In Memoriam

The American Memorial Day holiday used to simply mean the beginning of summer to me. This US holiday (formerly "Decoration Day") came about after the Civil War as a day to decorate the graves of those who died at war. When I came to this country, I quickly learned that to most Americans, summer officially starts with Memorial Day, the last Monday in May, and ends with Labor Day, the first Monday in September. If I asked wasn't Labour Day on the 1st of May, I was told "well, that's communist!" -- few Americans know that May Day (a.k.a. International Workers Day) is the commemoration of the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago.

But I digress. To me, Memorial Day is no longer merely the beginning of the summer camping season. Exactly a year ago, a young friend of our family tragically died in an alcohol-related incident on a Memorial Day camping trip. Fletcher and my son had met and become best friends in Kindergarten when we first moved here some 13 years ago. After Kindergarten, the two boys went to different schools, but continued their friendship -- although gradually drifting apart over time. This May, Fletcher would have graduated from High School.

I cannot approach to understand what grief his parents must be feeling every single day since that tragic day. We were on our annual Memorial Day weekend camping trip when we heard the news a year ago. In fact, we were at Summit Lake, the same spot we had once spent a wonderful weekend camping together with Fletcher's family 10 years ago.

I have fond memories from that trip: the weather was amazingly sunny (it was actually hot, well maybe it reached 80F that day)-- the kids even went splashing in the lake! Fletcher and Wulfi were playing at our campsite "climbing" young spruce trees until they completely bent over: the boys would disappear and the tree bounce back! The two of them could keep themselves occupied for hours with imaginary play, and they were mostly pretty good about including "little" sis in their games. I remember how Wulfi and Fletcher would make their own swords, bows and arrows (sometimes even appropriating bamboo poles from my gardening supply). I also sewed quite a few props for their games back then: capes, quivers, and sheaves for their wooden swords...

Now that innocent age seems long gone. I'm just filled with sorrow when I reflect on how Fletcher's parents don't get to see their son grown and go off into the world. All they have left now are memories. I wish I wasn't at such a loss on how to reach out to them on this anniversary of his death -- I know it's difficult for them to be around our family when our children are such painful reminders of their loss.

God bless Fletcher's family on this Memorial Day.

Oktober and Germany

Oktober and Germany go together like beer and brats!

I'm very excited to be flying to the "Old Country" at the end of this week to visit my family. Alas, I'm leaving behind my own husband and kids.

Here are some pictures from last weekend's Oktoberfest: My girls and I dressed up in our dirndls, the traditional German/Bavarian dress.

Mother's Day

It's a gorgeous Mother's Day here in Alaska, and we're celebrating Wolf's Birthday too, who made his appearance on another gorgeous Mother's Day 17 years ago!

The PCT gals send a pictorial Mother's Day greeting by writing I Love U in the snow along the trail.

To view, follow this link to their Picasa page, MothersDay Greeting from PCT

a dozen roses for...

My son bought a dozen roses for his sweetheart today: they're white with a hint of pale peach. Very lovely!
Here's a picture of Wolfman and his sweetie.

That reminds me of Valentine's Day a long time ago, in a place far far away:
When I was about his age, we had moved to the Philippines, and I attended Brent International School in the Philippines. I was shy, barely spoke English, and had a crush on a senior. Not expecting that he'd even noticed me, I was completely surprised when I received a single red rose from him on Valentine's Day!
It absolutely blew me away -- even though he'd given roses to several girls, that did not matter -- he had noticed me!!!

Ahhh, to be young...
Thank you, Jaime, for making my Valentine's Day some 30-odd years ago! And kudos to my son, who made somebody very happy with a bouquet of roses today.

Golden Wedding Anniversary

My parents celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary this past weekend!
I wish I could have been there to help celebrate the big event, but alas, it is a rather long way from here to Germany (there are no direct flights from here during winter!)

From all the reports, it sounds like the weather in Germany was rather Alaskan -- snow and unseasonably cold temperatures. But the weather did not dampen the spirit, and relatives and friends congregated for a big feast. Note to Americans: Europeans really know how to mark special occasions! While many Americans prefer to hide the passing of time, Europeans will acknowledge and celebrate big birthdays & anniversaries by inviting their friends to a big formal affair!

