I Heard a Bird Sing

I Heard a Bird Sing

by Oliver Herford

I heard a bird sing

In the night of December

A magical thing

And sweet to remember

'We are nearer to Spring

Than we were in September,'

I heard a bird sing

In the dark of December.

Out and About

Christmas Storybook Land

(One of my childhood memories. This is the 30th anniversary.)

Live Nativity:

Caroling and Christmas Light Gazing

Through Historic Downtown on a

Horse-drawn Cart:
(and blurry photos...)

Last Chance

Voting for The Homeschool Blog Awards ends tomorrow (the 15th, at midnight). This is your last chance to vote me out of 8th place for the Best Artistic Content Blog. Or you could just vote for the most deserving blog. A few of them are amazing! Either way, don't forget to vote if you are so inclined.

Our Celebration

The morning started with Swedish pancakes filled with strawberry jam and topped with whipped cream. My silly little boys licked off the whipped cream but wouldn't eat the pancakes. I had to eat them all. And they were stuck with wheat toast. What am I going to do with them?

During the day we read, baked bread (there is nothing more relaxing than kneeding bread, by the way...well, maybe a full body massage...), cleaned house, and made star boy hats.

Look who showed up at our door for an evening celebration!

The cousins. (Do you know how hard it is to get a decent picture of 6 children in low light?)

This was my first attempt ever at making a marzipan pig:
Not bad, if I do say so myself. He is tiny and adorable!

My Swedish family (minus the brothers-in-law) sat around eating goodies and Orange Cardamom Bread (with orange cardamom butter), drinking hot spiced cider, watching Rick Steves' European Christmas, and making Krumkake cookies. It was another success!

Saint Lucia Day

Kirsten's Surprise is an excellent choice for our St. Lucia Day reading this year. Kirsten is from a Swedish pioneer family in the 1850s. After reading A Pioneer Sampler and A Pioneer Christmas, this book fits in perfectly!

Annika's Secret Wish is a lovely Swedish Christmas picture book.

Lucia, Child of Light is a complete resource with history, traditions, recipes, and ideas for creating your own Saint Lucia Day celebration.




Our Sweden Coloring Book includes so much more than just Christmas in Sweden. This coloring book has crafts, recipes, songs, traditions, famous people, and Sweden's map and flag. What a fun way to learn about our heritage!


I'll be posting pictures from our celebration tomorrow, but here is a link for more information if you would like to create your own Saint Lucia Day today.

Hope, like the gleaming taper's light,

Adorns and cheers our way,

And still, as darker grows the night

Emits a brighter ray.

~Oliver Goldsmith

Christmas Cheer

I think it's happy hour.

Just wanted to spread a little Christmas cheer. Grin.

Sour Cream Pastries

Sour Cream Pastries ~ They are a family favorite!

Start with 2 cups of flour and 1 cup of butter (chilled, cut into pieces):

Using pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut butter into flour

until mixture resembles fine crumbs:

Add 1 cup of sour cream. Mix with a fork:

After mixing well, press dough together and chill for at least four hours:

(Preheat oven to 400 degrees.)
After chilling, divide dough into 2 parts. Take first half and roll into a 10 inch circle. (Tip: use a lot of flour on counter or board before rolling out dough.) Spread with cinnamon sugar and finely chopped nuts. Cut into 16 wedges:

Roll each wedge from outside in, creating a crescent shape. Place on baking sheet.

Repeat with remaining half of dough:
Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.

Prepare Glaze:

Mix together 1 cup of powdered sugar, 1-2 Tablespoons of water (not too much!), and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla.

Place pastries on a cooling rack over waxed paper.

Drizzle glaze over warm pastries.

Enjoy!

On a More Serious Note

When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses. ~Joyce Brothers

The family is one of nature's masterpieces. ~George Santayana

To us, family means putting your arms around each other and being there. ~Barbara Bush
What greater thing is there for human souls than to feel that they are joined for life - to be with each other in silent unspeakable memories. ~George Eliot
The happiest moments of my life have been the few which I have passed at home in the bosom of my family. ~Thomas Jefferson
Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours!

Taking the Family Picture

Sometimes there are no words.