family feasts

Christmas 2025

It doesn’t seem possible, but Christmas Eve and Day have come and gone already!

Our celebration started on Christmas Eve morning, with Christmas Crunch:

I made time early in the day to deliver gifts to all of my neighbors on Gloriana, and also chased Roald around my island for a bit, trying to get the perfect picture (which I did).

Bunny had to work in the morning, but when she got home, she put the finishing touches on this year’s Advent Lego project, Rivendell:

And then we went to my second-favorite service of the entire church year, Christmas Eve candlelight:

Candlelight being a relative term, as it was still fairly light out when the service was over. We didn’t stop by the city of St. Louis Christmas tree downtown this year, so it was pretty bright for our drive through the Way of Lights!

When we got home, I made wassail, which was a bit of a change for us…I think it may become a new tradition!

And we enjoyed a gingerbread layer cake with gingerbread mousse filling and molasses cream cheese frosting, and topped with sugared cranberries for dessert.

We also played our new Christmas Eve board game, Ticket to Ride Northern Lights. I lost spectacularly, but not as spectacularly as Ladybug won!

We watched the San Francisco Ballet Nutcracker and Rick Steves’ European Christmas, and then I filled the stockings and escorted Mary and Joseph to the stable. I hope there’s never a day when we don’t want to put up the Little People nativity, even though we no longer have any little people living in our home1

On Christmas Day morning, we enjoyed our favorite coffee cake:

And then we went back to church, nice and early so I could get some pictures in front of the beautiful church Christmas tree:

Our church is always beautiful, but there’s something extra special about it at Christmastime!

The family picture we took after the service is probably one of the nicest ones we’ve ever taken!

We opened presents when we got home, and then I got started on dinner, the best dinner of the year, the famed “Pick Out Dinner!”

Setting the table is pretty low-key compared to Thanksgiving, but I still like to make it look nice, including napkins folded like Christmas trees. I added a few small Christmas trees to our traditional centerpiece of the Advent wreath…they balanced out the additional candles I often add quite nicely!

We had quite the spread this year!

We spent the afternoon and evening watching Christmas movies, playing games, and building Lego sets. The weather was far too warm for Christmas (it felt, smelled, and sounded like Easter!), but thankfully the weather isn’t what makes for a good Christmas, and we had a lovely day. And luckily for us, Christmas lasts for 12 days, so we still have our “fancy” (although dialed back a bit this year thanks to rising grocery costs) dinner and more cookie baking to look forward to…and maybe even some colder weather! Merry Christmas!!!

Thanksgiving 2025

We’ve had another fun three-day Thanksgiving celebration!

It started, as always, on Wednesday, with the making of the pies:

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!

Oktoberfest 2025

Time to look back at all of the Oktoberfests we attended this year! I had a great time wearing my favorite Rare Dirndls various places and celebrating my heritage!

First Chickadee and I went to Grant’s Farm in mid-September. This was a first (or at least the first time in a long time) for us. We were there pretty early, so we didn’t get to see the entertainment, but we did share a pretzel and it was top-tier…super buttery and one of the best we had!

Next was Belleville Oktoberfest, which is always something of a disappointment to me…the pretzels weren’t even very good! But it was an excuse to wear a dirndl and walk down Main Street.

Third was my favorite local Oktoberfest in St. Charles, MO. The music and dancing were amazing and the pretzels were delicious! Plus, it seems like the most authentic one in our area (says the woman who has never been to Munich…).

We always celebrate Oktoberfest at home. I made our standard German feast of schnitzel and spaetzle and red cabbage, with Black Forest cherry torte for dessert (not to mention fondue with pretzels, pickles, and brats for lunch), and not to brag, but the pretzels at our establishment are pretty good, too!

For the second year, we went to Soulard’s Oktoberfest, and I have to say, I really love this (relatively) small event! The pretzels were only so-so, but the cheese sauce was excellent, and the brass band was one of our favorites!

I was worried we weren’t going to make it to Zootoberfest at the St. Louis Zoo, but we managed to get there on the final day. As always, the pretzels are the best in the region (and the beer cheese they serve with them is outstanding), and I got to hear a polka band, complete with accordion!

This was a really fun season of festing…I’ll leave you with Brasshaufen Brass Band (a group we enjoyed both in St. Charles and Soulard) doing one of my favorite Oktoberfest numbers. Prost!

Celebrating 626!