Here's a picture of my parents -- in icing -- from their wedding day 50 years ago!I've always thought that when my mother was young that she resembled Ingrid Bergman, whereas my father has always looked like a quintessential professor to me, then and now!
I want to wish my parents all the best on this special occasion!
And I'll excuse them & my siblings from having to travel to chilly Alaska in another 10 months, when I reach the ripe old age of 50! Instead, we'll all get together in Germany at some other time (preferably when it's warm) and celebrate a family reunion...

For an anniversary present, I gave my parents a Llama.
Yes, that's correct!
I donated funds in their name to Heifer Foundation. I actually chose the category "where most needed", given the crisis in Haiti right now, and a food- and income-producing animal (such as a llama, goat, chickens, rabbits, cow) will go to a needy family somewhere to help them move toward self-reliance, with the animal providing a sustainable source of food and income.

Why a llama in particular? Our family lived for many years in Chile, and thus our family has a soft spot for the people of South America.
Read more about llamas here.


Liebe Mutti u.Papi, Hier sitze ich im kalten Norden und ueberlege mir was ich Euch zur
Goldenen Hochzeit schenken kann? Es soll etwas besonderes sein, etwas sinnvolles, etwas
was lange haelt, darf nicht viel Platz einnehmen, und es soll Bedeutung haben --
immerhin habt Ihr 50 Jahren, viele Weltreisen, 3 Kinder, 7 Enkelkinder zusammen-- und so
kam mir die Idee: Ich schenke Euch ein Llama.
Keine Sorge, dieses Llama kommt nicht auf den Balkon! Eine arme Familie irgendwo in den Anden bekommt in Eurem Namen dieses Llama durch Heifer International geschenkt, und verhilft ihnen zu einer besseren Existenz. Dieses Geschenk ist in dem Motto von Confucius: "Give a man a fish, and he has food for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he will eat for a lifetime."

Ihr habt uns Kinder durch Euer Beispiel und die vielen Jahre in Chile und Philippinen gelehrt auch an andere Menschen zu denken, und ich hoffe Euch mit diesem Geschenk eine Freude zu machen.

Cabin Fever

Winter in Alaska is no reason to stay cooped up, even if we sometimes don't feel like getting out of bed. But the days are getting longer, and when the sun shines on those craggly spruce trees, it is an outright "Winter Wonderland"!Here are some photos from a recent cabin trip to Byer's Lake in Interior Alaska. Two women and a total of 3 teen-age children (both of our husbands had to bail out last minute on account of work). But this trip was long planned, the temperatures were reasonable, so darn it: we went, we saw (Mt.Denali, "The Great One", even if only briefly), and we conquered (snow-shoeing, sled-packing, firewood-carrying, etc)!

That's was the view from our cabin overlooking frozen Byer's Lake with the Alaska Range as backdrop. We went skiing and snow-shoeing on the lake, and youngest built a fire, using only flint from her 5th grade survival kit -- she was determined & worked HARD!


And here cabin life at Public Cabin #2, where we stayed cozy and warm, and played many roaring rounds of Taboo!

Christmas Eve

Morgen, Kinder, wird's was geben,
Morgen werden wir uns freu'n!
Welch ein Jubel, welch ein Leben
Wird in unsrem Hause sein!
Einmal werden wir noch wach,
Heisa, dann ist Weinachtstag!

Wie wird dann die Stube glänzen
Von der großen Lichterzahl!
Schöner als bei frohen Tänzen
Ein geputzter Kronensaal!
Wißt ihr noch, wie voriges Jahr
Es am heil'gen Abend war?

Wißt ihr noch die Spiele, Bücher
Und das schöne Schaukelpferd,
Schöne Kleider, woll'ne Tücher,
Puppenstube, Puppenherd?
Morgen strahlt der Kerzen Schein,
Morgen werden wir uns freu'n.

