Sad To See It End
09 Dec 2010 2 Comments
in family Tags: candles, Channukah, festival
Today concludes the festive season of the Feast of Dedication, otherwise known as Channukah.
We lit the last candles last night with regret. I love the brilliant flare of their joyous glow. When that many slender sticks of fire are lit in one area, the amount of light they produce is astounding. And of course I took pictures of most of those Channukiahs over the past few days.
In light of the waning lights of Channukah, it submit these reflections of holiday cheer.
Please note how the increase in radiance as we progress.
Not to mention the decreasing amount of daylight as we move through the week.
And please disregard the warped candles. These came through the mail from Israel and encountered some unusual heat on their journey.
The glow is growing.
Just love how they radiate a soft light and all. The entire kitchen is illuminated. Ahhhhh.
And of course, we have the last night.
Again, the wonky candles, but that’s what makes it our own. Just love the uniqueness of it all. We used to have three of these going at once when the older son lived at home. Every child had to light their own candles. That was half the fun of Channukah.
Today, the last day of the festival, I remember all the incredible victories in my life that occurred during this season. They are so life changing and character building that I stand amazed in their wake.
My first marriage came to an end at this time. Though that might be a terrible tragedy at the time, in the broad scheme of my life, it was a Godsend and set me free.
My second marriage began to bloom at this time fifteen years ago.
I started writing two years ago.
Just a couple bigger than life highlights. Many smaller miracles and accomplishments fall in between those.
I’d love to hear of the wonderful happenings in your life, if you’d like to share.
This is my little piece of heaven.
Love,
Jeannene
The First Night of Channukah
01 Dec 2010 7 Comments
in family, food Tags: Channukah
Greetings from this little piece of heaven. Yes, it does still exist and I am alive and kicking.
Today is the first day after the end of the Nanwrimo challenge and my head is reeling from not writing. I was 3500 words short of the 50K. I could not get those last words in, but it didn’t matter. I learned a ton about writing this month and lot about myself. The adventure was so worth the effort. Today I took care of family business and I baked and cooked. Therapy from the onslaught of plot bunnies and words.
There is nothing more cathartic than spending time creating things you can stuff into your mouth. Very satisfying.
In honor of Channukah tonight, I made some of my kids favorite cookies. They are your run of the mill Spritz cookies. Spritz is a basic butter cookie.
These are the players…. Oh.. that egg is out of one of my chickens.
Just the basics as you can see.
Mix the 1c butter with a half cup sugar.
Add 1 tsp vanilla and the egg.
Mix it all together.
Add a cup of flour.
And mix it up. Dough will be firm.
For the next step you will need a cookie press, hence the name Spritz (German for press).
Select one of those discs and surprise yourself with the pattern. The shape morphs into an uncommonly good looking cookie.
Now it is time to decorate the bland dough with bright granules of sugar or other intriguing pieces of candy.
Put them in the oven at 400 degrees for 9 minutes and voila!!
And then we have the final result. Tasty and satisfying.
Happy Channukah from my little piece of heaven.
Love,
Jeannene
What do you think?