Happy 626 Day!!! Tonight’s recipes come from Lilo and Stitch: The Official Cookbook. The main course was one of my favorite recipes in the book…Kiki’s Special Saimin Noodles, which has an amazing broth infused with lots of ginger! Our drink was Hapa Kine Strawberry and Basil Cooler Companions. In addition to the strawberries and basil that give the recipe its name, there was also lemon juice, honey, and lots of ginger syrup…one of the best drinks I’ve ever made! For dessert, I made the Guava Celebration Cake, which is a strawberry cake with a whipped cream cheese frosting, and a guava filling and topping.

The best celebrations include fashion of some sort, and today I wore my Disney Store Lilo and Stich dress with a Hula Lula Tiki Girl brooch from Miss Fluff for Lipstick and Chrome plus a Rocklove Jewelry “Tell Your Tale” Stitch Aloha enhancer and a stack of tropical Splendette Duchess bangles. I’ve also been carrying my sparkly Stitch Loungefly bag all week!

Happy Stitch Day!

Tasty Tuesday–Star Wars Days

Time for a look at this year’s Star Wars celebration!

It began, of course, on May the Fourth, with two breakfast recipes from the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Cookbook. I made Keshian Spice Rolls….that color is all natural because there was a puréed beet in the dough! I also made an unusual coffee drink called “Sunrise Caf” which featured turmeric and five spice.

We had an afternoon treat of Cassius Tea Cookies from Star Wars: The Ultimate Cookbook…they’re kind of like sugar cookies, but with black sesame seeds!

Of course we had our favorite Ronto Wraps, with roast pork, sausage, Ronto Wrap slaw, and peppercorn sauce from Delicious Disney: Walt Disney World. The Ronto Wrapper flatbreads were based on the recipe from the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Cookbook, but I improvised a bit.

We also had a side of Yalbec Stingers from Star Wars: The Life Day Cookbook:

And every special dinner calls for a special drink…this time, we had the Aleen Firefly, which was a combination of pineapple juice, Sprite, and Jello cubes from Star Wars: The Ultimate Cookbook.

For dessert I made Kowakian Crumb Cake, a type of blueberry crisp from the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Cookbook.

I also had a special Her Universe outfit to celebrate the day!

You can’t celebrate May the Fourth without also celebrating The Revenge of the Fifth, so I picked a few more recipes from Star Wars: The Ultimate Cookbook. For dinner the main course was Nal Hutta Swamp Stew, which was a delicious pork stew with potatoes and roasted green chilies.

We also tried another new drink recipe, Seezelslak‘s Speciality, which was a light and refreshing smoothie made with coconut milk, frozen cantaloupe, and lime zest.

And for dessert, Ladybug made Cloud City Bread, which was like a cross between a meringue and a marshmallow, and so melt-in-your-mouth delicious!

I look forward to this fun little celebration every year!

Easter 2025

Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

As always, our Easter celebration really begins with the start of the Holy Triduum on Maundry Thursday. As it turns out, that was the most beautiful day of the whole Easter weekend, and the last time we’d see blue skies!

On Friday, I did a bit of prep work for Sunday…I tried a new (very successful!) recipe for flatbreads, and also made hot cross buns:

We went back to church Friday evening, and the cloudy skies seemed appropriate for the day.

On Saturday, we did some more work…Ladybug frosted the cupcakes she made the day before, and I baked a baklava cheesecake.

We also made our 2025 Paschal candle while watching Rick Steves’ European Easter…both are important Holy Saturday traditions to us.

And then my favorite church service of the entire year…with a twist. The overnight rain made it impossible to begin the Great Vigil of Easter outside by the bonfire as usual, so we had a “bonfire” in the back of the sanctuary to start the service. All things considered, it was a good solution to a soggy problem!

We always get Wendy’s on the way home from church on Saturday evening:

And then back to church this morning for the most celebratory service of the year!

The family photo isn’t quite right without Bunny, but she couldn’t get away from school to join us…we’ll see her in a few weeks for graduation, though!

Our Easter breakfast was a bit simpler than I’ve made some years…scrambled eggs, sausage, a fruit salad, pomegranate juice, and like last year, 13 kinds of mini donuts!

We had fun watching the first two My Big Fat Greek Wedding movies, and I made lavender matchas for those who enjoy them:

And I set the table, featuring the new Paschal candle and a new bunny napkin fold that incorporated the Cadbury Creme Eggs I had picked up:

I found some time to check into Animal Crossing, and Roald was nice enough to take a picture with me!

I made a menu of Greek foods for dinner…souvlaki and gyros, with our favorite toppings and flatbread, fried feta, Greek salad, and spanakopita, plus the hot cross buns…kind of minus the crosses, which mostly melted to the plastic wrap!

