Traditions

Every Christmas I feel like I "have" to make the kind of cookies pictured at the left.  Grandma Ryan used to make them every year.  They were part of our annual Christmas Eve at her house, along with "brown" or "red" cows -- a scoop of vanilla ice cream in a cup with either root beer or "red pop" poured over it.  My favorite cookies were the ones pictured in the middle of the plate.  They are made with a cookie press and then the ridges are covered with sprinkles. They are light, crisp, and have a great texture.

When we were over at Tom's on Christmas day, I recognized a little rocking chair in his family room.  I asked him to remind me of its history.  He told me that the rocking chair had once belonged to my Dad's Dad, our Grandfather "Pop."  Tom has made a point of photographing each of his grandchildren in the chair.  I wish I had photographed the chair empty, but I did flip it over and take a picture of the underside. You can see the original slats that made up the seat of the chair.  Over the years, many of the slats broke and my Dad fitted a plywood seat over the remaining slats. 

So, of course, I had to coax Ian into the chair. He politely accommodated me, but was too involved with the blades of a play helicopter to look at the camera.














Ian's cousin, Mark, played with him by sending "Thomas, the Train" back and forth on the floor.  Ian loves his "Choos" (trains).











I have many pictures of all of us -- too many for a blog -- so I may update this post with another photoshow in a day or two.  Meanwhile, here is a picture of "my" branch of the family.

Liz, Ian, Roland, Santa Don, Bill and Kath