Christmas Movies

I was listening to the radio today and they posed the question, “What is your Top Ten favorite Christmas Movies?” I came home and started listening to Martina McBride’s White Christmas CD. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dawn Writes. She had a giveaway and I won. Martina has a lovely voice and sings many of my favorites. But I digress because this is about Christmas movies.

There are many movies out there, but I’ll list my Top Five. Keep in mind with the exception of The Nativity, most Christmas movies deal with the theme of Christmas or the holiday of Christmas rather than the birth of Jesus. I’ve never seen The Nativity, but I hear it was fabulous, so I’ll add that as the Number One Christmas movie on my list, especially since it got the whole reason for the season aspect correct. If you would like to play along either leave a comment with your favorites or post and let me know. Here are my other four in no particular order:

The Bishop’s Wife. Two words – Cary Grant. I don’t need to say more, but this is much better than the remake with Whitney Houston because of Cary Grant. I’m a big fan if you haven’t guessed. In an off way Cary Grant helps the Bishop and his wife realize what is most important to them – each other.

It’s a Wonderful Life. Classic black and white (no colorized versions please) story of the appreciation of life and the difference one person makes in the lives of many and how those people pull together to show their love.

Miracle on 34th Street. I’m talking about the classic black version with Natalie Wood. Who doesn’t fall in love with Natalie Wood as a little girl who doesn’t believe in Santa and her journey to believing?

Scrooged. Even though this one is in color, it does have Bill Murray. Totally off beat story of the classic A Christmas Carol. Bill Murray just makes me laugh. I love watching the transformation of Scrooge.

So what are some o your favorites to watch? Let me know.

© Nadine Zawacki 2008

How Was Your Christmas?

It’s been such a busy time for everyone. I hope that you all had a great Christmas. I’ve enjoyed having my two kids home this past week.

I had fun making cookies with my daughter and Tom and our son enjoyed eating them. I won a great recipe book from Jill (thanks again) and everyone got to choose a recipe for us to make. We made butter cookies, brown sugar shortbread, cheesecake pumpkin squares, golden kalacky (peach & blackberry preserve cookies) and double peanut butter fudge that were just great. Below is the recipe for the peanut butter fudge cookies.

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
¼ cup creamy peanut butter
2 cups all-purpose biscuit baking mix
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon red colored sugar
½ teaspoon green colored sugar

1. Heat oven to 375.
2. Beat sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter with electric mixer on medium speed in large bowl until smooth. Beat in baking mix and vanilla; stir in peanut butter chips. Set aside.
3. Stir together granulated sugar and colored sugars in small bowl. Shape dough into 1-ince balls; roll in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet; flatten slightly with bottom of glass.
4. Bake 6 to 8 minutes or until very lightly browned (do not over bake). Cool slightly. Remove to wire rack and cool completely. Store in tightly covered container.

Christmas Eve service was lovely. Afterwards we had take out from Double Dragon (great Chinese food) and started to watch last’s season’s Lost. It’s amazing what I’ve forgotten in a year. It’s a tradition we started since leaving New York. We have take out and watch movies.

The next day after we open our gifts, we enjoyed a big breakfast (scrambled eggs, English muffins, orange juice, bacon, French toast and hash browns). I made one of my family’s favorites (cream cheese chicken) for Christmas dinner. We enjoyed a nice, quiet day together.

My son has a DS and one of the gifts he got was Brain Age. It’s very addictive. I’m not saying what my age is, but I probably need to buy one now to practice. I need lots of practice.

