MORE CHRISTMAS PHOTOS FROM THE 25TH, STARTING WITH CHATEAU DE CHANTILLY CAFE 12-29-25

I am writing this the evening of December 29th. It's very windy now and our electricity has been going on and off for the last three hours. I expect a lot of branches have been falling onto power lines. It is 32 degrees F. (2 degrees C). We have more blessed pinecones on the deck. I thought there surely couldn't be any left after all that had dropped off our tree the last couple of months, but there are at least three or four dozen out on the deck, with more falling, and they are even larger than before. We can hear them as they hit the deck. Our pine tree sure is shaking her skirts today. When Gregg picked up the trash bin, it had blown all the way down the street.

 On a whim we decided to go out for breakfast, though it was nearer lunch. It was 55 degrees Fahrenheit (13 degrees Celsius) a nice sunny day and too good to waste being stuck indoors. 

The place was hopping but we managed to get a table in the far back. A change of scenery from our usual spot. Wall to wall books, floor to ceiling here.

The tables are tiny and a little more crowded next to each other, but we were happy to get a spot on the end of the wall. The table next to us was vacant but the threesome two tables over might as well have been sitting in our laps. They were squeezed in on the same sized table we had, two sitting at the back having dragged an extra chair over, two ladies and a gentleman. One lady was very animated, and we heard all about her family gathering over the holidays. It didn't sound like it was a happy experience, but at least she was getting things off her chest. Not long afterwards two young ladies sat in between us, giving us a bit of a buffer, and the lady telling her friends all her woes, brought her decibels down a bit. Good to have friends to get the angst out of the way. The conversation returned to normal, not that I was being a nosy parker, but it was difficult not to hear everything that was being said. We can't complain, we knew it would be busy during the lunch hour and took a chance on getting a parking spot (we only had to circle once) and were lucky to get this table. There are a lot of college kids who make use of the cafe, and I see laptops and books on several tables. I think there is a 2-hour limit from the time anyone sits down. Next time we'll go in the off-hours which we usually do.

Above you can see Gregg's choice. He always gets the Cheese Danish and coke. Mine was an individual quiche, which was a change from my usually pastry, quite tasty. Shocked to say I am very tired of sweet things after the holiday. Even my vanilla latte was too sweet. We are going back to our every-once-in-a-while treat. I will be having my one cup of black coffee in the morning and tea for the rest of the day, along with a bowl of oatmeal, dried cranberries and blueberries or a banana for breakfast, or at least my good intentions tell me. Fortunately, it is one of my favorite breakfasts.

I had a chuckle at the next photo as we drove by the house. It's trash day as you can see, a much bigger one after the holidays. Yes, she even takes photos of trash, what can I say? My first thought was I bet somebody's mom is happy the old drum set had been put out to pasture and can give their ears a rest. My second thought was maybe a new, much bigger set had been acquired, maybe he is in a school band. This looked in pretty good shape. I hope somewhere here and between the trash place there will be a lucky child who will get a newish drum set. 

The rest of this post will be from Christmas Day.

A lovely ceramic Christmas Tree is a gift from our son and daughter-in-law, with a close-up of the tiny glowing cardinals below.

They also gave me this adorable glass teddy bear. 

The snowman is last year's gift from them.  You may have something like it as it is on a timer and comes on in the evening and shuts off before going to bed. It gives off a lovely warm glow, with little sparkly things floating around inside.

Son is a fun selfie taker. We usually take a lot more but dinner was ready and waiting and everyone had their appetite, but first....

this is us trying to sort out the Yorkshire Pudding. What can I say, I've been having trouble the last few Christmases and I was keeping my fingers crossed.

Let's just say it wasn’t a complete disaster…

but it didn't rise as nicely as last year when it sprang so high it had a fight with the top heating element. A nice thick pancake anyone? It actually tasted pretty good, but I think I have a mental block about Yorkshire Pudding now. Big mistake this time was my anxiety about burning the dang thing, and I not only lowered the rack - which was a good thing - but also lowered the heat during the process - bad thing -  plus we may have opened up the door too early. C'est la vie! I intend to get a lot of practice before next year's Christmas Dinner. Any tips out there will be gratefully appreciated.

