• Merry Christmas everyone!

We are having a wonderful day here at the Garner’s!  Mr.Garner and I are sitting at our kitchen table with our laptops looking out the window at the snow falling, and the birds at the bird feeder, and the ducks trying to navigate the slush in the river.  Our oak tree is beautiful. With every branch outlined in snow it is a study of thick and thin lines and shades of gray.  The American Holly tree, always lovely in the gray doldrums of winter, with shiny green leaves and bright red berries, now has snow adorning each leaf. There is an interesting brightness to what is usually the dark interior structure of the tree.

Our southern port city had 4 inches of snow when I got up this morning, which makes the roads pretty much impassable.  While northerners often snicker condescendingly at this thought, the reality is that our sea level city is surrounded by the warm waters of the Chesapeake Bay, and bisected by the Elizabeth and Lafayette rivers; conditions that generally discourage snow clouds to visit for long. The city spends more on flood gates and pumping stations than snow plows. In October, our region is still visiting the beach while our fellow Virginians up North are purchasing and installing snow tires or chains. Our children dream of snow yet rarely see more than a flurry or an inch at a time.  When it does snow, it is a time of play, and rest, and slowing down, sometimes against our will. But today, I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than rest and enjoy the hand of God releasing his storehouses laden with snow upon my city, and do a little chuckling of my own about global warming… At 3 pm we are now at 11 inches…

The Daughter has been outside, then inside to allow her mittens to dry, and now is back outside making snow forts with the kids across the street. #1 Son woke up slightly before noon, and after inhaling the last of the Rocking Rum Rolls is out supervising fort making. Mr. Garner and I are feasting on leftovers from yesterday’s small but relaxing Christmas Dinner that we shared with his mother, Midge, and my dad, Papa Gene.

Chef Garner brined the turkey in an Apple Cider Brine, then cooked it in an electric roaster on the back porch, (long story) delivering a moist and delicious bird. Brie with carmelized pecans tided us over while the turkey roasted.  We rounded out dinner with our favorite treatment of Brussels sprouts – cooked with pecans, bacon, onions and celery and then topped with Gorgonzola, traditional Green Bean casserole, Pear and Spinach Salad, and Sage Dressing. Papa Gene contributed a wonderful Apple Crisp Cheesecake for dessert that he received in the mail from Judy, a family friend.  Grandma Midge washed every dish, some of them twice!

This blog has almost gone a full calendar circle.  I started Garner Goings On in January of 2010 on a Sunday, when church was cancelled because of snow and I had some time on my hands.  It languished forlornly as I worked on other projects.  Today, not quite a year later, church is cancelled, again, because of snow and I find myself with a delightful opportunity to catch up on the year’s activities and be reminded of God’s blessings on my life and that of my family.

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