Little Hats, Big Hearts

February is American Heart Month. It is more than chocolate, flowers and words of love created by card companies.  It is a mission of the American Heart Association to raise awareness about heart disease and congenital heart defects.  In 2014 a campaign started by the American Heart Association and The Children's Heart Foundation began, it is called Little Hats, Big Hearts.  Volunteers around the country are asked to knit or crochet red hats for babies born in February.  The purpose is to raise awareness and test all babies for heart defects.  These red hats are given out to thousands of babies during American Heart Month (February) in order to remind moms to live heart healthy lives for themselves and their children.  I didn't have a baby doll to model the hats I am making so this American Girl doll will have to do.  If you want to read more about it including patterns, here is the link.  http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/General/Little-Hats-Big-Hearts_UCM_487734_SubHomePage.jsp

I like to do things like this.  In the past, I knit and crocheted for Bridget's Cradles.  I blogged about it.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2015/06/my-experience-making-bridgets-cradles.html  I found it made me sad.  I knew parents who lost children could benefit from this, but I had to take breaks from doing it.  I was very happy to discover the Little Hats, Big Hearts program.  I have a special reason to support this cause.  My sister's little granddaughter Amelia was born with a heart defect.  Today she is an amazing outgoing eight year old who is active and happy, but she went through a lot. Thank goodness for technology, gifted surgeons and a wonderful supportive loving family.

 I asked for information about Amelia's heart history because I wanted to write the proper information and do it justice.  This is the information her mom Andrea provided.

Amelia's congenital heart defect is called atrioventricular septal defect (also known as AV Canal defect or endocardial cushion defect).   In a nutshell, this is a a large hole in the center of the heart, comprised of an atrial septal defect (ASD; a hole in the wall separating the atria), ventricular septal defect (VSD; a hole in the separating the ventricles), and a single AV valve, rather than two separate tricuspid and mitral valves.   Because she had all three of these issues present, she had/has "complete atrioventricular septal defect".

In a normal heart, blood flows from chamber to chamber in one direction through the left and right sides of the heart. With an AV canal defect, blood flows through the ASD and VSD from the left side of the heart to the right side (a "left to right shunt"), which causes more blood than normal to pass through the right side of the heart.  Because of this, the left side of the heart to become enlarged and more blood than normal has to be pumped to the lungs. Over time, the extra blood flow causes the lungs to become filled with extra blood and fluid and leads to congestive heart failure.  Also, because of the malformed single AV valve, blood may leak backward from the ventricles to the atria (regurgitation), which causes the heart to need to work even harder.

Amelia started going into congestive heart failure at 10 weeks, and was placed on diuretics to continue to allow her to grow, which meant her heart would grow and would be "easier" to operate on.  She had her open heart surgery at 4 months old during which the surgeon placed a patch on the ASD and VSD and then created two separate "man made" valves into a mitral and a tricuspid valves.

She sees the cardiologist annually for a check-up.  During this time he does an electrocardiogram (ECG) to look at the electrical activity of her heart and an echocardiogram (echo) to look at the structure of the heart, mainly focusing on the function of her "abnormal" valves.  Currently, she has minor mitral valve regurgitation, but it has not gotten worse to date.  The risk is that over time, the valve could become stenotic (lose function) at which point she  would need further treatment or the valve replaced completely. 

The "good" side of all of this is that it doesn't seem to hold Amelia back in any way!  As you know she does soccer, dance, gymnastics, cheerleading and now skiing!  She is very well aware of her "brave scar" and "special heart" and we talk about it as a badge of honor of her strength and courage.  She truly is our "miracle baby"!

My nephew John and his wife Andrea have written a complete blog post of their journey.  If you would like to read it in it's entirety, here is the link.  It is an emotional read.

http://ouronlysunshine.blogspot.com/2009/05/amelia.html

Learning My Heritage Through My DNA

New years eve was about one month ago.  I wrote a blog that day about three Christmas gifts I received.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2016/12/gifts-to-enjoy-in-new-year-2017.html

One of the gifts from my daughter was a DNA test kit.  I got the results today January 31, 2017.  It was timely because today was the fifth anniversary of my mother's death.  She died on the same day as her mother only 74 years later.  I did a lot of thinking about family today and realized I couldn't ask anymore questions about genealogy and family connections.  The results I received confirmed that what I do know is accurate, but also included some things that will require more research.

