Getting a new Christmas apron from Rare Dirndl has become one of my favorite holiday traditions, and this year is no exception! The winter floral apron was made in very limited quantities, and I almost missed out on it…I’m so glad there a small second run, because this is one gorgeous apron!
To really lean into the Christmas theme, I paired it with my red Everyday Dirndl:
Here’s a closer look at the beautiful embroidery. There are so many beautiful colors in the flowers, and even though it’s called a “winter” floral apron, I know I’ll be wearing it all year!
I accessorized with a flower crown and a pair of necklaces from Rare Dirndl, plus an Erstwilder brooch (and a bonus mini brooch worn as a zipper pull!), a pair of Splendette Duchess Bangles, and sparkly hoop earrings from Lane Bryant in red, green, and white:
Instead of a dirndl blouse, I styled it with the green Clarisse-Gia blouse from Miss Candyfloss, which is the perfect Christmasy addition to the look!
It doesn’t get much more festive than this!
I’m already thinking of how I might style this apron slightly differently for Christmas Day!
We sadly didn’t have any company this year, so it really felt like a very laid-back holiday. We watched the Macy’s Parade and played parade bingo and then took in the dog show while I puttered about, getting things ready…I set the table extra early this year, so that was a task done long before dinner:
I found some time for Animal Crossing…I always like to hang out with Roald on a holiday!
And then time for dinner! I think this was one of the better turkeys I’ve ever made, and all of our regular side dishes were delicious, too:
We watched Holiday Inn while we cleaned up and I boiled the turkey carcass for turkey soup. And then we had pie! My choice of cranberry-rhubarb was just as tart and delicious as I hoped it would be!
Today began just as yesterday ended…with more pie for breakfast!
Chickadee and I went to the town Santa Parade, which is always a fun time:
When we got home, we had our traditional turkey sandwiches for lunch:
And I had lunch dessert, which I think should be a regular thing!
For dinner I made our day-after-Thanksgiving turkey soup:
And then Moose, Chickadee, and I went to the town tree lighting:
We also visited the Christkindlmarkt:
And checked out the gingerbread displays:
The storefronts were looking good, too!
Back home we had one more round of pie:
And now I’m exhausted, but the fun is just beginning, because Advent starts on Sunday!
It’s that time of year again…a new Christmas apron from Rare Dirndl has been added to my wardrobe!
This is a newer tradition that I really look forward…once fall hits, I start wondering what this year’s apron will look like. I was super excited to see this green velvet variety with holly-print ties (it was also offered with plaid and Santa-print ties)…velvet just screams “Christmas” to me!
It’s so luxurious, and is such a great match for my elegant brocade dirndl!
I accessorized with a tiny pair of wreath earrings, an Erstwilder brooch worn as a necklace, and a stack of Splendette duchess bangles:
I love wearing a festive dirndl to the Christkindlmarkt in downtown Belleville!
I bought a new pair of ankle boots to go with some of my Miss Candyfloss dresses, but I discovered that they are also a perfect match for my Magician dirndl!
This is such a fun way to dress for Christmas!
What festive fashion are you planning this season?
Another Thanksgiving has come and gone far too quickly!
Our annual celebration started with Pie Day(s). Like I did last year, I split the work of the pie baking up over two days…we made 10 pies plus the cranberries and stuffing.
I love that our table looks a little bit different every year!
I wasn’t sure how much time I’d have later, so I checked in with Franklin to see how his dinner preparations were coming along:
Bunny wasn’t able to join us until Thanksgiving Day, and had to leave again this morning already, so we did things a little different. We ended up watching the Macy’s Parade twice on Thanksgiving Day (only one game of Parade Bingo, though), along with the dog show and a few of our favorite Thanksgiving shows (Mad About You‘s “Giblets for Murray,” Gilmore Girls‘ “A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving,” The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s “Talking Turkey,” Scrubs’ “My Day Off,” A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and M*A*S*H‘s “The Yalu Brick Road.”).
We had our traditional dinner…turkey and gravy, stuffing and mashed potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and green beans with almonds, cranberries, and rolls:
It’s always a pretty plate!
And so many pies to choose from!
I went with pecan, Nutella, and pumpkin:
I had enough time to pop back into Animal Crossing to help Franklin procure the final ingredients for dinner on the island:
This morning started with pie for breakfast…this time, Nutella and Biscoff cookie butter:
Chickadee and I went to the town Santa parade:
I love a turkey sandwich on rye the day after Thanksgiving!
For lunch dessert, I tried the caramel apple pie:
The Lego Winter Village set was built over the course of two days…I have mixed feelings about this year’s model (I really wish it was just a post office, not Santa’s post office), but I do think the mail sorting system is really cool, and I love the hot air ballon. We got a bonus set of a delivery truck, and it’s really cool, too!
Dinner was turkey soup (of course):
And then Moose, Chickadee, and I went to the town tree lighting:
We also enjoyed checking out the gingerbread house contest…here are some of my favorites:
And one more piece of pie for dessert!
We get to have another leftovers dinner tomorrow (and more pie of course!), but that pretty much wraps up this year’s Markel Family Thanksgiving…on to Advent and Christmas!
I know I said yesterday that I was sharing my last “Top Five” photos list of the year, but those were photos I took…today I’m sharing my favorite dirndl looks that I wore this year, which are photos take of me, not by me!
I’m starting back in May, when we went to Maifest at Grant’s Farm. I really love the pops of pink of the apron and ribbon against the darker background of the dress, and I also really love the setting of the picture!
My second Everyday Dirndl was purchased specifically with paying homage to the Austrian flag in mind, and the full look is even better than I hoped. I love the white “Surprise Me” apron Erika created for me, and I think my accessories, which featured lots of edelweiss and pops of white and red, are the perfect accompaniment!
