My daughter handed me this letter the other day and asked me to mail it to Santa Claus.  She won’t go see him and sit on his lap anymore, but she’s writing a letter nevertheless.  I think she wants to make sure to cover all her bases.  I love the blanket request for a “surprise” and how thoughtful she is to include her puppy.  Notice that baby Jesus in the letter too; she knows what Christmas is all about.   In her mind, Santa and Jesus are not in conflict.

I wrote the blog post below 2 years ago and reposted last year.  I think that I will repost every year because I have new readers and I’m so interested in the comments.  So, what happens in your house?  Santa Claus: do you or don’t you?  Discuss.

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SANTA CLAUS: DO YOU OR DON’T YOU?

Look at this man; does he give you a warm feeling inside or make you want to spit on the ground in disgust?  The question of the hour is: Santa Claus-do you or don’t you?

I had a magical memory of Santa Claus that stayed with me until just a few years ago.  Long ago when I was a little girl and sleeping on Christmas Eve, I heard a noise in my living room.  I jumped out of bed and peeked in my parents’ room; they were asleep.  Then I looked in the living room and sure enough, there was a figure of a man putting something under the tree.  Well, since I didn’t want Santa to sprinkle pepper in my eyes, I ran back to my bed and stayed in there the rest of the night.  In the morning there were presents under the tree as usual, but I had a secret–I had actually seen Santa Claus!  Even when I grew up and stopped believing in Santa, there was always a part of me that remembered that night and said “but still….there was someone in the living room.”  I never discussed that night with my parents until recently and I wished that I hadn’t; my mother told me that it was my Uncle Robert putting my gift under the tree.  Of course, that makes sense as there had to be some logical explanation.  But it was nice to have that magical memory all these years; to just simply believe.

I don’t remember when I stopped believing or how.  I don’t think it was anything dramatic; I just sort of gradually grew out of it.   There was no drama involved–unlike my son’s revelation.   He was 8 years old when he asked me point blank if there was a Santa Claus.  I looked at him to gauge if he really wanted to know and he asked again straight-up, “Mommy, tell the truth; is there a Santa Claus?”  What else could I say when he asked like that?  I was less nervous telling him where babies come from!  I took a deep breath and told him the truth.  And then he burst into tears.

Months later when Christmas had come and gone and we had a rare moment alone with our son, my husband and I asked him about his reaction to my “confession.”   He then proceeded to rage about how we had lied to him, betrayed him and how he could never trust us again.  Wow; my husband and I were shocked!  Neither one of us had ever felt “betrayed” by our parents about Santa, but now that I have talked to others, I have learned that his reaction is not uncommon.    I have several friends who felt betrayed like our son and consequently do not introduce Santa Claus to their children.   Other friends feel that Santa Claus dilutes the true meaning of Christmas and therefore do not make Santa a part of their Christmas celebration.

While I can appreciate the logic of my friends and honor my son’s feelings, Santa still visits our house every year.   To me, believing in Santa Claus is like going to Disney World; yeah, the rides are fun, but I go to see The Mouse.  Without him and the Disney “magic”, it’s just another amusement park.  My son has since calmed down; he is old enough now to appreciate the magic of Santa Claus through his baby sister’s eyes and he has fun with it.   But even so, we are careful to put Santa Claus in the proper perspective; he is just a fun part of Christmas–not the reason.   We do not go to elaborate extremes to make his presence more real, just some cookies and milk left out on Christmas Eve.  I do take my daughter to see Santa at the mall, but I don’t think she really cares one way or the other; I do it because I am competitive.   See, there is a very popular Santa at the high-end mall here in Atlanta; he has a real white beard and longish white hair and is great with the kids.   The wait to see him used to be hours long, but a few years ago they implemented an online appointment system.  Great idea, but the appointments were booked immediately and I could never get a slot.  It became an (obsessive) goal of mine to secure a space to see this Santa!  Now, for the second year in a row I have been one of the lucky (or crazy) people online the day the appointments open and scored a time to see Santa.   Next I emailed the neighbors to gloat.

I’m certain that I only have a couple more years left for my daughter to sit on Santa’s lap.  An inquisitive child, she is already asking too many questions.  Maybe I can tell her that Santa is like the CIA and only operates on a “need to know” basis.  Do you think that will buy me a few more years?  This is my last child and I want to keep the magic alive!  I want her to believe!

© 2010, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

My daughter wanted to make cookies for all of her teachers (her 2 primary teachers as well as art, music, P.E. and science teachers).  A daunting task, but I wanted to foster her giving spirit, so last night that’s just what we did.   I was going to share this recipe next week, during the week of Christmas, but I made the mistake of posting this photo on my personal Facebook page last night:

All my friends made the same comment: “Share the recipe!”