I was a little suspicious of this at first.  I couldn't imagine how spitting in a tube could reveal a persons ancestry.  I came up with 99.8 percent European.  It included 92.5% Northwestern European.  Northwestern Europe usually consists of Ireland, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, northern Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Iceland.  It said I was 24% Scandinavian which makes sense because my mom's father came from Denmark and his parents were from Denmark.  The other great grandparents were from Northern Germany, except for one.  My grandma on my dad's side has deep roots in America way back to the 1700's.  Their names indicate British and Irish heritage.  I did have 19.9% British and Irish. That is the part I will have to research more. 

It explained that of your 23 chromosomes, 22 are inherited from your recent ancestors.  They are able to uncover information about your ancestral origins, both recent and ancient including Neanderthal ancestry.  It also showed me people who shared some of my DNA.  Some were third cousins and others were six and seventh cousins.  I recognized one last name as being the married name of my grandpa's aunt.  I imagine this could be useful if you were looking for missing family members.  You have the option to share information if you are comfortable doing so.  It appears that a lot of people are not comfortable sharing.

For the past 150 years, scientists have found bones from extinct populations of humans called Neanderthals.  They were named this because the bones were found in the Neander Valley in Germany.  I have more Neanderthal variants than 94% of their customers.  I am lucky I can stand upright.  I had one Neanderthal variant associated with having straighter hair.  I have slightly curly hair so I'm not sure about that.  Another variant is that I am less likely to sneeze after eating dark chocolate.  Thank goodness for that.  I love dark chocolate and would hate to sneeze every time I ate it.  Another thing I am grateful for is that I have zero variants associated with having back hair.  Even with the high percentage of variants, only 4% of my characteristics come from the Neanderthals.

The third thing they show you is called the maternal haplogroup.  The paternal haplogroup is only shown on the Y chromosome so females can only see the maternal group.  It is a set of variations in your genetics that tells you about your material line of ancestors.  I found out that my maternal line originated thousands of years ago on the Arabian Peninsula, just as modern humans were first expanding out of Africa and onto the Eurasian continent. About 7,000 years ago the expansion of farming carried daughter lineages into Europe.  The fact that my ancestors left Africa and traveled through Eurasia probably accounts for the 2/10ths (.2) percent of me that isn't European. 

They figured this out because my haplogroup traces the spread of the Bell Beaker culture. The Bell Beaker pottery are drinking containers that are shaped like an upside down Bell.  They found human skeletons with this pottery in places such as caves.  Through carbon dating, they found this pottery, bones and other items from this culture were from 1800 to 2500 BC.  This is confusing to me, but they have traced the Bell Beaker culture migration through archaeological finds as they moved into northern Europe.

This was fun to see and learn about.  I have ordered a kit for my husband.  His ancestry is more complicated than mine, and it should be very interesting.  The lesson here is that we can't change our DNA so we need to do the best we can with what we were given.

 We used 23andme, but I'm sure there are other testing places who do the same thing.  Here is a link to order or read more about it.

https://www.23andme.com/?utm_source=extole&utm_medium=referafriend&utm_campaign=extole&utm_content=23c_Refer_A_Friend&cta_id=52e056195e29ccf3a7000098&zone_id=54f52004368aa6778a00001f&xtl_client_id=232323&xtl_campaign_id=561d298b63616e739400002c&xtl_share_zone_name=microsite20&xtl_zone_name=friend_landing_coupon&xtl_site_id=0ffc985fd4945ae0b2b65abb&xtl_share_id=6381942318318757841&xtl_click_id=6382290697851869669

I Made Some Matching Mittens

Not much is happening today.  We were supposed to have a glimpse of sun, but I haven't seen it yet.  I did see some strange looking tracks on the ice, but so far I don't know what they are from.  The hospital did need more scrubblies to sell in their gift shop, but that was a quick project.  I have made over two hundred since I started.  All that's left to write about is my latest knitting endeavor.  If you don't knit, you can stop reading now.  I mostly want these patterns documented for myself, in case I want to make the patterns again.