Next up is the look I wore to Belleville Oktoberfest. I borrowed an apron from another dirndl to go with my purple dress, and added my iridescent Docs and some purple accessories to complete the look.
Speaking of borrowing an apron, this is the dress that goes with the apron in the previous photo. This time, I added a fancy, sheer floral apron to my harlequin print dirndl for St. Charles Oktoberfest…I love the autumnal color scheme!
And finally, a look featuring my new Christmas apron. Not the look I wore on Christmas Day (which I also love), but the one I wore to the Belleville Christkindlmarkt, adding a green ribbon and red accessories for a festive look.
I really love finding new ways to mix and match my pieces, and I can’t wait to see what I come up with next!
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…the time when I add a new Christmas apron to my dirndl closet!
I’ve really come to look forward to Rare Dirndl’s new Christmas apron every year. This year was extra special, though, because they tried something different. Instead of offering just one print, they let you choose between a “kitschy” or “classic” print, and then sent you a mystery apron to fit the theme. For the members of their Facebook group, they also offered a live event where they previewed the available fabrics, and allowed group members to request specific prints before the sale was made public. I went into the sale knowing I wanted something primarily green, and I was thrilled to find this gorgeous print with phrases from familiar Christmas carols printed on it!
I added a green ribbon to my “Die Heimat” dirndl to go with the color of the apron…I really love the way it pops against the grey!
I chose red accessories, including a necklace and bracelet from Rare Dirndl, plus a fun pair of Christmas ornament earrings I found at Target:
It’s a lot of fun to wear a dirndl to the local Christkindlmarkt!
I’ll be wearing the apron again for Christmas, but in a completely different way…stay tuned!
Ladybug worked with the Law of Cosines in pre-calculus. In physics, she learned how to calculate frequency and period. She read about the fifth and sixth (unsuccessful) Crusades in history. In religion she read about the Arian controversy. She got to write a fun paper imagining she was interviewing the mice from “Three Blind Mice”…it was very clever! In health she read about digestion.
Chickadee learned how to borrow when subtracting mixed numbers in math. In religion, she read about some of Israel’s bad kings, as well as Elijah. She started the chapter on the cardiovascular system in science. In grammar, she learned the difference between transitive and intransitive verbs. We continued reading The Hobbit. In history, we read about El Cid and Saladin.
To welcome the month of December, today we took a walk around our town’s Christkindlmarkt and checked out all of the displays from the local gingerbread contest…our town does Christmas well!
Next week will be a mixture of regular subjects and the start of our annual “Christmas School”…this year, we’ll be focusing on Christmas carols!
“And that’s how Milly and Mr. Macy started a new holiday tradition. It looked a little like the old country, and a little like America, and a little like something entirely new.”
That quote from Milly and the Macy’s Parade describes pretty well how I felt about Thanksgiving this year. Our holiday was a little different, because this is the first time we’ve had a child away from home who returned to us for the holiday celebration. It was kind of familiar and kind of new, and still lots of fun!
One thing that was different this year was that instead of having “Pie Day” on Wednesday, I started my annual pie baking on Tuesday…I made three pies that day (two s’mores, another new thing because I’ve never made two of the same pie before, and a chocolate hazelnut) plus the cranberries. I got to work on baking early so that I wouldn’t have to be in the kitchen as much once Bunny returned home on Wednesday. The other six pies (plus the stuffing) were made that day, and Bunny even had time to make the caramel apple like she usually does!
Thursday was pretty normal…we watched the Macy’s Parade (Bunny and Ladybug tied at parade bingo) and the National Dog Show and some of our favorite Thanksgiving shows that we didn’t have time for on Wednesday. Chickadee took care of folding the napkins while I set our tables:
And dinner was even ready a little earlier than I expected, which is much better than it being done later! We had a fairly standard meal…turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, carrots, Brussels sprouts, green beans with almonds, cranberries, and rolls. I also made roast fennel for the first time, and it was delicious!
Another change this year involved our Lego Winter Village set. Usually, we build it the day after Thanksgiving, but Bunny had to leave pretty early that day, so we built it after dinner. I love that it looks like it was lifted right from the Alps, and it has so many lovely details…the fireplace is especially cool!
Here’s a look at the previously-mentioned pies. The pineapple pie was the only new addition this year, and it was a good one…I will definitely be making it again!
In the evening, we also played “Chandler’s Dumb States Game” for the first time. I was the undisputed champion…all 50 states in four minutes, and my children are still wondering how I did it! Of course I also had to check in with Franklin and my Animal Crossing neighbors before the day was over:
The day after Thanksgiving started with one of my very favorite traditions…pie for breakfast!
We went to see Moose march in the town Santa Parade for the last time…Bunny was able to stay long enough to see the band, which was nice. After all these years, I can’t believe he won’t be marching in it again!
Of course we had turkey sandwiches for lunch:
And more pie for lunch dessert:
Dinner was another favorite…turkey soup:
After dinner, Chickadee and I went to the town tree lighting, which is always a nice event.
We walked through Christkindlmarkt:
And checked out the gingerbread houses on display on Main Street. There are some very creative and beautiful pieces done by some very talented artists!
Back home, we had even more pie:
Last night, we had one more leftovers meal…Thanksgiving casserole (one of the few casseroles I actually like!):
And one final round of pie for dessert:
So, our celebration was a lot the same, but a little bit different. But we were together for the holiday, and that was the most important thing of all!
It’s hard to believe, but another year of festivities has wrapped up in downtown Belleville. Here’s a look back at some of the Christmas fun from this year.
Live reindeer made several appearances by the Christmas Market:
I’m pretty sure the market is a permanent fixture in Belleville, now…it’s always good to see people shopping!
As always, there were gingerbread houses on display in store windows:
