Christmas Past

Christmas Eve~ 1968

I was just a few months shy of being 3 years old.

 

 

When I was growing up, one of my favorite Christmas traditions was lighting candles on Christmas Eve.

 

Do you remember the Gurley candles?

 



There were Santas and snowmen,

Christmas trees and reindeer

I think the Christmas carolers were my favorites!

My mom had a set of 3 carolers (2 boys & a girl) and a lamp post. I loved those little candles!

 

On Christmas Eve, my 2 brothers and I would each have a candle. We would sit them in a jar lid to contain the wax. We would listen to Christmas music & watch for Santa's sleigh as the candles burned. When the candles burned out, that was our signal that it was time to go to bed.

Those little candles burned pretty quickly too!

We have a family Christmas party on Christmas Eve with Rick's family, so we haven't been able to carry on this tradition. We do it occasionally though. When we were in Arizona, I bought a really big Santa candle & we burned it every year. I think I'll pull him out this year...a little nostalgia sounds good to me!

 

We also had an "Elf on the Shelf" before they were the in thing.

During the 50's & 60's small red (or green) felt, knee-hugger elf ornaments were popular.

We had one and he would always show up the beginning of December. It was always fun to find him every year. He didn't move once he came to visit, but he kept a watchful eye on us all season long.

My kids are older, so we haven't joined the Elf on a Shelf craze, but we do have a couple of elves that I put out each year...to keep a watchful eye & jot down if we are on the Naughty or Nice list. :)

 

 

I love traditions~ All the little moments that make the Holidays extra special!

Just a Little Catch Up Post

Well...this is what it looks like at my house today. (This is my backyard! Pretty, huh?)

It's been snowing all day~ and we were without power for about 3 hours this morning. Luckily, we were at church...and our church has a generator backup.

(Is it just me, or has Mother Nature been a little Bi-Polar this year? Bi-Polar...get it?)

 I'm okay with the snow though, because this post is about *shhh... Christmas! *shhh...

Thankfully, I was not sick for Christmas this year. In pain, but not sick! :)

I was more organized than I have been the last couple of years~ but I had a lot of projects going on...so it was a busy year. So busy in fact, that on Christmas morning when all was said and done, I found myself thinking, "That's it? All that work, and that's it?" :)

Here are 2 of the projects that I was working on:

First, microwave heat packs. We have one of these that my mom made for us several years ago. My kids all fight over who gets to use it. So I came up with the idea to make everyone one of their own!

Brilliant idea, if I do say so myself!

I used flannel, and had so much fun looking for different patterns for each family member.

They are filled with field corn~ I prefer the corn over the rice filled ones.

These were a big hit! And they have been well used at our house!

Project # 2:

We had family pictures taken in 2010 and I still hadn't gotten them developed. So I made a set of these for each of the kids.

I love the collage!

 Rick & Emily had a similar idea and had a large family picture developed and framed for me! I'm still trying to decide where I want to hang it~ but I love it!!!

Here's a picture from Christmas morning. Apparently after the stockings were nabbed.

It was a fun Christmas!

We did our Treasure Hunt tradition of Santa hiding one present for each of the kids, and then leaving the first clue in their stocking. 

Shane asked for more difficult clues this year.

And one of the boys (not Shane) had a complete emotional melt down over his clues. It's funny that the kids have such a hard time figuring out their own clues, but are able to figure out their sibling's clues pretty easily.  This is the first year we've had one of the kids have a complete emotional breakdown though... I guess there is a first time for everything. :)

Another tradition that we have in our family is the Jackson family party on Christmas Eve.

I took this Christmas Carols to play. Originally I was going to do "Minute to Win It" but ran out of time (ha ha) to get it pulled together. I already had the Christmas Carols game~ but it ended up being a lot of fun!!! My mother-in-law always ends the evening by telling her "Christmas Star" story~ which she has been telling every Christmas Eve for probably 40+ years.

This is the last project I want to share:

Emily made this beautiful Advent Board for me!

I love it!!!

I need to get a big easel so I can display it next year.

Each of the date squares has a different picture of the Savior on the back, so each day you turn the square over to display the picture of the Savior.

It's really pretty~ and such a nice visual reminder of the Reason we celebrate Christmas.

(I've also seen another version that is done with family pictures and the wording at the top is "Tis the Season for Family~ also a really great idea!)

I've seen a few of these online, but not many. If you want more details (measurements, instructions) just let me know~ I'd be happy to share.

And finally:

A view of the front yard.

This is My. Front. Yard.

