Christmas, stateside

So we celebrated Christmas in full force on December 24, and enjoyed a rather quiet and mellow Christmas Day U.S.A.-style with my parents and brother over at my mom’s house. It felt rather like “Christmas on Park Avenue” the way my artistic brother decorated the house with THREE trees (one exclusively for Hannah…I saved her some photos, lol), decorations galore, and enough food to feed an army (one with a very upscale and sophisticated palate!). On the menu at mom’s: Sugar-glazed ham, bolillo rolls, cranberry horseradish mustard, gourmet cupcakes, “magic” bars (well, the recipe’s on the back of most evaporated milk cans during the holidays, but my brother makes them a “magic, magic” way, lol), crab/jalapeno/artichoke hot dip, and tamales. A very traditional El Paso Christmas meal.
Earlier, Christian and I enjoyed bagels and lox at home, with sliced tomatoes, cheese, avocado, red onions, capers, marinated red peppers and mustard sauce (oops, I forgot the cream cheese, or the “sshhhh-meeaaarr,” but all the stores were closed, so we made do).
I will NOT weigh myself today, after the multitude “sneak tastes” of magic bars, ham, stollen, lebkuchen and fondue yesterday. I WILL walk an hour, if my body permits, and wait yet another day, bags packed, body and soul ready, for Hannah to arrive. It’s so strange waiting for the biggest and best Christmas present to yet arrive, and BEING the wrapping paper

Santa came early

WAIT! Before those of you think the STORK came early, NO. Santa did, well, at least in terms of U.S. Christmas. Christian and I had totally planned to celebrate a German Christmas on December 24 and the U.S. Christmas on the 25th, but my impatience and excitement got the better of me, so we mixed the two yesterday and did it all in one fell swoop.
Now, it’s not like today we won’t celebrate, either. I’ve got a lox and bagel spread planned for brunch, and we’ll go over to my mom’s house for Kaffee und Kuchen this afternoon.
But yesterday we opened all the presents, opened the last windows on the advent calendars, chatted for a good two hours on Skype with Christian’s family and watched his brother’s children open their presents, listened to Christmas music on Antenne Bayern’s live radio stream, and made a fondue dinner that was simply divine. No last-minute runs to the mall, fighting the awful traffic; no drunken Christmas parties; no being relegated to the kiddie table at a family dinner; and no Thanksgiving repeat dinner (i.e., turkey, cranberry sauce or pumpkin pie). It was just the two (three) of us, in our quiet little apartment, enjoying our last week or so of “party of two,” and yet looking forward with much excitement to celebrate Christmas with Hannah.
Here’s to a joyous Christmas and New Year to you and yours…

Happy Heiligabend!

… That’s Christmas Eve and in this household, it’s also Christmas, Day One. In Germany, the big Christmas meal, singing, celebrations and present opening are done on this day, and December 25 is a quiet day of rest, worship and family time.

Our Christmas Eve-eve dinner

So, we’re celebrating BOTH, of course, starting today. We’ll do it German-style today, with a celebratory meal of fondue with four different meats (chicken, chicken livers wrapped in bacon, pork and beef) and six sauces for dipping (chick pea, avocado, chutney, Oriental, tomato-based and mustard sauce) with baguette, followed by a smorgasbord of German pastries and chocolates, and of course Lebkuchen and mock glühwein. We’ll listen to a live stream of radio music from Antenne Bayern throughout the day, and Christian will play traditional Bavarian Christmas songs on his guitar later at night. And we’ll open half of our presents today.
Tomorrow it’s the U.S. version of Christmas, with me playing Santa Claus (I’ve got the tummy for it now!). I’m just trying to figure out how on Earth I’ll get Christian’s LARGEST gift (in case he’s reading this) out of the closet and under the tree. I’m going to stuff his stocking full of knick-knacks I’ve collected in the last month, and serve him bagels and lox, as well as fruit and pastries, for brunch. We’ll watch the good old American Christmas videos that I grew up on, such as “Nestor the Long Eared Donkey,” “Frosty the Snowman,” and “Rudolph the Red Nosed Raindeer” before heading over to my mom’s for coffee cake and coffee in the early afternoon. Then it’s back home for a nap and maybe even a workout on the stationary bike, lol.

