Happy New Year!

We hope that you have a happy new year! We spent today doing chores, yoga, making trifle, and generally relaxing. The weather was much warmer today (40F)and Kokee enjoyed a day of chasing tennis balls in the rapidly melting snow. It was a great 2010, and we wish you all the best for 2011!

Post Christmas Cheer

We are hunkering down in very cold windy weather and enjoying the post Christmas glow.  The big storm that has "paralyzed the East Coast" brought all of three inches to Hangman Hill.  The gusty winds and cold temperatures are keeping us gathered around the wood stove.  We enjoyed Huckelberry Pancakes from Montana compliments of Michael and Janel for a hearty breakfast on Boxing Day.  Sheri has been busy making new covers for the beds in our spare bedroom (guests welcome any time to test them out!).

Chatra and Kokee by the fire

Christmas cracker #3

We hope that you had a great Christmas.  We finished it off with dinner at the Ocean House in Watch Hill. Very nice!  And now its starting to snow.....

Christmas cracker #2

Ho, ho, ho!  We hope that Santa brought you (and bought you) everything you wanted.  Now, time to have  some Christmas cake...

Fiesta Navidad

Christmas began today with walk in the morning sun.  Finding our neighbor Fran on top of his roof cleaning his chimney was a bonus.   Yes, for real - you can't make up that sort of story.   Apparently Santa couldn't make it down his Chimney, hence the sweeping. And, if you know Fran, with his shoulder length white hair emerging from his hooded coat, dimpled cheeks and jolly laugh, it was like seeing Santa himself on a rooftop when he bellowed "Merry Christmas"to us both.

While much of our family, including those in Colorado, Montana, Pennsylvania and even those in  North Carolina and England are enjoying snow, it is a green Christmas here in CT.  We opened a few gifts and enjoyed coffee and cake using our new Fiesta dinnerware. The plate features pound cake from Kerry and Brandon, Cranberry bread from Gene and Kathy and Chocolate covered marshmallows from Mark and Jen.  Feliz Navidad!

Christmas cracker #1

Merry Christmas!  Time to open those presents.....

Snowmanatron

In celebration of the season we thought we'd share a link to this short Wallace & Gromit clip.  We'll be working on our own "snowmanatron" if we get enough of the white stuff !!!

Solstice Party

In celebration of the solstice and the lunar eclipse we had a candlelight pizza party. The crust was eclipsed by the sauce at 6:52pm.  We have turned the corner to longer days, as the Stephanie Davis song goes "We are turning to the light...."

Brussels and Carrots

Just before the ground was fully frozen  we pulled (ok -we tugged) a crop of carrots and harvested the remaining Brussels sprouts.  The low temperatures have rendered these gifts from the earth into tender treats. We have been enjoying them roasted, steams and on salads. Yummmmm!

Christmas Preparations

This morning the options for today's activity included Christmas shopping at Providence Place or cutting our own Christmas tree at one of the local farms in the driving rain.  Those of you who know us well will guess correctly the decision we made...  It only took a brief break in the raindrops just as we were Providence bound to choose to go Christmas tree hunting.  We were lucky to find Pendleton Hill Tree Farm, only a few miles down the road, was selling trees despite the rain.  We found the best tree ever and enjoyed a cup of coffee with some very friendly neighbors.  We managed to get the tree in the house before the deluge returned.   We are relaxing in front of a decorated tree and hoping we won't spend the evening with the shop-vac given a current rainfall rate at 2" per hour.  Let it snow,  let it snow,  let it snow...