And for dessert, the baklava cheesecake:

After how long Lent always seems, Holy Week, and especially the Holy Triduum and Easter Sunday itself go by so quickly, but we had a lovely celebration…Happy Easter!

Opening Day 2025

We spent all winter staring out the window waiting for this day to arrive…the day of the St. Louis Cardinals home opener!

We had our usual Opening Day feast, with a minor twist. I decided to make my German recipe for the month, Sauerkrautkuchen, as an appetizer…I figured the sauerkraut gave it baseball vibes, at least for those of us who like kraut on our brats! Of course we also had our traditional Opening Day nachos, too:

For dinner we had hot dogs and brats, and Fitz’s Cardinal Cream soda. I always have to have a Chicago-style dog on Opening Day.

This year, instead of buying a Cardinals cookie cake, I made my own! I served it with Cherry Cardinals Crunch ice cream from Schnucks:

For me, fashion is always an important part of a celebration…I haven’t worn this particular jersey on Opening Day for a few years, so it was time. I paired it with my Cardinals necklace and earrings, plus my Loungefly (not pictured).

Now we just have to wait and see how the game turns out…there was a rain delay, so they got started late, but they’re winning as of right now!

An Early St. Patrick’s Day

Just like last year, we celebrated St. Patrick’s Day a day early today. We started by trying to trick the leprechaun into falling for our trap, but of course it didn’t work…he did leave some “gold” behind, though!

We had soda bread with tea for an afternoon snack:

And more soda bread with our traditional dinner:

For dessert, I made not only Guinness cake, but Guinness mousse to go with it…I think this might be a permanent addition to our St. Patrick’s Day menu!

Tomorrow we’re celebrating Turkey’s birthday…also early!

Tasty Tuesday–Festive Feasts and Holiday Baking

Now that Epiphany has come and gone, I guess the holiday season is officially over (I’m still not taking my Christmas tree down yet, though!). Let’s take a look back at the festive feasts and holiday baking we enjoyed during the holidays!

As I did last year, I kicked off Thanksgiving week by making pumpkin-chocolate chip cookies:

Speaking of Thanksgiving, we enjoyed our traditional feast:

And TEN pies (the bonus cookie butter pie was still in the freezer)!

We had chicken döner and gingerbread whoopie pies for our postponed St. Nicholas Day dinner:

And for Santa Lucia Day, we had lussekattes, potato pancakes and kielbasa (a day late), and white-chocolate cranberry cupcakes:

We didn’t have a fancy dinner on Christmas Eve, but we did have a carrot cake filled with gingerbread mousse:

For Christmas Day breakfast we had our favorite coffee cake:

And the best meal of the year, the pick-out dinner!

I think our M*A*S*H Day dinner counts as a festive feast, because Tony Packo’s was a Christmas gift.

On New Year’s Eve, we had fondue:

And the hot chocolate bar:

New Year’s Day was a full German feast of schnitzel and spaetzle and red cabbage:

With a Black Forest cake for dessert:

We had one more turkey dinner while we waited for the first snowstorm of the year:

And our traditional snow day dinner of French toast the next day:

Our festive feasts always end with Ryan’s birthday dinner…this year, we had chili and fry bread:

And a Frango Mint cake for dessert!

Of course there was plenty of cookie baking, starting with the French Christmas cookies we made in school:

And all of our favorite Christmas cookies!

It made for a beautiful Bunter Teller!

We also enjoyed Christmas Tree Cake treats all season long, including both standard and big cakes, donuts, and ice cream:

And a few festive drinks along the way…wassail and eggnog:

This has been a great season of feasting…now it’s time to give the kitchen a break! (Who am I kidding…I’m already planning the next cake I’m going to bake!)

Guten Rutsch!

How is it 2025 already?!? It hardly seems possible that we’re at the quarter mark for this century. We’ve had a rather German celebration for the last two days, starting with fondue for dinner yesterday.

And of course we had our traditional hot chocolate bar for dessert…I was very excited about the addition of hot cocoa and marshmallow Hostess Donettes this year!

We watched Apollo 13 and Ocean’s 11, and I made it to midnight (but just barely) to ring in the new year in Animal Crossing.

This morning we were at the Lego store before they opened so we could look for a few new sets…the line was incredible, but we still managed to find everything we were looking for!

We did some shopping at Target and the Asian store and stopped for boba at what I think was a place we hadn’t tried before:

And we had another German meal for dinner:

Plus Black Forest cake for dessert:

Not a bad way to say “goodbye” to one year and “hello” to another…Guten Rutsch!