A Holiday Tradition and A Christmas Miracle

My Dad's family is Swedish. Well, really my grandpa was Swedish and he liked to coerce everyone into believing that we were all 100% from the Swed-land. Despite being English, my grandma played the part of a Swedish homemaker quite well. This included the making of the traditional meals and sweets.

When my grandmother died, I took it upon myself to take her recipe (and her famous yellow bread bowl) to recreate my favorite sweet each year for my family. I mean black labs. I mean I eat it all myself, don't judge it's tradition.

I'm not going to give you the recipe because it's a family secret. Really it's not, I'm just too lazy to go and get it right now. So just behold my photos and try and figure out the recipe yourself from the pics, it's a fun game!

Swedish Coffee Bread:

So, start with these ingredients. It requires many bowls. In one there are some eggs, in the second there 

is some rapid rise yeast yeasting away and in the third there is some scalded milk (whatever that means) and a lot of butter. 

Then mix up the dry stuff, you know, flour and sugar and the like. 

This is the secret ingredient. Mmmm cardamom, smell the Swedish culture. 

Mix it all together in your grandmothers yellow bowl. Yes, this is a key ingredient. 

Flour a bread board and knead dough. This is the most fun part. Caution, flour your hands

or they will stick. 

Put kneaded dough back in greased bowl. 

Cover with towel and let sit until it rises to double its size. 

Voila!

Split into three pieces, and then those into three pieces and make little rolls for braiding. 

Braid into loaves with love.

Bake and then brush with butter. 

When cool, drizzle with powder sugar/milk mixture and decorate with cherries. I'm pretty sure that's how they did it back in the old country. 

Don't worry, I didn't eat all three loaves myself. I gifted two. Nothing says Merry Christmas like fresh bread baked with love. 

I worked on the 23rd and the 24th and when I got home on Christmas Eve a Christmas Miracle happened! My mom! She drove all the way from Chicago to spend Christmas at my house while I worked. I love her so much. We had a great time. The best Christmas gift ever. 

Happy New Years Eve! I will be breaking my tradition of going to bed at 9pm in order to feast with family. And I'm also planning on winning the power ball. A few hours of lost sleep is worth a million bucks. 

A Charlie Brown Christmas

Christmas time is here.... where did it come from? In fact, it's nearly come and gone already. This will be perhaps the strangest Christmas I have yet to experience. The first ever Christmas I have spent without my sweet sister.

See, we've been together every year since the beginning....

My family and I will all be alone this year, well not alone but alone from each other. Separated by states and work obligations. Yes, the joys of being a nurse mean spending Christmas at the hospital every three years. 

Christmas time means getting out my favorite holiday movies, Love Actually, A Christmas Story and of course Charlie Brown (see bottom of blog for your viewing pleasure).

Charlie Brown and I bare (is that the right bear?) remarkable similarities. Both sarcastic and often times pessimistic/glass half empty are Chuck and I. It's especially true at Christmas when you're feeling a little bit lonely at the thought of spending it without your mother or some handsome swain. 

I really don't like receiving gifts. I think it has to do with me having to be center of attention while everyone watches for your expression when you open (thanks to a long family tradition of each opening one gift at a time while all others watch.) The thought of going to the mall this time of year makes me break out in hives. I can't handle the black Friday crazy shoppers and the "Grandma got run over by a reindeer" carols. Ba humbug? No, I don't think so. For every year I am reminded right along with Charlie Brown that the true meaning of Christmas is not the "commercialism" of it, but little baby Jesus. 

When you remember that, it's easier feel joy, even at the thought of being alone this weekend. I'm saddened that I will be unable to attend the Christmas Eve service at my new church this year, one of my favorite things to do is sing Christmas Caroles. Don't worry tiny premature babies, you'll be getting an earful of baby Jesus cheer from your favorite nurse.

Adventures in Dating: The Blind Date

Dating is perhaps the most torturous right of passage into adulthood. It's awkward, it's embarrassing and it's painful. I think I'd rather be squeezed through the birth canal again twice over to get out of going through it. Oh, was that an awkward and inappropriate analogy? Everyone at work keeps telling me to suck it up and enjoy the free meals. But you know what, that's only because they are all either married or have been dating the same guy since they were five. Single people back me up on this, dating is miserable.

The only thing worse than dating is blind dating. I've been on more than a handful of these over the last year and several more recently and it's gotten to the point that I'm not even nervous anymore. It is what it is and that's all I can do. I still struggle with how much of myself to reveal on a blind date, it's a fine line. It's not like you can say, "Oh hey, I got to bed a nine pm and sweat pants are my favorite variety of pants." You have to leave some of those secrets for later, if you want a second date.

First comes the praying, "Please let him be at least as tall as me, please let him have all his teeth." Then there comes a lot of smiling, a lot of pretending to smile, awkward laughter and ever more awkward silences. Then at the end it's like, oh let me split the check, oh okay if you insist. Ugh....