About a month ago I wrote about a winter hat I knit.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2016/12/a-wickerwork-hat.html

On Christmas Day my daughter wore it around all day so I guess she liked it.  My other daughter told me she wanted one too.   I'm always looking for projects, so I was happy to make another one.  She wanted it in red.  I looked in my stash, but I didn't have enough of the color she wanted.  I ended up buying a 7 oz. skein.  I found a super sale and it cost me about $2.

The hat only took half of the yarn so I thought I would look for a pattern to make matching mittens.  I found a pattern called Very Cabley Mittens.  The pattern is free on Ravelry.com.  http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/very-cabley-mittens

They turned out pretty cute, and the cable cuff was new to me.

Here is a photo of the tracks on the ice.  It could be an otter, but I'm not sure.  What do you think?

I saw this red fox the other day, but I'm pretty sure he didn't make those tracks.

Searching The Fox River For Eagles

Wisconsin has had very unseasonable temperatures this winter.  It has stayed above freezing for a couple weeks.  As a result, the snow we have is melting slowly leaving the air full of humidity and creating fog.  It has been almost a week since we saw the sun.  From that time to now it has been particularly cloudy.  During January, if some of the river ice melts, the eagles show up in large numbers to fish in the open water.  I have wanted to take a ride to look for eagles, and I have been waiting for a nice day.  I ran out of patience today and lowered my standards.  It wasn't snowing, the temperatures were near 40 degrees and the fog had lifted.  There was a haze in the air, but we went anyway.

There were several areas where the Fox River was open.  We planned a route but didn't have much luck.  We were told that 250 eagles have been spotted in a section of the river from Neenah, WI to Kaukauna, WI.  We stopped at a park where there was a large pier on the river.  We didn't see anything as we were walking to the river but then we spotted several eagles roosting in the trees across the river.

I couldn't get good pictures.  The sky was cloudy and hazy and the eagles were hidden in the trees across the river.  If you look carefully, like one of those magic pictures, perhaps you will be able to see or maybe it's more like Where's Waldo.  There were at least five in the trees.  We didn't see any of them fly.  The funny part is that in the next two weeks we will probably see more flying over our marsh.  I saw one yesterday.  This was an outing that I really enjoyed.

Along the way we saw a lighthouse on Lake Winnebago and several ducks and geese.  The giant mansions in the area were a very interesting sight.  It didn't occur to me to take photos of them until I got home.  I guess all the old money made from the paper industry is still a part of these neighborhoods.

Speaking of the large amounts of money made in the Fox River-Butte des Morts area of Wisconsin,  our daughter's mother in law and good friend introduced me to an old book by Edna Ferber called Come and Get It.  Edna Ferber is an author who wrote famous stories like Show Boat and Cimarron.  She writes about different phases of America in her books.  This book was published 1934-1935 but the story takes place in the early 1900's.  It mostly takes place in Butte des Morts, Wisconsin but also travels to northern Wisconsin lumber camps, Milwaukee and Chicago.  The story is about one of the main characters going from a chore boy in a lumber camp to a lumber-paper making king.  It's a family's  journey of making a fortune and losing it.

The huge houses I saw today reminded of the house this family lived in. The story was written more than eighty years ago so some of the language and words were unfamiliar to me, but overall I really enjoyed the book.  Who knew that our little outing searching for eagles would also remind me of this book. 

Passing the Time during the Doldrums of Winter

It has been a busy week in an attempt to ignore the horrible weather we have been experiencing here in Wisconsin.  I think most of the country has had it's share of inclement weather.  Yesterday it rained, but the pavement was very cold so the rain froze on contact.  Our sidewalk which hadn't thawed from the week before is partly under water and partly a glaze of ice.  I got more traction walking on top of the snow that remains, but even that was treacherous.  I hope the birds and deer appreciate my effort.

One of our deer friends peeking at me through the branches.

This week I made bread with my own sour dough starter which I learned to make without buying the starter powder.  http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/sourdough-starter-recipe   I put one loaf in the freezer two days ago and this is all that is left from the second loaf.  The starter is to the point where I can keep it in the refrigerator and only feed it once a week.