It’s been busy, but very enjoyable this past week. I look around and realize how blessed I am. So thank you Lord, for Tom, my children and the people you’ve placed in my life who love me.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Office Christmas Party

My boss just finished building his new house (the mansion is pictured above). It took two and half years to build. It is one of the most elaborate homes I’ve ever been in. It’s 9,000 square feet and has three floors. The grand entry way is impressive between the stairs and all the tile and woodwork. There are five bedrooms, each with its own bathroom (he has five kids). The master suite has two separate toilets (his and hers), a big bathtub, a shower that has so many jets the dirt just flies off of you and a fireplace. There is a living room, dining room, an eat-in kitchen with a family room off to the side. The top floor has the three girl’s bedrooms and a large common area. The basement has the two boy’s bedrooms, another family room, theater, exercise room, bonus room, pool room (changing area, lockers and full bathroom), wine cellar and bar. For those who are curious there are ten bathrooms and seven people living in the house. The oldest two children are away at school. The pool he calls a lap pools is two meters short from being Olympic size. It’s a very beautiful home.

My boss wanted me to cook a fancy meal at his home when it was complete. He’s been saying this for the last two years. My wonderful husband agreed to help me. Instead of going to work, I went to his house and got paid to cook Christmas dinner for the office staff and spouses. Tom and I cooked over six hours straight to get this meal together. I had a nice budget from the boss which I went over about twenty dollars.

We started off with appetizers: stuffed mushrooms, fresh mozzarella slices with tomato (seasoned with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and spices), artichoke hearts, olives, provolone cheese, roasted red peppers, cherry peppers and pepperoni. Next up was Shrimp Caesar Salad. The main course consisted of stuffed sea food shell dish in vodka sauce. The pasta shells are stuffed with ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, Italian seasonings, shrimp, crab meat and scallops. Tom made his version of individual Beef Wellington. It consisted of beef tenderloin, roasted red pepper, gorgonzola cheese, bacon bits, portabella mushroom wrapped in puff pastry. The side dishes were roasted potatoes mushrooms sautéed in wine sauce, glazed carrots and asparagus. For dessert we had cheese cake, fresh blackberries and raspberries with fresh whipped cream presented in a large bowl, and mini puff pastry shells stuffed with raspberries and whipped cream.

We were so tired and our feet hurt by the end of the night. I’m grateful I had Tom to help or else I would not have been to do it. My boss was very appreciative and everyone got to take home leftovers.

Below is a slide show of some of the food and the house.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Christmas Tour of Homes

Thank you Boo Mama for hosting Christmas Tour of Homes. Stop by so you can see all the beautiful Christmas decorations. So welcome to my humble home. Let me share some of my favorites.

This is our front door.
The stairs.
The tree.
These picture frames with us and the kids. (Check out my “fro”. This is why my hair is long.)
Front hall.
My daughter made this wreath in fifth grade. She's now 24.
The fireplace with my Christmas village on top. Close up of part of the village.
Nativity globe
I always loved this kneeling Santa.
I made this Christmas angel.
The wooden nativity was handmade by a friend.

I hope you enjoyed the tour of my home.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Twelve Days of Christmas

Tom’s cousin sent him this link. I thought these guys had great voices and I liked their twist on “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” I hope you enjoy it too.

Taking Down the Decorations

I believe that there are timing rules to putting up Christmas decorations and taking them down. They are allowed to go up the day after Thanksgiving and they come down the day after New Years. If you have to keep them up because of time constraints then don’t turn them on. When we lived in West Virginia there were many people who violated that rule and kept their lights on all year round.

Putting Christmas decorations up can be lots of fun. My favorite part is unpacking the ornaments. It’s fun to recall Christmas past when an ornament was purchased or given as a gift. During the last several years, Tom would give me an ornament to remind me of the gift he purchased that year. From now on when I look upon those beautiful pink ballet shoes, I will be reminded of Swan Lake.

Packing up the ornaments is another story. For some reason it takes a lot longer to pack them away. I have to confess that I still have my decorations up but I do plan to bring down tomorrow. But you can count on the fact that they remain unlit.

I have often been tempted to go up to someone’s house when it’s January 15th and their lights are still on and hand them a violation.