Photo credit: http://wonderfulthings.info/christmas/images/danishjuletree.jpg

Sankt Nikolaus

I do love this time of year!

Yesterday was Sankt Nikolaus, and being German, that means I sneak out of bed late at night and stuff everybody's boots with lots of chocolates, nuts, oranges and other gifts. This is one of my favorite parts of this time of year, with baking, crafting, and Christmas music, but mostly I love just "hanging" with my family & dear friends.

Here in Alaska we use some pretty serious boots this time of year, which is handy for getting lots of Sankt Nikolaus loot: our kids are savvy and take the felt boot liners out on Nikolaus-Eve, to maximize the haul!

Sankt Nikolaus is when I really start getting into the spirit of the Advent season -- yesterday we got our Christmas tree, put some Christmas CDs on the stereo and started hauling the decorations out from the basement. It's wonderful to watch the kids re-discovering and reminiscing as they unpack nutcrackers and ornaments they made in Kindergarten!

Yesterday, as we all sat around the tree, sharing memories, the kids asked their dad about his memories, and were surprised to hear how different his childhood experiences were from their own. His own dad died of cancer when he was 4, right around the the holidays, and sadness was forever intricately associated with Christmas-time -- I'm sure his mother had a difficult time for many years after, especially around the holidays...

Not everybody loves the holidays -- in fact, some detest it. Children of divorce often find this time of year very stressful -- everything from making a craft and school and having to decide which parent should get it (how cruel is that!-- teachers, please let them make 2!!!), to having the holiday itself split up, feeling torn apart between two parents.
For years I watched my Eldest, a child of divorce, stress over Christmas, and there was little I could do for her other than to try to provide as calm an environment as possible at home. My wish for her is PEACE & JOY, but especially inner PEACE. That is also my wish to all children of families affected by tragedies such as divorce, illness or death. Hang in there, and don't feel there's something "wrong" with you for not being full of holiday cheer!

THANKFUL

I don't know what's wrong with me, but instead of the usual winter slump (a.k.a. mild depression) that usually hits me by the time this dark time of the year, I continue to be basically HAPPY -- you know, cheerful, ready to sing "The hills are alive..."
What gives? Instead of getting grumpier as I get older, I get happier. I'm just plain old THANKFUL for the good life our family has. Soppy, I know...

It's been a very nice relaxed Thanksgiving for the Borealkraut family.
On Turkey Day, Eldest came for the feast together with her 2 roommates, and we really enjoyed visiting with them, including playing a rousing game of "Apples to Apples" and telling various embarrassing stories of when the kids were small. Eldest wrote me a sweet Thank you email the next day, where she shared that she and her roommates thought our family was very "loving". Shucks -- I'm just a sucker for stuff like that -- I'd have been ready to hand over my car keys if she'd asked for them right then...

We did not end up going on our annual ski-into-the-cabin trip the next day: the Prof and I both were suffering from back pain, and decided that we just were not up to pulling sleds and sleeping on hard bunkbeds (yes, we were definitely being whimps, but we're allowed at our ripe old age!). So instead we just laid low and enjoyed hanging out with the kids, reading, watching movies, and nibbling on turkey left-overs.

But other good things happened as a result of us not going to the cabin. We got to meet Wolf's new girlfriend, A, and her family: first we had a chance to meet them all at the sledding hill in a downtown park, and then tonight A and her sister came over for dinner. They live in the Valley (another valley than our little valley: so it's at least a 30 mile drive), so the families meeting was a big step -- yes, a little awkward at first, but I think it went well, and we're really pleased how nice A and her family are! It's like in the movie The Sound of Music, when Maria tells of how Mother Superior always said "When the good Lord closes a door, somewhere He opens a window." Not that I'm particularly religious, but I have to admit, I'm really happy for the Wolfman that it worked out that way -- Howl!

Photo credit: http://www.artknowledgenews.com/files2009a/Julie_Andrews_The_Sound_of_Music.jpg

Time passing...

