easiest person to buy for?
Ryan. I end up finding so may great presents around Christmas time that I put a few away for his birthday in January.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Some "lump of coal" jelly beans from a former employer in lieu of a Christmas bonus or even paid time off for Christmas day.

11. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards?

We will be mailing our first Christmas cards this year (kind of a requirement now that we have a baby).

12. Favorite Christmas movie?

White Christmas. I love the music and cry every single time I watch it.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?

December of the previous year. I always stock up on stocking stuffers at the after-Christmas sales. I also make a point of going to the end-of-summer sales in June to finish my stocking-stuffer shopping.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?

Yes.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?

Fondue on Christmas eve, and Ryan's chocolate chipotle cookies with hot chocolate made from scratch.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?

There can never be too many clear lights!

17. Favorite Christmas song?

O, Holy Night (especially when Ryan sings it).

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?

Travel.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?

Yes.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star?

Star. I don't really like most depictions of angels.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?

I guess both. We open presents with Ryan's parents on Christmas Eve morning and my family on Christmas morning. Ryan and I usually open our presents for each other on Christmas night.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?

The song Frosty the Snow Man.

23. What I love most about Christmas?

It is SO romantic! I also love purposefully and consciously preparing for Christmas through celebrating Advent.

Now, I tag Flo and Jen.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

(Hattie as Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" chewing on her favorite natural wood teether.)

Though we have barely blown out the candles in our jack-o-lanterns, we are beginning to get the inevitable "What do you want for Christmas?" questions from friends and family. For everyone's convenience, and because Sarah constantly misplaces the long list of books that Ryan wants, we have each created an Amazon wish list. Feel free to browse it for ideas, or even just ignore it.

Hattie's list is the default, but links to Ryan's and Sarah's lists are on the sidebar on the left-hand side of the web page. Just click here to get to our wish lists.

When Hattie was 1 week old, Lisa Maksoudian took some beautiful pictures of her. We were unable to purchase all of the pictures we wanted, but Lisa has a list of the photos we would love to have if someone wants to get them for us. She can be contacted at lisa@lisamaksoudian.com for more information.

Hattie really loves the toys and other products from Nova Natural Toys (where we purchased the teether pictured above), especially since we're trying to become a plastic-free home! She also has a wish list at A Toy Garden. We just discovered that they have the cheapest naturally dyed play silks which are another one of Hattie's favorite toys. She carries her piece of silk around with her everywhere!

We hope this helps answer some questions, but of course we don't need any of it. The thing that is most important to us is to spend time with family and friends this holiday season, to make joyful memories and create our own family traditions.

What do YOU want for Christmas?