The flowers Gregg gave me for our 50th Wedding Anniversary were still hanging in there, so I decided to keep them on display. The empty dishes will soon be filled with our meal. We had Roast Beef and Denise's new-style of flat, thick but tasty and what the heck pancake, Brown Gravy, Roasted Potatoes, asparagus and carrots. 

Another of our traditions growing up was the Yule Log but on special occasions we usually serve pumpkin pie and cherry pie with vanilla ice-cream or whipped cream or both.

That taller snowman is in three parts, bottom two contain the salt and pepper shaker, the top hat is a hollow container for mustard. This time he's just there for decoration. The two smaller snowmen to his right are a regular salt and pepper set. A few nibbles beforehand in a dish I found more years ago than I can remember, and in the photo after this one, there is a small dish in the shape of a sunflower that I use for dips. It has a sunflower handle on the spoon. Another gift from my darlings for a birthday last year.

One more shot of the kitchen table which we used buffet style once dishes were filled and sorry to say I forgot to take photos of our meal because well, I was still thinking of the blessed Yorkshire Pud!

Here is the table from the other end.

One more of the table set up in the dining room. I'm glad several of you said that you liked it. I had a hard time finding matching sets. During that good tidy-up session earlier in the year, I had tidied things into oblivion. Moving along, since childhood, I have always had the tradition of Christmas Crackers at each place setting, and I carried this on after marriage. My son loved them as a child and he still indulges me now, as does our sweet daughter-in-law and husband of course. I think they actually enjoy them. So, we sit down, pull the tapes in each end and wear on our heads our paper 'crowns' that fall out of the cracker. Little trinkets scatter on the table, an actual mini grater, spoon, I forget what else, and we read the funny jokes/facts inserted in each one as we start our meal. You can read the history of Christmas Crackers at this link. There is also a website that shows you how to make your own here. Pulling the crackers is a little tame now. When I was young, with each cracker pull, there was a flash and a bang where you felt your fingers singe a little bit. In my memory of it all anyhow but I still remember the heat on my fingers.

The painting on the wall (a closer look can be seen below), is of a Tudor house I used to walk by while in Worcester (UK). My dear other half had put out to sea for six months. I often went home to visit my parents, sister and brother-in-law on these deployments. This is before our son joined us. My niece was born much later when they lived in Scandinavia. I had passed by the house for many years on previous visits, from the age of 18, and it fascinated me, always loving the Tudor style. I noticed a shop had opened across the street on this particular visit, with a painting of the same house in their window. In I went as though drawn by a siren song. The owner of the shop was a very nice gentleman. He was also the artist and very happy to get his painting out of the window display.

This is the last of the rambles and photos from Christmas. 

Thanks for being such great friends throughout the past year, and if I am not able to visit before the end of this one, I would like to wish you all...

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE POST - POACHED EGGS ON NAAN BREAD AND THOUGHTS OF GREAT-AUNT GERTRUDE

I have not thought about my Great-Aunt Gertrude in a long time. The last I ever saw her I was about seven, maybe eight. Funny how finding an old recipe will do that (this is another from my old blog). Naan bread of all things (in both bread and aunty, there was the connection). Her face popped into my head when at the store and on a whim and I picked up a packet of the bread. Story on Aunt Gertrude later, which will be written for our son as I don't think I have told him about her before. If I did it was a long time ago. And maybe you will find it interesting too. If you don't you can skip through of course.

I published this originally in 2008 and this is what I wrote:

So, here's brunch with my companion Great-Aunt Gertrude, at least in retelling the story to Gregg as we ate our lunch and repeating what my mother told me when I was young.  

But first, no recipe link. I had seen enough of this type of thing online and tweaked it a bit to suit our own tastes. 

I covered the bread with grated Cheddar cheese, and on top of the cheese, next came sautéed onions. These I had done in a little olive oil until transparent. I sliced tomatoes, which I didn't precook, and those went over the onions. (Next time I will add additional grated cheese over everything.) It went under the broiler until the cheese had melted and was golden, and the bread toasty. 

