We do December up right here in Colorado.
From the weather – a balmy 11 degrees for a high today, folks – to the carnivalesque decorating job done to our City and County building in Denver (as seen above), we like to grab holiday spirit by the twinkle lights and really celebrate the season.
Which leads me to this edition of Weekend Roundup.
Me: “Emily, I really think it’s time for you to make some chocolate chip cookies.”
Em, after a hearty, mildly incredulous laugh: “Fine. I’ll mix them up if you scoop and bake them.”
Me, brief pause for consideration: “OK, deal.”
And so we did. Until we got to the “baking” part. I put that in quotations because apparently there’s some part of my psyche that decided to take creative liberties with “baking” these poor cookies. Which resulted in a baking time of 13 minutes. Not six minutes. Which, when it comes to baking, is basically a lifetime of extra quality time with the oven.
As would be expected, it effectively turned these cookies into the consistency of tooth-breaking peanut brittle.
In my psyche’s defense! My mom had handwritten a note on our time-tested cookie recipe that stated 13 minutes as the baking time. I just failed to read the REST of the note which explained these instructions were for giant, pan-sized cookies.
Details, details.
This is now two baking-related disasters in as many weeks that can be attributed to me.
Is it too late to plead the fifth?
One of our favorite family traditions is attending the University of Colorado-Boulder Holiday Festival. Emily and I both sang in this several years in a row while attending university there. It is a combination performance by all the CU choirs, a full symphony orchestra, a brass band, a jazz band, a pianist, violinists, harpists, a flugelhorn or two, and if I’m not mistaken, ten lords a-leapin’.
They perform all varieties of holiday music and it’s really the best way to gear up for the holiday season. (Not that I’m biased in saying that, naturally.) But really, where else will you have the opportunity to join a full choir, symphony orchestra, brass band, jazz band, a pianist, violinists, a flugelhorn, and those ten lords, in belting out the Hallelujah Chorus?
It’s these special moments that energize me for this favored time of the year.
As does the near-death experience of walking over the ice field that is Denver right now.
But that’s another story.