Sour dough starter and bread

I made lemon water which I make every few days.  For more than a year, my husband has a warm cup of this water first thing in the morning.  I don't know if this is the reason he was able to eliminate his acid reflux medication, but he doesn't need it any longer.  He has done a few other things like not eating after 7:00 pm and cutting back on tomato products.  That was difficult, but we have adapted.

Lemon water which I made this time with a lime, an orange and two lemons

I made a new batch of bone broth.  I recently bought twenty-five pounds of organic bones, so I will be good for a long time.  I drink a cup of the broth first thing in the morning instead of coffee.  I call it my magic elixir.  It gives me a sense of well being even though staying upbeat during these long winter days is challenging at times.

Batch of bone broth for the freezer

I made hard boiled eggs in the pressure cooker.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2016/09/boiling-eggs-easy-way.html  Most people call the cooker an Instant Pot now, but when I bought mine it was called a digital pressure cooker.  I think the term "pressure cooker" brings back negative memories of past models.  Leave it to Madison Avenue to rename it to improve sales.  However instant pots do have more pre-programmed settings including a yogurt setting which is very popular.

 

Seeing all the hype on making yogurt makes me laugh.  I have been making my own yogurt for forty years or more.  It is the exact process I have always used but they are making it sound like a new invention.  Now they call it Greek yogurt, but it is just thick yogurt.  I typed "Yogurt" in my blog because I was sure I had blogged about it already.  It didn't come up.  I blogged about all the other things I have made this week, but not yogurt.  That is hard to believe, so here is the recipe.

Homemade Yogurt

4 cups milk (I used 2%)
1 T. plain yogurt starter
(to start just buy a container of plain yogurt with live cultures, then after you start making yogurt use 1 tablespoon of your homemade yogurt to start a new batch)

I read you can freeze yogurt in ice cube trays and then if you don't make one batch after the other, you will have starter available.  I haven't tried this.

Heat the milk to 180 degrees.  You can use a saucepan or the microwave.  Use a digital thermometer to make sure the milk is hot enough.  Then let it cool to 110 degrees.  Stir in the yogurt starter.  I usually put the yogurt starter in a small dish, add a little milk and mix it up.  Then add it into the four cups of cooled milk.  Now you just incubate it for 10-12 hours.  People with an instant pot just make it in the cooker, but I use an old yogurt maker to keep the yogurt warm.  It just needs to be kept warm somehow.  I usually do it in the evening and then it is ready in the morning.  Without stirring, put it in the refrigerator for 6 hours or so.  Mine is very thick, but if it isn't just strain it through cheese cloth or a sieve or a nut bag.  The excess whey drains out for other uses, and the really thick Greek yogurt remains.

Yogurt maker with finished yogurt.

This is perfect plain yogurt to use in smoothies which is what we usually use it for.  I also make yogurt parfaits.  To do that, I sweeten the yogurt with some honey and a little vanilla, cut up some fruit and layer it in a dish or jelly jar with either granola or oatmeal.

Parfaits in the refrigerator for a snack or a quick breakfast. 

I love having all this stuff on hand to eat and drink, but the downside is the dirty dishes.  I know how to make a mess, and my biggest challenge is to remember to clean up as I go.   Fortunately I have a non-human dishwasher.  If I didn't, it would be really easy to talk myself out of making all this.

I realize this way of living is not for most people, but living like a modern day pioneer is the life we chose.  Thank goodness I have indoor plumbing, a great backup heating system, running water and access to food without hunting, fishing and preserving just to live. 

Cabin Fever

I normally don't mind winter too much.  I really like living in an area that has four seasons and winter weather is part of that.  We live in Wisconsin and have fantastic heating systems and most counties have snow removal down to a science.  There are very few days when we can't get out.  I equate it to being in Phoenix in the summer.  I have been there when it is 110 degrees at 10:00pm.  Those people are pretty much stuck indoors just as we are when the temperature is below zero.  Winter sports are fun if you take advantage.  Snowshoeing, sledding and tubing, ice skating, sking, building snow forts and snowmen and even snowmobiling are winter activities.  Even if I don't do a lot of these myself, it's fun to watch the grandchildren enjoy winter.

