Don't Cry For Me, Argentina

Or any other country, for that matter...  Because even though I've had to go sans hubby for almost a month, Liam and I have been doing just fine.  We've thrown ourselves into this fabulous Deutschland and made some great memories, which I'll share with all of you!

1.  Playtime:  As you already know, we ventured down to Nürnberg for some time in Tucherland, and we've frequented our local Bamberg favorite -- Frankyland -- several afternoons during Zeke's time away.

2.  Athletic Prowess:  (No surprise here), I decided to satisfy the Crazy in me and take Liam on a SNOWSHOE HIKE.  We joined some other Army folks, drove 45 minutes east to the Bavarian portion of the Fichtelgebirge mountain.  The area is amazing; it extends to the border of the Czech Republic and is as treacherous and beautiful as the Bavarian Alps we encountered during Weihnachten.  Right in this moment, I realize that we trekked the highest mountain in the range -- the Schneeberg.  I remember seeing a sign for it.  We hit the summit of Rudolfstein about one-third of the way into our journey, which is at 850m above sea level, so it's likely Liam and I have some bragging rights about reaching the summit of the Schneeberg, at 1,050m above sea level.  Woo!

Oh, by the way:  Liam wasn't actually hiking in snowshoes.  I wore him in my homemade Moby wrap the whole time.  And he was a perfect companion!  We pointed out familiar objects, talked about the snow, shouted out colors worn by members in our group, and he even snuggled in for a nap for much of the journey.  He got upset only when I stopped for too long -- he would yell, "BUS! BUS!" commanding me to return him to our ride, or, "Walking, walking," like a motivational chant.  I guess he had the right to be upset when we stopped:  The snow was falling at 2" per hour and the winds were gusting in excess of 25mph.

Yes, it was crazy difficult to hike in snowshoes straight up a mountain with a 25-lb, 3-foot-tall toddler wrapped to me, but It Was Awesome.  Definitely one of those once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

Crazy rock formation typical for Rudolfstein

Winter Wonderland

I took this picture thinking we were reaching our hike's highest point...

But after that, we still had to cross OVER this fallen tree...

Continue upward....

And further upward for another almost-kilometer until we reached our zenith (and, of course, had to walk back down)

3.  Par-tays:  I had a great birthday!  Even if it was here in a new land, without my dear, sweet hubby by my side.  On Sunday, my kind and generous friend Audra opened her home to me, Liam, and a couple of other families and friends for a little party.  We had pizza, a fabulous lemon cake, and a nice, relaxing afternoon.  There were 7 kids running around and entertaining each other, which was like icing on the lemon cake.

He figured out how to use these party favors on his first try!

With his favorite new girlfriend Eva (if she robs Liam's cradle 20 years from now, I'd be okay with that)

PARTAY!

Good times, good times.  And guess what?  Zeke just got home early, so I'm going to go enjoy both my boys.  Tschuß!!

SNOW DAY!

It's about time, too.  I mean, come on!  We live in Germany!  All we heard about before coming here is how it's soooo cold, the winters are sooo long, it's completely unbearable, only the strongest of humans can survive, it takes stoic, tough, unfeeling, German blood to make it through the cold, dark depths of winter, blahdee blah blah.

I still don't usually wear winter jackets here.  Then again, I have Minnesota blood coursing through my veins -- and anyone who's anyone knows Minnesota is The Definition Of Winter Places.

I digress.  Snow Day today!  I was telling my bud Myra that my fairy godmother granted my birthday wish a day early, because I have been jonesing for snow and was hoping to have a white birthday for my golden birthday -- that's right, folks.  I'm turning 29 on the 29th.  One foot in the grave.  Ha!  Age has never really mattered to me, whether it's mine or someone else's.  People are not defined by their years on Earth but by what experiences and knowledge they acquire during that time.  Now my random knowledge may sometimes peg me as an octogenarian (just ask Zeke how many ridiculous "old lady sayings" I spout)... but I still feel (and often act) 12.

