Festivities

The week of feasting began with a Christmas Julbord at Tre Kronor, a wonderful Swedish smorgasbord (50 dishes!) shared with dear friends. My favorites were the mustard salad, red cabbage, cucumbers and dill, pickled beets, and the rich and cheesy potatoes. They had roast pork with prunes, Swedish meatballs, 9 different types of herring, so many others. 

And the rice pudding was lovely! We shared wine, including Que Saudade from what I suspect may become a new favorite vineyard, Forlorn Hope. 

Then Christmas Eve dinner with my family, and Christmas Day dinner with Mark’s family. The day after Christmas we had a visit with our friends in from Pittsburgh, and today we had a visit with our friends and former neighbors from way back when we lived in Gurnee, up near the Wisconsin border. 

Now I’m craving a small introverted period, time spent hibernating in Casa del Lobos with the kids, making crafts, baking sweet things, and drinking coffee and/or hot chocolate. I’m happy that the kids don’t have school, grateful that I don’t have to leave the house except for possible sledding/snowball fights in the backyard and maybe some grocery shopping.

I’m hopeful that I can get Conclave finished up and ready to print. I have to send it off soon. Not only are people waiting for it, but I will not have the freedom to work on my own writing until this issue is on its way. 

And I need to write. 

The stories are inside of me begging, bursting, bubbling.

So much to be done in the new year.