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As promised, I am here to tell you about how our holiday season went – and to share my notes about the 2008 Bell Wine Cellars Syrah that we enjoyed for Christmas Eve. The end of 2018 was very strange. I wound up injuring my shoulder in October, and that pretty much cramped my style and put a damper on my plans through the rest of October and into November. I was finally feeling myself by the time Thanksgiving rolled around, but I was pretty much playing catch-up.
The birthdays
We have two december birthdays – this year a 3rd birthday and a 5th birthday. Mr. 3 loves Paw Patrol, Miss 5 loves everything glamorous. I made this awesome Pinterest-inspired Paw Patrol cake. (Thank you, Frugal Mom-Eh for the inspiration).
We decked out our freshly-painted dining room in Paw Patrol fabulousness. That was a huge hit with our kiddo.
The next day, we transformed our dining room into a winter wonderland.
It’s a lot of work to put together two birthday parties each year, but the kids love it, and, well, I do too. I have 0 chill, so I don’t really know how to dial it back.
Christmas Fun
That was followed by putting the last of the Christmas decorations up, just in time for the holiday. I love my holiday village, and with the sideboard we picked up last summer, it now has a great home for the holidays. If you think you see a Charlie Brown tree there, it’s because you do.
I personalized each of our six stockings using my Silhouette Cameo, and hung them on our mantel. I think next year, we might get cooler stocking holders. I didn’t get around to making that Advent calendar I keep threatening to make each year, but I found some really cool ideas that I have to go through…and make use of.
The 2008 Bell Wine Cellars Syrah
So for dinner on Christmas Eve, we switched things up. You see, in the past, it was the tradition I grew up with to have grilled cheese and tomato soup on Christmas Eve and watch The Sound of Music. Well, sorry Mom and Dad, we didn’t do that this year. Instead, we picked up some stuffed pork roll-ups with feta and spinach from Whole Foods and had that with a wine we’d been storing in our cellar for a while, the 2008 Bell Wine Cellars Syrah.
It was a fantastic pairing. The wine is from Canterbury Vineyard in the Sierra Foothills of California. There was the cigar box nose I love, and I picked up some hints of dark cherries. It smelled like home sweet home, California. On tasting this balanced wine, we noted that it was good that we were drinking it now, that it was definitely time, and we picked up plums, cocoa, and tobacco in the flavor. While the 2008 wasn’t available from Wine.com, they do have the 2016 Bell Wine Cellars Syrah available for $25.99.
Christmas Day
Being that we have kids and a kid at heart, Santa came to our home. We had a lot of fun. I was really, really excited to present Wining Husband’s parents with a standout wood print from Photobarn. I took pictures of all four of our kids and then had one of the best ones printed on wood by this company. I’ll be writing a full review soon, but I have to say, I was really impressed with the quality and beauty of the product – and so were my in-laws.
Post-Christmas Illness
And then…we all got sick. Ladybug wasn’t feeling too hot on Christmas Eve, but by the 26th we all had whatever crud it was she was fighting off that day. Unfortunately, that meant we missed out on a hockey game we were all looking forward to seeing, and we didn’t do our usual New Year’s Eve board game marathon. It was a crummy way to start the year, but everyone’s finally feeling much better now.
Thank you
Thank you for being there reading this blog. 2019 marks Wining Husband and my 7th wedding anniversary, and the 8th anniversary of this blog. It’s the 11th anniversary, next month, of starting my writing and editing business. It’s been one heck of a ride, and I’m looking forward to all good things this year.