I think that counts as another digression.  Oops.  So Liam and I woke up this morning to the sound of metal scraping bricks:  The neighbors were shoveling their walkways!  For the first time since we moved here!  Within 20 minutes, I got Liam to scarf down his breakfast, permit me to bundle him in all kinds of fabulously mismatched winter wear (on top of his pajamas, of course, since it is a Snow Day, after all), and let me throw him outside for some fun in the snow.

We Came...

We Shoveled...

We Built A Snowman!

As I cleared the front area, Liam stared up at the sky, and with a gaping mouth and protruding tongue, chanted, "Snow!  Snow!  Snow!" between tastes of flakes.  Only yesterday, he still called snow "Lahtohs" -- his word for "water" -- and here we are, reaching a new milestone within 24 hours.  "Snow."  Hooray!

'sup! Check out my wicked cool snowman!

Ich liebe Tucherland

Oh yes, I love Tucherland.  Almost as much as Liam does.

What is Tucherland, you ask?  If Heaven were a playground on Earth, it would be called Tucherland.  In the video I'm including below, I randomly say the place is 3000 sq. ft., but anyone who knows me knows I am awful with measurements... try almost 4000 square meters, which is like 40,000 sq. ft.

Shush.  I was just talking about the little stage area, okay?  Let's just go with that.

Tucherland is located about an hour from us over in Nürnberg -- a drive that is well worth it when you consider the prize.  This place is amazing.  Indoors, you have a large play area for the littlest of tykes; about a dozen different multi-story playmazes where kids can run, jump, and climb their way up to slides, tunnels, rope ladders, and ball pits.  One wall is lined with trampolines; there are multiple ball fields, bouncy castles, tricycle and go-cart tracks, rock climbing walls, and even a treacherous obstacle course that runs overhead in the building where you can strap on a harness and go through what might be almost comparable to the Ranger obstacle course (Zeke will have to confirm or reject that comparison once he gets to go to Tucherland).  There's also some great food and drinks at reasonable prices.

And you can't wear shoes.  Not even the adults.  I actually went in a public bathroom in my socks.  Truth be told, I think that place was cleaner than anywhere I've been.  Maybe the Asian culture's preference for "socks only" in the house is a stroke of genius.

All the equipment is safety-tested and rated up through adult-sized folks, so parents are strongly encouraged to get down and play with their children... although there is also a huge section of beach-style lounge chairs and massage recliners for the parents who would like to rest up while the kids wear out.

During the summer, Tucherland also offers an outdoor space (approx SIX TIMES LARGER than the indoor space!) -- there's a zip line/jump tower, several ponds and pools, a golf course, an area for kids to practice driving, and then your typical outdoor play offerings.

So awesome.

Oh, and once per month they open the place only to adults 18 and older for an entire night -- you get to play on all the equipment without worrying about crushing a first-grader.  Also once per month, for 25 euro (around 32 bucks), you can drop your kid off for a sleepover in Tucherland.  They're well-supervised, given food and bevs, and allowed to sleep wherever their little bodies decide to crash.  I can just picture Liam, Currywurst in one hand and gummi bear in the other, fast asleep in the middle of a ball pit.  I couldn't imagine something like that happening in the States... but for some reason, it sounds both acceptable and safe here.

Enjoy the following video, with your very own tour guide:  Liam Michael.  If you end up coming to Germany to visit, there's a good chance he'll want to take you there so you can have your very own taste of Tucherland!

As Promised...

Let me begin with an apology.  Jackie, my dear, I am so sorry, but I don't think those fabulous ravioli we made for Christmas will survive in the mail... which leads me to the moment you've all been waiting for:

How to re-create the Kelly Christmas Dinner!

  

The preliminary requirement?  You will need to make pasta.  If you don't have one of those old-fashioned metal pasta machines (hand crank and all... yep, that's the one), go out and find one.  Probably can locate it in the "Beyond" section at BB&B -- right next to Christopher Walken.  Follow these four steps as best you can, and you'll be well on your way to experiencing the Kelly Faaaaamily Christmas (cue Clark Griswold toothy grin and drum roll):

Step 1.  Three days prior.  Talk sweet nothings to your significant other (or child, or pet, or favorite picture, or whatever you exchange cooking dialogue with) and pick out some fun pasta recipes.  We turned to Mario Batali (Simple Italian Food) for inspiration... because, as we all know, he is quite close to Pasta Dio status.

