Merry Christmas

Ho, Ho, Ho! I began my morning with a delightful email from Janice Beam, highlighting the (mis)adventures of her family throughout 2006! I love the annual Beam family newsletter and this year it served as my first Christmas gift. Thanks, Janice and congratulations on the car!

I also opened gifts that Christy brought me from Saint Petersburg, Russia where she is a missionary. Shown here are Russian nesting dolls in "traditional" garb, as well as a teapot from a famous porcelain factory in Saint Petersburg, with its distinctive pattern.

Since I was away in Paris, I missed the poor mailman who came to deliver four boxes! I will get them tomorrow morning when the post office opens again. I guess I'll open the rest of my gifts then. Christy had received a few boxes from her family (sent to my address well ahead of schedule), so she got some goodies. She graciously shared a white fudge oreo from her sister.

We had a sumptuous Christmas dinner: meatloaf and mashed potatoes with my mother's delicious gravy recipe, candied carrots, green beans wrapped in bacon (yum!), and French rolls hot from the oven. While it was not a typical "Christmas dinner," it was typically American, which suited us both! For dessert we had Christmas tea (served in last year's Christmas gift--the teapot) with French pastries. The French have a traditional pastry dessert that is always served for Christmas: la bûche de Noël (the yule log). We picked out these two (sorry the picture's not very clear). The dark one was chocolate mousse with pears, and the lighter one was caramel and rasberry. Fantastic! If you can't be with your family on Christmas because you are a missionary in France, at least there are some things that make up for it!

Here is something else that makes up for it (just a little!):
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!