Wednesday, December 19th, 2007

lebkuchen hexenhaus

our entire house and the warmth smelled heavenly-  a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, cloves, allspice, and ginger 

there are many recipes for gingerbread orlebkuchen.  i used this one since i am familiar with their spices and found a blueprint to construct the house

 

this was the joy.

gingerbread dates back to the medieval times in europe, predominantly in england. the making of gingerbread houses or lebkuchen hexenhauser (gingerbread witch houses) was modernized and romanticized in the 19th century after one of the many brüder grimm  german fairy tale collections, hansel und gretel

Monday, December 17th, 2007

ornaments & creating traditions

cutting salt dough ornaments

i got this fantastic idea from my girlfriend katie who made these with her son judah. we had the best time making some too! it is easy and so much fun- not only for children.

and painting them

for the last few years my favorite part of the holidays has been planning, and starting new traditions for our family. we are not that young but we have a young family and i genuinely enjoy to create memories for the little ones. 

my eritrean heritage that has been watered down with american traditions and my tall dark and handsome’s strong german, catholic background (reinforced by currently living in germany) can make for a very interesting combination of traditions. finding beauty in and embracing our rich cultures always has been my favorite thing about us but it is extra special now that we are parents.

Wednesday, November 21st, 2007

thanksgiving

 

we enjoyed ourselves celebrating thanksgiving last saturday, a little early due to conflict in schedules.  two things to be grateful for: good friends and good food. 

thank you beate and helmut for your pleasurable company, enchanting stories, and all the special treats you brought along!

there is nothing greater that i am thankful for than my fortune of sharing this sweet, amazing, wonderful life with the sun, the moon, and thomas aka my tall, dark, and handsome who is celebrating a birthday tomorrow.

i wish all of you peace of mind, joy in your hearts and a very happy thanksgiving!

Wednesday, October 31st, 2007

halloween

welcome, please do come in………..

meet the co-hosts, the scary ones…. baaaagggghhhh!!

come on in and join the fun i have magic pumpkin soup for you!!!!!

we are sitting here in germany and greeting trick or treaters. this really is so much fun. i did not think i could do this after immigrating here but it’s so much better than i thought! we had a party and it is wonderful to see how they embrace this very forgein  holiday. they all came out, even the spiders to celebrate.

there was a cat

another cat and a pumpkin

and a witch

that brought along her sister

happy halloween!!!!!!

Monday, October 22nd, 2007

anything can happen

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the hostesses: rochambeau, indigo blue, and lisa s. oceandreamer

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 you are invited to be anything you want to be-  it is your heart’s desire

you can be scary, funny, glamorous, famous, or what you always wished you could have been in a time you wish you had lived.

the choice is yours.

it is so much fun. just do it. get dressed up and come out to play.

the fun part is dreaming and planning what you want to be. or simply look in your closet long enough and for sure can whip something up in no time. i’ve done that so many times.

i once wore every string bead necklace that i own, made my hair an afro, and called myself a hippie (i have always said: i should have lived in the 60s and 70s).

the other time my hair worked for me,  i turned myself into diana ross.

then there was the time when i hung empty cereal boxes on myself with ketchup all over me for the gory effect and called myself a cereal killer.

there was also the time i dressed in an evening gown and just looked glamorous. i figured the drag queens on cedar springs or oak lawn avenue did  it, why not me?

the best halloween is when i took my sweet time and made myself a flower. it changed my entire life……….

like i said, anything can happen……..

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