Step 2.  Two days prior.  This is shopping day, your last chance to see the light of the day before the fun begins, so your list should include whatever you need to survive until Christmas: all-purpose (AP) flour, eggs (get at least a dozen in case you wreck a batch of dough), olive oil, seasonings, meats/veggies/fruits/herbs/butter for sauces and filling (see the below recipes for our suggestions), beverages, frozen pizzas, hot dogs, and (thank you Grammy and Pappy) a meat-cheese-cracker setup, what have you.

Step 3.  One day prior. Make a game plan and start cooking.  You might want to get some of the filling work out of the way on this day, because Step 4 is a doozy.

Step 4.  Make the pasta.  That's it.  Wait, that's it?!?!  No, that is most certainly not it.  Although you think you can handle it, making the pasta is a process that can drive some to the breaking point (yours truly included).  I have wasted many an egg, wad of dough, and fistful of tears (let's not also acknowledge the fountain of dirty words that manages to spew out of my mouth every Christmas) over the creation of pasta.

Which goes to show just how worth it this experience is.  Do it.  You know you want to.

Black Pepper Pasta 

(borrowed heavily from Mario Batali's book mentioned earlier -- we basically just modified the egg count)

Ingredients:
6 med/lg eggs
3.5-4 c AP flour (don't try to get fancy -- stick with AP or you'll have a mess)
1 T EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil for you non-Rachael Rayers)
2 T finely ground black pepper (we used restaurant/table ground)

MOP:
1.  Make a mound out of the flour on the center of your most loyal cutting board. Gently make a well in the center so it looks like a volcano.
2.  Separately beat the eggs with the oil and pepper until just blended.
3.  Gently pour some of the egg mixture into the flour volcano.  With a fork in one hand, start to incorporate the flour into the egg, being sure to retain the wall of the volcano with your other hand.  The key here is to work the inner rim of the volcano into the egg mixture first, or you'll have egg all over your cutting board.  Much like egg on the face.  (NB:  I actually had an egg-flour massacre on my board but was able to recover completely and provide the dough you viewed on our Christmas blog.  Moral:  Don't give up.)
4.  When you think it's safe, add the rest of the egg mixture, being sure to maintain your flour volcano.  It will seem messy and silly, but once you've mixed about half of the flour, you should start to feel the birth of a dough ball coming on -- savor that moment but don't let it fool you.  Things can get out of hand even at the last minute.
5.  Once all the flour is blended in with the egg mixture, knead the dough with the palms of your hands.  Expect a workout.  When the dough is forming into a bit of a ball, lift it, wipe away any dried pieces, dust your board with more AP flour, and knead for 6 more minutes.  It is imperative that you knead for this long in order to work out the air and make a smooth dough.  Your resulting dough should feel elastic and just slightly sticky (add a dab of water if needed, but don't count on this trick to save you).  Continue dusting the board if your dough sticks.
6.  After the 6+ minutes of kneading, your forearms will thank you for this next step:  Wrap your precious dough into plastic wrap and allow it to rest at room temp for 30 mins.
7.  From this dough ball, you can make any style of pasta you choose -- you can even get crazy with it and roll it out, use cookie cutters, and make gingerbread-men-pasta.  There are no rules.  We went with ravioli because we love the art of making filling.


To Make Ravioli
1.  Divide your dough ball into six even portions.
2.  Take one portion and roll it through your pasta machine at the first setting.
3.  Fold the resulting sheet in thirds and roll through the next setting.
4.  Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you've rolled the dough through the highest (thinnest) setting your machine allows.
5.  Take the resulting sheet and divide in half.  Place small mounds of filling on one half of the dough, spaced out as you see fit, and cover with the other half.  Be sure to leave room to seal each filling mound, pushing any air out.
6.  Cut ravioli with knife or cutter or fancy tool of your choosing.  Gently seal any tears in your ravioli with the dough you cut away from the ravioli pieces.
7.  Repeat steps 2-6 with remaining dough portions.

