Christmas party prep

A very [belated] merry Christmas, folks!  It’s been such a cozy Christmas here in Sicily.  My three siblings and my parents arrived on Saturday morning and we’ve been savoring all our favorite parts of Christmas: family together, holiday music, roaring fires, hot breakfasts, homemade wassail, thoughtful conversations, no schedules, group games, and tables laden with good food.  My sisters have been documenting almost every moment, so there will be many photos to share soon.

I wanted to share some photos from our Christmas party last week.  Unfortunately, we were too busy hosting to think about photos during the party, but we got some shots beforehand.

I spent the day before baking and preparing.  This little cutie and I had fun in the kitchen!

Elliott and I eagerly prepared our house for this event, and I think we gave the impression that we are [almost] settled in!  Elliott had a fire going in our “hobbity” fireplace to keep our guests warm:

The other half of our living room:

I made a Christmas tree cheese plate and added sundried tomatoes from the local market and green olives grown and harvested by our neighbors.  The “star” atop the tree is a mushroom; I used the tip of a knife to press the star shape into it.  This was a huge hit!  After the party, not a scrap of the tree remained.

And many desserts, including the sweetest mandarins from our neighbors’ groves:

I did hours of research on recipes before this party.  Here are links to some tried-and-true goodies:

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7 Responses to Christmas party prep

  1. Autumn December 27, 2011 at 5:11 pm #

    NOICE

  2. Jessica December 27, 2011 at 6:27 pm #

    i want to cuddle in front of that fireplace with my booK! and be served all those delicious foods while i play with my cute niece! I’m glad her hair is finding it’s way into a more natural sideways part :)

  3. Sarah Boschung December 28, 2011 at 1:22 am #

    The food all looks delicious and festive! I especially like the Christmas tree brownies and cheese/tomato/olive tree. I will have to borrow those ideas next Christmas! I hope you are having a wonderful time with your family!

  4. Sarah December 30, 2011 at 5:27 pm #

    what a beautiful fireplace! your home looks so cozy and inviting. and I’m sure you were a wonderful hostess. : )

  5. megarber January 2, 2012 at 9:19 pm #

    Everything looks beautiful–the apartment, the food…. I made the pretzel things with a rolo on top of the pretzel and topped with a peanut m & m. That was really yummy too.

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