December - a time to savor tastes and smells

My fully decorated balsam fir still provides an occasional unexpected whiff of freshness when I sit in the chair located closest to the tree.  I don't have a lot of time to just sit and be still, but my cat will only sit in my lap for an extended period of time when I sit in the one chair that the dog cannot also be on at the same time.  I know the cat needs the comfort of my lap as much as the dog needs the daily walks and play time.  So I savor the time I can sit next to the tree and give her some lap time.  It is also a time to be able to read and so we both benefit from the quiet time.  As we get deeper into winter and with less holiday events, she'll get more lap time and I will get more reading done.

I also savor the foods that appear only at this time of year, such as the latkes I'll be enjoying tomorrow evening at the celebration of Hanukkah with close friends.  I used to make a traditional Buche de Noel years ago when Christmas celebrations involved larger groups of people, but I haven't made one for probably at least two decades.  Probably just as well as I remember the amount of time it took and the occasional cooking failure getting the cake for the log to roll without breaking.  I only made it when Christmas was spent in California because it was one of my Mother's favorites.  I still associate Buche de Noel with memories of her.  This year, I just haven't done a lot of baking.  Primarily because of lack of time, but also due to cancellation of events where I would have shared my cookies.  Alas,  due to the weather an event that would have included pizzelles, another favorite Christmas taste,  was cancelled.  That is one of the challenges of living in Minnesota.  Some years the weather just doesn't cooperate and this December has been one of those years.  Yesterday's slight dusting on top of icy road conditions made it a good day to just stay home.  The good news is that looking ahead to next week, it appears like calm weather for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

As we have plunged back into another cold spell after a few days of thawing, I will hope you have a chance to sit and savor some of the holiday treats that only appear at this time of the year.  There are probably smells and tastes that evoke pleasant memories.  I will hope your festivities allow you to indulge in all those seasonal pleasures that you can savor and enjoy and provide new happy memories.