Christmas Prep and Internet!

Our internet has been down for a week which has been unfortunate.  However, we were thankful this morning to wake up and find it working...sort of. (I think they are working on it today, yeah!)  Here is a post I wrote this week while the internet was down.

Christmas Prep

In an attempt to be honest and transparent, I must admit that I took some of these pictures a couple of weeks ago but held off posting them.  There was a little more emotion for me involved in Christmas prep this year as I let go of Christmas time as we know it in the US.  I've always loved the month of December and the holiday fun.  It seemed silly to enjoy decorating our “tree”, laughing at our blunders, taking pictures of my kids...and then walking into my bedroom and bursting into tears.  But you know, it’s all been part of the journey for me the last few weeks. So I processed through my emotions, had a good cry or two, then turned my attention to focusing on embracing what our new Christmas season would look like.   Here's some of my thoughts...

First off, its hard to get into the Christmas spirit when its 96 degrees outside.  For us, Christmas time has always meant chilly weather with at least the possibility of snow.  However in Ghana...well...“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire” just sounds like another sweaty experience.  I’m thinking we may re-write the song to “Sipping Fanta in an ice cool pool”.  Now that sounds more like it...  :)  

And that Christmas turkey or ham dinner?  Well, not exactly.  But there are HUNDREDS of live goats tied to trees all along the roadside this week.  If we were so inclined, we could have our choice of the finest, simply tie up its legs, and throw it in the back of our taxi for a short ride home to our Christmas feast.  (I do not feel so inclined...in case you are wondering!)

Christmas lights and trees are really not very common here.  I ventured into a different part of the city this week and did see a couple trees and some Christmas lights on a couple businesses.  I took pictures to show the kids that they did exist but they are definitely not in every home like we would find in the States.  

[On a sidenote ~ as I was taking the pictures of the Christmas lights, I was sitting in the back of a taxi...in hour long stand still traffic...sucking on raw sugarcane that I bought out my car window...  Yes, this is my life...  Oh, and since Libby has now listened to 43 of the 50 chapters of her Swiss Family Robinson audio book (I had NO idea that book was so long!), she has now apparently become somewhat of a sugarcane expert.  When I walked in the door with my surprise sampling to let them try, she informed me without batting an eye that they would need to consume the sugarcane immediately as it dries out quickly, becomes hard, and would then be inedible.  To which I responded, “Ummm...ok then.”]

Now, even though we are spending our first Christmas in Ghana, I insisted that in our home, there was going to be a TREE...or should I say “TREE”!  :)  So here’s what we came up with... 

Taaaa Daaa!

The Decorating Committee

...and here they are wrapped as presents!

In case any of you, like us, ever find yourself in a “treeless” situation, all you need is a plate for tracing, one package of construction paper, a decorate your own foam tree kit from Target, and about 17 rolls of tape.  (*note -- parts of your tree will randomly fall off the wall and blow across the room thanks to your ceiling fan but no worries, simply apply more tape and reaffix to the wall...then repeat these steps...multiple times a day...until you run out of tape.)

And stockings?  Just tape them to the wall with multiple layers of packing tape.  

Then laugh throughout the day every time this happens...

and this...

and this...

...and since you decorated early, prepare to repeat this process everyday for a month.


Now on to Christmas cookies!  Yes, we had Christmas cookies!  Don’s favorite is frosted snickerdoodles and the kids love those too so that is what we attempted.  As you can see below, fun was had by all!

(took this one after his eyes were closed for the first 3 pics.  Here he is trying really hard!  :)  ) 

Like Daddy like son!

Now, so as not to fool any of you with these lovely pictures, may I just say that while these pictures were not staged, they are mostly pictures of first bites.  I dare say that had I taken pictures of the 3rd, 4th, or 5th bites, the faces would not have looked so jolly.  That being said, if you find yourself in a foreign country desiring frosted snickerdoodles, here are some things you may want to keep in mind...

1. I would advise bringing your own measuring cups and spoons as trying to convert your recipe into grams may prove to be quite difficult and highly inaccurate.  Just saying...
2. In preparation for your cookie making extravaganza, I would suggest a daily regimen of hand stirring with a wooden spoon starting with a couple minutes and increasing daily.  If you choose to mix cookie dough for the first time completely by hand (because you were forced to leave your beloved Kitchenaid mixer at home) without said regimen, prepare for arm cramps combined with sporadic spasms followed by shooting pains down to your fingers for at least an hour...again...just saying...
3. When using an oven that has no actual temperature markings (and even if it did, they would only read in celsius), trust no conversion charts, temperature gauges, or time estimates.  Simply choose your favorite hash mark on the oven’s temperature knob, then watch the cookies...closely...without taking your eye off of them...ever...until they look “done”...and then hope for the best.  
4. When making frosting, do not let a store clerk convince you that Dextrose Glusomate is the same as powdered sugar, regardless of the fact that there is absolutely nothing else that looks close.  I assure you, Dextrose Glusomate and powdered sugar are completely different things.  If you choose to proceed in making frosting with this substance, your frosting will turn out the consistency of baking soda paste, taste like the sweet chemical they put in dental flouride, and will never pass a taste test with your children no matter how hard you try.  (it does, however work quite well to hold massive amounts of sprinkles on your cookies, as long as you don’t intend to eat more than the first bite)

So there you have it!  Prepping for the Christmas holidays in Ghana...!  Ho Ho Ho!