Running With Quills: Elizabeth G: A Few of My Favorite Things

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Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Elizabeth G: A Few of My Favorite Things

These are a few of my favorite things during the holiday season, counting down a la Dave Letterman's Top Ten List. Only mine is a Top Seven List. (Why seven, you may ask. The reason is simple. I just realized it's my turn to blog and I have exactly seven spare minutes today. :-)

So here goes:

Number 7. In a word: Eggnog. (I love any and all things custardy --- is that a word? --- and eggnog is liquid custard in my gastronomical book.)

Number 6. Christmas specials on TV. (It's a tradition in our household. We always watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas," "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," "A Garfield Christmas Special," and umpteen versions of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol.")

Number 5. Christmas books. (I love rereading my favorites every year, including "The Other Wise Man" and "An Angel in Time," by our very own Stella Cameron.)

Number 4. Christmas music. (Not the kind you hear while shopping at the mall. No. No. No. I'm talking about the annual Holiday Pops concert given by our city's phenomenal Philharmonic Orchestra, along with a wonderful chorus and guest soloists. We end the evening with a sing-a-long. Sigh. This truly marks the beginning of the Christmas season in our house.)

Number 3. Christmas lights. (I've loved them since I was a little girl in a small town in Iowa. Now we make sure to drive out past The Orchard every year. It's not far from our house and whoever owns the property has thousands of lights on each and every tree. It is magical!)

Number 2. Time spent with family and friends. (Joy-filled. Precious. Memory-making. I always get teary, too, seeing those who are here and remembering those who are gone.)

Drumroll, please.

And my Number 1 favorite thing about the holiday season: Sitting in front of the tree on Christmas Eve with my husband after everyone else has gone to bed and the stockings have been filled and the house has that late-night quiet about it. We sit and share a glass of wine and count our many blessings.

Now it's your turn to share some of your favorite things about the holidays with the rest of us here at RWQ.

Happy Holidays to all!
~EG

28 Comments:

karende said...: My family was never much for celebrating Christmas, other than my gran having the most beautiful tree imaginable. She had some lovely ornaments, antiques from pre-WW I Germany. And I always liked seeing lights on houses. For the most part, I enjoy reading about what others do for Christmas, the kinds of Currier and Ives things that never seemed quite real, but make one feel nostalgia for a past that never was.

karibear; 11:37 PM
Anonymous said...: All the things I love about Christmas such as the music, the lights and holiday spirit would be meaningless if not for THE MOST IMPORTANT THING.

MY FAMILY.

Being with my family, knowing they are all healthy and happy, and having a opportunity to share time with them is what gives me joy each Christmas.

Sirry; 12:39 AM
Lori Foster said...: Yay. Wonderful blog, EG! I love it.
Let's see...
I enjoy picking out gifts for everyone.
I really enjoy the frenzy at my house on Christmas Eve when 40+ people are opening gifts, and the little kids are excited, the more mature folk are smiling... it's a blast.
LOVE the Christmas lights that I see everywhere.
And yum, yum, yum... Christmas cookies! I swear I gain 5lbs every holiday season. LOL

Big hugs and Happiest of Holidays to you!

Lori; 5:00 AM
DFender said...: EG,

First, and I always mean to mention this, but get sidetracked, thank you for taking the time to blog at RWQ. All of you Quills brighten my day with your thoughts.

On to Christmas, I'll take my que from you and name my top seven:

7 - Christmas Specials! Rudolph, Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, Frosty, etc. Brings back a little of my childhood.

6 - Christmas Lights! We still take our kids for a midnight run on Christmas eve through our neighborhood. Yes, they're 19 and 17, but still love the tradition.

5 - Christmas Music! The Rat Pack, Trans Siberian Orchestra and Martina McBride's O' Holy Night brings me to tears.

4 - The smell of the Christmas Tree. Can't beat it!

3 - Wrapping presents! Yes, I love it. I love taking the time to make each wrap special to the person receiving it. Labor of love, even.

2 - Christmas Eve at my parents house. No one in my family has ever missed it. It's just US. Parents, brothers, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews and my family. Food, memories, tradition. Wrestling with my brothers, still. Ha!

1 - Somewhat like you, EG. Christmas Eve at home. After coming home from our midnight drive, the HHP and I shove the kids in bed, wrap the kid's presents (which have been strategically hidden), stuff stockings, play great music, sing and drink wine. After which we put all the presents under the tree, sit on the floor, have another glass of wine and enjoy the peace.

Merry Christmas, EG..and All!

Deb; 5:01 AM
aussie dee said...: have you seen the Muppets Xmas Carol? that is quite funny, Michael Caine is very good in it; 5:05 AM
Jayne Ann Krentz said...: Great blog, EG! For me, it's about sharing Christmas dinner with my family -- even though this year it will mean making a frantic round trip flight during the height of the Christmas travel rush and I don't even eat turkey!

