'twas a few minutes past Christmas

See, I already know that I won't finish this post until after midnight... with all the excitement, I got a late start.

What excitement, you ask?  Well, I got a bunch of sharp knives for Christmas - how's that?  It's supposed to snow tonight, so when I wake up tomorrow, there may be a decent bit of my favorite white powder on the ground.  In fact, we have a red weather advisory on weather.com, which impressed Mister enough for him to ask if we have enough food to last a couple of days.  Now I know he's delirious - even if we didn't, the city doesn't shut down for a foot of snow.  I know, because we got a lot more than that last winter and we never starved.

Just in case all that isn't exciting enough for you (really? you need more excitement than knives?), believe it or not, Santa brought me a new cookbook:

oh yes - Merry Christmas to me

My mother nearly had a heart attack when I told her the nature of the cookbook.  I did my best to avoid the D word (diet), but eventually, Mom figured it out and asked me why on earth I would want a cookbook like that when I obviously don't need to lose weight.  After promising I would eat double portions of everything I make from the book, I explained that I already own all of Isa's books and didn't want the weight-loss-oriented nature of this book to prevent it from joining its siblings on my shelf.

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and enjoyed whatever you did.  I certainly enjoyed the time I got to spend with loved ones over the last 36 hours.

The festivities began at my in-laws' home for Christmas Eve lunch.  Much laughter and food spread across the table and I didn't remember to photograph one darn plate of it.  For shame - it was as attractive as it was tasty.  We went home for a mid-afternoon "nap" and then met my parents-in-law at church for the candlelight service.

I learned something new from my FIL - "O Little Town of Bethlehem" was written in Philadelphia when a pastor, recently returned from a trip to the Holy Land, looked out over Rittenhouse Square (where the church is located) and thought it greatly resembled Bethlehem.  After church, we took advantage of the location and availed ourselves on the hospitality of Branzino, an intimate Italian BYOB about a half a block away.  We laughed and dined until 11, at which time they returned us to our humble home, landmarked by our tiny tree up in the window shining its little lights for all the people who were not wandering around our neighborhood.

After getting one of the first decent nights of sleep I've gotten in six weeks, I was still startled awake by my alarm.  Mister and I made it to the train just as it was arriving, and as we headed west, a gentle snow began to fall.  The train takes us through the Main Line of Philadelphian suburbs, so there were a few stops decorated for the holiday.

okay, it probably always looks like this, but I appreciated its red-n-greenness considering the whole Christmas color scheme

Arriving at my parents' home, I was ushered into the [2nd] living room the moment I removed my coat - they recently replaced the carpet and had it repainted.  It looks gorgeous, but especially with the 2nd Christmas tree (we've had two for years, a homey/cozy one and a more styled one), so I ran around the house snapping pictures of how pretty my mom made everything.

I'm a little sad that my piano has been relegated to that common role of displaying photos, but you have to admit, this scene could deck the pages of a home design/decor magazine.

dining room by sunlight

dining room at another angle, by "candlelight"

"the stockings were propped up against the fireplace with care"

our "real" tree, with our motley collection of ornaments

Martha Stewart, eat your heart out

Mom's Dickens Village

Of course, Angst's archnemesis was there, looking for trouble...

Coffee was brewed, muffins were eaten, presents were opened...
Wine was poured, hors d'oeuvres set out, and Mom and I made Kwanzaa Stew.
Bellies were filled, more wine was poured, and pictures...many, many pictures were snapped.  A few favorites:

pretty sister

me, Mom, sis

I think this is foreshadowing.  If you replace the recliner with a wooden rocking chair and put him on a sunny veranda somewhere, I see my dad in the future, in his retirement, rocking the Old Folks Sunglasses - you know, the ones that fit over your glasses.

In reality, he was watching something in 3D on his special new TV, just like Mom and Sis in this picture.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!