At the same time, I cooked the poached eggs, placing them carefully into low-simmering water. The last step was to place them on the loaded naan bread. I timed everything so that they were ready at the same time.

Our naan breads were large enough for two people. I cut one in half and it made a very satisfying breakfast for both of us.

I am also adding the following since publishing my post, as I have a keen interest on the history of food. I looked it up on Google and this is what popped up.

“The term “naan” comes from Persia, and ancient bread-making on hot pebbles (sangak) in Persia likely influenced its development.

It arrived in the Indian subcontinent with the Delhi Sultans and Mughals, who introduced the tandoor door oven method.

During the Mughal era (1520s onwards), naan was a special breakfast for the elite, served with keema or kebabs.

The first recorded mention in India is from 1300 AD by Indo-Persian poet Amir Khusrau, who described light (naan-e-tunuk) and heavy (naan-e-tanuri) versions cooked in tandoors.

Through trade, conquest and migration, naan spread from Central Asia and Iran to Afghanistan, Myanmar and eventually the West, becoming a universal favorite.”

If you have a question about this, let me know in the comments and I'll do my best to answer.

Now for the story of my Great Aunt. I asked AI to put together a watercolor of a photograph I remember my mother showing me many times. The photo was very old even back then. It has long since been lost. I have no idea where it went but it gave me some comfort and another connection to recompose it in a watercolor-style. The likenesses were off obviously, but it is darned near close to what I could remember of the setting.

So, this is a story to honor my Great-Aunt Gertude and two little boys whom she grew to love as if they were her own sons. 

She was my mother's aunt, her mother's sister. She passed away when I was in my early teens, and my memories of her are of a very nice lady who always had a ready smile for my sister and me, and always a kind word for my mother. Mother in fact loved her. Great-Aunt was a widow, husband long gone, who had no children of her own.

She and her husband spent many years in India. His work was something to do with the railroads. I vividly remember this fabulous old photograph of my mother's aunt. Mum pulled it out of a large box quite often when looking through old photos. Her aunt was sitting in one of those wickerwork peacock chairs, tropical palms in the background and two young Indian boys on each side of her. There was the most contented smile on her face and lovely smiles on those handsome young children. This I noticed when I was a little girl, and the thought stays with me still. The photo is long gone, and I have always wondered where it disappeared to as I would love to have it now, but my memory will be my photo. The idea for this 'watercolor' came to me as a curiosity to see what could be created more than anything.

My Mother told me a little of Great-Aunt Gertrude's story, and it was that she loved these little boys dearly, as if they were her own sons. She wanted to adopt them and bring them back to England when it was time for them to leave, but this was never meant to be and she was broken-hearted when she left them behind. I know nothing more about their time in India.

Years later, when Mum thought me old enough to know of such things, she told me that Great-Aunt Gertrude's husband, before I was born, had been murdered. I remember being very shocked and there are a few details I won't go into here, but I remember feeling sad for her all over again. They never did find the culprit. 

On our visits to see my nanny (mother's mother), nanny's sister would invariably be there, ready with a piece of toffee to give me. She had a gentle touch, a quiet voice and a sweet smile. That's all I can remember about my Great Aunt Gertrude.

Thanks for 'listening' and for visiting. I hope your week is an excellent one.

A BIG THANK YOU...

 Firstly, I wanted to thank you my very dear blogging friends, for all your very sweet comments, and those from family and friends here and across the pond, on our 50th Anniversary. Gregg and I appreciated that more than we can put into words. It added to a very special day for us. Gregg was needed out of town for a few days and I didn't expect him home, but thanks to two very special people, they made sure we could spend most of the day together. Those very special people also sent us some beautiful flowers which I will share when they bloom. Heart is full at their kindness. 

 Above you can see part of a bouquet that Gregg had in hand when he walked through the door. I told him that Peruvian Lilies were in the first bouquet he ever bought home after we were married. I had never seen them before and have loved them ever since. He said, "Of course, I remembered that! Well, let's just say I remembered that." We had a chuckle of course. 50 years is a long time to remember such things, but I did and yes, another chuckle, as he often says where my emotions are concerned, I have a memory like a laser. True! I just read him this paragraph, "100 percent true!" he said with emphasis, and with yet another chuckle. Personally I believe it's a girl thing.

