Santa Claus came to town....and visited our party!

Check out who visited our house yesterday, right in the middle of a party for some of our friends!

Moms and Dads: I'd love to post some of the photos from the party of your little ones on Santa's lap, but I need your permission to post online first. Can you please let me know yes or no? If no, that's perfectly okay. I understand! I'll make sure you all get copies, too! Merry Christmas, everyone!

Easter Egg Hunt

I love holidays, like Easter, not only because I get to smoosh and kiss my adorable nieces and nephew, but I get to see all of my brothers, sisters, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, too! It's so much fun to document the kidlets during the holidays and to preserve these memories for them. I guess that's why most of my holiday pictures are of them. Plus, the adults don't usually like their pictures taken (although sometimes I get their photo anyway via sneak attack). 

 The kids participated in the Annual Easter Egg Hunt. At first the babies didn't really understand it, but then they figured it all out and had a blast!

 Livi points out an egg...still unsure whether she should pick it up or not.

 Aidan kept Aunt Kelly on her toes!

 Lucy & Seth hunted, too!

 The adults sit around and watch.

 5 generations

 Grandpa points out a frog croaking in the pool to Aidan.

 And I made a coconut cream pie, which looked perfect the night before...but I found out that I should make it the day I serve it, because condensation formed while it was in the fridge and it ran everywhere! Regardless, it was the first time I tried (and did it successfully) to temper an egg and to create a meringue.

I hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Easter!

Easter Babies

Who doesn't love a cute Easter baby?







Have a happy and blessed Easter!

Easter Egg Tree

My dad emailed this story to me, and I think it is just the perfect thing for Easter!

In Saalfeld, Germany, a retiree named Volker Kraft decorates his apple sapling with 9,800 decorated eggs. He started with just 18 eggs in 1965, and now the 75 year old man plans to paint 200 more hollowed out eggs for next year to make it an even 10,000 and stop at that. The Easter Tree drew 13,000 visitors last year, and you can purchase a painted egg for approximately $7.10.

What a lovely ambition, and a wonderful way to celebrate the season!

Source

Will You Be My Valentine?

A lot of people plan weeks, maybe even months ahead, to make reservations at a fancy restaurant for Valentine's Day with their loved one. But not Aaron and me! We don't technically celebrate Valentine's Day because it's too commercialized, but somehow these gifts just happen to appear for each other on that exact day. Instead of dining with 50 other strangers, we prefer to cook something special and eat at home, just the two of us.

I bought Aaron something he had wanted from the antique store. Do you know what it is?

Antique ski poles, of course!

I came home to the lovely surprise of Aaron cooking and nearly finished with the entire meal.

Jumbo shrimp...

and delicious cheeses (I am a cheese fanatic, and so is Aaron).

Homemade German Potato Salad. Aaron makes it the best. You're really missing out if you've never experienced it.

We also had bratwurst smothered in sauerkraut. Yummy!

I bought some delicious pink champagne and strawberries, and since Aaron doesn't like champagne, I had it all to myself.

What a lovely surprise! I collect coins, although I haven't been much in practice lately. My wonderful and thoughtful husband bought me a Bavarian coin from 1911. It is so amazing, and I love to think of all the people who used this coin. Perhaps it was originally owned by a Bavarian dirndl maker or yodeler or something else terrific. Just think of all the hands it's passed through from 1911 to 2011....100 years of sellers and purchasers and different people around the world.

And to finish off the night, I still (amazingly enough) had room for some molten chocolate lava cake.

(Click here for the recipe. Not the recipe I used, because I can't find that one. But it's still close.)

Seriously, does life get any better?

Christmas Gifts 2010

Every Christmas, our gifts have a theme. Last year, it was brown paper packages tied up with string. This year, we had white wrapping paper with black snowflakes (except for the ones that Aaron wrapped) and instead of a gift tag, the recipient's photo was on the package. I've already got next year's theme planned and ready to go....but it's a surprise.

It was a very "Notre Dame-y" Christmas for me this year. Aaron gave me a football signed by the 2010 Notre Dame football team with a glass case to protect it. Look whose number is right on top...Robert Hughes! And after he had such a fantastic end to his college career, too. I told you he was fantastic. In addition to all of the Notre Dame goodies that Aaron gave me, his parents also gave me a cozy Notre Dame hoodie. I'll be nice and warm if we're able to go to any games next season.

Brian Kelly

Lucy drew my name in the gift exchange...two years in a row! She knows that I collect teacups, so she and Mom went antiquing and found these perfect teacups. They are exactly what I would have chosen myself. I think the pink one is my very favorite I've ever had. Lucy is the perfect gift-giver.

To Aaron, Love Me

From Aaron, of course

To Aaron: a Munich bottle opener magnet

For me to use at work

I haven't used these yet...but I can't wait to give it a shot!

A Von Maur certificate from the bosses, and some awesome Aerbonne stuff from my good friend Kari

I bought a pair of earrings and a top (black, of course, just like the rest of my wardrobe) with my certificate.

The wrapping chaos

One more Christmas post, and then we're done! It's about time to move into the January posts now that we're well into February!