Yesterday, Christian made the most amazing Key Lime Creme Brulee from a recipe he found in the newspaper. If you haven’t tried this, think about it for the holidays. Elegant, remarkably simple, and wonderfully crunchy and creamy and tart. Here’s a recipe:
http://recipes.epicurean.com/recipe/17499/key-lime-creme-brulee.html

I was convinced I was going to be celebrating Christmas in the hospital with red and green Jello and a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. But it appears that Hannah prefers the warmth of the tummy for the time being. And since what I eat, she eats, she’d rather skip the jello for a while, lol. She’s up for some heavy duty servings of Lebkuchen, lox and bagels and Dominostein!
Merry Christmas to you and yours!!

A feast for three

Our advent wreath

I’d mentioned in a previous blog that Christian and I, a few weeks ago, got a free turkey for purchasing more than $100 at Albertson’s. It was close to the time that Christian was heading to Germany, and he was going to miss Thanksgiving here altogether, so we decided to wait until he returned Stateside to cook the bird and have ourselves a “Holiday Meal,” (not quite Thanksgiving, not quite Christmas). That meal was last night.
Christian was in charge of the turkey, thank god. I have tried to make a turkey once, and suffice it to say, frozen and fried at the same time is how mine turned out. His first effort? Impeccable. Of course. I’ve never seen the man make a mistake with cooking meat, ever. I knew the turkey was in good hands from the get-go.
I don’t know how Christian does it, oh, wait, yes I do. He FOLLOWS DIRECTIONS. He watched at LEAST two whole videos online about how to prepare a turkey for roasting. He bought all the required AND suggested supplies, and he followed their directions. Uh, something I’m still learning to do at (almost) 40.
At least I didn’t SUCK at the side items, which was my domain. But then again, how hard can it be to dump two cans of green beans, a can of cream of mushroom soup and fried onions together and bake in the oven? Although the creamed onions were a bit more time consuming, nothing I made required the care, constant tending-to, or patience as the turkey which, by the way, WAS the most tender, succulent and perfectly roasted turkey I have ever had. No, it’s not a case of post-party warm and fuzzies. It was just great!
Christian has mastered the American holiday meal. I get to look forward to his German Christmas meal in just about 11 days, and my American Christmas brunch on December 25.
But for now, it’s going to be turkey sandwiches, turkey tettrazini, turkey salad, turkey nachos… I feel like Bubba in “Forrest Gump,” lol… We’ve got LOTS of leftovers, little room, but takeout meals for the foreseeable future!
Here’s some photos from before, during and after last night’s gluttony fest:

Our advent wreath

The turkey “before”

The turkey “during”

The turkey “after”

Creamed onions

Green bean casserole

Holiday salad with Gorgonzola, walnuts and dried cranberries

American as pumpkin pie

Friday flocked with fun

We did it! Our first tree together is decorated, and it wasn’t tooo much of a logistical nightmare, other than the fact that of course I bought way too many decorations than would fit on the tree. We’ve got our favorites up, and the apartment smells wonderful, and I could just sit on the sofa all night long, mesmerized by the simple lights and holiday smells.
Friday was my all-out fun and too-much-food day… for lunch I made us some Gnocchi, drowning in a sauce made with tomato-basil pasta sauce, sour cream, hot red pepper flakes, diced ham and garlic. Hey, we needed sustenance to decorate the tree, right? And after we decorated, we treated ourselves to dinner at Okazuri, a restaurant that touts itself as “The Floating Bar Sushi Bar” on the sign outside. Never mind the “floating bar” wasn’t functioning last night… it was good food, intimate, and a well-deserved date night for me and Christian. And never mind I can’t have sushi right now. We did start with a Spider Roll, which has cooked soft-shell crab and tempura shrimp; miso soup; and chicken teriyaki for me (I could manage about a THIRD of what was offered) and beef teriyaki for Christian. And never mind that twenty minutes after dinner, we stopped by Starbucks and I COULD manage to find room for a grande Americano and a slice of gingerbread. I’ll repent today. But yesterday? NO regrets.

