Rathbone: Eggs for Hatching, Eggs for Eating, Eggs, Eggs, Eggs

[rathbone]

I am getting sentimental. Well I have always been sentimental but it is getting worse every year. I will assume that is age creeping up on me and vesting every moment with my family with some special kind of glow.
Thanksgiving was all I could imagine it to be:
We made homemade bread (several times because we couldn't stop eating it) and taught the little boys how to braid the dough to make fancy rolls. We made caramel rolls for breakfast and husband made lots of salsa. We woke up in the mornings and piled into the beds together and took turns reading to the boys - and listening to the boys read to us. (we all co-sleep so there is one big bedroom with no dressers -just lots of beds) Amarante is just now learning to read and we all patiently listened to "I see. I see Sam." over and over. Armando read a chapter of Spiderwick to us each day. We threw the boys outside to play on their scooters (weather is in the high 70's) while the girls and I sewed together. (that translates to me sewing and them sitting and talking to me). We made up a lot of fancy toilet cloths for Tatiana now that she has purchased her very own home.

Now if only my family cloth were so color coordinated.
While everyone was out doing that black friday thing, we butchered a few roosters and made a huge pot of chicken mole. We played board games like candyland and operation. We played a lot of cards - a lot of go fish with the little men. We danced and sang to old favorites. My husband just shook his head and headed out to do something under the hood of a car. We made campfires and toasted marshmallows. We played frisbee. We laughed and laughed and laughed.
Oh yes, and we ate the requisite turkey too. I guess that makes Thanksgiving complete.

Armando learning to braid cinnamon rolls and shaking his buns to "tangerine speedo".

cinnamon rolls with caramel sauce

 

[kstaven]

One of the smells that always greeted me walking into my grandmothers house was cinnamon rolls.

She taught all the boys in the family to bake.

 

[justusnak]

Wow, your description of your day made me all sentimental. What a wonderful day you all had.

 

[FarmerChick]

The day sounds wonderful.

 

[Marianne]

Yes it does!

When my mother baked bread, there was always a pan of cinnamon rolls. None of us kids strayed too far away from the kitchen when you smelled them baking.

I understand the sentimentality...I'm using my grandmother's crystal sugar bowl now. I think of her every time I take the lid off of it.

I never saw braided cinnamon rolls before! Gorgeous!

 

[Lesa]

What lovely memories you are building. Sounds like a perfect Thanksgiving!

 

[lorihadams]

So sweet!!!

 

[rathbone]

I haven't posted in so long. Which isn't to say that nothing has happened but rather the opposite, that so much has happened there isn't time to write.
We have been busy with the daily ongoings. I look around me and everyone is so busy preparing for Christmas. I find I have done almost the opposite. I haven't decorated the house overly much. We decided to go with a natural look this year. We did put up the tree. And I have tried to make time most evenings for the boys to do some decorating. We tried stringing popcorn but the boys crushed the popcorn trying to thread it. We ended up stringing old dry mini-marshmallows and cranberrys and raisins. I think it turned out lovely. We also glued and glittered pine cones. Sadly, one child is not happy with "natural". He keeps saying over and over that these are not "real" decorations. For him it is lights and plastic or nothing. Well he is stuck with "natural" this year. Little stinker!
My husband did put up one string of lights on the front of the house. I adore them. I love coming home and seeing those blue bits of light.
There is no money for gifts this year. I am still adjusting to it.
Happily one of the first things on my self sufficient list this year was to learn to can. I knew ahead of time I wouldn't be able to buy gifts so we had bought fruit when it was on sale and made jams. I am so happy. We took jars of jams around as gifts. They were well received. We have also made a lot of bread and cinnamon rolls to give away. And people seem to have loved it. So yes, happy on that part of the gift giving.
The most exciting things that are happening in my world are boys reading books. My older son (age 6) is reading quite well now. We do have him read in English but mostly we focus on Spanish. He has now finished his first chapter book (El Caballero del Alba - a magic treehouse book). He found it boring. So I rumaged through what we have on hand in Spanish and found Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Happily - he is very excited about it. We are now on chapter 12, and he literally rubs his hands together when I pull the book out. It is interesting to read in that it is written in Castilian Spanish (meaning Spanish from Spain). The word choice is a bit different than Mexican Spanish and they use a whole tense (vosotros) that Mexican Spanish does not use.
My other son (age 5) is just learning to read. I think it is too much to expect that he learn to read in two languages at once so for now he reads in English only and we will introduce the Spanish probably this summer while he is on break from school. For now he is working his way through "See Sam. I see, I see. I see said Sam." And I love every minute of it.
Me? I am reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I like it. Don't love it but it is good enough. Very interesting to hear the history of the Island of Guernsey during the war. I love reading about people going through hardship and prevailing. Gives me strength to do what I need to and puts my very comfortable life back into perspective.
And you? What is new in your life?

 

[SSDreamin]

Love the idea of natural decorations! Our Christmas decorations are buried in the far corner of the garage (they were the first things moved - in August - who knew it would take so long to get in here? ) so we are going with an extremely minimal theme this year. I put a red candle on the mantle, beside the 'permanent' stuff, and DH said I was going a little overboard I did manage to fish out the wreath for the front door, so we don't completely look like scrooge from the outside!

Blue lights are my favorite! We were driving home the other night and passed a house completely done up in blue lights outside. It was so pretty!

I had a horrible time with Spanish in school. My teacher at my first school was from Spain, and I got all A's. In my second school (in Texas), they taught what they referred to as Tex-Mex Spanish. I was completely lost, and finished out the year with D's!! I was very frustrated by the end of the year. Now, after twelve years in Texas and a year of 'formal' learning, all I can remember are a bunch of swear words and basic get-by phrases!

 

[Homemaker]

Happily one of the first things on my self sufficient list this year was to learn to can. I knew ahead of time I wouldn't be able to buy gifts so we had bought fruit when it was on sale and made jams. I am so happy. We took jars of jams around as gifts. They were well received. We have also made a lot of bread and cinnamon rolls to give away. And people seem to have loved it. So yes, happy on that part of the gift giving.

That is great isn't it?! I love being able to feed people I love too.

I love that you are a family full of readers. I hope that I can raise my daughter to love books too. I love that you are able to teach your children both spanish and english. I would love to learn a second language.