I don’t blame them; I took that photo with my iPhone and the cookies still look incredible.    And let me tell you, the cookies taste as incredible as they look.  Crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside and full of flavor, dare I say this is one of the best cookies that I have EVER tasted.   It only revivals the Key Lime cookie over at The Cookie Studio in Atlanta.

So, if I want my friends to speak to me again, I figured that I had better post the recipe sooner rather than later.

I found this recipe in the December issue of O, The Oprah Magazine and wanted to make these cookies because they looked unusual and gift-worthy.   The magazine recipe didn’t have large-batch instructions like this online version (I wish it did, but it was a good math lesson for my daughter), so we just doubled the recipe.    I was able to make 41 fairly large sandwiches and had just enough filling, spreading it not too thin or thick.    I could have made a few more sandwiches if I had shaped the log better; there were cookie casualties that didn’t make it as sandwiches, but made it into our mouth.   I was nervous about the shape of the cookies because my log of dough was a misshapen mess, but the shape evened out while baking and as you see in the photo above, the cookies look beautiful.

We made the dough–the hardest part of the recipe–the night before, so slicing, sugaring and baking the cookies was easy and fun.  The frosting filling was easy to make (except zesting-oh, how I hate to zest); just be sure to beat the ingredients until it’s nice and thick.   Read through the recipe first and see that the butter is divided; some of it is used for the dough and some of it is used for the frosting.   Don’t soften it all at once if you are making the dough on another day (I made that mistake).  I used about 3 drops of yellow food coloring, just enough to give the frosting a very soft lemon tint.

Gingerbread and Lemon Sandwich Cookies

from O, The Oprah Magazine

Servings: Makes about 30 (large batch: 90)

Ingredients

• 2 cups and 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour (large batch: 6 cups plus 6 Tbsp.)
• 2 tsp. baking soda (large batch: 6 tsp.)
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon (large batch: 6 tsp.)
• 2 tsp. ground ginger (large batch: 6 tsp.)
• 1 tsp. ground allspice (large batch: 3 tsp.)
• 1 tsp. ground cloves (large batch: 3 tsp.)
• 1/2 tsp. fine salt (large batch: 1 1/2 tsp.)
• 18 Tbsp. (2 1/4 sticks) butter , divided, at room temperature (large batch: 54 Tbsp. or 6 sticks plus 6 Tbsp.)
• 1 cup granulated sugar , divided (large batch: 3 cups)
• 1 egg (large batch: 3 eggs)
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract (large batch: 3 Tbsp.)
• 1/4 cup unsulphured molasses (large batch: 3/4 cup)
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar , sifted (large batch: 6 cups)
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice (large batch: 6 Tbsp.)
• 2 tsp. zest from 1 lemon (use same lemon as for juice; large batch: use two lemons to extract 6 tsp. of zest)
• 6 to 8 drops yellow food coloring (optional; large batch: 18 to 24 drops)

Directions

Active time: 1 hour

Total time: 3 hours

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, and salt; set aside. In a second large bowl, beat 12 tablespoons butter and 3/4 cup granulated sugar with an electric mixer on low speed until pale and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add egg, vanilla, and molasses, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and beat until smooth. Divide dough between 2 large sheets of parchment paper and roll up snugly, twisting the ends like a candy wrapper, to make two 8-inch logs. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350°. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Place remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a shallow dish. Cut dough logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Dip the top of each in sugar and transfer to prepared baking sheets, spacing about 1 inch apart. Bake until just firm around the edges, about 10 minutes; let cool completely on a rack.

In a large bowl, beat remaining 6 tablespoons butter, confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice and zest, and food coloring (if using) with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes. To assemble sandwiches, spread frosting onto half the cookies, then top with remaining cookies.

Note: Make the dough a day or two ahead when it suits your schedule, then cut and bake the cookies later when you have a free moment.

slicing the dough

Girly sugars the cookies before baking

they were delicious even without the lemon filling

Girly spreading the lemon frosting

In the Oprah magazine, the cookies were tied up with parchment paper and string.  I wanted something a bit more sturdy since my daughter would be distributing the cookies herself.   The Container Store was a treasure trove of cookie containers.    I bought small blue boxes (non-holiday specific and also my daughter’s favorite color), some decorative waxed paper and snowball trim.  My daughter made personalized cards for all the teachers.  We were able to fit about 4 cookies in each box, which left us with a few for ourselves and a friend’s birthday present.    Already the kids are asking if we are going to make more this holiday season.

Other posts about Christmas cookies that you may enjoy reading:

The Best Christmas Cookie Cutter Recipe

© 2010, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

As my friend Darcie has so eloquently commented today on my last blog post,”tap, tap, is this thing on?”  Her funny way of saying that I have been MIA on my blog.  And she’s absolutely right…I disappeared on December 16th and just now got my house and mind cleared enough to blog again.  Christmas, while my favorite holiday, takes a lot out of me and frankly I don’t think that I have sat down long enough to blog until now.   My daughter is actually home sick, but DVR recordings of Spongebob Squarepants will keep her occupied long enough for me to write.