•••

We were going to hit the Weinnachtsnight over at Fort Bliss this afternoon/evening, but, since I was able to go to the Christkindlmarkt last week before Christian returned home AND tonight is the hugely popular lighting of the Plaza Christmas tree and a parade downtown, we’ll hit that instead. Christian’s got to check out the American tradition (okay, in El Paso, the Mexican-American tradition, complete with a posada, lots of churros and elotes for sale, and most likely a mariachi band mixed in. Oh, and Santa is on parade in a lowrider). But at least that way we get a taste of more than one culture’s holiday celebration.

Baum, Brotzeit … and a bike

Christian’s homecoming was about the greatest it can get…for some reason even more intense and emotional than the times we were separated many months at a time in years past. It was only two weeks he was gone, but seeing him at the airport made me giddy and unable to refrain from those sappy P.D.A.s, unfortunately, lol. Yesterday, his first day back, he had to work from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., but we certainly made up for lost time after work, picking up part of his Christmas present, an exercise bike that had been shipped to dad’s office; getting our Christmas tree from a lot tent on Mesa Street, getting some supplies at Home Depot, getting our obligatory lattes from Starbucks, watching the pilot of “Lost” (no, I’d never seen the show, and now that we FINALLY have Netflix, I promised Christian I’d watch every single one with him), having brotzeit on our new brotzeit plates Christian brought home from Germany; and cozying up and catching up.

Brotzeit: Pancetta, smoked trout, senf, salat, Gruyere, olives, baguette

Smoked trout from the German Christkindlmarkt at Fort Bliss

Christian brought home some of my favorite indulgences: face masques from Müller and Schlecker, the brotzeitteller, a gorgeous table cover with Edelweiss and ducks; magazines such as Lea, Frau im Blick, Frau im Trend, Tina and Bild der Frau…. if it was on the racks, I’ve got it. He also brought home some cookbooks, Penaten and Bebe products for Hannah… and the cutest EVER Steiff Cozy Snail for Hannah. A very early merry Christmas!
Our tree is making our little apartment smell like the Bavarian forest. We’ll be decorating tonight. It is amazing we have managed to find room for not only the new exercise bike, but also for the tree. Although the apartment is looking, well, pretty busy, we love it and can’t wait until it’s bursting at the seams with Hannah’s arrival.

“Driving (er, flying) Home for Christmas…”

My hubby’s over Cork, Ireland, as I write this sentence. I guess by the time I’m done with this blog, he’ll be a few hundred miles into the Atlantic ocean, heading home!!!!! Gotta love FlightAware.com, the real-time flight tracker service, for showing me exactly where Christian is at all times.
He’ll be home at 9 tonight, wayyyyy past my 8-months-pregnant bedtime and, since the airport is (of course) on the opposite side of town, I am going to just head on over in that vicinity in the early evening and do some exploring. I’ll hit the mall, World Market, Marina’s German Bakery, Make Room for Baby, and finish off with an Eggnog Latte (or four) at the East Side Barnes and Noble before I head on over to the airport to people watch the last hour or so before he arrives.
My nesting and hoarding has paid off… I’ve stocked the freezer full of Stollen, German chocolates, our holiday turkey, homemade fruit bread (my pathetic attempt at “Stollen”), brownies, beef, Kinder Buenos… oh, and some obligatory healthy food like spinach and liver.
I’ve also (GASP!!!) completed ALL of my holiday shopping…but then again I say that all the time, before I realize, “Oh, I really need to get (fill in the blank) a gift, too.” Any excuse will do. But for the most part, all the gifts are wrapped (using, I might add, a LOT of the gift bags and bows I got at my baby shower. I’m dreaming of a PINK Christmas, lol).
At the Christkindlemarkt at Fort Bliss last weekend, I went nuts for the nuts… got Christian his fave sugared almonds along with an obscene amount of chocolates, and the almonds sit at his desk waiting for him. He’ll have to wait on the chocolates. Tonight we’ll have a brotzeit with Brezen, smoked whole trout from the Markt, slices of Gouda and Emmentaler, olives, sliced/spiced tomatoes, Senf and some Pancetta. One gift I asked for was a Brotzeitteller to go with the one I got Christian a few months ago. I also requested (and am getting!!!) a whole bunch of women’s magazines from Germany, facial masques for relaxation from Schlecker, Bebe baby products, Penaten baby products, and a Steiff toy for Hannah (a precious snail!)
My baby gets back tonight, my baby gets back tonight, my baby gets back tonight… and my other baby is being very good and patiently waiting. Whew!!!!!