It’s been said that those who have recovered from a habit are most critical of those who still have that habit. Case in point - ex-smokers. I used to smoke fourteen years ago. At first I would sniff the air if someone else was smoking. I had missed it very much. But as time went on and it was out of my system, I became intolerant of the smell of smoke. Now the smell makes me physically ill.

Let me tell you a little story about when Tom and I were first married. We were both working and living in a nice apartment in Brooklyn. Our first Christmas together came and we put up a little tree. It was much fun. When it came time to take the tree down and put everything away, well . . . let’s just say people were wondering if we were going to put Easter eggs on the branches.

© Nadine Z. 2007

Christmas Morning

When the kids were little Christmas morning started very early. They would come into our room and wake us up. Our son would climb on his dad’s chest and pry open his eyes with his little fingers saying, “Are you awake, daddy?” As they got older they learned to make coffee and then would wake us up. That was sweet. Now as young adults, we are usually up first, knocking on their door to wake them up.

I looked back on many fond memories of Christmas past. This year I realized it might be the last one we have in our traditional way. Next year my son will be living in Los Angeles and may not be able to come home for Christmas. Things change and isn’t that what life is all about. We may not always like it, but try to enjoy the present.

The love we share and joy we have in giving gifts to one another will never change. I was quite thrilled with the generosity of my children. They love giving presents as much as they love receiving them. I gave Tom a replica of the William Wallace sword, commonly known as, The Freedom Sword. He writes the blog, Emancipation of the Freed as you all well know by now and I wanted to give him something that represented what he was passionate about. The other part of his gift was I agreed to him getting a tattoo. I have been resistant to this for a long time, but I truly wanted him to know how much he means to me.

He had given me some special gifts in the past, but today he moved me to tears with his thoughtfulness. He bought me tickets to see a professional ballet, Swan Lake. I love the ballet, but have never seen a professional ballet company before. He remembered that. The best part of this gift is that it requires spending some alone time with him. You know your husband loves you when he’s willing to spend hours doing something that will bring you pleasure.

It’s the little things that can bless someone’s heart. When Tom was diagnosed with cancer, he got one of those rubber bracelets that said, Hope. It was a reminder to have hope for cancer. It broke several months ago. It made me cry. I was feeling a little hopeless at the time and it was the final straw. I started to give up at that point. In my stocking he replaced that bracelet with a stainless steel one with letters that spell out Hope. He gave me my hope back. He’s a good man and I’m grateful to the Lord for him and my children.

So as my children get older and life changes, Christmas morning may not always be the same, but some things will be constant – our love for one another.

© Nadine Z. 2006

Merry Christmas

My favorite Christmas song of all time is, O Holy Night. From the time I was a little girl the words and music move me. So tonight on the eve of the Savior’s birth, I say Happy Birthday Jesus and Merry Christmas to all.

O holy night, the stars are brightly shining; It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth!

Long lay the world in sin and error pining,

Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.

A thrill of hope, the weary soul rejoices,

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.

Fall on your knees, O hear the angel voices!

O night divine, O night when Christ was born!

O night, O holy night, O night divine!

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming,

With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand.

So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming,

ere came the wise men from Orient land.

The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger,

In all our trials born to be our Friend!

He knows our need—to our weakness is no stranger.

Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!

Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!

Truly He taught us to love one another;

His law is love and His Gospel is peace.

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother

And in His Name all oppression shall cease.

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,

Let all within us praise His holy Name!

Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever!

His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!

His pow’r and glory evermore proclaim!

Words written by Placide Cappeau, translated from French to English by John S. Dwight and music by Adolphe C. Adam @ 1847

An Elegant Invitation

Tom and I had an invitation to attend a Christmas party our youth were hosting. It was quite the elegant affair. Two of the young ladies planned, shopped and decorated for the event. They did a fantastic job. The tables were covered in cloth, had little chocolate kisses as accents, and a rose vase adorned each one. There were lights everywhere and they made room for a large dance floor. It probably took them a couple of days to make the place look so good. They set up a large table so that they could all sit together as a group to eat dinner. There was a chocolate fountain and fruit for dipping. If that wasn’t enough, they also had Christmas cookies and chocolates. It was stunning. I was very impressed with all the work that went into it.