Perhaps my problem is my pessimistic attitude towards it. Or perhaps the problem is that I haven't found the right one. Maybe then the silence will be comfortable instead of awkward and the laughter will be genuine. Only one way to find out, keep going. Either that or face the reality and truly become an awkward dog lady. And so the adventures continue......

New Year, New Name

I've been getting some complaints about the title of my blog. I'll admit, I stole it from The Natos when I was just a young blogger. Jami Nato is my blogging idol. But now we are coming into a new year and so yes, I too have decided it is time to steal someone else's name.

Anyways, I've been trying to brainstorm some clever new titles and one night as I was drifting to sleep it came to me. Awhile back my sister sent me a card addressed to "The Lady and Her Tramps....". Now I know what you're thinking, it sounds like I run a prostitute house. I have a feeling there is a name for such a house but as I am still so young and naieve I can't think of it right now.

Think Disney, cute puppies eating spaghetti and so on. I don't think I've actually ever seen this movie and I have no idea why it's named that. Anyways, I am a lady as accurately portrayed in the small cartoon I found on google, and I have two tramps. Thus my new title. Don't sue me Disney. It was my sister's idea.

Now if I could only figure out how to center it on the blog. Apparently in order to format your blog you must speak a strange language called HTML. Anyone who can offer assistance with this would be greatly appreciated...Ahem Jami, I know you know how to do this as your title is so perfectly centered :)

Euns Turns "Two"

The thing about rescuing dogs is that you never really know how old they are. When I adopted Eunice they told me she had been a stray and was somewhere between 5-8 years old. She must have been a stray for like five minutes because she can't stand to be away from human touch for two seconds while I go pee.

Anyways, two years ago yesterday Scout and I made one of the best decisions of our lives. Scout begged and begged for a sister. Actually, I had no intention of acutally adopting another dog, I just went to fill out a "foster a dog for the holidays" application. They really lay the guilt on you at those shelters. Poor sad doggies alone in a cage for Christmas...... Welp when I got there it was dark and cold and Eunice was sitting and shaking alone in an outdoor run. She was the only dog not barking at me when I pulled up. The rest was history.

Birthday Bone

When I went to pick her up the following week she tried to sit on my lap on the way home. It was the first night in our new house and our first night with our Eunice. Her name at the shelter was Eunice and she knew it because she'd been there so long. It suits her perfectly so we didn't change it.

Scout giving Eunice her birthday lovin

So yesterday she turned somewhere between 7-10. She's still got a lot of pep in her step and hairs to turn grey and we hope she will be around for many more years to come. We love you Big Mamma.

Celebrating Sally

I know what you're thinking, two posts in one day. I have a lot to say okay? I've been busy. Just a mere three days after returning from my Thanksgiving adventure I traveled back to Big Sky Country to say goodbye and celebrate the life of my dear Grandma Sally.

This was a momentous event, the first time (ever??) that the entire family was together in the same room, almost all on speaking terms.

The weather was a tad chilly but it couldn't have been more beautiful. 

And so we gathered from all corners of the country to reflect, reminisce, laugh and cry together as we remember the legacy that Sally has left for all those who knew her. It was a time I will cherish for years to come. 

Unsure on this one....

We also had the opportunity to celebrate my grandpa Wally's 80th birthday. I sure hope I've inherited this man's ability to age gracefully. I swear, he looks the same as he did when I met him twenty years ago. 

And last but not least, behold Clark, the newest addition to our family. Pure mush. 

My mom's desperate expression as she repeatedly demanded from my sister and I, 

"Get me one of these!" Whoa grandma, un-bug your eyes and settle down. 

When I do have a child, I will do my best to raise it as Sally raised her six children, bug eyes and all. I'll be seeing you. 

Giving Thanks

I have recently been informed that my fan base has expanded across time zones. I was also informed that I'm way overdue for an update. Who knew so many were fascinated by my boring life and endless sarcasm?!

So I apologize for the delay, the last several weeks have been a whirlwind. Week before last I traveled home to Chicago for thanksgiving. I took the doggies and drove for a much needed visit with my mommy.

Copilot Euns. Isn't in dangerous to take pictures while driving, you say? Cruise control only requires one hand. Okay I promise to never do it again. 

We ate some turkey, laid around and had a photo shoot. Behold my mother, unable to take a normal photo. Were we drinking you ask? Nope, completely sober. Also behold my new hair. I'm in love. There is a reason I only get my haircut in Chicago. 

Sorry mom, it's my blog and I'll post what I want to. Besides, you're endearing and you make me laugh. 

There we go. Oh wait, I had to copy and paste your normal eyes from another photo using my mad photoshop skills. 

"Oh, hey!" Look who I found. Why are you so tan? Freak... JK, I'm the freak who's skin does not know the meaning of tan. Jealous. 

I'm thankful for my mother and my sister, that after 25 years they are still the ones who make me laugh the most. 

I'm also thankful for these labbies, for Scoutie's smile and the grey hair on Euns' chinny chin chin.