The first thing I did was take the butter out of the fridge to soften. That was the first thing on my “to do” list. The second thing wasn’t as successful. I had a couple bakery calls to make. My Mom used to have fabulous breakfast trays on Christmas Morning that everyone munched on while we opened presents. Remember I told you about Mom and Christmas? Opening presents on Christmas morning was a few hours! Pop put the Yule Log in the fireplace and started the fire. I put the video fireplace on. The video fire was no competition for the real thing, but the music was great Christmas music and it set the mood well!
Then everyone else trickled in. At different point in my life it was a different cast. When Dave and I were the kids for whom the lion’s share of Mom’s Christmas Mountain was there, Grandma and Papa would drive in to Southgate from their home in Detroit. That included more huge sacks for Grandma’s only child, her spouse and her only 2 grandkids! After we moved to Northville, Grandma and Papa would stay at Mums’ house and the three of them came over. The traditions have changed, some slightly, some a lot. They grew and accommodated as our family changed.
Christmas for eight, Mom-style
When we had new twin girls in the family, Mom made a new stocking. Rina, who is 2 minutes older, got her Dad’s huge stocking and Tori had a new one made for her. The huge stockings really weren’t discernible from each other. Mom still did my huge stocking because I didn’t have kids of my own. Boy, she’d be buying LOTS of cat toys now! At the time when the girls came into our family, Papa had passed and Mums was in a senior assisted living apartment. So Grandma joined us from the downstairs bedroom.
Christmas 1996 - The first real excitement about Santa
In 1996, I worked for a company that did seminars for Fortune 1000 companies. I brought home leftovers from a fabulous breakfast sweets tray we’d had at the office from a company in Troy, Michigan, about an hour’s drive from us! Mom was so impressed she suggested taking a ride out on Saturday to see the bakery. 2 annual trips to Ridley's Café and Bakery became a new tradition. The first was just after Thanksgiving to have a wonderful lunch and order our breakfast for Christmas. The second was a stop on Christmas Eve afternoon to pick up that tray. We had a tray of mini muffins and pastries with small loaf slices and fruit-kabobs every year until 2003. Mom passed in 2003 and to be honest, I couldn’t afford to keep up the Ridley’s tradition.
Ridley’s Breakfast Tray
This year, Rina will be with us on Christmas Morning and I thought it would be neat to enjoy a tradition we both loved and be able to introduce it to David. The problem is that Ridley’s is just way too far now and I can’t find anyplace locally that does that kind of tray. One bakery does mini Danish, but not mini muffins, one has cookies and cupcakes, but not muffins. Since I have a much looser schedule next week, I think I’ll order the mini Danish, get the mini muffins from a different place and make a couple mini loaded loaves and assemble my own Christmas Morning breakfast tray. I’ll also go to the grocery Friday after David leaves for work and get the fruit to make fruit kabobs. I will make this work!
Okay, now break time is over! Mr. Goodcookies are done and the Hazelnut Chocolate Chunk cookies are waiting to be put in the oven! I’ll come back after lunch with my Vintage Baking Thingies and some cookie photos!
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