A Bit of Vintage for Christmas

Tis the season for many things…from gifts and sweets to traditions and memories.  I have been thinking about memories and traditions to help refocus my attention. 

Did you get a sweater from your grandparents, also?

Grandma Helen

My grandmother's home was always warm and welcoming at Christmas and bustling with activity. She was the matriarch to a family of 11 children.  I lived in a small farm town and she lived in the city, so going to see my grandparents was always exciting.  She often served a salad at Christmas that seemed so exotic and fancy to a small town farm girl because it had avocados and grapefruit.  It seemed like the only produce that came to my small town was iceberg lettuce.  It made an impression.

I asked my mom to share her mother’s recipe as best she could remember.

Grapefruit and Avocado Salad with Bleu Cheese Dressing

2 grapefruit, peeled, and sectioned carefully to maintain the juicy fruit

2 ripe avocado, peeled and sliced into ½ inch sections

A bed of lettuce…iceberg is perfect, watercress would be extra fancy.

Drizzled with homemade bleu cheese dressing

Peel

Carefully remove skin from fruit

Remove fruit in a whole section

Bleu Cheese Dressing

2 parts crumbled bleu cheese

2 parts canola oil

1 part water

Combine dressing ingredients in a blender until blended and smooth.

Who Needs Chocolate When You Can Have Paper?

Paper Quilling

As a kid, counting down the days of Christmas usually involved an Advent calendar filled with milk chocolate.  It was the only time I had chocolate with breakfast (as a kid).  My daughter received her first Advent calendar when she was about 3 years old from a loving aunt.   The first thing I did was to read the ingredients of the chocolate.  Not a typical response for someone receiving a gift, but it was something that started coming naturally due to her food allergies. 

The following year, I knew that Advent calendars from the store were no longer an option for our family due to the introduction of new food allergies in our household.  The food allergies came pre-loaded in our newest baby, who was 11 months old by the time the next Christmas season rolled around.

All doors, no windows

I still wanted to count down the days until Christmas, but I was stumped.  I wasn’t sure what I could do and I was still angry that I couldn’t just go buy something pre-packaged.  Can’t something be simple!

The following year, I had an idea to make my own Advent countdown calendar when I saw a cute little house with 25 doors.  Behind each door was absolutely nothing!  I could fill the space behind the door with whatever I wanted.  The first year I tried finding little, non-food, trinkets that would fit in the tiny doors and found that an exercise in frustration.  The following year, I chose to write down activities and special treats for everyone and place the little pieces of paper behind each door.

The activities that I choose are simple as wrapping gifts and as complicated as making ornaments.  The food usually consists of a rotation of hot chocolate, popcorn, and candy canes.  The calendar does require a bit of planning, but as mothers of children with food allergies, we have that skill mastered.

A simple piece of paper can change into something wonderful.

Merry Christmas-Nicole