Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

I celebrate secular Christmas - and in our family the reason for the season is food.  And more food.  And maybe a little more after that.  And don't forget snacking!

Whatever and however you are celebrating this time of year, I hope this season is full of love, family, friends, and happiness!  And food.  Lots and lots of food.

Gary getting into the Christmas spirit.

The Gift That Keeps on Giving

My Aunt and Uncle raise cattle.  Earlier this year they sent one of their cows to slaughter and filled their freezer with it.  Cows are giant and they produce hundreds of pounds of food, so she gave some to my Grandma, who in turn gave some to my Mom.  This past weekend, Mom shared some with me.  It started with "do you want a pound of hamburger?" and ended with a giant bag of glorious meat!  My Mom is beyond generous and spoils me to pieces whenever I go over there.  This time of year her house is especially full of food, treats, cookies, and candy and I reluctantly (ahem) help her through it so it is all gone by New Years.  The gift of meat is above and beyond what I expected though.  It was given to me with love, is farmer fresh, and knowing that the cow was raised locally (and by family) adds something to the quality of the meat for me.  Thanks, Mom.

Awesomely the gift of meat included some T-Bone steaks.  John fought the cold and BBQ'd them up for an amazing meal the other night.

Mmmm.... Winter BBQ

These steaks were thick and giant.  I couldn't believe how much of my plate they covered.  We served them with a side of perogies (go big or go home!) and steamed carrots.  My cup runneth over.

Now that is a lot of meat!

I couldn't eat all of mine so I saved half for lunch the next day.  Steak and eggs baby!  If I don't weigh an extra 15 pounds by the end of the holidays, it won't be from lack of trying!

Protein power lunch

Total Eclipse of the Heart

I awoke drunk with sleep last night at 2:00am or so to step outside and check out the total lunar eclipse.  Half asleep, I struggled into my boots and coat, but I was still able to enjoy the majesty of the event.  The eclispe happens over a few hours, so I only glimpsed a portion of it, but it was cool none-the-less.  I fell instantly back to sleep and awoke again at 3:30am.  At that point it was in total eclipse mode with a reddish/orange hue.  Beautiful.

Here is the one (half asleep) photo I took with my point and shoot.  There are much better photos all over the internet today.

Lunar eclipse at 2:06am Dec 21, 2010 - view from the front yard

Picture Is Worth A Thousand Points...

I'm at my Mom's this weekend and she has been doing lots of holiday baking.  Yesterday she made her world famous Nuts and Bolts and today she is whipping up her equally delicious caramel corn.  Here is a shot of what goes into the "caramel".  Mmmmmmmm....

Mmmmmm... Sugar and fat... A winning combination!!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, -- Make It Stop!

I'm in Barrie today, but just barely.  It was snowing heavily the whole drive down and it has only gotten worse since I've been here.

I know I live in Canada.  I know it is winter time.  I know that piles and piles of endless snow should not be a surprise.  But it has been snowing for DAYS now (DAYS!!!) and it is starting to make me a little bonkers.  In the country, everything is contingent on the weather.  If it is a snow storm you can't go out, even if you need groceries.  Or you can go out, but plan to take twice as long and pee before you go, because you might not make it back.  It is weather like this that makes me miss the city.  No matter what the weather, you can just walk to the bus/subway and you can get where you're going.  It still might take a while, but at least you're not risking your own vehicle, and it is probably a lot safer being in a giant bus versus my little Mazda.

One of these days I am going to pick up a pair of snow pants and try to enjoy all this stupid snow.  Until then, I am taking to my little blog and complaining about it!

Boo!!!!!