Our son and daughter-in-law were coming over to keep me company that evening, and when they found that Dad was coming home early and would be with us, we told them to go ahead with what we had originally planned. They treated us to a wonderful selection of Empanadas from one of their local eateries. I was asked if I would like to try them as it was a new food to me. I've heard of them and was not disappointed. The above photo he sent me to let me know they were on their way. The empanadas were wonderful, and we had such a fun time.

So that was our 50th Wedding Anniversary. The following photos are what we took on the 18th, when we were out and about. And here you go, my first doggy fix of the week!

As we were driving along, Gregg said to me, "Get your phone ready!" I wondered what was up. He had seen this little cutie a few cars ahead of us, changed lanes (no traffic coming up behind us) so that I would get a good view. As we went by, I was able to take a photo. We were just starting off on our journey heading out to run some errands and, lo and behold, when we were driving home, and as we turned left at the traffic light, who should pass us as they headed straight, was this little dog again, still with its head out the window. An hour had gone by since we had first seen cutie here. How about that for the strangest coincidence? I didn't get a photo that time but cropped the one from above for a closer look.

We stopped at the drive-thru coffee shop and this mysteriously made its way into my hand. He may be making another appearance in a day or so.

Next a photo taken while driving home through the neighborhood.

I am finishing off with two photos Gregg just found while on his iPad. These popped up and I asked him to send them to me so that I could share them again. This blog is getting so old that I seem to keep doing that, don't I? The photo was taken about 10 years ago (just guessing but it seems a long time ago). We were on vacation, and I had it put on an ornament.

The last one is of an old-fashioned Santa that I cut out of wood with my bandsaw (a birthday gift from husband I kid you not, and actually asked for). We used to joke that other people were asking their husbands for jewelry and there I was, asking for a bandsaw and a sander, and other things that I needed. In my craft show days, I used to buy several sheets of balsa wood and have the wood company cut them into 1-foot squares, so that I could more easily trace designs on them and cut them out. 

As I got older Gregg asked me to get rid of it, and the sander, which was on a stand. My hands and especially my fingers were not as steady as they used to be and cramped easily, and he feared for my fingers, lol! (I was also having difficulty holding a paintbrush.) In all those years I had never had any mishaps but he saw the writing on the wall. 

I had quite a cottage industry going for about 15 years. To add to the fun I took painting lessons and met lots of good people. It was a fun time selling all my ornaments at the many craft shows I participated in, not just ornaments but things like four-foot Santas and Angels on stands. The painting was my favorite part, seeing them come together, but I didn't mind cutting and sanding either. 

I had grown up with my Dad who was a hobbyist carpenter. His full-time job could be very stressful at times, and this was a great way for him to destress. I think wood dust was in my veins from an early age as I used to help Dad a lot, and I have always loved things made out of wood. His were things like tables and chairs, and when they bought a caravan for visits up to the Midlands to visit with relatives, he built bunk beds for it. 

One of his favorite things he made for family and friends were bird houses on a stand. He used to give those away as gifts. We knew a lot of people who were birders before we knew what the term meant. Us too as we were always checking to see which feathered friend landed in our garden. Living near the ocean as we did, we would get a lot of gulls by the dozens flying in.

These, as you can see, are great memories for me. Something I think more and more about these days. I can almost see my Dad smiling as I joined him in the garage. He was always grateful for the interest and help with his projects, and I used to get him things he needed, plus a very important cup of tea when Mum shouted she had put the kettle on and yelled that it was ready through the window. To this day, I still enjoy watching YouTube videos of how things are made out of wood, from log cabins to the smallest of projects. Dad started it all and I believe his father was the same.

This has turned into another ramble. I will end by saying I hope you have a wonderful day and thanks so much for dropping by and sticking with me through to the end of my waffling.

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - I HAVE NO SPECIAL TALENTS EINSTEIN SAID...