This year is a little different.  I actually have cabin fever living in my cabin.  The weather is not your typical winter.  The temperatures have varied so much that one day it's really cold and the next is fairly warm.  Other parts of the state have gotten some snow, but we have very little. The snow we have has thawed and frozen again into a hard crusty uneven mess.  It isn't good for any outdoor activities. Even driving in this weather is risky at times.  You can leave in perfectly good weather and return in a snow squall where you can't even see the road. 

Yesterday the yard was covered with slush

and standing water.

It was melting and raining so much that all the low areas had standing water and slush.  It was not a nice day.  Then overnight the temperatures dropped and the water froze solid.

This morning the water was frozen solid.

I could find things to do inside.  There are some big projects I would like done, but I have come to the point in my life where I am pretty satisfied with things as they are.  I have lived under construction so much, the thought of tearing apart the house doesn't appeal to me.  I could do some cooking and baking but neither of us need the extra calories.  I could participate on facebook, but that is so full of anger and meanness and complaining, I just want to stay away.  Human kindness seems to be long gone.  I could adopt a pet but that would just add to my stress.  Pets die too young.  I'm not ready to go through that again.  I could knit more hats, mittens and slippers and add them to the pile of stuff nobody wants.  I could watch TV, but that isn't very uplifting either with the 600 pound life and weird violent stories.  I have seen most of the Hallmark movies.  I could write a blog, but I have written so many, I don't have much more to talk about.  I could read more but not being a reader, I get really tired after a few pages.  I read often but not for long periods of time.   I do have birds and wildlife to watch, although they aren't as active as usual.  Here are some winter birds I watch regularly.  These are just a few because I take hundreds of photos.

Chipping Sparrow

White breasted Nuthatch

Hairy Woodpecker

Downy Woodpecker

Female Cardinal

Chickadee

Rose Breasted Nuthatch

Male Cardinal

Red Bellied Woodpecker

I even took a picture of my daughter's bird picture.

I sound depressed but I am NOT.  We are fairly healthy and I am so grateful for that.  I am just out of ideas for fun things to do.  My husband does not get bored.  He can work really hard or sit for twelve hours straight without running out of things to do or think about. My mom always said "this too shall pass".   It will, but I may have to wait a few weeks.  So for the next 67 days, 9 hours and 11 minutes until Spring or when the weather breaks so I can get outside, I will have to find something to do.  I have some ideas but I will only share if and when it happens.  I don't want to promise something I can't deliver. 

Then There Was Light With A LuminAID

Every Saturday morning, when I can, I watch a show called Xploration Station. (http://www.xplorationstation.com/)  It is a science show mostly geared to and featuring young people. It discusses all aspects of science and inventions using science to make the world a better place.  It is presented in a way I can understand.  I learn so much.  I am amazed at all the brilliant people in the world who think outside the box. 

On a recent show I saw a piece about a solar lantern. There is a need for inexpensive lighting in underdeveloped countries.  Kerosene lanterns have a lot of disadvantages, so they took the concept of solar panels and created a lantern using only the power of the sun. It is good for the environment and is more practical for sunny areas which have less wind and water.

It is inexpensive to make and has changed life in these countries.  Imagine what it would be like to go from no electric lights to having an easy way to light the way.

I thought to myself if this would work for underdeveloped countries, it would surely work for me during a power outage or walking out to the garage when it is dark.  I have an awesome beanie hat with a light on it, but the LuminAID solar lantern would add even more light.

I went online and found a company from Wisconsin that sells this solar lantern.  I ordered it and was surprised how it was packaged.  It came in a flat package about 4" by 4" by 1".  The information on the package said this technology was developed by two architecture students after the Haiti Earthquake in 2010.  https://luminaid.com/pages/about

When you open the package it unfolds into a lantern.  This is a smaller size but they do come in a variety of sizes.  This would be a perfect size to hang in a tent or just have available in the house.

