5 posts tagged “christmas”

One of my worker's gave me liqueur filled chocolate for Christmas today.  Of course I couldn't share them with co-workers at work :-) so I brought them home. 

My kids were interested so we gave them a try.  The chocolate's came in a variety pack.  It included Jim Beam, Kahlua and Grand Marnier.  I thought I'd let them try the Kahlua because it would be not as dramatic (More chocolaty).  Wrong!  The Kahlua was the most obvious alcohol tasting of the bunch.  I wish I had a camera to capture the moment. 
For my own part, I really liked them.  The liqueur was subtle in each of the chocolates but there was enough of a hint so that you knew what you were having.  Of course, the liquid squirting in your mouth helped.
Regarding the kids, the good part is that they swore off the Kahlua chocolates.  The bad part is that they liked the Grand Marnier.  I guess I'll have to hide them or finish them tonight...

  No, this is not an emotional thing but a shoe thing.  And a good one at that.  As most know, I'm a heavy runner.  I think I also strike hard because it is rare to have a pair of running shoes last more than 150 miles. 

  At the suggestion of the local Dick Pond's store, I've switched to Asics Kayano's and they've been great!  I just passed 260 miles in them and it's time for a new pair.  How do I know?  My shins started "Barking" as I like to say.  Basically, when the shoes breakdown there is more strain on my in step (Pronation) and shins get strained. 

  I'm thrilled!  Fully 2/3 more miles on these shoes than other models that I've used.  Initially I balked at the $135 price tag, but for the extra distance it's worth it.

  Now the good part.  It's been kind of a tradition that my Mother in Law sends me money at Christmas for new shoes.  She started a few years back when my shoes needed replacing around the holiday and she's kept it up.  This year was right on with the timing.  Monday's run (4 miles 8:15 pace) really had the shins talking to me.  I didn't think I would get another run out of them.  Low and behold I got a check on Christmas from my MiL for a new pair.  Thanks Mom!

  I had a Gait Analysis on the day after Christmas so I hurried out yesterday morning to get a new pair before my afternoon run. (More on the Gait Analysis later)

  Santa was also good to me with some gift cards.  I ended up at Dick's Sporting Goods with some gift cards to burn.  I have a good running shell from the 2006 Chicago Marathon that is impermeable and designed for 25 degrees or less.  What I need is something to wear between 25 and 40 degrees that breathes.  I found it in a Live Strong Dri-Fit top.  I think it's actually a cycling top because it has the weird pockets at the back of the jacket but I don't care.  It's a Dri-Fit, it fits over my running shirt and it does the job.  That's all I need.

 The Gait Analysis and run went well.   The shoes felt good and Dri-Fit top fit the bill as the temp was around 35 degrees. Perfect running weather and I didn't sweat too much in the top.

  Life is good from a running standpoint.

  We spent a quiet day at home with just the four of us this year.    We've already been back to Colorado a number of times so we decided to keep it low key.  That doesn't mean we didn't go all out on the Christmas meal.

  I won a turkey from my office so we decided to cook it in our smoker.  We've done this once before and it worked out quite well.  This time we got off to a delayed start.  We put the bird in at 8:30 in hopes of eating around 1:00 or so.  Well for some reason the extension cord failed and I didn't discover it until 10:30.  I borrowed a cord from the Christmas lights and we were good to go.  Dinner was pushed back to 3:30.  I did check it a few times in the first 15 minutes just to make sure it was still cooking but after that I left it alone.  You're not supposed to open the smoker often because is slows the process.

  About an hour before we were ready to eat we started basting the bird in honey.  It already looked golden and temp was over 165 which is about perfect.  The honey was just the final touch.

  Dinner consisted of the turkey with a hint of apple and honey flavor, cauliflower and mashed red potatoes.  Mmmmm!  The turkey was excellent and we have about 1/2 left over for this weekend.

  Luckily I was able to run on Christmas Eve and on the 26th to work off some of the meal!

If you have a smoker, give this a try.  We loved it.

1 Turkey 10-12 Lbs
1/2 cup Salt
1/2 cup Sugar
1 qt Apple Juice
1 tbl Rosemary
1 tbl Basil
Honey to baste

Combine all but the turkey and honey into a brine solution.  Inject the solution into the turkey and let it soak for up to 24 hours.  (We turned and injected a number of times throughout the day)
Smoke for 4-5 hours.  We added Apple Wood chips to the smoker to enhance the apple flavor.  In the last hour, baste with the honey.
When temp is over 170, remove from smoker and let sit for 10 minutes or so before carving.
Enjoy!

(This was emailed to me)

The Christmas Pageant

My husband and I had been happily married (most of the time) for five years but hadn't been blessed with a baby.

I decided to do some serious praying and promised God that if he would give us a child, I would be a perfect mother, love it with all my heart and raise it with His word as my guide.

God answered my prayers and blessed us with a son.

The next year God blessed us with another son.

The following year, He blessed us with yet another son.

The year after that we were blessed with a daughter.

My husband thought we'd been blessed right into poverty. We now had four children, and the oldest was only four years old.

I learned never to ask God for anything unless I meant it. As a minister once told me, "If you pray for rain, make sure you carry an umbrella."

I began reading a few verses of the Bible to the children each day as they lay in their cribs.

I was off to a good start. God had entrusted me with four children and I didn't want to disappoint Him.

I tried to be patient the day the children smashed two dozen eggs on the kitchen floor searching for baby chicks.

I tried to be understanding... when they started a hotel for homeless frogs in the spare bedroom, although it took me nearly two hours to catch all twenty-three frogs.

When my daughter poured ketchup all over herself and rolled up in a blanket to see how it felt to be a hot dog, I tried to see the humor rather than the mess.

In spite of changing over twenty-five thousand diapers, never eating a hot meal and never sleeping for more than thirty minutes at a time, I still thank God daily for my children.

While I couldn't keep my promise to be a perfect mother - I didn't even come close...I did keep my promise to raise them in the Word of God.

I knew I was missing the mark just a little when I told my daughter we were going to church to worship God, and she wanted to bring a bar of soap along to "wash up" Jesus, too.

Something was lost in the translation when I explained that God gave us everlasting life, and my son thought it was
generous of God to give us his "last wife."

My proudest moment came during the children's Christmas pageant.

My daughter was playing Mary, two of my sons were shepherds and my youngest son was a wise man.  This was their moment to shine.

My five-year-old shepherd had practiced his line, "We found the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes."  But he was nervous and said, "The baby was wrapped in wrinkled clothes."

My four-year-old "Mary" said, "That's not 'wrinkled clothes,' silly...That's dirty, rotten clothes."

A wrestling match broke out between Mary and the shepherd and was stopped by an angel, who bent her halo and lost her left wing.

I slouched a little lower in my seat when Mary dropped the doll representing Baby Jesus, and it bounced down the aisle crying, "Mama-mama."

Mary grabbed the doll, wrapped it back up and held it tightly as the wise men arrived.

My other son stepped forward wearing a bathrobe and a paper crown, knelt at the manger and announced, "We are the three wise men, and we are bringing gifts of gold, common sense and fur."

The congregation dissolved into laughter, and the pageant got a standing ovation.

"I've never enjoyed a Christmas program as much as this one," laughed the pastor, wiping tears from his eyes.

"For the rest of my life, I'll never hear the Christmas story without thinking of gold, common sense and fur."

"My children are my pride and my joy and my greatest blessing," I said as I dug through my purse for an aspirin.

  What more can I say?  Amen