The time has come to start preparing The Feast. I get very excited about it all, and I love thinking over what the next few days will include, sorting out who will make which pies, and how I will keep the grandkids occupied while their parents are still over in Merry Ol’ England. Today was easy because God sent a beautiful load of snow and the afternoon was spent sliding and rolling around in it (not me, but the kids) until it was almost dark outside. But I digress.
Today my husband preached a Thanksgiving sermon, and I sat in a different row than usual with my five Merkle grandchildren. Funny how being in a different seat can change the whole experience. The kids were great, I got to sit behind the Wilson family grandkids, and I have always wanted to be over there with them all during the Lord’s Supper, so it was sweet indeed. (The Janks were somewhere in the back and I didn’t get a peep at them until after the service when all the grandkids make a bee-line for Doug to give him a hug, and then a bee-line for me because I have the treats in my purse to hand out.) But there I go digressing again.
The point of the sermon was very applicable to all of us who will be putting on our battle gear in the kitchen tomorrow and the next day and the next until the Great Feast Day. He was speaking about rejoicing in the evil day, and how our days are just as evil (or almost) Continue reading ‘Fighting Gear’
We had fun yesterday at this year’s Fall Jolly, a fund-raising craft fair/tag sale/food and book sale that is hosted by our church one Saturday morning in the fall. This year it coincided with New St. Andrew’s Celebratio, so it has been a weekend crowded with activities. I snapped a couple of pictures at the Jolly before we opened the doors, but there was so much more than this, thanks to many willing hands. Next year maybe you all can come!
We had some very special guests tonight for Sabbath dinner. They were quite a hoot, didn’t spill anything to speak of, didn’t need any spankings, and didn’t break one thing. And, there were eighteen of them! I got them to pose for a little after-dinner photo shoot. They were a little hard to keep still, but you get the general idea. Rory is the oldest, being a big seven years old. And yes, we had all their parents (and one set of grandparents!) as well, and they behaved nicely too. I’m sorry about the bright eyes. I tried to fix it, but it only made it worse, so I left them as is. But you get the idea. I tried to get a picture that would show the scope of the devastation in my kitchen, but Rachel was too fast and had a bunch of the dishes already done before I could take a picture. So you’ll have to imagine that part.
I hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving day and that you are still basking in turkey leftovers. We are slated to have turkey panini’s tonight a la my daughter Rachel. We are celebrating the twins’ first bday today! We even got up at 4:45 a.m. and went to some of the early-bird sales (first time ever) and felt like we participated in the great national shopping event. Amazing!
But now that we are just a couple of days away from the first Sunday of Advent, I thought I could safely share a few of our celebratory traditions. Since we have a Sabbath dinner on Saturday night, we will be kicking off Advent tomorrow. After dinner each week I have a little Advent gift for the grandchildren. So tomorrow night they will get their Christmas jammies. I want them to enjoy them for the whole month of December, so that’s why they are the first Advent gift. I also give each family an Advent calendar, the kind you can buy Continue reading ‘Advent Jammies’
Here is my humble table so far today. It is a very small group because we are missing seven who celebrate without us in the UK and six (the Nate Wilsons) because of sickness. But luckily we are having six guests or we would be very hard up! Yes, I do like red….especially this time of year when it is gray outside. You can see that it is nothing fancy pants. Just fun. We have little wine glasses for the little kids (yes, they get a sip for Continue reading ‘Sabbath Dinner Show and Tell’
If you are trying to establish the weekly tradition of celebrating the Sabbath, it is going to take quite a bit of work. The biggest thing I do on Saturday is get ready for Sabbath dinner. And sometimes I have set aside the whole day because putting on a nice meal for a large group is a serious undertaking, especially if you are doing it by yourself. I don’t have little kids running around my house, but I understand that for you young moms who are trying to put on a Sabbath dinner yourself each week, it is a big challenge. And even you grandmas out there who are doing what I am (fixing dinner for your kids and grandkids each week), I know you need help too.
So I have a few suggestions for you, and these are real-life suggestions that I use, not theoretical suggestions that I would use if I didn’t have a house staff to put the meal on for me.
Hot tip #1: Keep the menu simple. This is a weekly celebration for your family, so you want to make kid-friendly food that will go together easily, not a labor-intensive menu Continue reading ‘Shortcuts for Sabbath Dinner’
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