I know everyone is doing “happy new year” posts, but before I get to the new year I have to make sure Christmas is over and it’s still lingering in my house.  I am still finding bits and pieces of Christmas lying around the house that I’ve forgotten to put away.  The Christmas tree is still on the curb.  A few toys are still out because they haven’t found a home yet.  And the pine needle, oh the pine needles!  I’m sure that I’ll be finding pine needles until at least Easter.

Everyone in my house had a good Christmas because my kids mostly care about spending time together and we did plenty of that.  Christmas Eve was our big celebration because we traveled to my aunt’s house on Christmas Day; I cooked a big dinner and we decorated cookies and a gingerbread house like we do every year.

My favorite memory from Christmas morning was that my daughter wanted the family to open the gifts that she had made for us in sewing class–before she opened the gifts that Santa had left her.  She was more excited to give than receive!  That was really sweet and special.  My son too was excited for us to open his gifts as he went shopping all alone with his own money and was very proud of what he picked out.   He did a great job getting just the right present for everyone.  The kids got everything that they wanted for Christmas and even though we don’t normally exchange gifts, my husband surprised me with a new pair of my favorite jeans (he said since I worked my butt off making Christmas special for the family, he bought something for my butt ).

He also did something funny:  he bought me this card along with my gift.  The inside says “that would be nuts.”  When I got it I thought, um, okay, weird/inappropriate card to give your wife, but I didn’t want to seem ungrateful so I didn’t say anything and displayed it on our dresser.  A few days later my husband came to me to apologize because he finally noticed how crass the card really was.   When he picked it out, he thought it was funny because we always have squirrels in our attic wrecking havoc…he didn’t notice the, uh, enhanced anatomy on the squirrel.   My son and I had a good laugh at his mistake and my daughter kept asking, “what’s so funny?”

Something else my husband did was not so funny, but really annoying.  We had decided as a family to treat ourselves to an after-Christmas gift, a panini press.  We had seen the one we wanted in Williams-Sonoma and went to the mall specifically for that purpose, to buy the Breville Ikon Panini Press; isn’t it lovely?

However, while in the store my husband tweeted out a question about what brand of panini press to buy and he got a response from a few people to get a George Forman Grill instead.   Somehow he talked me into it.  I know; what was I thinking?  I won’t go into the arguing that ensued, but it turned out to be a big mistake and you know I let him know it!    I ended up going back to Williams-Sonoma the next day and getting the panini press that we were originally supposed to buy.  Peace was once again restored in our household and we have been making gloriously yummy paninis ever since.

Oh, but that peace was disrupted by a simple family game of Monopoly.   I knew better, I really did, than to play Monopoly with my husband.  We’re all competitive in this family, but something comes over my husband particularly when he is playing Monopoly that only can be described as manic.  He loses all sense of decorum and tries to win at all costs.  No life is spared.   I know this because no game of Monopoly that I have ever played with him has gone well or can even be described as being fun; torture is more like it.   This is how bad it gets: before we got married we played Monopoly and he was as tyrannical as he usually is, but I won that game.  Slaughtered him, is more like it.  I never wanted him to forget that defeat, so I wrote it on the top of the Monopoly box.  We have bought many new games over the years, but I cut out the box top and always transfer it to the newest game.  My son read the box top aloud before our latest game:

On May 7, 1993 Sherrelle and James played.  In the beginning James talked much “yang” and bought up all the properties except the yellow and green (he even owned Boardwalk).  However, Sherrelle had all the $ and all the railroads and utilities.  That was James’ downfall because he never passed “Go” and always land on railroads ($200 each time)!  Slowly he had to sell all of his many properties.  By this time Sherrelle had bought 3 hotels on her yellow property and the climax (and end) of the game came when James landed on a hotel property–he then owed Sherrelle $1150!  He was broke and Sherrelle won (he still owes her $680)!  Sherrelle also left the game with $5,700 in cash, property and hotels.  What a victory!  James called himself the “Monopoly King”, but who’s ruling now??  The rightful ruler, now and always, is SHERRELLE.  No matter what happens in future games, this will always go down in history as the night that Sherrelle let James know who was BOSS!!!

I don’t think my husband as ever forgotten that defeat and won’t rest until he reclaims his “Monopoly King” crown.  Needless to say, “family game night” didn’t end well….blood was shed, tears were spilled, voices were raised (okay, not blood, but the rest is true).  The game is retired to the top shelf of our laundry room and if we are smart, it will never be taken down again.  I think we will be safer playing Candyland or Hi Ho Cheerio…..maybe.

So there you have the highlights of my holiday season.  And we look so normal, don’t we?