All you do to charge it is put it in direct sunlight and let it gather the sun's rays.  Then whenever a lantern is needed, light is available.  It will stay charged in storage for over a year.  It's battery lasts 12 hours on the low beam.  It is very lightweight and could be collapsed to carry in a backpack or a car.  It's waterproof and it floats.  There is no worry about finding a flashlight with fresh batteries or finding the matches for a candle.  It has an extra bright beam, a high beam, a low beam and a flashing light.  We haven't needed it for a nighttime power outage, but I do take it outside in the dark.  It sheds a lot of light to scare off any creatures lurking in our woods.  I'm happy to have it, but for people in areas without electric lights, it must be a game changer.

Ceramic Frying Pan

I have a little update on the cookware blog I wrote a couple years ago.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2014/05/cast-iron-cookware-is-my-oldnew-favorite.html

I still love my cast iron cookware, but for some reason my husband always uses the old teflon type coated frying pan for his eggs.  It is all that is left of my old Cuisinart set and is pretty scratched.  I don't know why he doesn't use the cast iron for eggs, but old habits die hard.  During the holidays I was out shopping.  I had a coupon for $10 off of $30, but I thought it was $10 off of $50.  I had purchased a few things, but I thought I needed to spend a few more dollars to save the $10.  I came across a sale on cookware.  I found a nice frying pan on sale from $35 to $15.  It was the new ceramic coated pan.  Now real purists don't believe that ceramic coatings are any better than the toxic teflon.  They say it gets scratched, and wears off in a year giving off chemicals or lead.  That might be true, but most reviews say it is very safe.  I decided to take a chance.  The price was right and time will tell how well it holds up and how safe it is.  It is two months old and looks brand new.

This pan is amazing.  Nothing sticks and it just needs to be wiped out with a damp towel.  Sometimes it may need a little more water, but it cleans up with no scrubbing.  I have never had a pan which browns food so nicely and cleans up so quickly.  No oil is necessary unless you like it for flavor.

This was his breakfast.  He fried potatoes, onions and eggs.  All of this just slid off onto the plate without a dirty pan.  I hope they don't find out this surface is really really toxic, because for now I even like cooking in it.

Gifts To Enjoy In The New Year-2017

It's New Year's Eve, and the last day of 2016.  As with any year, it has had it's share of ups and downs.  Hopefully the ups will continue into 2017 and the downs will not change life as we know it.  I thought, since I don't go out and party on New Year's Eve, I would write about three of the gifts I received for Christmas.  Baby Jesus isn't alone.  I got three awesome gifts too.

The first gift I got was from my sister and brother-in-law.  It was a pair of knitting needles.  They aren't just any round knitting needles, they are hexagon shape, like a pencil.   Apparently a woman named Pam Hoffman was in a knitting store.  She was going to buy her daughter some knitting supplies for a gift.  The proprietor showed her some square needles.  She explained that the square shape made it easier to knit.  The lady tried them but found them cumbersome and found a square needle didn't easily fit into a round stitch.  It was the square peg into the round hole effect.  Thinking about it, she noticed how easy a pencil is to write with.  She decided to cast some stitches on a pencil and that is how her company got started.  With the help of her husband, they created hexagon shaped needles made out of wood, sanded smooth and finished with beeswax.  The materials to make them are sourced from Michigan locations.  They are awesome.  They knit smoothy without as much hand fatigue.  I think they would be really good for a beginner knitter because they are smooth without being slippery.  My sister inherited my mom's ability to find the perfect gift.  I don't have that ability.  They got CHEESE.  The website is:  http://indianlakeartisans.com/
 

The next gift was from one of my daughters and her family.  She knew we were going to Michigan next summer for my niece's wedding.  Since Lake Michigan is in the way, she bought us tickets to take the SS Badger car ferry from Manitowoc, WI to Ludington, MI.  It is a fun trip unless the waves are high. The weather has to cooperate, or I get a little seasick if I have to go inside the boat.  I do best on the outside deck.  Even at that, it's better than traveling through Chicago.  At our age, that makes us a little nervous.  The other option is the northern route over the Mackinac Bridge.  That is a beautiful route, and we will probably go that way on the way home.