Where has the time gone? These last few weeks have just flown by, and I did not even properly acknowledge my husband's birthday. We started celebrating a few days early with our annual Oktoberfest. This yearly occasion calls for a keg of his favorite micro-brew, Moose's Tooth Fairweather IPA. Maybe that explains why I haven't blogged lately -- but we did finally finish that keg, and we even went out to eat on a real honest-to-goodness date (both of the school-agers were invited to parties, and we looked at each other and said something like "remember when we used to go on dates?...and needed a babysitter...") Alas, why is it that when you don't need babysitters anymore, you start to forget to go on dates...



October has nearly flown by. Halloween is around the corner, and I'm busy at work getting ready for the annual children's Halloween Party we host at the Nature Center, complete with a witch in the Hollow tree... I leave you with this picture of my kids (plus a few borrowed ones) taken a few years ago outside the yurt that I'm currently busily decorating for this year's event.
The tall one is Wolfman, and the skeleton is Liesl -- by now she's as tall as the masked man in black, who in turn is 6 feet tall! Time's a-flying by...

Hurrah for Syttende Mai!

Today Norwegians celebrate Constitution Day -- and the only reason I know is that hubby used to hang out with a bunch of Norwegians in his college days and celebrate this day -- I'm sure there much drinking of Aquavit involved.

Today we celebrated Syttende Mai with a belated (or what the kids called "Fake") Mother's Day -- Eldest just got home from college this week (Hurrah!!!), and after a Welcome back BBQ on Saturday, the kids decided that mom deserved a day off from cooking, and get to do whatever she wanted, which they predicted, correctly, was gardening! Eldest even invited her friend Amy to help with the effort: to build and fill the new planting beds. Photos will hopefully follow soon -- but the boxes are looking GREAT. The girls were awesome -- we dug soil, cut and build the boxes, went to the greenhouse and bought plants, and went for a truck-load of horse manure. WHAT A PERFECT DAY.

And, on top of all that, Eldest planned and executed some incredible cooking:
Spring rolls for lunch
homemade pasta for dinner
grated carrot and broccoli salad with pine nuts
poached pear with ricotta & berry sauce for dessert

This was the BEST meal I've had cooked for me in a LONG time -- my daughter will write a post soon on my other blog, Borealkitchen, and share these recipes.
It's great to have her back -- even if it takes me longer now to find stuff in my own kitchen -- she's still needing to learn the logic of where I keep certain things...

St. Patrick, greens, and Omega-3s

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!
Hope you're planning a nice GREEN meal. And I'm not talking about green food coloring in your beer or mashed potatoes, I'm talking about serving leafy greens.

We KNOW that greens are incredibly good for us, but admit it, most of us don't eat enough greens! Besides the obvious benefits of fibers, vitamins and iron, antitoxins and phytochemicals, there are the Omega-3 fatty acids, which we've been hearing about more and more in recent years. Yet somehow our western (American) diet has largely selected against Omega-3. Why is that?

It wasn't until the 1980's that scientists learned the importance of Omega-3 (If you want to read about why Omega-3 are good for us, while Omega-6 are not, I recommend Susan Allport's book The Queen of Fats: Why Omega-3s Were Removed from the Western Diet and What We can do to Replace them). Scientists think now that maybe what matters most is the ratio of Omega-3's to Omega-6 (in other words, getting enough Omega-3 in relation to Omega-6 may matter more than absolute amounts of Omega-3s).

So where do these Omega-dudes hide?

Our western diet depends heavily on seeds, primarily on wheat, corn and soy. Seeds are full of Omega-6. Where do you get your Omega-3? You guessed it, leafy greens (and the wild ones are especially good sources). Omega-3's are part of the photosynthetic process -- ergo, they hide in greens and algae! Seafood is a good source of Omega-3's also, but really, fish just get theirs from seaweed and algae. Green plants is where it's at!

I loved Michael Pollan's book In Defense of Food. Pollan tells of how nutritionism and "Food Science" have messed up repeatedly-- the more they've tried to reduce food into nutrient components, the less healthy our diet has become! They've been telling us for years to eat a lower fat diet, and we've gotten fatter and fatter. For example, first butter was deemed bad, was replaced by margarine and hydrogenated oils, and then it turns out those are worse than the butter! Ooops. More recently nutritionists have discovered the health benefits of Omega-3, yet because Omega-3 is not very stable, plant geneticists have actually been breeding against it (because we wanted food with long shelf-lives)..! OOOOPS again.

