My Life, my photography, my passions
Christmas is full of traditions and this one is no exception. My Mother used to bake this same Swedish Tea Ring at Christmas time for my God Mother. It had been almost 40 years since I had my last one. My fiancee’s Mother baked this one and it instantly brought me back. It was just as delicious as it looks.
Merry Christmas everyone!! My fiancee and I don’t get our picture taken very often so, when holiday opportunities arise, I take advantage of the camera friendly opportunities. We drove four hours Christmas day to spend with Randy’s parents in Palisade Nebraska, located in the southwestern part of the state, only 30 minutes from Colorado. Three days of good food and a house filled with Christmas memories.
His Mother decorates her tree just like mine, with vintage ornaments and stories. Every corner of the house was decorated and there were just too many photo opportunities for my 365 project, so the extras are posted on my Flickr account.
The tradition in our house is to open presents on Christmas Eve, 12:01 am to be exact. Long story, and since I have so many pictures to update on my 365 project it can wait until another time. Another tradition is the Santa Hat. In order to open a present you have to wear the Santa Hat. It gets passed around and one person at a time opens a present while everyone watches.
This is my daughter, modeling the Santa hat, her new snowflake necklace, and a wonderful Christmas smile.
I loved ice skating when I was young. During the 1970’s in Connecticut the best skating was outside, a field would ice over and all the neighborhood kids would gather with skates and hockey sticks. Cities and parks would sponsor outdoor skating rinks by flooding fields and bonfires would be lite to keep skaters warm.
It was wonderful. I learned to skate with my Dad. He skated backwards and held my hands. Didn’t matter if the ice was bumpy, or cracks made one fall down. It was the whole experience. Even when it snowed, then shovels came our clear the skating area. Always thought figure skating inside was cheating in a way, although I liked the smooth ice, it’s just not the same.
This rink at Eugene Mahoney State Park in Ashland, Nebraska combines the best of both worlds. A prepared, maintained surface gives the luxury of skating on “good” ice, while the open air pavilion maintains the natural feeling of skating outside. I taught my daughter to skate here and it’s a annual tradition around Christmas to spend a few hours on the ice. The park is located halfway between Omaha and Lincoln and we are very lucky and fortunate the park is so close, skating in the winter and swimming in the summer.
New England Clam Chowder is one of my favorite soups, normally I open a can of Campbells Chunky soup, but since I’ve had success in making homemade soup I thought I would give it a try. Yes the recipe is below. Some of my favorite recipes are from Taste of Home and rarely do I follow a recipe to the letter and this was no exception.
The result was wonderful and was given the thumbs up from my friend Beth and my daughter.
Nebraska Clam Chowder
In a large saucepan, combine the above ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce hear; cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. In a small bowl, combine flour and cold water until smooth. Stir into potato mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Reduce hear. Add clams and cheese; cook and stir until cheese is melted. Stire in milk, heat through.
Yield: 9 servings
Feel free to add more potatoes, onions, chopped carrots, cheese, other seafood, or dill according to your taste. Soup is wonderfully forgiving and invites creativity. If a thicker soup is desired use more flour or cornstarch.