© 2010 – 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

Christmas is next week!  It seems like it came so fast this year, but I am mostly ready.  I still have to decide what we are eating on Christmas Eve.  I am leaning towards a traditional dinner–which is very untraditional for me–of fried turkey, macaroni and cheese and some kind of vegetable.  Of course I will bake a cake or two, decorate Christmas cookies, and maybe try Darcie’s Toffee Oatmeal Fudge Bars.  A Spiced Kettlecorn recipe over at Goop.com looks great to eat while watching holiday movies.

I FINALLY tracked down ornaments for my family; they were tough this year!  My daughter changed her ornament from a sewing machine (impossible to find) to an artist palette because she loves art.

My son wanted an ornament to represent The Sound of Music since he was in a musical theater production this year and I was able to find an ornament of the Austrian flag.  I found both of these ornaments at Bronners.com.

My husband wanted an ornament to show his love of music and DJing from his computer on Friday nights; after much searching I found vintage record ornaments on Uncommongoods.com.  These are real records re-purposed into ornaments.

And of course we couldn’t forget about Chili Dawg; adding him to our family was a major part of 2009.  Judy over at Paws & Claws makes the best pet ornaments that I have ever seen.  When she didn’t have a cockapoo ornament the color of Chili Dawg, she made one; we couldn’t be happier because it looks just like him.

The gifts are bought and wrapped.  Santa brings the big gifts, but the kids do get a few gifts from us. I am absolutely stunned that Chili Dawg has not bothered the Christmas tree other than drinking the water, but I am not going to tempt him by putting gifts under the tree.  I KNOW that will be a bad idea as he has never seen paper that he doesn’t want to rip to shreds!  So this year we are putting the gifts on top of the TV cabinet; I made it look decorative so it’s not too weird.  As you can see, the wrapping paper and bows match the silver, white and aqua color theme for this year.

Besides our kids, we just buy gifts for our nephew.  I don’t think my husband and I have exchanged gifts very much since we’ve had kids.   One reason is that providing Christmas for our kids takes all the money and the other is that my husband is so hard to shop for because he buys whatever he wants for himself all year long (mostly electronic/technology stuff).   There is nothing left to buy him!   As for me, there is ALWAYS something to buy, but I’ve learned to just treat myself when I can.  Usually I wait until this time of year because the sales are good and special merchandise is available.  Like beauty products: the L’Occitane Hand Creme Trio is a good deal (normally $10 a piece, the trio is sold for $25) as is the Lovely Lip Gloss Coffret from Nars ($49 for 8 lip gloss colors that would normally be soooo much more; Nars is not cheap).  I had to give myself these gifts of beauty; I deserve to have soft hands and shiny lips.

Ever since I got my new Funkdivagirl.com business cards, I have been looking for a cute business card holder.  I emphasize cute because plain black or brown leather are easy to find–cute ones are not.  Early one day to meet my friend for a bit of holiday shopping and lunch at Neiman Marcus, I wandered into the Kate Spade store.  I had been in there before and found nothing, but I figured with the holiday season they might have in new merchandise and I was correct.  They didn’t have the color I wanted, my signature pink, but I was able to order it online (with free shipping) and it arrived nicely wrapped; a perfect gift to me, from me.

I love this time of year.  I have plans to get my hair, eyebrows and nails done later this week and I’m excited for our pre-Christmas get-away with friends.  I plan to enjoy it all because it will be over way too soon.

© 2009 – 2011, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.

On the 12th day of Christmas my true love gave to me:

…….family time.  So by today I’ve blogged for 12 straight days about Christmas and it’s been great.   Now I’m in the home stretch; there is one week until my kids get out of school and I’ve got presents to wrap, cards to mail and meals to plan.  I really try to do all my shopping and most Christmas preparations before my kids get out of school so that I am able to spend time with them and just have fun.

Besides baking cookies and playing games like Clue and Monopoly, we love to watch holiday movies next to the fireplace while drinking hot cocoa.   A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th Street, Christmas With the Kranks, and The Santa Claus are some of our favorite movies.  But I think my absolute favorite holiday movie is Elf.  Will Ferrell is HILARIOUS as Buddy the Elf!   If you’re never seen this movie you missing a wonderful opportunity to laugh out loud.   And who doesn’t like to laugh?  Ho Ho Ho!

What is your favorite holiday movie?  How do you like to spend family time during the holidays?

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The 12 Days of Christmas by Funkidivagirl

On the 1st day of Christmas my true love gave to me….the words to the song.

On the 2nd day of Christmas my true love gave to me….Christmas cards.

On the 3rd day of Christmas my true love gave to me….Chili Dawg.

On the 4th day of Christmas my true love gave to me…..a Christmas vacation.

On the 5th day of Christmas my true love gave to me…..Santa Claus.

© 2009, Funkidivagirl.com. All rights reserved. Republished only with permission.