Suggested Ravioli Filling

1:  A twist on Duck Confit, courtesy of Zeke

Ingredients:

1 whole duckling

S&P

1/2 red onion or whole (hefty) shallot

2 T hoisin sauce

3/4 t liquid smoke

1/2 lb. Cremini mushrooms (or Bellas if you can't find cremini)

MOP:

1.  Season duck with S&P to taste and roast in open roasting pan at 475F for 15 mins.  Cover with foil and continue roasting at 275F for 2 hrs or until most of the fat has rendered.

2.  Drain pan drippings into large skillet; set aside.

3.  Once duck has cooled, pull and shred meat from bones and place in skillet with drippings.  Simmer over lowest heat setting for another 2 hrs.

4.  Remove meat and place in large mixing bowl; combine with hoisin sauce and liquid smoke.

5.  Caramelize onion/shallot (throw a big T of butter in 3-qt saucepan and add onions when  butter is melted; allow onion to merry with butter over low heat until onions achieve a rich, brown, caramel texture and color); add to mixing bowl.

6.  Dice mushrooms and saute in a small amount of remaining duck fat -- seek a seared texture for the mushrooms (not soggy); add mushrooms to mixing bowl.

7.  Fold ingredients together in bowl until evenly mixed.

8.  Add to ravioli when sheets are prepared and filling is no longer hot.

NB:  You can perform steps 5 and 6 at any point in the preparation process in order to save time.

2:  Harvest Fare, courtesy of Jess

Ingredients:

1 sm butternut squash

1 med sweet potato

1/2 c ricotta cheese

1/2 c roasted sunflower seeds

2 T evaporated milk

S&P

MOP:

Squash and sweet potato

1.  Cut squash in half lengthwise and gently slice flesh of squash as you would an avocado.

2.  Dice sweet potato into large cubes (you can peel the potato first or not -- your choice.  If you leave the skin on, which adds a nice textural element, be sure to wash potato before dicing).

3.  Nestle squash and potatoes in aluminum foil; spray with cooking spray and sprinkle with S&P; bring edges of foil up around squash/potatoes (but don't tightly seal).

4.  Place foil nest in 400F oven and roast for 1 hr.

5.  Remove nest from oven; place diced sweet potatoes in mixing bowl; scoop squash from its skin and add to bowl.

6.  Allow squash/potatoes to cool slightly before proceeding to the filling preparation.

Toasted sunflower seeds

1.  Grab a nice, stainless steel skillet.  Throw it on the burner and bring it up hot.

2.  Once the pan is ready, add 1/2 c sunflower seeds (dry -- no oil, just a splash of S&P).

3.  Gently shake skillet to allow seeds to shift and dance on the skillet.

4.  As soon as the seeds start to brown, immediately remove from heat and place in a container to rest. (Careful here -- burned seeds are awful and require you to start all over.)
5.  Give the seeds a slight beating (with mortar and pestle or throw them in a baggie and hit 'em with a meat tenderizer -- the mallet kind, not the liquid!), but be sure to keep pieces a bit chunky.

Filling

1.  Blend the squash/potatoes, ricotta cheese, and evaporated milk in food processor or with hand mixer (to your desired texture); add sunflower seeds.
2.  Place mixture in large skillet over low heat; keep filling warm and smooth (but try to avoid a simmer).
3.  Remove filling from heat when you begin preparing ravioli sheets; your filling should be cool enough (but not too thick) to place on sheets when ready.

And a BONUS Dessert!

Peppermint Bark (household favorite -- Liam calls it "Peppohhmind Bohk")

Ingredients:

Small box of those fab little candy canes

2 8-oz. pkgs Baker's semi-sweet chocolate baking squares

1 6-oz. pkg Baker's white chocolate baking squares

Peppermint extract

MOP:

1.  Add approx 1 in of water to base of double boiler and place on stove over med-high heat.  (If you don't have a double boiler, you can contrive one using a large saucepot and a glass mixing bowl.  Add water to saucepan and set mixing bowl on top of it, with the saucepot acting as a sort of cradle.)

2.  Line large baking sheet (or cake pan) with wax paper; set aside.  

3.  Place semi-sweet baking squares in the top portion of double boiler; shift and stir occasionally as chocolate melts.

4.  Grab a nice handful of candy canes and take out your seasonal aggression on them (easiest if you have a mortar and pestle, but a plastic bag will work too).  Try to break into pieces no bigger than 1/3". 