--Jayne; 9:45 AM
susan andersen said...: I'm with Sirry: it's about family. And Christmas lights. And the smell of the tree. And Christmas music. And favorite ornaments that may not be gorgeous but have meaning for me. And the ones that are gorgeous. And...oh, a hundred different things.; 9:56 AM
Stella said...: Fabulous blog--thank you, EG.
And thanks to those who have already shared.

This isn't such an easy question. I can't imagine Christmas without family. When I was a child, even in the tough times, we got it together and had some fun at Christmas. We used nylon stockings (Jerry and I went on to use them for our children and you ain't lived till you've seen a Stella Stocking about6' long and lumpy and colorful all over!

My family and friends are my greatest blessings on earth. I am so grateful to know what it's like to love and be loved.

Music. The Messiah makes my heart pound. I even love to sing along, if you can imagine that. I can manage a fair alto as long as there are lots of good voices around me:)

One year Jerry and I were downtown Seattle with our kids and a couple of their friends and an impromptu group of people had gathered on the steps of a building to sing. The crowd got bigger and bigger. Hot chocolate appeared from somewhere, then those skinny taper candles from a nearby church. Unbelievably we sang the Hallelujah Chorus--in parts--and it sounded angelic. Don't ever tell me there's no such thing as migic in the world. It was so cold our feet were frozen but on every face there was a smile and we had great gusts of laughter when we did stamping routines between pieces.

Christmas trees--incredible.
Lights--never too many.
Children's faces--thank God for them.
Freedom to worship--please let this become the right of everyone on earth.
The children's decorations in the church at midnight mass. I want the colored paper and blunt scissor cutouts, stuck on the walls, not thousands of dollars worth of baubles and plants.

Father Steven's great Nigerian grin and his inevitable updates on his most recent soccer story.

And this year I will try really hard to stay calm and not care about food squished on the floor and carpets by little people. Help me there, please!

Opening packages on Christmas morning and taking hours over it. Stopping regularly to make more tea or whatever folks want to drink. Eating the evil marzipan Christmas bread we order each year.

I'm going to stop although I could go on and on.

Above all at this Christmas season, I am blessed with my husband, Jerry, who has loved and put up with me for a very long time. He is a gem of a man.

Merry Christmas,
Stella-the-long-winded; 1:39 PM
talpianna said...: No family left, but I celebrate with my best friends and their family. We open gifts on Christmas Eve.

Christmas music--my favorites include some of the less-familiar ones: medieval carols, some in Latin, and folk carols like "The Huron Carol," "I Wonder as I Wander," and "The Seven Joys of Mary."

And the Christmas Revels recordings, especially their blow-me-away version of "Lord of the Dance" (and "Tomorrow Will Be My Dancing Day" which is partly the source of it).

And I love to listen to my recording of "A Child's Christmas in Wales" by Dylan Thomas, read by the author.; 2:02 PM
Brandy said...: I'm with you on the Eggnog! My Daughter had developed a liking for it as well, so I have someone to share it with as my hubs and Son don't enjoy it.
Watching my cats try to figure out how to climb the tree is fun every year.
And I love Midnight Mass where we have the reading and the traditional carols.
Then there is the night we all decorate the tree and the smell, since we buy a real tree every year.
Those are a few of my favorite things durig Christmas.; 6:02 PM
Linda said...: I'll chime in as the token Menorah holder here. Some of my fave Hanukah memories are more recent. My second son was born on the 2nd day of Hanukah 3 years ago. Since I had a c-section, my oldest son visited in the hospital each night to unwrap a gift and light an electric menorah (no open flames in a hospital ;) It was such a miraculous time to hold a newborn baby in my arms and watch my 2 year old's eyes light up as he lit the menorah with Daddy.

I don't like egg nog, but I LOVE Latkes (potato pancakes). There is nothing better than the smell of those homemade pancakes. The smell lingers in your house for days. If you've never had a homemade one, or don't know what I'm talking about, email me for a recipe.

My birthday is on December 25, so I have always had a special affinity with Christmas even though I don't celebrate it. I remember waking up on bmy birthday and watching Charlie Brown's Christmas special. Everyone gets excited for their birthday to come, but it is usually a solitary emotion. For me, one those first store decorations go up, it feels like the countdown has begun to my birthday and everyone is anticipating it.

Happy Holidays everyone!; 7:05 PM
Pia said...: E.G.
I totally agree with everyone, this is such a great blog and to think you just had a few minutes to spare.

Christmas is my favorite of all. The things I love about the season is like everyone else, spending time with the family, the smell, the songs, the Christmas shopping rush.

Well, this year is also special because last December 1st hubby and I celebrated our 5th year wedding anniversary in Disneyland! It was my first time ever to go there and I had so much fun. All the Christmas decorations were up, Mickey and Minnie were in their Christmas clothes - it was wonderful.

Merry Christmas to all.; 10:32 PM
talpianna said...: Linda--

I guess you've never heard the legend that people born on Christmas Day are werewolves. Do you have a single eyebrow across your forehead? Hair on the palms of your hands? And are your middle and ring finger the same length?

