Advent updates

Life is rich and full of advent here in Enoughsville. We've made our usual advent calendar, in which we can peel off the flaps over each day to discover a pre-Christmas fun activity (sometimes a fun chore).

This year's Advent calendar goes to December 26, 
because of family travels.

Early in the week -- I guess technically it was last week -- we made Springerle.  We use the molds I got from my uncle, who got them from his mom (my Nana), who got them from a mother-in-law, we think.  And so I love that my own children and grandchildren are learning to use these.  To make the cookies, first you spread flour on the clean table . . . 

Well done, bakers!

. . . and then you roll the dough with a wooden rolling pin my sister made me . . . 

Just like that!

And then you press the dough with molds to make beautiful shapes.

After we cut the dough into cookie-sized pieces and let it dry over night, we bake it the next day.  This year's batch of Springerle is done!

In the middle of the week, we got to see White Christmas at our local theater.  Our local theater, I have to say, is amazing.  From the fabulous winter display outside, . . . 

The animal statues move their heads slowly;
Achild and Kinderling are entranced!

. . . to the beautiful lobby, fantastic sets, and amazing singers and dancers, it was a magical night.  This was Achild's second real theater production (her first was Cinderella a while back), and she's doing a great job of learning to sit still.   Admittedly, this was a great show for a seven-year old (tap dancing on top of pianos!).  Afterward, I asked her if she had a favorite part.  "Yes!"   What was it?  "Everything!"

And then, toward the end of the week, we got more family/theater time, when Achild had a ballet recital.  

This was as adorable as you might imagine it would be: very small children in very fancy costumes up on a stage.  Inkling and I were very much impressed by the child-wranglers who ushered the dancers int to the right spots on stage, who performed the dance themselves so that the children who happened to be paying attention could follow along.  Every once in a while there would be part of a dance that all the children remembered and they would jump up and down (or swing their foot, or wave their hands) in unison, and then would immediately revert to a bunch of kids on stage doing random movements (or lack thereof) while very cheery music played.   Definitely a worthwhile experience,  if for no other reason than to make me appreciate the dancing I see at our local theater all the more.  

In news from other family members, my guy has been having a lovely time south of the equator, listening to the song "White Christmas" while walking around in 78°F weather, and observing the enthusiasm followed by quiet stoicism of Brazilians as they played themselves out of the World Cup.  

Although the newspaper is full of scary updates about Haiti (the latest I read: "Gangs control 60% of the capital city"), Xavier seems to be finding his way, thank goodness.  In a recent chat with me, he wrote, "it's getting cold here too and things are getting a little calm."

Nelson is very, very close to moving into his long-awaited new group home. It's quite possible that next week, we'll have an update on that! I'm so excited.  In further evidence that this young man is my son, when I asked what he might need for the new space, he suggested a white board with a calendar.  (The white board is not like his mom, but the scheduling aspect of it definitely is.)

And Inkling has not only been my faithful theater companion, but she's also keeping me on my toes at Boggle.  Two weeks ago, she routed me in the final round with "ponder" and "ponders".  This past week, we tied at 16 and then 27, except then she looked up "ropy' which is -- apparently -- a real word (darn it) and sped past me, 29-27.  Dang it.

And that's the news from our family, which continues to be wealthy in our Advent(ures).  May you and yours be similarly prosperous.