4.  Once chocolate is melted (but before it bubbles), remove from heat and drizzle on baking sheet/pan until bottom is evenly coated.  Immediately sprinkle with broken, busted, sanded candy canes.  Shake around to be sure pieces are set.  Place in refrigerator or on porch to set and cool.

5.  Clean top portion of double boiler and repeat process to melt white chocolate squares in double boiler.  As white chocolate melts, add peppermint extract (recommended 5 drops at a time) until you achieve your desired peppermint flavor.

6.  Stir to distribute desired extract amount evenly.

7.  Bust up some more candy canes.

8.  Take sheet/pan out of fridge/off porch and drizzle white chocolate evenly; sprinkle cane piece and shake/shift to set.  Place back in cool place to set.

9.  After you're sure bark is set, pull bark-laden wax paper out of pan and break bark into pieces (like brittle); store in container in fridge or on porch (and guard it with your life).  

Oh. My. Gosh.

I think Liam has found (one of) his (many) place(s) in the world.

This morning we went to Liam's first gymnastics class.  Our most recent goal in life has been to learn to jump. (Aside:  Another reason why I LOVE MY JOB.  I get to re-discover the importance of things like learning to jump.  How to describe it to a child.  How to help without taking over.  How to recognize and praise the smallest moves in the right direction. I'll stop rambling now.) Developmentally, kids can take well into their 2s to get jumping figured out, but Liam's always tried to beat the norm.

I thought maybe today, still almost 2 months under that "2" mark, we could try and work with physics and luck -- gymnastics class and a lucky Tigger shirt and "Jump!" Tigger socks (thank you Grandma Bobbey and Grandpa Marty)...

Liam obviously absorbed and processed his morning's findings, as proven this evening:

You can't help but love this child.  So fabulous.

Cold Today... Hot Tamale

Yes, I just typed that.  Wow.  I'll blame it on South of the Border withdrawal (oh, Pedro, your billboards would look so nice here in Deutschland!)

So Zeke's been in Missouri since this past Friday and I've been sick ever since.  Lovesick, of course, but also yucky-sore-throat-dry-cough-can't-talk-in-the-morning sick.  But I've got some tasks to accomplish, one of which is to make hot pepper oil, as requested by my dear, sweet hubby.  We had some chili peppers in the fridge with about a week left on the shelf and I knew there was no way I'd burn through them with poor little Liam.  So I set out to make hot pepper oil, armed with some tips from Zeke and an all-too-vivid memory of what happened to me the last time I dealt with a large number of peppers (cue flashback music and Wayne and Garth doing that silly waterfall-hands thing)...

***

Back in November 2006, Zeke and I offered to cater and sing at our friends' wedding (Jory and Jennifer).  Zeke would sing and I would cook.  Just kidding.  But Zeke was my sounding board for the song I wrote for the newlyweds and I was his right-hand chica in the kitchen.  He came up with this delicious idea -- stuffing jalapenos with a red-pepper cream cheese filling, wrapping them in pancetta, and baking them.  I volunteered to gut the jalapenos for him.  Five pounds of jalapenos.  That's like a million peppers or something.

I had never worked that intimately with peppers before and didn't realize there are certain precautions one should take.  I didn't ask and Zeke didn't say -- I went about my business, jamming my thumbs through the pith and periodically brushing stray hairs from my face.  The next day, I woke up and noticed my hands and face felt sunburned.  As the morning progressed, it only got worse; I could barely feel any sensations in my fingertips (which is just perfect for someone who will be playing the guitar at a wedding later that day).

Long story short:  The food was a hit, my song went well (thank goodness muscle memory isn't a joke), and one week later, my hands and face felt normal again.

***

I learned my lesson.  This time, I was well-prepared for my date with the peppers.

Custom-made gloves. My middle name is Classy.

The reason for the gloves?  These guys:

While making the oil, I knew my safety measures were a good idea -- I could barely breathe or see when standing near the stovetop.  Pretty awesome stuff.  And amazing results, too!  I can't wait until Zeke comes home and tries it.  Let's hope Mama makes him proud.