And do you have a curious aversion to silverware?

(I suppose the superstition arises from the belief that it's wicked to have sex on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, so the child produced nine months later would be an evil creature.)

Hoping you are not the same,

tal; 11:39 PM
aussie dee said...: we have two birthdays in our family one is straight before xmas and one a few days after; 12:36 AM
Anonymous said...: Christmas! What a wonderful time of year.

A Christmas tree is a must - lots of lights (multi coloured) and decorations which include mementos from different trips.

Christmas music is also a very important part of the season.

There must be balloons - red and green - and more lights in the back porch where we tend to gather.

Turkey and ham are two necessary items for me to feel christmassy??? and of course fruit cake.

I usually have my female friends and family members over for drinks and dinner and since some of them sing in a choir, we have a session of carol singing.

On Christmas day, there are at least twelve for lunch and these will include spouses (shouldn't it be spice as the plural of mouse is mice)? Ha Ha

Have a happy and safe season and New Year.

Joy; 3:58 AM
Elizabeth Guest said...: Thank you all for sharing your memories and the various ways you celebrate the holidays, whether it be Hanukkah or Christmas. (Many of my family members celebrate both.)

Happy Birthday to those of you with holiday birthdays!

I loved everyone's comments. Some were very funny. Some were very touching and made me teary. All of them reminded me of the little community we've created here at RWQ.

Happy Holidays!
~EG; 6:54 AM
Elizabeth Guest said...: Dfender said: thank you for taking the time to blog at RWQ.

You're most welcome, Deb, on behalf of all of the Quills!
~EG; 8:56 AM
Elizabeth Guest said...: aussie dee said: have you seen the Muppets Xmas Carol?

Yes! It's wonderful and quite funny. I haven't seen it in quite a few years, however. I wish they would show it again here in the US.

~EG; 8:58 AM
Elizabeth Guest said...: talpianna said: Christmas music--my favorites include some of the less-familiar ones.

Mine, too, including one I rarely hear: "Lo, How a Rose E're Blooming."

~EG; 9:04 AM
Alexina Paiement said...: Aloha from AuthorIsland!

Christmas music: I'm not at all Scottish or Irish myself, but I'm wild for all kinds of Celtic Christmas instrumentals or songs. So soothing...; 11:11 AM
elizabeth said...: Christmas lights. Just love them.

I'm fortunate to see family more often than holidays. In fact, there's so much family that we'd have to rent a hotel to get everyone in one place for any given holiday. Ditto for friends--which I call "the family we chose."

I love Christmas eve, listening to traditional music, and knowing that a lot of other people are celebrating life in their own way.; 11:27 AM
Elizabeth Guest said...: El wrote: Ditto for friends--which I call "the family we chose."

How true!!!!!!!

Again, Happy Holidays to all since I won't blog again until the week of January 8, 2008. Yes, the Quills are taking a hiatus for the holidays, although we may drop in every now and then informally.

~EG; 5:11 PM
Elizabeth Guest said...: P.S. Our hiatus is the week of 12/24 and 12/31.; 5:12 PM
AgTigress said...: Custardy; certainly there is such a word! Every time I hear of somebody being remanded in custody, the picture in my mind involves the individual up to his neck in custard...
I wish I could embrace and wallow happily in Christmas as so many people seem to do. Alas, I never have. But do go ahead and enjoy yourselves, everyone! But at least I just made a Christmas cake, so I am doing my best.
:-D; 1:49 PM
Ranurgis said...: Lovely blog, EG.

I always loved the Christmas lights too. Now I hardly see any since I'm living on a main street and have no car. Going by bus everywhere just doesn't do it for me since you rarely pass actual residences. I especially love the glow of lights on newly fallen snow or in places where the snow becomes gossamer when the lights shine behind it. That's when snow becomes magical for me. Another way that happens is when there's bright sunlight sparkling on snow crystals, turning the countryside into a magic world that can never be adequately captured by a camera.; 8:50 PM
Ranurgis said...: Linda, my mother often used to make potato pancakes too. We'd eat them with either apple sauce or put sugar on them. You've actually got me craving them now. Maybe I should see if my sister has my mother's recipe and get it from her.

After my father passed away, my mother would often make them for the two of us. Yummy!; 8:58 PM
Elizabeth Guest said...: Thank you one and all. I love reading your remembrances of holidays past and celebrations of holidays present!

agtigress, I appreciate your assurances that "custardy" is a real word. :-) (Your imagery made me laugh.)

ranurgis, I love your description of Christmas lights on snow. We may soon see a lot of it here in the Midwest. We have a storm warning for today and tomorrow. Lots of white stuff coming our way apparently.

A happy and safe weekend!
~EG; 10:28 AM
talpianna said...: Tigress, I'm keeping a basin of gruel warm on the fender for you...; 1:08 PM

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Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Elizabeth G: A Few of My Favorite Things

28 Comments: