LA DOLFINA

My husband and Latte waking up our son to start work on his college essays. Funny how they both have the exact same expression! "This college application stuff is no cake walk." "I need a break." "Where's Chris?" "This feels comfy." "I think I'll hang out with the big guy." "Is that a squirrel out there?" "What's this?" "Hey dude, can I try out your board?" "Come on...please?" "Am I styling or what?" "It's not as easy as it looks!" "I think I'll just hang today."

One of my very favorite things about the holidays is getting Christmas cards in the mail. I must be honest...when I get one without a photo, I'm disappointed. I eagerly anticipate a new photo each Christmas from my friends and loved ones. They have become my favorite gifts. I've been saving them in albums for years, and put them out on display along with the rest of my holiday decorations. I love to sit, with a cup of tea or hot chocolate, and go through them every Christmas. It's pretty amazing, when you don't get to see most of these people day in and day out, how an annual photo really captures and documents their lives, especially when you save them from year to year.

Here it is, December 23rd, the day before Christmas Eve, usually my favorite day of the Christmas Season. It feels a little like a blue Christmas since last evening, when our son called to inform us that the car had conked out and he was stuck in the middle of the road... and just after I spent most of last week getting our broken refrigerator repaired and re-stocked. So, in the spirit of the season, I thought I'd share some blue Christmas with you. Don't worry, it's all good! A few days ago, I found myself in Walmart buying the ingredients to make "doo-dads", you know that healthy, nutritious snack food that incorporates all the chex cereals. It was something that, as kids, we eagerly anticipated at Christmas. Christmas wasn't official until the reindeer appeared in the window of the Mulvaney house and the box of "doo-dads" had arrived from my Grama Maud, in Colorado. Anyway, while shopping in Walmart, my eye caught sight of a blue Chri...

I grew up around the block from this home. I can never remember anyone ever living in it, but what I'll always remember about this house, was an annual Christmas tradition that my brothers and I will always cherish as an important part of our collective childhood Christmas memories. It would happen seemingly overnight...all of a sudden the front window would become brightly lit, illuminating, behind thin gauzy drapes, a pair of reindeer. It was pure magic! Their silhouette was larger than life! It signaled to us that Christmas was here! We begged our Mom to drive by it every evening so we could see this mysterious house come alive once a year! Of course, we all made up stories over the years about this grand old home that kept up it's annual homage to Christmas, but continued to remain vacant for all these years. Well, it was big news all around town this month when it was advertised that for the first time in over 50 years there was going to be an estate sale at The Mulvaney H...