Yes, it came and it would be gone soon. It is a moment we've all been anticipating, the only holiday of the year that takes the longest time to prepare for Catholics and others who believe in it. As soon as it comes, we're only left with few hours and then some before it past us again. Another year will be over then the ritual begins. In few hours, Christmas is like a dream and when we wake up tomorrow, we are left with nothing but memories of Christmas past. Memories are all we've got for the whole year before it comes back again.
How did you do with yours so far? Was there anything different from the other Christmases you spent in this lifetime? Mine is sure different this year. It's our first Christmas in our first home together with my honey. There's nothing like having your own home decorated with all festive decors, all lights up, and preparing your dining room with a lovely turkey dinner. This year is the 2nd one that we spent with mom doing the turkey in our own kitchen but this one is our very own kitchen. The smell and the sound of mom and my honey in this kitchen are all that made this Christmas so very special to remember. In every turkey dinner I had with the family, the old tradition must go on: both mom and my honey would help each other clean the turkey and stuff it, dress it then in to the oven. After all those lovely dinners I spent with the family so far, I finally concluded that the turkey always takes presedence even the night before it gets dressed up. Mom meticulously keeps the traditional way of doing each and every step and I'm trying to listen to each step very carefully and observe so just in case, I can keep the same tradition going to the next generation. Not the we have children to pass it on to but I believe so strongly on traditions and why families must keep them going.... They also have ways of who prepares what and all I have to do is fill in the extra help. But hey, I managed to get my card up there and can you believe I finally did? This time I volunteered to do the stuffing and homemade from scratch. Mom stopped doing it and I didn't even catch the tail end because she has been using the store bought stuffing since I can remember being part of the turkey dinner. I normally labor everything I do in the kitchen and this time I had the opportunity to do just that. So I found this recipe from of course who else, but Martha Stewart. Mom used to prepare her stuffing with lots of celery and onions so I searched for a similar one which I did find with lots of different herbs. And I also did my own crutons as the recipe calls for. With a little tweak here and there as I always do with recipes, man, did it turn out great! Mom kept talking about it the entire dinner and between the three of us, I think there's only for two people left on the dish. We were expecting 4 more people for dinner and I was really getting excited when we started getting calls from them yesterday. Well, all I can say now is sorry for them. They missed out on good ol' mom's complete turkey dinner with new homemade stuffing. Most of all, they missed out on the fun in the kitchen, the smell, the laughter, the music, the drinking of one of my honey's best homemade wine over the cooking process, the jokes and the trimmings of this beautiful holiday season. Growing up I never had this kind of traditional experience with my own family over the holiday season as my mom had to work overseas for the family. I do remember my grandma having the same fun in the kitchen with her sisters while they help out cooking the day before Christmas and back then, kids were not allowed to intermingle with adults. That's how old fashioned my family was! I've always envied my friends and anyone I see spending this kind of time with their family. People who are priviledged to have this opportunity can't always embrace it and enjoy it either. As they have their own family and responsibilites. I am so grateful that even with my mother-in-law, I got finally blessed with a kid's wish that I couldn't seem to have with my own mom. I think for me being in Canada, this would be one of the greatest memories of my new Christmas past and I do hope that my honey and I will share more of these good ol' traditional settings in our new home and who knows, maybe with my family back home too. Well, for those of you we have missed this year there are how many more to come? Just follow your hearts' desire. Christmas or no Christmas, there's still tomorrow and chances are, things we take for granted won't wait for us. We can make the most out of them while we can if we choose to. Making time is so hard but there's no time if we don't make the effort to do so. To all of you my dear loved ones, all the merriest of all and I can't wait to see what the year ahead has instore for us.
How did you do with yours so far? Was there anything different from the other Christmases you spent in this lifetime? Mine is sure different this year. It's our first Christmas in our first home together with my honey. There's nothing like having your own home decorated with all festive decors, all lights up, and preparing your dining room with a lovely turkey dinner. This year is the 2nd one that we spent with mom doing the turkey in our own kitchen but this one is our very own kitchen. The smell and the sound of mom and my honey in this kitchen are all that made this Christmas so very special to remember. In every turkey dinner I had with the family, the old tradition must go on: both mom and my honey would help each other clean the turkey and stuff it, dress it then in to the oven. After all those lovely dinners I spent with the family so far, I finally concluded that the turkey always takes presedence even the night before it gets dressed up. Mom meticulously keeps the traditional way of doing each and every step and I'm trying to listen to each step very carefully and observe so just in case, I can keep the same tradition going to the next generation. Not the we have children to pass it on to but I believe so strongly on traditions and why families must keep them going.... They also have ways of who prepares what and all I have to do is fill in the extra help. But hey, I managed to get my card up there and can you believe I finally did? This time I volunteered to do the stuffing and homemade from scratch. Mom stopped doing it and I didn't even catch the tail end because she has been using the store bought stuffing since I can remember being part of the turkey dinner. I normally labor everything I do in the kitchen and this time I had the opportunity to do just that. So I found this recipe from of course who else, but Martha Stewart. Mom used to prepare her stuffing with lots of celery and onions so I searched for a similar one which I did find with lots of different herbs. And I also did my own crutons as the recipe calls for. With a little tweak here and there as I always do with recipes, man, did it turn out great! Mom kept talking about it the entire dinner and between the three of us, I think there's only for two people left on the dish. We were expecting 4 more people for dinner and I was really getting excited when we started getting calls from them yesterday. Well, all I can say now is sorry for them. They missed out on good ol' mom's complete turkey dinner with new homemade stuffing. Most of all, they missed out on the fun in the kitchen, the smell, the laughter, the music, the drinking of one of my honey's best homemade wine over the cooking process, the jokes and the trimmings of this beautiful holiday season. Growing up I never had this kind of traditional experience with my own family over the holiday season as my mom had to work overseas for the family. I do remember my grandma having the same fun in the kitchen with her sisters while they help out cooking the day before Christmas and back then, kids were not allowed to intermingle with adults. That's how old fashioned my family was! I've always envied my friends and anyone I see spending this kind of time with their family. People who are priviledged to have this opportunity can't always embrace it and enjoy it either. As they have their own family and responsibilites. I am so grateful that even with my mother-in-law, I got finally blessed with a kid's wish that I couldn't seem to have with my own mom. I think for me being in Canada, this would be one of the greatest memories of my new Christmas past and I do hope that my honey and I will share more of these good ol' traditional settings in our new home and who knows, maybe with my family back home too. Well, for those of you we have missed this year there are how many more to come? Just follow your hearts' desire. Christmas or no Christmas, there's still tomorrow and chances are, things we take for granted won't wait for us. We can make the most out of them while we can if we choose to. Making time is so hard but there's no time if we don't make the effort to do so. To all of you my dear loved ones, all the merriest of all and I can't wait to see what the year ahead has instore for us.
Table is set for seven and it was getting more and more exciting to fill the table up again with people and lots of food esp. with mom's own family.
They did it again! Crispy on the outside, tender and so juicy on the inside. Mom forgot the cheesecloth though so we had to use foil for covering. So big that it can feed a dozen!
Too damn organized that no one should even attempt to change this old treasured tradition of doing things around.
Care to do the gravy? There's no way that mom would let you and it has to be always, always at the right temperature to get the right texture.
As there is a way of carving the turkey - my honey's way...
All is good after a hard day's kitchen work and feasting.
Cheers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From Philippines to Canada....
From our Johnson's home to yours, Merry Christmas with love...
Kisses.
1 comment:
I couldn`t have put it better myself.Evryday is alot like Xmas it seems sometimes with my honey.
Honey-ko
Post a Comment