What’s for dinner? Don’t ask

Okay, I was putting off showing what I’ve been eating the last few days, mainly out of embarrassment and a bit of laziness. But I did promise I’d be real on this blog and not sugarcoat or embellish. SO, here it is. Here’s the gist of the meals I’ve eaten in the last few days since my hubby’s gone to Germany.
It’s not like I’m broke, or depressed (well, okay, a LITTLE) or unable to cook up something scrumptious. I’ve just sort of lost my kitchen mojo and I’ve also had some REALLY bizarre cravings the last few days (those who say pregnancy cravings go away in the second trimester are sadly mistaken. Or I’m a freak )
Mrs. Cubberson’s turkey stuffing bread cubes on top of microwave scrambled eggs and green beans? Basil and cheese melted on, gasp, “fake” wheat pre-sliced bread? Freezer-burned chocolate chip-cayenne pepper (yes, really) drop cookies left over from my shower? You get the picture. It’s time to get back in the kitchen and it’s time to FOLLOW RECIPES!
In the meantime, I’m naughtily enjoying the food porn my husband’s sending me from home in Bavaria, knowing full well that in just one week I’ll be eating like a human being again. I guess I should celebrate this ability to throw whatever the heck I like in a bowl and nuke it. It won’t ever happen again.

•••

On a better note, today was the first day of December and the day I got to start opening all three of the advent calendars we have on display at home: One for Christian, one for me and one for all three of us (okay, I opened all of them for us since Christian’s not here and Hannah is here but not really here, lol). I also lit the first candle of our advent wreath while I had lunch (if you call it lunch) and played some Christmas music for me and for Hannah. I’m so into the Christmas spirit this year it almost hurts! I haven’t felt this way about Christmas since I was about 10 years old, practicing running up our spiral staircase to make it the fastest into the living room to open presents.
This year is going to be a blow-out Christmas, even if I’m in the maternity ward at the time. The nurses and staff will be LUCKY to have me as their patient! (yes, I’ve already thought of little “gifts” for the hospital staff. God, I’m turning into Martha Stewart…)

Postcards from Rohr

My husband’s got our good camera with him back home in Germany, leaving me with our VERY beat-up, very on-the-verge-of-death old Olympus. But that’s great, because that means very clear, in focus and not-washed-out photos that he has sent me from home…to taunt me, I’m sure! As promised, his mom (who hasn’t seen him in almost a year) made him Leberkäse mit Kartoffelsalat for his first meal on arrival. A six-pound Leberkäse waiting for him in the cozy kitchen. Roughly translated, Leberkäse is “Liver Cheese,” but it contains neither. It’s typically served in a roll as a convenient “fast food,” or hot with a fried egg on top. Delicious.
I cried when I saw it Since Christian’s been gone, I’ve lived on Semolina Soup, steamed veggies and cookies leftover from our baby shower. Oh, and today I “shook things up” a bit and made a PB&J… I was feeling adventurous, lol.