My personal pledge is to serve more GREENS.
Let there be something green on our plates every day -- make every day St. Patrick's Day!

Spinach to the rescue!!!
Go over to my other blog Borealkitchen to find recipes.
For something GREEN, here is just a small teaser of ideas that make use of generous quantities of frozen spinach (always handy to have in your freezer) -- in other words, these dishes are good places to hide large quantities of the dreaded "Spinat"!

Lasagna, pizza, calzones, quiche
Soups (esp. blended soups which have a greenish color already)
Homemade spinach pasta (yumm!)
Omelettes, "Green Eggs and Ham"
Brownies (Honeypiehorse's trick: just blend the spinach first and replace part of the butter called for, and don't breathe a word! )

I therefore propose a toast to St. Patty, whom I nominate as the patron saint of green vegetables and Omega-3's:
May you bless us with lots of greens in the coming year!

Valentine's Special, anyone?!?

I admit that I recycled this post -- but not only is it perfect for Valentine's Day Eve (and I'm too tired to think of something original tonight), it also shows that I'm not always serious, and that I too, have a glib side:

In these hard economic times, people are always looking for ways to save money. Here's a helpful hint for Valentine's Day (if you're in the market...)

We do some of our shopping at a big warehouse store (Costco), where you'll find multi-packs of many household items: double, triple, even sixtuple the normal amounts of ketch-up, coffee-filters, tampons, or whatever else you might be looking for -- often you get twice of what you need for half the price!

Today the Prof, my husband, saw an announcement that you can pre-order Roses for Valentine's Day. SPECIAL: 35 roses for $65
Who needs 35 roses? A cheating husband, of course! What a deal, we both chuckled and simultanously said that: "Perfect for the guy who has a wife AND a mistress or two!" Only at Costco...

The Trashy Romance Novel Challenge

This weekend I lay in bed with the flu, complete with drippy nose, sinus headache and a fever. Life went on around me, but I was not really part of it. There was plenty of Kleenex and tea by my bedside, but best of all, I had a novel to keep me company.

When we were on vacation in Lake Tahoe, my eldest daughter, my girlfriend and I were rummaging thru a bookshelf offering free books: they were all pulp fiction and trashy romance novels, and we challenged ourselves to find one to read. I had a tough time with that assignment, as I admit I'm usually a serious (cerebral), o.k. nerdy person, who just does not normally read these books.
But the challenge was made, and by gosh, I had to find a book! Besides, there was the LONG plane ride back to Alaska. So I did pick a murder mystery, and it sure made the flight go by faster than my knitting project alone could have.

Shortly after that, I picked up a novel at a used bookstore whose title and cover art intrigued me:




And it was a perfect book for when I was so miserable last weekend -- it was great to escape into my novel when I could not sleep but did not just want to lay there. It's about these 3 women who meet every week to knit, and their relationships with the men in their lives...

So, knitters & readers (esp. you other two of the 3 women searching the bookshelf in Tahoe): whichever one of you emails or comments on this post first, I will send you the book in the mail!

Roses, anyone?

In these hard economic times, people are always looking for ways to save money. Here's a helpful hint for a good deal (if you're in the market...)

We do some of our shopping at a big warehouse store (Costco), where you'll find multi-packs of many household items: double, triple, even sixtuple the normal amounts of ketch-up, coffee-filters, tampons, or whatever else you might be looking for -- often you get twice of what you need for half the price!

Today the Prof, my husband, saw an announcement that you can pre-order Roses for Valentine's Day. SPECIAL: 35 roses for $65
Who needs 35 roses? A cheating husband, of course! What a deal, we both chuckled and simultanously said that: "Perfect for the guy who has a wife AND a mistress or two!" Only at Costco...

