Karen Alma
What I think about. Things that happen to me. Stuff I like. And other things.
Category: Family
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My face hurt from laughing so hard and my heart was full. Fifteen women, gathered for their monthly doula hangout, sitting around a table piled high with food: brownies, whipped topping, cookies, angle food cake, strawberries, chips, guacamole. Oh, the guacamole. It was an evening out of busy lives to connect around the shared work of caring for…
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Christmas season is officially at an end at the Arnold house. Time to put this tree away and look forward to a wonderful year. Happy Epiphany!
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In celebration of the 11th day of Christmas we got a jump on the Epiphany traditions to try some Rosca de Reyes. There’s only supposed to be one Christ child figurine inside the cake, but my two nephews each got a figurine too. Some nice baker was sure thinking ahead.
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On this 10th (or 11th) day of Christmas I give you this blue Santa’s helper. My youngest made this as a gift for his cousin. It comes complete with a mug of apple cider and a naughty/nice list affixed to the side. He wrote the names of most of his family, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc…
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It’s the 9th day of Christmas and we’ve had the second of six birthdays in the family for the month of January. January is a big month for us birthday-wise. Yesterday was my nephew’s birthday, today is my husband’s, tomorrow his brother, then a little later our daughter, then her grandpa, and to round it out,…
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On this 7th (or 8th) day of Christmas, we are eating Panettone, a delectable treat commonly consumed by our family on Christmas Day and New Years Day. It usually has candied fruit, but this particularly amazing one is full of chocolate bits. It’s amazing when slathered with butter. And coffee, of course 🙂
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On this 6th (or 7th) day of Christmas I’m celebrating homemade Christmas tree ornaments. Our tree is full of ornaments from my childhood, my husband’s childhood, gifts to the kids from our extended family, things collected over the 20 years of our marriage, and the artistic efforts of the kids. I love it. Having it in our living…
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On the 5th (or 6th) day of Christmas I’m dreaming of the delicious Christmas dinner we ate a few days ago. My husband’s family has a tradition of making a slightly sweet turkey and sweet gravy for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The first time I had it I couldn’t believe my tastebuds so I learned how to make…
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Continuing on with the 12 days of Christmas theme, it’s the 4th day. We don’t have any calling birds, unless you count our chickens. So, let’s talk about surprise gifts. Catan appeared on our porch on Boxing Day and we’ve not yet discovered who sent it to our house. While life in the Arnold homestead is mostly…
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On the third day of Christmas (or the fourth, depending on how you count), the snow that fell yesterday is still on the ground. And it’s cold in Albuquerque. Deep heavy sigh and dreaming of a green Christmas. But, if there was no snow we’d not have this cuteness in our backyard. It’s one of…
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On the second day of Christmas we ate leftovers. Specifically our traditional family “fruit salad”, aka marshmallow, whipped topping, and pineapple goodness.
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On the first day of Christmas, my children folded origami.