It’s snowing like mad in Rohr (i. Niederbayern), Christian’s home town. The town is picture-perfect for the holidays, although Christian will miss the Christkindlemarkt by mere days to head on back here to El Paso. In the meantime, he’s being well fed, he’s getting his rest (one more month before neither of us will get much rest at ALL!!!), he’s playing in the snow with his niece and nephew, and (fingers crossed! ) he’s picking out some goodies to stuff in his suitcase for us, lol. Just a little more than a week until he returns, and I’m counting the minutes…

Went to the doctor for my 34 week exam, and was told my blood pressure is a bit high. Not pre-eclampsia at this point, but enough for me to start thinking of taking it easy, I mean REALLY taking it easy. And laying off the salt. And foregoing that ONE cup (yes, I do have ONE cup) of regular coffee I have each day. And on top of that, I’m getting a cold. And on top of THAT, I had a flu shot today and I feel like I got punched in my left arm. It was too windy and bitter cold to go for a proper walk outdoors today, so I dragged the mini-trampoline out from under the bed and marched in place for 20 minutes while watching the first few scenes of “Sex and the City II.” I think that’s the only way I can finish a movie these days … little spurts. I guess I have pregnancy ADD. Okay, maybe I just have ADD in general, but I can use pregnancy as an excuse for the meantime
I had a “major” contraction while the doctor was examining me today. I didn’t even realize it. He had to tell me I was. That’s not good. I mean, he wasn’t worried and said it was normal, but if I can’t feel my own contractions, how the heck will I know if I’m in labor or not? Well, if that was “major,” I guess I can say I have a VERY high pain threshold. And the doc did NOT change my due date… I STILL have a month and one week to go! Wheeeeeeee!

Cats and kicks

Yesterday was the third day my husband’s been gone in Germany, and it’s not getting any easier, although I have found ways to distract myself. Movies I never, ever, ever would have considered watching before are becoming mesmerizing, deciding to take a drive at rush hour, on the sales weekend after Thanksgiving, is actually something I’ve done twice, and sweeping/mopping floors is relaxing to me…
But what is really getting me through it all are two things…Cowboy the Cat, our apartment complex cat with no real owner but plenty of gullible tenants like me. He comes at least twice a day, meows outside the door, and hangs out with me for an hour or so, before he remembers there’s another tenant who will do the same thing all over again, with food. Petting him is such a relaxer for me, reminding me of the importance of pets in our lives. Since we can’t have one of our own here at this apartment, Cowboy is a fine and welcome substitute. Just don’t tell the property manager.
The second thing, the most important… Hannah’s kicks. She’s been moving nonstop for days now, and is now actually waking me up at night. And I don’t mind a bit. I am beginning to know the difference between one of her knees and a foot or hand, and I love to watch the waves of movement over my tummy. Eerie but oh so nice to see! I am a first time mom so I don’t know what to expect, but so far it’s just been great. I THINK she’s dropping, as they explain in all the baby books and online forums. I mean, I’m feeling her much lower, the top of my tummy doesn’t meet my ribcage anymore, and the waddling is becoming more of the status quo than just a temporary way of walking. I really love being pregnant.

I decided to make (with MUCH, MUCH, MUCH variation and a lot of guesswork) one of Christian’s family recipes for dinner last night…semolina soup. Basically you “toast” a cup or so of semolina with a big hunk of butter in a pan, until the semolina is golden brown and absorbs all the butter. Then you add about 2-3 cups of water and about 6-7 beef broth cubes, as well as sliced sausage, heating and stirring until the soup is thick and sticks to a wood spoon. Or something like that. Well, I didn’t have sausage (but I did have pork loin, which I diced and added), I used less butter than called for because I (mistakenly?) found so much to be unnecessary, added no salt, and cooked it on super high because I’m impatient.
Okay, not at all what Christian would have done or made, but not half bad. A step above Stouffer’s frozen meals, anyway! I had the last of my fresh veggies: a sliced cucumber with vinegar and dill; and a clementine. And a pumpkin/chocolate chip cookie with tea for dessert. At least I have two Lean Cuisine’s in the freezer. And LOTS of peanut butter and jam. Nothing beats Christian’s cooking, and I won’t even try to copy one of his recipes until he returns! And that is 12 days… 12 LOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGG days.

This will be the best Christmas I’ve ever had…reunited with my husband, our daughter about to arrive (if she hasn’t already!), and sharing our cultures for the holiday. I am lucky.