And although Zeke and I wish we could throttle Giada De Laurentiis for wasting pages of her cookbook on recipes that we think are way too simple to put into writing, I'm going to share with you how I made the oil.  It's not difficult at all, but this way if you're wondering, you don't have to ask!

Hot Pepper Oil

Ingredients

Peppers of your choosing

Oil of your choosing (I used a canola/olive oil blend to keep the oil usage versatile)

MOP

1.  PUT ON YOUR PROTECTION.

2.  Grab a nice, large skillet and put it (empty) over high heat.

3.  Slice tops off peppers; slice peppers lengthwise.  Don't throw away any of the guts.

4.  Once the pan is hot, put the heat down to medium and carefully put only the peppers in the dry, hot pan; shake pan periodically (or stir peppers) to keep peppers moving around.

5.  Find the container you'll use to store the oil and figure out how much oil you want to use; measure out determined oil amount.

6.  After the peppers begin to darken (but before the seeds burn), turn heat completely off but leave skillet on the burner; add the oil carefully.  Stir peppers and oil gently to allow the heat to disperse without popping or burning.  NB:  your oil should not be bubbling -- not even a slight simmer.

7.  Leave the peppers in the oil as long as needed to achieve the level of heat you seek.  I kept the peppers in there for almost two hours, turning the heat on and off periodically to keep a nice, warm temperature for the peppers to do their thing.

8.  If you want a clean oil, get a strainer and funnel and use those to transfer your oil to the container.  I put one small pepper in the bottom of the container so I wouldn't mistake the oil for any garden variety cooking oil.

A Reflection on the German Advent Season

We've had a few of you ask us how Germans celebrate Christmas -- whether certain foods are considered good luck, what traditions they have, and whether Santa Claus does actually live here and play the accordion.

Yes, he most certainly does.

As to the first two questions:

Foods.  Walking through a German supermarkt (I need not translate that one, I hope), you can quickly see Germans value two food groups: pork... and fruitcake (is that actually a group?).  Various regions of Germans put on their own fancies to each of the groups, but ultimately, every table likely has some beautiful slab of salty meat and a Christstollen (fruitcake specific to Christmas).

Here in Southern Germany, the more common pork presentation is a Schäufele, or a corned, smoked ham.  The preparation in Franconia is a bit different from other areas: here, they take the pork shoulder meat, cut the bone and rind criss-cross, season it with S&P and caraway, and roast it with veggies and (you guessed it) beer.  It's crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, and full of fabulous porkness (that is a word, right? No? Well it is now).  Families serve this dish with either Kartoffelklöße (these goofy potato jelly balls, which we euphemistically think of as the German dumpling) or Kartoffelsalat (potato salad) -- and here, the potato salad is like the perfect blend of yellow and white potato salads you encounter in the States, with a nice tangy bite, a touch of dill, and just enough creaminess to keep it from tasting a little too bitter.

See? Isn't that a goofy dumpling?

As for the fruitcake, we failed ever to buy one, but we even saw the Bamberg Commissary on post embracing the Christstollen, with fruitcakes peppering the end of almost every aisle.  Instead of our U.S. cakes, which are typically in that contrived tiny rectangular packaging, leaving little room for flavorful bread and instead focusing heavily on unidentifiable jellied candies and old, stale nuts, the spiced loaf of the Christstollen brims with plump raisins, candied fruit, walnuts, and almonds.  Even better:  The Germans coat these suckers in powdered sugar. Oh, wait, it gets better:  Some of the Christstollen are filled with marzipan (a paste consisting of almonds, powdered sugar, and egg).

Don Christstollen, the godfather of all fruitcakes

Traditions.  This one is a tradition we're tempted to teach to Liam.  First, a clarification:  Germans recognize not one, and not two, but three important figures during the Advent season.  They acknowledge the Weihnachstmann (Father Christmas), who is the chubby, jolly old soul we each picture when we think of the commercial Santa Claus.  This guy visits homes on the afternoon of Christmas Eve, but primarily to share the joy of Christmas.