Snow is still falling. Hopefully Emily will be able to make it down the hill tonight!

I now return you to your regularly scheduled FEBRUARY!



Love Rolls, A Family Tradition

See that yummy goodness? This is a "secret" family recipe that has been passed down in my husband's family for six generations. So, at the peril of my life...I'm going to blog about it!


First, a little history. Rick's grandmother taught me how to make these. She learned to make them from her grandmother. A written recipe never existed. My mother in law tried to write it down years ago, and put the recipe in a ward cookbook! Her children were very upset with her! After all, it is a secret! Hence the "peril of my life" statement!


Several years ago, I asked Grandma to teach me how to make them, and she agreed. I wrote the recipe down as she made them. The interesting thing is, another sister-in-law did the same thing...and we both have slightly different recipes. Mine has cinnamon, hers does not. Grandma told us both that our recipes were "authentic". I think Grandma just threw in whatever struck her fancy! :)


As far as we know, no one else makes these, and Rick's family is the only branch of the family tree that makes them, with the exception of a couple of cousins.


I do not know when or where the recipe actually originated. And since Grandma has passed away I don't know all those details.


From my notes, I have that Grandma Clay learned to make them from her Grandmother, Missouri Clay Browning. Missouri Clay was born in 1855 and died in 1936. She and her family joined the LDS Church in 1892 and shortly thereafter, she moved with her husband and 6 boys to Utah. Grandpa's first wife died from complications of childbirth, leaving 6 small boys. Missouri Clay raised them and bore 4 of her own children after migrating to Utah. That is just a very brief overview of her history. She is a fascinating woman and I can't wait to meet her!


Now, on to the recipe...


The dough is simply a baking powder biscuit dough with some sugar added.
Here I have stirred together flour, baking powder, cream of tartar, sugar and a little salt.

Then add the shortening.

Cut the shortening into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Add the milk

And stir with a fork until until a ball is formed

Turn the dough onto a floured surface, and roll into a rectangle, about 1/2 an inch thick.

Spread the dough with softened butter and sprinkle sugar, cinnamon and a little nutmeg on top.

Then roll the dough up

And cut into about 2 inch slices (just like you would do cinnamon rolls).

Meanwhile, throw the sauce together. Heat water, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a pan, and boil for 5 minutes. Originally this step was done in a 9x13 pan on the stove-top and after the biscuits were added the full pan was transferred to the oven. After a few mishaps, we adapted the method to be a little easier and a little safer!

(Did you know boiling sugary water causes 3rd degree burns if you drop a pan and it pours all over your feet? Take my word for it, it does!)

Now, put a 9x13 pan in the oven, and pour the syrup in the pan. The pan will be a little more than half full.

Plop the rolls into the sauce. I usually get 12 plus a few extra...

Bake for about 1/2 an hour (15 minutes at 400 degrees, then 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees).
The sauce will thicken as it cooks, and the rolls will be a nice golden brown on top.

Oh, yum!

You want to serve them warm, right out of the oven. A pan seldom lasts too long around here!

All that sauce in the bottom of the pan? Go ahead and spoon some over the rolls. Be generous!

You can add a splash of milk or even half and half if you like.

Oh my...these are so good!

And you can't really tell from this picture, but as an added bonus, some of the sauce spilled over in to the bottom of the oven (it always does) and it caught on fire!!! How thrilling! Good thing the rolls were already done and on the counter!

*This is the first time I have ever made these by myself. Rick and I have always made them together, I do the sauce and he does the dough. The boys said I "did good".

Love Rolls

Dough

4 cups flour

6 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cream of tartar (optional)

1 tsp. salt

6 Tbs. sugar

1 cup shortening

1 1/3 cups milk

Softened butter, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg

Stir together flour, baking powder, cream of tartar, salt and sugar. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add milk all at once, stir until dough begins to form a ball. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Roll dough 1/2 inch thick. Sread with softened butter and sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg (no measurements, but be generous with the sugar and cinnamon and go easy on the nutmeg or it can be overpowering).

Roll dough up and slice into 1-2 inch slices.

Sauce

6 cups water

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 +1/8 tsp. nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirrring ocassionally. Boil for 5 minutes.

Place a 9x13 pan in the oven. Carefully pour sauce in to the pan. Gently drop rolls in to the sauce.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 375 and bake an additional 15-20 minutes or until rolls are golden brown and sauce is thickened.

Serve warm, topped with sauce. May top with milk or cream if desired.

Makes approximately 12 rolls

*If you make a bigger batch, do not double the sauce. It has to be made in individual batches or it doesn't set up properly.