New Year's Eve in Alaska

It's been COLD up here. But New Year's Eve does involve braving the elements if you want to watch fireworks, and that what we did. Our friends invited us to their neighborhood sledding/bonfire/fireworks party (see photos of the event here). The kids had a hoot: there was sledding down their street & driveways -a good long way - and being pulled back up the hill by 4-wheelers. The grown-ups drink wine and other libations standing around a big bonfire, and everybody was bundled up enough that you typically did not recognize them until they talked for a while. We watched a great firework display sitting/lying around in the snow. There was a heated garage to take refuge in, with hot chocolate & food.

I personally gave up on the outdoor party and headed back to our friends' house after the fireworks. The clear night sky was just amazingly beautiful: a sliver of a moon, and millions of stars, and later we saw the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) too.

I headed inside on account of cold feet, having given up my second pair of socks to my daughter who only wore one thin pair & got cold, but she just had to stay for more sledding...
I've been noticing lately that my toes just don't hold up like they used to -- maybe I need to dig out those bunny boots we bought when we lived in Fairbanks: they're the funniest looking footwear, but they work! There's an insulating layer of air to help keep your tootsies toasty.

The temperature: it was 8 below zero on the hillside where we were, and 23 below when we crossed the river on the way home, due to the inversion pooling cold air in low places. I know that's nothing if you're from Fairbanks, but for us coastal types this is a cold spell. Yeah, I know I sound like a whimp, but I'm ready for some warmer temperatures, like 20 F: now that's perfect!

Ghosts (photos) of Christmases Past

This year Eldest stayed in Montana for Christmas, and we miss her, of course! We'll be getting together with her after the New Year on a family vacation in sunny Lake Tahoe (California/Nevada). So, in the meantime, here are some photos from Christmases past.

Christmas Eve with all 3 kids. Eldest is reading the Nativity Story aloud. Looks like they already set out a treat for Santa Claus: the American tradition is to set out a plate of cookies with a glass of milk, but by the time Santa Claus makes it to Alaska, we figure he's tired of sweets and would prefers a refreshing beer (he's partial to India Pale Ale).

Our good friends from Mountainpulse always come over to join in some Christmas Cheer!

FOOD: Christmas baking at our house is heavily influenced by our respective cultural backgrounds: German and Scandinavian. But Christmas dinners are less so: no pickled herring or lutefisk at our house! Instead we've developed our own traditions based on what we like, and it so happens that we like it spicy!
On Christmas Eve (and New Year's Eve too), our family always eats Cajun Gumbo and Alaskan King Crab. It's delicious! On Christmas Day we always eat smoked turkey. We all LOVE turkey, and I think the left-overs are the best: turkey soup with dumplings, and, of course, making the next batch of spicy gumbo a couple of days after Christmas (or Thanksgiving, or Easter)...
Here Eldest is cooking the roux for a giant batch of gumbo. Of all her many talents I have to say she's a wonderful cook, quickly surpassing her parents' skills.

Here's wishing ya'll a merry Christmas, good eats and good cheer!

The violinist

Meet the young violinist. Youngest played a Minuet by J.S.Bach at the Christmas Recital a couple of days ago-- and she sounded great! She has gained so much confidence in the year and a half that she's been playing. She's just about outgrown her 3/4 size violin, so we're on the look-out for a new instrument (it's one thing when they outgrow their jeans every semester, but this one's a little pricier...)

Below are pictures from the day she first got her violin. There she is learning how to hold her instrument and bow -- so many things to concentrate on! I am just amazed at how quickly these young people are learning: it is such a JOY to watch them master new skills!

BRAVO, girl, you've come a long way!

Happy Winter Solstice!

Winter Solsctice celebrates the shortest day of the year, and we had a big celebration at the Nature Center. It was a busy day getting ready, and teaching people how to make lanterns. When it got dark, I was asked to lead the lantern parade down the trail to a great bonfire, where we sang songs, and roasted marshmallows and hot dogs. I did not get any official count, but we probably had around 150 people, which is a lot for our little Nature Center.