The children receive presents from Nikolaus, who actually does dress a lot like Santa.  He wears a long, red cloak, totes a Gandalf-esque white beard, and carries a bishop's staff.  Nikolaus is the Germans' interpretation of Nicholas of Myra, the Greek Christian bishop who died on 6 December A.D. 346.  During his life, he was believed to make miracles and was suspected of giving children and the needy secret gifts.  Now the patron saint of little children, sailors, merchants, and students, St. Nick comes around Germany and either rewards or scolds the children by way of the gifts he leaves for them.  On the evening of 5 December, German children take their best pair of boots, and shine one of them to its most brilliant to leave out on the stoop for Nikolaus (only greedy little buggers put out both boots, and they would be wise not to, for fear of getting two boots full of bad gifts).  The good German children awaken on 6 December to run out and find candies, little toys, coins, and thoughtful trinkets from Nikolaus.  The children who did not behave quite so well may find coal... or even a switch.  Yes, Nikolaus has been known to leave a needy parent a little whip to use on a trouble-making bottom.  Some parents even enlist a personal appearance, sending Nikolaus to the children's school to inquire them directly about their misbehavior in front of their peers.

This separation of celebrated figures means that, in the traditional German home, Christmas day is about Christ -- talking about his birth, the gift He has given to the world, and the love He has provided each child who can then share it with the world throughout the year.

Pretty nice tradition.

Reflecting on the Advent season, I can't help but share these additional tidbits with you.

This is how Germany rocks Advent calendars:

The Adult Edition

Yes, that is a BEER

The Kids' Edition (given to us for free from the people at OBI - the Deutschland Home Depot. Text says,  essentially, "We wish you a bright festival")

Don't worry, it's solid chocolate for the bairns

On our ride back from Edelweiss, we also got a chance to see how the Benz dealer in Munich displays the Advent calendar.  It took us until we got home and saw the video to realize it, but watch closely and you'll see the windows display a different car for each day (with a few yet to be filled, being it was not yet Christmas... I wonder what models we missed?):

And this is how Liam enjoyed his Advent season, nativity set-style:

Liam must have heard about the wicked sandstorms they get in Bethlehem.

Christmas 2011

Christmas certainly crept up on us this year.  I (Zeke here) have been pretty busy at work and Jess and Liam have spent the last couple of months getting everything perfect at home.  In between Liam becoming bilingual and him studying for the MCATs (he wants to be a rocket surgeon--we're so proud), time just flew by.  Can't believe we've been here almost three months.  We also managed to go on some cool trips as you have probably already seen in previous blog entries.  It was a fantastic Christmas though; good times, good food and good friends all throughout the Holiday season.  Hope you all had a great Christmas / Holiday season and we pray that 2012 brings you all the happiness you deserve (hey real estate/stock market...this is your cue to shape up).  By the way, I'm officially announcing my candidacy for the 2028 presidential election so if anyone has any dirt on me, let's hear it now.  I figure 16 years is enough time to put a positive spin on it.     

Liam is soooo excited for Christmas, we had to give him a helmet to protect him from his holiday shenanigans

"Twas the night before Christmas..."
Thank you for my story Grammy and Pappy

"Santa, you don't weigh more than a buck-fifty...you're suspect.  By the way, that's a real nice hat..."

"...yeah I took his hat, so what?!?"

So last year Jess and I decided that since we could never guarantee where we would be for Christmas, it would be a holiday that we always celebrate at home, wherever that may be.  We also began our Christmas tradition of making homemade pasta.  This year we made two types of ravioli.  Jess did a roasted butternut squash and sunflower seed filling with a white wine and sage butter sauce; I made a pulled duck filling with a roasted red pepper sauce.  They both turned out great and Jess is going to post the full recipes along with some of her other creations in the coming days.

Christmas morning.  Mommy got some "Chef's Companion" cards.  Now we can figure out how to use our crazy Celsius oven.

This is actually an old toy from Steve and Myra's house, but Liam loves it so much that they gave it to us.  We decided to wrap it up.  Yeah we got off cheap this year.  Not sure if he's gonna fall for the re-gifted stuff much longer.

Puzzle from Grandpa Marty and Grandma Bobbey

Just what I needed -- MORE CARS!!

Liam and his girlfriend Myra

Uncle Steve teaching Liam about El Caminos and VW Buses