Map from their website:  http://www.ssbadger.com/

The third gift was from my other daughter and family.   It was a DNA ancestry kit.  It will tell or confirm my heritage.  It comes in a box with instructions and a collection tube.  The hard part was spitting in the tube.  You can't eat or drink anything for at least a half hour so getting enough spit was a challenge.  It took a while.  Then a stabilizer liquid is added and the whole thing is sealed up and mailed in.  I have seen them advertised many times and it always intrigued me.  It will take a few weeks to get the results, but I will report to my relatives if anything wonky shows up.  I doubt if that will happen, but you never know.

So Happy New Year to everyone. 

 I hope 2017 is the best year ever for you and your family.

Our 2016 Christmas Day

Christmas Day 2016 is just a memory.  We host Christmas Day brunch for our daughters, son-in-laws and five grandchildren.  They spend Christmas Eve with our son-in-laws' families, then Santa comes overnight so they have a relaxed Christmas morning at home and then they all come to our house.  Some of the kids wear their pajama's or comfortable clothing.  It was another awesome day.  I need to learn to make less food because everyone is stuffed by the end of the day, but feeling happy and content.

We eat brunch first and then it is present time.  Last year we started a tradition.  Each member of the family buys a gift.  We use the same wrapping paper so all the gifts look similar.  There are eleven of us, so we stack up eleven gifts.

We start with the youngest person which happens to be Ewan.  He chooses a gift and opens it.  Next was Jack.  He chooses a gift and opens it and it continues down the line.  When all the gifts are open, we get a chance to steal.  This round we start with the oldest which is grandpa.  He chose to keep his gift which was wireless earphones, and he hoped no one would steal it.  This was a perfect gift for him because he spends a lot of time listening to books and won't have to plug his ipod into the earphone jack.  Next was myself.  I stole the gift our grandson Sam had opened.  It was a Steamer/Frother pot.  The good part is the two youngest were last, and they were able to steal the gift they wanted most so there were no sad faces.  Also, the secret is to buy a gift for yourself and if you're lucky (which I was) you can end up with it.

Next we got to open the Santa stockings.  Santa got a little mixed up this year with favorite candy and leaving prices on things, but hopefully that went unnoticed.  I got the "look" from my daughters a couple times when I forgot that Christmas stockings didn't need to have disclaimers.  I was reminded that Santa filled the stockings and not me.   I am famous for disclaiming anything I cook or do.  I want everyone to be happy.  Unlike today's generation who get a trophy for just showing up, I was taught to be responsible for my failures.  Although sometimes I should just shut up.

After the stockings, we exchanged the kids and family gifts.  I love it when the gifts are ripped open or in my case they open the drawstring on the fabric bag.  http://www.thecabincountess.com/2013/12/making-fabric-gift-bags.html

What a mess we make, but that is what our Christmas is about.   I am reminded of a Christmas we spent in Arizona when the girls were small.  My husband's step father was such a control freak, he picked up every piece of wrapping paper immediately after the present was open.  It took all the fun out of it.  Messes can always be cleaned up later.

I like to make things even for everyone even though no one really knows the difference.  I decided Dylan needed one more gift so I picked up a pair of Virtual Reality glasses.  Then knowing Sam would probably like them too, I went and bought two more pair so they would be the same.  I thought I could take back the first pair I bought because they were slightly different.  They were a big hit.

Melissa is 16 years old, and I didn't think she would be interested in them.  The boys were enjoying them so I asked if she would like my spare pair.  Surprisingly she said yes.  I brought them out.  Hopefully she won't read this blog because she did not want her picture taken.  Hopefully in a few years she will appreciate this moment being documented or she will never let me forget it.

Some of the exchange gifts were games.  Sarah, Heather, Dylan, Sam and Jack played a game called Telestrations.  It is based on the telephone game only sketched out.  They laughed so hard.  I love it when there is a lot of laughter in the house.

Then they went outside.  The kids played in the snow and my daughter and her husband went snowshoeing.  The snow was really wet and heavy. 

It is a good thing Christmas was yesterday because today it is sunny and the temperature is well above freezing.  It is in the middle 40's and the snow is melting quickly.  This is the same scene today.  The ice is covered with a layer of water.

It was a great day and a happy Christmas.  I only wish everyone could be so fortunate.  While snowshoeing our daughter saw two eagles flying over the marsh.  We think it was Grandma and Grandpa Dux wishing us a Merry Christmas.