After 2 am tonight, our days will be getting longer again, YEAH!!!
The picture above was not taken today, but rather one month ago: one of the last times I saw the sun from our house shining through that notch -- since Thanksgiving the sun has been hiding behind those mountains. Around January 15th it will start shining through that notch again -- can't wait!!!

So for many thousands of years, people of the Northern latitudes have celebrated the return of the sun with special ceremonies: the Christmas tree tradition is one of them. Ours is looking festive, with all the lights and ornaments, and, in a rather unique touch dating from the Prof's college days: the Pink Panther with angel wings sits on top!



Here's a very German Christmas item that I brought into the family: the Rauchermaennchen (Smoking Man). He's basically an incence burner, and I inherited him from my maternal grandfather -- can you see the smoke coming out of his mouth?

The other incence burner, the Skihuette (Ski hut), I bought for my husband when we moved here: the smoke comes out of the chimney. When we burn "Tannenduft", it smells like Weihnachten in the Old Country to me!
Isn't it interesting how smells can elicit some of the oldest memories -- the smell of Frankencense incense (Weihrauch) will instantly take me back to being a child in church at High Mass on Christmas Eve.

Festivals of light in the season of darkness

My assignment for this week: making a bunch of these!


It's only one more week until Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year. We definitely celebrate that here in Alaska -- our days are so short now that people are much more atuned to day-length (or shortness, as it may be).
At home, we've got out advent wreath on the dining room table, with three candles lit tonight: only one more Sunday before Christmas. On Saturday morning, December 13th, we celebrated Santa Lucia, a tradition from Scandinavia where the oldest daughter dresses up as Santa Lucia with a wreath of candles on her head, bringing trays of baked goods. Liesl has inherited this important job when Eldest left for college, and she stayed up late with her brother the night before baking German Lebkuchen (literally "Cakes of Life"), which are basically gingerbread. They were yummy, and nevermind the mess they left in the kitchen!


Next weekend the Nature Center holds it's big SOLSTICE event, and I'll be busy getting ready this week. First, I make a ton of ice lanterns for around the building and paths (instructions follow). Then I guide craft programs making lanterns for the lantern walk: we have a procession to a big bonfire where we all sing songs, roast hot-dogs and celebrate the return of the sun.
The Lantern Walk idea was imported from Germany by our founders, who witnessed Sankt Martin's Day parades when they lived in Heidelberg.
All over the world people celebrate the season of darkness by making light, such as Hannukah or lantern festivals in China. Here's a picture from the Philippines of one the ornate Christmas lanterns I remember from living there.

Here's how I'll be spending my week making ice lanterns:
#1: The yoghurt container Method:
Fill a bunch of 32 oz containers with water and place outside. It helps if it's NICE and COLD. Right now it's hovering in the low single-digits (so for you Europeans, it's minus 15 C). Let freeze for 5 hours or so (if it's seriously below 0F you may get away with 4 hrs; at 10F will need at least 6 hrs; if it's hovering in the upper 20's, you probably need all day or night 8-10hrs). Test a couple before bringing them all inside -- if they break handling (sides are too fragile), then give them more time in the great outdoors!

I do this next step at the sink: Run some warm water to loosen ice -- then invert (TOP will become bottom of lantern) as the bottom is the weakest spot. Using a sharp kitchen knife, punch thru ice at the weak spot, then keep on widening/carving the circle until it's large enough to put a candle inside. Empty the ice-cold water, and rinse with some warm/hot water to get rid of any sharp ice protrusions.

#2 Balloon Method:
Fill birthday-party balloons with water. Stick them in a snowbank with the knot down, or else place on individual plates or bowl -- but don't let them touch. When frozen, bring a couple inside to test. Again, the weakest point is the bottom. Cut and peel off the plastic balloon, and using a sharp knife, make a hole at the bottom to drain the water.
My husband invented a great way for the next step: Heat a heavy duty pan on the stove and "melt" off the jagged edge until you have the desired sized opening.
Also, you can use pan for flattening the other end: the ice is really thick there, and you may want it flat to be able to place lantern on a level surface. Otherwise, just stick the wobbly lanterns in the snow!

HINT: If you're making a great # at a time, wear Refrigiwear gloves!