“I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”

~Albert Einstein~

(Picture from pixabay.com)

A few memories about Albert, and this is a bit of a ramble heads-up! The following is from an old blog post I wrote when we visited his statue in Washington DC. It is word for word from one dated in March 2009, and I had one of those 'good grief' moments when I read it. I am beginning to wonder if my earlier mishaps are revisiting me later in life. We went into the city a lot more often than we do now.

"When I was browsing through old photo folders, I found these. I haven't visited Albert's statue in several years but often see the top of his head over the hedge on our drive out of Washington DC on our way home. I told Gregg I think I am ready to go back. 

Remember my other persona, Clara Clutz? Last time I visited Albert I tripped up one of those steps and hit my shin bone so hard I can still feel the dent to this day. I hobbled around for months, and it took over a year before I could kneel down without wincing. It literally has been years since we've visited Albert. There have been other places I have not suggested going back to, not wanting to draw attention to the fact that I can be a complete nervous nelly remembering places and incidents that have caused me great pain. Anyhow, I've just told Gregg we should visit as it is truly a marvelous statue.”

Present day now but I am still looking back as another memory was when we watched two rollerbladers swoop in to see the statue, but they were coming in way too fast. In that slow motion effect about 20 feet away - I couldn't believe what was happening, especially as I hadn't long had my mishap and was still gaining my equilibrium - one of the rollerbladers caught a foot on a crack in the concrete and did a somersault landing several feet away. They were young and fortunately for him, it seemed he was none the worse for his mishap, a lot of bruises that night no doubt. Fortunately they were wearing helmet, elbow and knee pads. I was happy about that and also very happy to get out of there! 

This post started yet another conversation with my dear other half as the story doesn't stop there. We crossed the street and were walking back to our car, I was hobbling and going a lot slower than normal, staring down at my feet as I didn't want to trip over anything else. A young man on a bicycle rode by us and as I looked up, a few feet ahead of us, his tire slid on some dust and gravel, and down he went. He had a bloody knee. We asked him if he was okay, did he need any help? He was okay he said and grabbed something out of his backpack to dab on his knee, looked at his bike which was still ridable, and off he went. Gregg and I looked at each other and even he rolled his eyes that day.

And what a day it was! We had warm weather and a beautiful blue sky and mishaps galore, or at least three of them.  I remember putting a bag of ice on my sore spot that night and a slow recovery process followed.

Well, it was worth it to see Albert. I suppose I can say this all these years later. It is such a beautiful statue sculpted by Robert Berks and is on the grounds of the National Academy of Science. You will often see a line of people waiting their turn to sit on his lap for their photograph. We were lucky, I wouldn't sit on the statue itself but had been trying to sit on the step after the last couple left and that's when it happened. But, if you ever get the chance go visit him, do - but be careful of those steps! I think he must still be there, though I haven't been into DC for a very long time, or even traveled up the road where we could see the top of his head. These photos were before digital and were taken with a little point and shoot camera.

The following I read online: “In his left hand, he holds a paper with mathematical equations summarizing three of Einstein's most important scientific contributions: the photoelectric effect, the theory of general relativity, and the equivalence of energy and matter. If you follow his gaze, you will see he is looking down at the ground at a star map which is at the statue's base. It is a 28-foot field of emerald pearl granite from Larvik, Norway, and is embedded with more than 2,700 metal studs representing the planets, sun, moon, stars, and other celestial objects accurately positioned by astronomers from the U.S. Naval Observatory as they were on the dedication date.”

Here are some Einstein quotes.

"I never think of the future. It comes soon enough."

"Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding."

"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."

"Look deep, deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better."

"I am content in my later years. I have kept my good humor and take neither myself nor the next person seriously."

My photos don’t do the statue justice, but there are great ones to look at if you go to this link. 

When I reread my post, I can say I am still retaining my good humor, though perhaps once again rolling my eyes. I wonder if the rollerblader remembers how he came a cropper that day, or the man on the bike?

(picture from pixabay.com)

Thanks for looking, have a great Sunday and week ahead.