Happy New Year

This is the time of year we look back at the past and forward to the future. We are thankful our reverses were minor in comparison to what a lot of people have had this year. Wherever you are and whatever your circumstances, here is my wish for you as we enter a new year.

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Christmas Past

Christmas 2009 has joined the ranks of Christmases past. And what a Christmas it was! This was our year to have our family for Christmas Day. Leroy's family always has their dinner the Saturday after Christmas, so that meant this year we had two Christmas dinners back-to-back. Gerald brought a girlfriend for the first time which swelled our crowd to 28. I didn't get an exact count but around 60 were at the big Stauffer family dinner. (There would be close to 90 if everyone came.) We are blessed to have the 86-year-old matriarch of the family still with us. Here she is, surrounded by her ten children.

I spent December 23-24 preparing food and the house for Christmas. Then we had two days of parties on Friday and Saturday. Now it has taken me two days to recover and return to normal. Sunday was a day of rest. Today there was a mountain of laundry to do and the house to put back in order. Except for the train still set up on the pool table and a few new stains on the carpet that I still need to deal with, you would never know my basement was Christmas Center on Friday.

While I gave the basement a good cleaning in October I was thinking of it as the first step in getting ready for Christmas. While I was putting things back in place this morning I could savor the memories we made on Friday. I don't mind having a mess to clean up. I want the family to remember having a good time when they are here, not having to sit on the edge of their seats for fear Grandma will get upset if something is out of place.
Now that Christmas is past, it is time to tackle the list of things I am hoping to do this winter. The season used to seem dreadfully long when I had a flock of children underfoot but now it flies by so fast it is hardly long enough to get everything done. The world must be turning faster than it used to.

Merry Christmas!

Moravian Sugar Cake

Every family has their own unique Christmas traditions. In our house, you know Christmas is almost here when you smell Moravian Sugar Cake. I have made one of these every year since 1967 for our Christmas breakfast and to share with the neighbors. With Christmas just two days away, it was time to bring out the mixing bowls today and bake the 2009 version.

This is a yeast dough type of coffee cake, basted with butter, topped with brown sugar, and punched full of holes which are filled with butter. Since I can't give you a taste electronically, feast your eyes on the finished product. And if you want a real taste, either come to my house or use the recipe below to make one of your own. Whatever works best for you. :-)

Moravian Sugar Cake

2/3 cup crisco

1 cup hot riced potatoes (I put them through a food mill)

2 tsp. salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 beaten eggs

1 cup lukewarm milk

Dissolve 1 package of yeast (1 tablespoon) in 1/2 cup lukewarm water. Add to the above mixture. Add 6-7 cups flour and knead until smooth. Let rise in a covered bowl until doubled (about 2 hours).

Roll out on a greased cookie sheet or jelly roll pan. Cover and let rise 1 hour. Brush with melted butter. Cover with the following mixture:

1 cup brown sugar

1 tbs. flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

With your finger, make lots of small holes in the sugar-covered dough. Fill with melted butter. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes

Cut in squares. Enjoy!

Happy Birthday to Him

Leroy reached full retirement age on Thursday. He took the day off work and we spent the whole day together, cramming more into one day than is sensible for senior citizens. Since he was not at work on his birthday his treat was postponed one day. He arranged to have a stack of pizzas ordered into the office and told me to bring in some chips and sodas to go with it. I went the second mile and got an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen to add to the meal. After all, I had a "surprise" on my birthday so he should have one on his birthday too.

In March it will be 37 years that he has been working for Shank Door Company. He is not ready to retire yet but will probably cut back to part time next year.

Ein Spiegel der Tauffe

Here is another old book I saw yesterday. It is in the rare book collection at the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society. The title is Ein Spiegel der Tauffe. It was written by Henry Funck, a Mennonite bishop at Franconia and was printed in 1744. The small 94-page book was written to show pouring is the scriptural mode of baptism in response to the pressure being put on the Mennonite by the Tunkers (Brethren) who insisted immersion is the only valid mode of baptism. Philadelphia's German printer, Christopher Saur, was a Tunker and refused to put his imprint on the book.

Since I can't read much German, the name written on the fly leaf means more to me than the contents of the book. It says (in English) "This book belongs to me Barbara Burkholder." The "i-n" on the end of the surname was used to indicate the feminine gender.

Amos Hoover told me about this book. He thinks it probably belonged to the immigrant widow Barbara Burkholder, my ancestor and mother of Bishop Christian Burkholder. There is nothing in the book to verify it actually was hers but it would be in the right time period for her. Even if it belonged to some other Barbara Burkholder, it is a rare and valuable book.

Happy Birthday to Me

Look what Leroy gave me for my birthday this morning! This china teapot by Noritake is the Romaine pattern. Only one other time have I seen something with my name on it. That was a little sign in Israel, "Citerne Romaine" (Roman Cistern). Wasn't he thoughtful to give me something with my name on it?!

Confession time! I bought it myself on E-bay. I was watching this thing for weeks. It was listed three times and the price kept going down. On the third listing I thought the price was quite reasonable so I bid and there was no competition. I got it for the opening bid.

It came by FedEx last week. I opened the box and checked to be sure it had not been damaged in shipping. Then I put it in a plain brown paper bag and set it in the corner of the dry sink. I was waiting for Leroy to ask me what the bag was about but he never did.

This morning I asked him if he had noticed the bag. He said he had but figured it was a gift I was going to give somebody.

He was surprised when I said, "It's for you."

"For me?"

"For you to give to me for my birthday."

He smelled the rat but cooperated nicely and handed me the bag. I opened it and showed him what he had bought me for my birthday. He was the only one who was surprised. Well, I made the shopping easy for him, didn't I?

Birthdays are handy excuses for indulging ourselves with extras we don't really need. I guess it's good I don't have more than one per year or I'd do this too often. And besides, the numbers go up fast enough as it is. I guess we can call this a consolation prize for making 62 trips around the sun and crossing the line into the official retirement age.