Such an elegant setting called for formal attire. I never met a group of young people who enjoy dressing up as much as they do. The girls looked beautiful in their evening gowns and the guys looked handsome.

They were respectful of each other and behaved accordingly. I had a great time dancing with them. I must say they tolerated my old people dance skills with such finesse. They never once made me feel like the old lady in the room. I laughed, I danced and had a great time watching their interactions with each other.

I’ve said this once and I’ll say it again, when I grow up I want to be like them. You guys rock and I love you all!

© Nadine Z. 2006

Wrapping Presents

I have a hard time sleeping when Tom is not home. I woke up early around 7:00 am and started my day. I was pleased with my accomplishments today. I didn’t save anyone nor did anything anyone would have found vital to the universe.

One of the many things I did do today was wrap all of my Christmas presents, including stocking stuffers. I wanted to make sure that I wrapped Tom’s presents while he wasn’t home, but once I started I had to finish.

It reminded how this tradition of me wrapping all the gifts Tom and I gave to the kids got started. When the children were really little, Tom and I didn’t have much money. I chose to stay home and so any money we had went towards presents for the kids. The kids were teenagers before we started buying presents for each other. It didn’t really matter because we madly in love and were grateful for the many blessings we had.

I loved wrapping the gifts. I enjoyed the decorating part especially trying to make each gift look unique with the use of bows and ribbons. Tom would help, but as time went on, I was doing it all alone. This never bothered me because I really did love it.

As I wrapped the gifts today, I remembered Christmas past when I did all my shopping at Toys R Us. After Christmas there was the joy of putting the toys together. I especially loved that part. Tom tried to help, but I would stay up into the wee hours until it was done. My favorite part was putting stickers on Tommy’s GI Joe toys and Lisa’s Barbie cars.

My family is so gracious and really make you feel good about yourself when they open up their presents. It doesn’t matter what they get, they are grateful and make a fuss. I love to give them gifts. It makes me very happy. I’m excited about the gift I bought for Tom this year for I put alot of thought in it. I hope he likes it.

If I am pleased over the little things I give my family, how much more is God pleased when He lavishes His gifts on us. Do I take it for granted or do I express gratitude for His all that He has given me? I pray that I never take it for granted, but the truth of the matter is that I sometimes do. I forget to give Him the credit for my talents and on occasion accepted the kudos that belonged to Him.

So Lord forgive me those times I didn’t show appreciation for the gifts You’ve given me. Forgive me for the times I’ve taken credit for those gifts. Lord thank You for all You’ve given me, especially these three gifts – Tom, Lisa and Tommy.

© Nadine Z. 2006

Artwork by Charlotte Ardizzone

Christmas Cards

Tonight our church got together to decorate some Christmas cards. It was lots of fun. All the women (this year, we had some teenage boys, but that’s because of the teenage girls) gathered at the church, ate some goodies and laughed while making some pretty cards (pictured above). This is the one woman’s event I really enjoy doing, even though I don’t like to admit I’m girlie.

When my husband bought me my laptop for my birthday, we went out to get a bag for it. He picks up this bag and my first reaction was, “That’s a real girlie bag.” He said, “Well, you’re a girl.” It made me laugh. I am a girl, but I never really thought of myself like that. What I mean is, growing up I did many girlie things, but I also did lots of non-girlie things. I loved playing sports, hanging out with the guys and being a real tough chick. I grew up in a tough neighborhood and I was not easily intimidated.

Normally I don’t do woman’s event, but tonight was the exception. It was one of those occasions that being girlie was fun. Thanks ladies for a great evening. Maybe I’m softening in my old age . . . nah.

© Nadine Z. 2006