Tis the Season

Sheesh, sorry to leave that last depressing post up for so long. I was well for exactly one week, and then I got a cold. My immune system did a swan dive, and hasn't come up for air in about 2 months. I guess I'm going to go see a Chinese meds/acupuncturist dude/chick, and see if that helps. I'm not going to blog about the other unbloggable stuff I was going to blog about, because ... well I can't give you a reason, so just settle for because. On to other topics!

When we first started out as parents, we were going to be HONEST with our children about Santa. We weren't going to delude our children and later have to tell them we were lying! What kind of parenting is that?! So when Emily was old enough to understand about Santa, we told her there was no such thing. She promptly forgot, and believed all over again. After this had happened several times, we were like, dude, we're not going to keep disappointing her over and over again. What kind of parenting is that?!

But we were determined to keep Santa as a Christmas subplot, and so we started celebrating St. Nicholas Day. On December 6th the kids wake up and find their stockings filled with their annual Christmas ornament, a stuffed animal, chocolate coins, and a Toblerone. Then On Christmas Eve, Santa shows up again with new pajamas. So Santa is a frequent visitor to our house during the holidays, which means I'm not sure how well our subplot idea worked out.

Now that our youngest is nine, Santa is even more complicated. How is that possible? Will clearly knows there is no such thing as Santa, but it is a truth that dare not be spoken. And hey, let's face it, Santa makes Christmas more fun, so we may be putting out cookies and carrots until he goes off to college.

Hey, if you're looking for delicious alcoholic drinks to take to parties or give as gifts, here are my two favorites.

Rum Cream

1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
1c whole milk
1c cream
½ c chocolate or caramel syrup (You can make your own caramel syrup if you're feeling ambitious.)
2 T vanilla extract
2 t ground cinnamon
1 pint rum
½ pint of Kahlua

Pour over ice, or put it in the blender with ice. Garnish with candy cane or chocolate shavings.

 

Eggnog

6 eggs
1c sugar
1c brandy
1/2 c rum
1/2 c bourbon
1/2 c peach brandy
3 c whole milk
1 c heavy cream
Nutmeg (optional)

Beat the egg yolks and sugar together until thick. Stir in everything else, except nutmeg. Blend well. Refrigerate. If you're worried about bacteria, you can cook the milk, cream, sugar and eggs on the stove, but the alcohol will kill any bacteria, so you really don't have to worry. Grate a little nutmeg on top.

Comments

[lizardek]

Wait, Santa eats carrots?? o!!!! they're for the reindeer, aren't they?

[Kira]

We have a similarly complicated relationship with Santa (right down to the St. Nicholas day celebration). The nice thing about having a whole 'nother set of kids is you can do it differently the second time. We took Sophia to see Santa yesterday. She was horrified. Wanted nothing to do with him.
*shrug*